#Jules Illéa I just made him up

[viscountessevie]

Mayrid of Problems

[No that title is not a typo, it will make sense when you read the fic]

A/N: Gahhh it frustrates me that I didn’t like/reblog/bookmark the post that inspired this fic but if the blogger who came up with that headcanon sees this, please tell me so that I can give you all the credit you deserve for this genius prompt. I present to you:

May and Marid’s One Night Stand

May groaned as another boyfriend walked out on her. What was it with people and unable to deal with the fact she did not want to have kids? Her nephews nieces were more than enough.

It wasn’t just the kids issue; her previous beaus always found one reason or another to leave. She can’t blame all of them for her short term relationship; she has broken up with several of them because they wanted the fame that came with dating the Queen’s sister. It was fun the first few years, her boy craziness finally paying off. Everyone wanted her and she gladly welcomed her. But now well into her 30s, she wanted to settle down. To have that one companion she can count on whenever. She wants what her sister has with Maxon.

As she watched her now ex-boyfriend walk away, she knew that wasn’t happening anytime soon. She wished she could turn back time and enjoy her youth a little bit more. That’s what she needed; to feel young again. May was usually a magnetic and positive person but some days just got her down and she needed to drown her sorrows. She ended up at Angeles’ Hell, a new and upcoming bar for the 20 something trust fund babies of Angeles. This was the perfect place for her to down a few drinks and momentarily forget about her failure of a love life. Hey, maybe she could find a younger guy to keep her warm for a night.

That is exactly what she did.

His bright smile was enough for May to swoon. She could have ran her hands through his mass of curls for the rest of her days. His eyes were deep set and charming. He dazzled and swept her off her feet. He was the perfect stranger.

So of course she slept with him.

He was the solution to her problems. She needed to feel young and that young man fulfilled all her needs. For that one night, she felt free of her previous romantic endearvors. She didn’t have to worry about what would happen next. She just focused on the now. She could worry about tomorrow when it came.

Worry is exactly what she did.

Marid Illéa just turned 20, he was determined to finish his teenhood bucket list and start a new one for adulthood. He had finally checked off ‘Sleep with an older woman’. My, the redhead he picked up the night before was wild. He was feeling pretty good about himself. So good that he was going to ask her to stay for breakfast. You need to know that Marid does not do The Morning Afters. He’ll usually kick her out the moment she opens her eyes. He stared at his ceiling and sighed contently. He heard his redhead echo the content sigh. They simultaneously turned to each other and yelled. They jumped away from each other in digust. They should have known better.

His dazzling smile was a little too iconic. Her red hair was a little too Singer.

As they examined each other, they saw all the years they missed after the Illéas left the Palace. May saw how his round face had become a strong jaw line sharp enough to cut, and his stringy limbs had filled out, she had felt up his muscles the night before.

Marid was at a loss for words. He used to have a school boy crush on her. She had aged well. Her features were more set and prominent. Her usual giddy smile was pulled back into a grimace as she assessed the situation.

“You can’t tell anyone!” They both exclaimed at each other before sighing in relief that their twisted secret would be kept safe. Marid was still in awe of his old babysitter. The Schreaves and Illéas were busy people so when their children needed tending to; Magda and May would take over. This was of course before they had moved. Marid had taken a immerse liking to May.

May noticed his staring and raised her eyebrows.

“What are you staring at?” “I can’t quite believe it’s you. How have you been?” “Can I have a moment to change and breakfast before we start with the small talk?” He nodded and left her to be while he changed in the guest room. Once they were both dressed, they met up in the living room. May was examining the apartment. She turned to him when she heard footsteps.

“Where are your parents?” He rolled his eyes. “I moved out the moment I turned 18. We had differences in beliefs.” “They seem to have differences with everyone.” May joked. Marid could only respond with an exasperated sigh.

“So what was the beloved sister of the Queen doing at Angeles’ Hell? You and I both know that isn’t the place for the larger than life May Singer.” He could pretend all he want but he had kept tabs on the royal family, especially May. He was hoping for the day he could reenter her life because she had always made his life a little brighter. He was also keeping an eye out for a husband; it couldn’t be just anyone, it had to be someone worthy of May. So of course Marid had guessed why she was at the bar the night before. She was lonely.

Despite it all, he wanted to hear it from her. It wasn’t his place to throw assumptions at her. Being May, she was known for being energetic and happy all the time. She was determined to keep up that side of her even if it gets tiring after a while.

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” She teased him. It was better than admitting that the cheerful May Singer was lonely and a little sad. Marid saw right through her but decided to keep quiet. She would open up when she wanted.

“Fair enough. Strawberry tarts and chamomile tea just the way you like it.” He served her. As she took her place at the coffee table, he went back into the kitchen to get his own breakfast. “Chocolate covered waffles and mocha I assume?” She guessed. He nodded with a smirk. It’s like they never left each other’s lives. They spent the rest of breakfast catching up. While Marid was on task with keeping up with the Schreaves, May was only vaguely aware of what Marid had been up to all these years.

After breakfast, they had to get on with their lives. Marid was deflated that the spell would be broken as soon as May left. Quite the contrary, before leaving, she turned to him.

“We should do this again.” Running the words through her head, she corrected herself, “By this I mean breakfast and nothing else.” Marid grinned, clearly amused but nodded nonetheless. They bid their goodbyes and went their seperate ways.

They both became too busy to have breakfast again. When Eady announced her Selection, both of them got to working. May was obviously helping her niece prepare while looking for her own suitors in Eady’s pile. Marid, on the other hand, had more devious plans. For you see, beliefs that Marid and his parents differed in involved the Illéan Throne. August and Georgia were perfectly fine with the Schreaves ruling whereas Marid felt as though he had been robbed of his birth right. A little after the Illéas had left the Palace after their falling out with the Schreaves, Marid took his father’s stash of diaries by their ancestors as an act of defiance. He found Gregory’s journals and started reading. The more he studied Gregory’s journals, the more he wanted the Throne and knew he deserved it.

As right as Marid may be about the Throne being rightfully his, he wanted it for all the wrong reasons. He wanted it for the power. To have a kingdom at his fingertips. The Schreaves - especially King Maxon had inherited the Throne deservingly and was ruling the country for the right reasons. He wanted the best for Illéa.

For years, Marid had been waiting for the ample opportunity to slither into the good graces of the Schreaves and strike. Eadlyn’s Selection was the opportunity that he had been waiting for. He had waited years, a few more months until she has narrowed down her Elite was nothing. His plan was to reenter her life and sabotage the Elite all while making himself seem like the perfect suitor. Once Eady marries him, he’ll either stage a death or make her bend to his will.

The idea came to him when he slept with May. Initially, he wanted to use May to get to his goal but he respected her too much to do that to her. Eady on the other hand, he knew from the moment they were playmates that she would be a terrible Queen. So there would be no lost love.

While May was trying to piece the most fulfilling life for herself, Marid set his plan to get Eady in motion. In short, his plan did not work. It all went down the drain. She declared Illéa a constitutional monarchy and picked a husband who wasn’t even in the running for her Selection. He was hoping the backlash of the latter would help him gain favour of the citizens. But before he could devise another scheme to do that, May put a stop to it.

This was their first meeting after the one night stand. May was furious. How dare he manipulate her niece like that? She barged into his apartment and started giving him a earful.

“How could you?” Was the first thing she yelled at him. Then she goes on to rant about everything wrong with what he did to Eady; all the manipulation and blackmail. She went on about how disgusted she was about all of it. Marid was hardly paying attention, he had heard this all from his parents after The Schreaves had relayed the shit he had tried to pull. The only thing that struck a chord with him when May gave him a piece of her mind was when she delievered her final line.

“I’m so disappointed in you.” He stopped breathing for a moment. He turned to her slowly. No one has ever said that to him, his parents somewhat expected this. They were always mad at him, not disappointed. Disappointed suggested that they believed in him. No one ever believed in him, he had to believe in himself and built himself up to be the man of the media he was today. He knew there was a reason he liked May. Even when they were younger, she believed in him. He knew what he had to do. Marid never had any regrets in life but the only two he had now was not reaching out to May earlier and having disappointed her. He did something he never thought he’d do. He apologised.

“I’m sorry, May.” She softened a little, seeing how apologetic he was but that doesn’t excuse how he was with Eady. She stared him down firmly. “I’m not the one who you should be apologising to.”  He pursued his lips. He did not want to apologise to Eady. She would throw it in his face. May, almost reading his mind, insisted that it was the right thing to do. He groaned and whined but eventually gave in. May escorted him to the Palace to make sure he didn't make a run for it.

He didn't even want to replay that scene in his head. She laughed at him. That horrid girl - his Queen actually laughed at him when he apologised. With the killer side eye May was giving him, he had to take the emotional hit. He was not happy about it to say the least. He crossed his arms furiously as he stomped his feet all the way out like a child throwing a tantrum.

“I can't believe you made me do that!” He turned on her as soon as they left the Palace grounds. She rolled her eyes. “Eady could have had imprisoned for treason so don't pull this tantrum with me, Marid. I'm losing my patience with you.” May said sharply. He was taken back. He was starting to see the error of his ways. When you piss off May Singer, you know you're doing something wrong. He apologised meekly but she was having none of it. They parted ways, May asking him to only contact her after he has pulled himself together.

True to his word, he stayed away until he got himself together. Months later, he set up a meeting with May. He had a surprise for her and funnily enough she did too. He asked her to meet him at Leo’s soccer games. She was confused at the location but agreed nonetheless. When she walked up to the bleachers with a certain tall, dark and handsome gentleman, Marid’s heart dropped. His plan was a bust. May thought the same when she saw a caramel haired man by Marid’s side. They pushed all negative feelings away and smiled at each other. They introduce each other’s companions.

“Baden Trains?” Marid frowned, wasn't he a part of Eadlyn’s Selection. “Your uncle?” The dashing young man by Marid’s side was far too young to anyone’s uncle. Then again so was she. They excused themselves from their friends and sorted this out.

“Are you trying to set me up with your uncle?” “Are you doing the same with Baden?” They both nodded at the same time and grinned. They wished each other luck and went to meet their respective dates.

Marid shook hands firmly with Baden and was immediately smitten. May shyly went up to Marid’s uncle, most likely August’s brother because they looked so similar. She offered him a tentative smile; she felt like she was 14 all over again. She did all the crushing rather than the other way around. He beamed at her and held out a hand.

“Hello I'm Jules Illéa.” May blushed. “May Singer...say do they name all of you after the months of the year?” He laughed a beautiful laugh and that's when she knew.

He was The One.

[viscountessevie]

Where Are They Now? Eady’s Elite Edition: Kile

The Elite: Henri | Hale & Ean | Fox | Gunner

Kile

Kile and Alice’s story was the most simple yet tragic out of all Eady’s Elite. They had met during Kile’s banishment in Bonita. They also started off on the wrong foot. Well, for one, Kile thought Alice was a boy the first time they met.

***

“Hey man!” Kile clapped his Head Engineer’s back after Julian Henry had directed him to his boss. Julian was an old friend from Eady’s Selection. He was the candidate from Bonita and also the boss’ cousin. Kile decided to get friendly. Unfortunately for him, he misgendered her. She turned to him slowly, taking off her cap to reveal long thick dark hair and glared at him. She had icy blue eyes instead of Eady’s sharp brown ones. The two ladies looked scarily similar with their dark, all year round tan and the fire in their eyes. Engineer Lewis had softer features, in contrast to Eady’s sharp ones, Kile noticed.

“Excuse me? Do I look like a man to you?” She growled. Alice Lenore Lewis had dealt with this kind of men long enough. She was sick of it.

“I just thought –“ Kile gulped, he couldn’t think of any way to make this situation better. “Thought what? That a girl couldn’t do this job because it’s ‘a man’s job’?” She pointed a crowbar at him, “Well Mister, I am very capable at my job! If you are going to question that, you can leave right now.” She stormed off, her long hair whipped in the wind and hit her cousin, Julian in the face. Kile laughed once, Alice was out of earshot.

“You deserved that.” Kile voiced to Julian, “A warning about your cousin would have been nice.” One glance at Julian’s mischievous expression and Kile knew he had been set up. He lightly shoved Julian.

“She’s funny when she gets riled up.” Julian admitted sheepishly. Kile shook his head at Julian, disappointed in him. “Her anger is not your entertainment. We should go apologise.” Kile saw the panic in Julian’s eyes and grabbed him before he could make a run for it. “Do you know what my Ma will do when she finds out I’ve been messing with Lenore again?” “You really should have thought this through then.”

Julian kept cursing the entire time on the way to Alice’s office. He even struggled against Kile’s hold a couple of times. Kile was as strong as his father. Training occasionally with the guards came in handy. When they reached Alice’s office, Kile practically threw him in.

“Hey Lenore, Julian has some explaining to do, afterwhich I would like to speak with you privately.” “My name isn’t Lenore.” She said menacingly, “It’s Julian’s stupid nickname for me, it’s Alice and noted.” As he closed the door, he caught a bit of their conversation.

***

“What the hell did you do now, Jules?” Alice was already tired of sexist men in the workforce but her cousin was a whole other level of exhausting. He gave his usual sheepish laugh. He was always a deer caught in the headlights.

“I may or may not have set up Kile to think you were a boy…” Alice rolled her eyes up to the ceiling and let out a frustrated sigh.

“You made me look like a bitch!” “You are a bitch, though.” “YES! But that’s not the point, Julian! God, what am I going to do with you?” She then grabbed him by the ear and dragged him out to where Kile was waiting to have a word with her.

“OW LENORE! Not my ears, they are my best feature.” Julian whined. Both Kile and Alice rolled their eyes at the same time and shared a smile at the gesture. She let go of him and he stumbled for a while.

“You both are horrible people.” Julian spat. Alice just raised a single eyebrow. Like she hadn’t heard that one before.

“I believe you owe Kile an apology, Jules.” She said sternly. Julian huffed and mumbled an apology. “I can’t hear you, Jules.” At that Kile lost it and burst out laughing. “She calls you Jules. It’s funny, man.” He offered an explanation when Julian glared at him. To get away from Kile’s laughing and Alice’s pressure, Julian yells an apology and goes off. The former two were taken back but Alice quickly brushes it off since this was a regular occurrence with her cousin.

She gestures for Kile to follow her into her office. She poured herself some coffee, the Lord knows she needed it after that whole fiasco with Julian. She poured some for Kile and turned to pass him one. What she didn’t notice was that Kile was standing right behind her and the coffee cups crashed into him, spilling all of its contents on him.

“Shit.” Alice was efficient, she quickly discarded the cups and took paper towels and started wiping his overall. “I’m so sorry!” She apologised profusely. Kile smiled down at her. She was much more pleasant when she wasn’t yelling or glaring at him. “I don’t think it’s going to come off. It’s okay, we are even now.”

She looked up at him, trying to figure him out. Alice has had dysfunctional men in her life, her father was a drunk and ran out on her family, Julian was… well Julian and her ex-boyfriend Luc was no better. She laughed remembering her reaction to him breaking with her. Kile was surprised at her laugh that he stumbled back and fell into the trashcan. Alice couldn’t help herself and started laughing. She went to help him up.

“Sorry for startling you, I was thinking of how I threw a pipe at my ex-boyfriend when he broke up with me after cheating on me…TMI sorry.” She waved her hand, to disregard the subject and rummaged through her cabinet for Julian’s old clothes that Kile could wear.

When she handed him the clothes, their hand brushed ever so slightly and they both feel a spark. Cheesy as it was, that was how their love story began.

***

“Sarah, I’m home!” Alice called out to her sister. “Go wash up before you touch me.” Alice rolled her eyes at her OCD-ic sister. While washing up, Alice yelled across their apartment about the day she had.

“So I met a pretty boy today. He questioned my gender and I flew off the handles as usual.”

“Typical you.” Sarah called back. By then Alice had done washing up and went over to her sister for an inspection. Otherwise the younger Lewis sister would never let her be near her. “You’re clean.” They settled on their couch and Alice recounted her story.

“So basically it was Jules’ fault and Kile’s really cute.”

“His name’s Kile?” Sarah questioned suspiciously. Alice nodded and all the questions came raining down on her. “Is he blonde? Blue eyes? Is his last name Woodwork?” “Yes, yes…I’m not sure. Why all the questions, S?”

Sarah shook her head, disappointed at her older sister. “You can be such an idiot sometimes, sis.” Sarah went to their DVD cabinet and pulled out the recording of Princess Eadlyn’s Selection from a year ago. The video starts playing and Alice spots a familiar head of blonde hair and her cousin’s dark hair and signature green shirt. She gasped and pointed at the two of them.

“Kile was in the Selection? Jules too? Is there where he went for a while?” She was genuinely surprised. “Al, this is what you get for burying your head in a book all the time.” “They aren’t just books –“ Sarah cuts her off with an eye roll.

“My point is, can you set me up with Kile Woodwork? He’s my favourite.” Alice immediately scoffs and protests. She lists all the reasons why Kile and Sarah can’t date. He’s too old for her, it would be awkward for him to work for Alice if he was dating her little sister and she kept this reason to herself but Alice liked Kile.

Meanwhile, in Kile’s temporary apartment, he was thinking the same of Alice. The mean way her eyebrows furrowed when she frowned at him the first time when he called her ‘man’. The gentle curl of her smile when she smiled at him when they were both annoyed with Julian.

They don’t know how but they fell in love with each other within a day. They didn’t come to terms with it until they were given a push.

***

Their push came in the form of Julian and Sarah.

Months into Kile’s banishment and their meeting, Kile and Alice were making it all too obvious that they fancied each other but never had the courage to tell each other. This was due to two reasons. 1) They were oblivious to each other’s affections and thought it was one sided and 2) Kile was intimidated by the fact that she threw a pipe at her ex-boyfriend, he couldn’t imagine what she’d do to him if she didn’t reciprocate his feelings. Alice was scared off by the fact that he was literally the Queen’s ex-boyfriend. She watched the whole of their Selection. Alice has seen how Queen Eadlyn looked at Kile before she realised she loved the translator, Eikko. Who could ever live up to the Queen of Illéa? The thought of not being good enough for him scared Alice away completely.

Sarah figured it out when Alice refused to take her to the construction site to meet Kile. Julian put two and two when he noticed Kile’s faint blushed whenever he was around Alice. He was even worse when he had to talk to Alice. Kile was usually a well-put together guy but around Alice, he became a babbling idiot.

The ironic thing was that everyone noticed what was happening to them before they themselves even knew.

The opportunity for Julian and Sarah to give the inevitable couple their push arose during Alice’s birthday. Since it was so close to Christmas, the sneaky pair of cousin set it up to be a Christmas themed party. They hung up mistletoes everywhere so that it would be impossible for Kile and Alice not to kiss. They prepared lots of eggnog with extra alcohol for Alice because the only way to loosen up the uptight Latina was get some drinks in her.

Invitations were sent out and to make it even more fun, Julian encouraged everyone to make bets as to how and when Kile and Alice – or Kalice  as everyone called them now – would end up together. All bets had been place before Sarah caught him. That didn’t stop her from giving him a tongue lashing.

***

A week later, the party was set up at the office because you’d have to be crazy to pry Alice Lenore Lewis away from her work. Even though, it was a ‘surprise party’, Alice knew Sarah would pull a stunt on her like this, she learnt from the last time. So this year, Alice wore something prettier than her usual overalls. She slowly walked into the conference room and as always, everyone jumped out from their hiding positions and yelled ‘Surprise!’

As per routine, she faked a smile as she greeted everyone in the room. She just could never enjoy her birthday because it was the day her dad left. She also hated spending time leisurely when she could be working. With every minute that passed, she just became more grumpy. Then Kile came to her side and she instantly lit up and forgot about work. It was all too evident on her face and everyone gave a little ‘awwh’. Alice just looked at them confused.

Then both of them were pushed against each other and Julian yelled,

“MISTLETOE! You two know what to do.” Both of them mirrored each other by widening their eyes. Kile leaned down to whisper in her ear.

“We don’t have to, if you don’t want to.” She melted right there. He was such a gentleman. She pulled back a little and gave him a smirk before murmuring, “Well, if it’s a show they want, we’ll give them one.” She put her hand at the back of his neck and pulled him to her.

‘His lips felt soft,’ were Alice’s first thoughts. ‘She’s a great kisser.’ Kile was in awe.

Julian and Sarah’s plan worked, in an instant Kalice’s feelings were magnified. Then the illusion was shattered when Alice came to her sense. What the hell was she doing? She can’t like him! He’s Kile Woodwork, he probably has relationships on a pedestal after dating the Queen. She pulled back sharply and ran out of the conference room. She wanted to lock herself up in her office but they’d knew they would find her. She hailed down a cab and started to get in when Kile came out shouting for her.

Crap, she thought. She was going to have to end up facing the music anyways, why not now. She apologised to the cabbie and turned to face Kile. She kept her head down, terrified to look at him.

“Has anyone told you that you look gorgeous in red?” She still stared down, examining a loose thread. She picked at it. It was a stupid dress. A red version of a ‘little black dress’. She finally tilted her head up to face him. “If you came to comment on my dress, I suggest you go work for your friend Hale and don’t waste my time.” She stated coldly. This has always been her defense mechanism, pushing them away until they leave.

Kile Woodwork wasn’t one to give up. He stepped forward and cupped her face.

“Must you always be mean?” “I am not –“ She starts to protest when the expression on his face tells her that he knows she’s lying to herself. Her eyes started to well up, thinking about her father and Luc and how they hurt her. She was tired of being hurt.

Kile kissed her once again and she let him. In that moment, all her worries about being hurt and work all disappeared. How did he do that? Manage to completely sweep her off her feet and distract her.

“Tell me you didn’t feel anything and I’ll leave you alone.” “I’m scared.” She whispered, finally deciding to tell him the truth. “What are you scared of, Alice?” He asked softly, tucking her hair behind her ear.

“I’m scared of being hurt. I like you so much, it terrifies me. I mean the Queen of our country is your ex-girlfriend. Do you know much I have to live up to?”

Kile laughed at her confession. It wasn’t a pretty polite laugh either. It was knee-slapping, tear jerking kind of laugh. “Yes, please find the time to laugh at my insecurities.” She barked. Immediately he stopped but still had a goofy smile on his face.

“Oh please, Eady is just my best friend. If we loooved each other so much as you claim, why am I here?” The question caught Alice off guard. Why was he here? While watching their Selection, she was so sure Kile was going to win.

“I don’t know.” She admitted sheepishly. “It’s so that I could meet you.” He said seriously and it took her a moment before she began to laugh out loud. “Oh my god that was horrible. Which movie did you get it from?” He gave her smirk.

“Yeah, you’re right. That was cheesy. If I was meant to be Prince Consort, I would have been. But that’s not the life for me. I’ve always wanted to get out of the Palace and Eady knew that so she sent me off. Then I met you, you make me feel like The Selection didn’t even happen. I know we’ve only known each other for a few months but by Gregory, Alice. Falling in love with you has been a whole another wonderful experience.” Alice pressed her lips into the tiniest smile to prevent herself from exploding in a huge ‘Awh’.

“You know, you could have just asked me out like a normal person.” She teased, nonchalantly. He rolled his eyes and pulled her close.

“Well, what can we say? You’re a special girl, Alice.” They walked back to the party, with interlaced hands.

***

Here they were. One year later. Kile’s banishment was over. His mother was dying to have been back. He really had to go this time. Alice and him had six blissful months together. They were now on their last date before he goes back to Angeles. Alice laid her head on Kile’s lap as they recounted everything that happened over the six months.

Their First Date. Sarah thought it would be fun to go ice-skating and dragged Julian and the couple along. She thought it would be a romantic first date where Kile would catch her when she falls. In theory it works but their ice-skating outing ended in snowball fights and finding out Kile’s middle name which no one knew until now.

Kile had stuffed snow down her coat and Alice was pissed. She rolled up the biggest snowball her tiny hands could muster and ran around trying to catch Kile in close range to hit him.

“COME BACK HERE, KILE WHATEVER-YOUR-MIDDLE-NAME-IS WOODWORK! This means war!!” He was laughing so hard, he knocked himself over and Alice got her victory snowball in his face.

“It’s Maxon by the way.” He said casually as they were drying themselves off. Alice quirked an eyebrow. “What’s the King?” “Not the King. My middle name is Maxon.” He rubbed the back of his neck embarrassed as he recounted the equally embarrassing reason behind the middle name.

“Uncle Maxon saved Mom and Dad’s lives and so Mom being Mom insisted that I was somehow named after him so there went my middle name.”

“I still find it hard to believe that the King is your 'Uncle Maxon’.”

*

Then there was the 'Meet The Parents’ on Alice’s side. Her family really just consisted of Julian and Sarah since her father ran out on her and her mother died a few years after that. To make it all the more dramatic, Julian and Sarah dressed up to look like old rich parents. Julian exaggerated his voice as he took Kile’s hand in a firm handshake.

“So what are your intentions with my daughter, young man?” “Ohmygod, Julian! You’re embarrassing me!” Alice intervened before Kile could even think of giving a serious answer. “That’s the whole point of parents, sis.” Sarah laughed and they enjoyed the rest of their dinner peaceful.

Well…until Julian thought it would be a good idea to balance an egg on his nose.

*

The Actual Meet The Parents with Marlee and Carter Woodwork. Kile created a video calling software on his laptop and his parents’ when he left for Bonita so that he could call them anytime any of them missed the other. Four months in, Kile decided to introduce Alice to his parents.

It was safe to say that it did not go too well.

“A girlfriend?!” Ms. Marlee made it all too clear she wasn’t happy with Kile having a girlfriend. “Yes…is that okay with you?” Alice said unsurely. She had heard all about Mama Woodwork and how she freaked out about Kile’s banishment. She gave Queen Eadlyn quite the tongue lashing for sending her precious son away.

“If you are going to tie him down there, then absolutely not!” At least she was honest, Alice thought. She smiled serenely at her. “Don’t worry, Mrs. Woodwork. It’s not long term. He’s leaving in three months.” She seemed delighted at this while Kile just stared at his girlfriend with a frown, trying to figure her out. He gruffly said goodbye to his parents and slammed his laptop.

This led to Their First Fight.

“It’s not long term? What the hell, Alice?!” was the first thing he yelled. She glared at him.

“Don’t yell at me. Did you see the relief on her face when she realised I wasn’t going to keep you here. Your mother loves you, Kile. Yes, she might be a bit too overbearing but at least you have a mother.”

Both of their eyes flashed. They knew that last line was a touchy subject. Kile immediately tried to calm himself down. Even though he was still upset, he opened his arms wide for her to step into them. She silently obliged and hugged him back.

“I’m sorry for yelling.”

“You’re forgiven and I shouldn’t have ambushed you like that. We never really did talk about what is going to happen after your banishment has been lifted…” He sighed, rubbing soothing circles on her back.

“I don’t want to be sad anymore. We’ll cross that bridge when we get there.”

***

Here they were. Contemplating how to cross the bridge.

“I say we burn it!” Alice laughed manically when Kile brought up the fact that they were indeed at their crossroads bridge. He rolled his eyes and ruffled her hair.

“Very funny, Alice. Come back to Angeles with me?” He suggested. She parted her lips in shock. For once she was at a loss for words and she was the writer. She gave a little sigh, remembering that special dinner with Kile. This was her attempt to remain looking back in their own little world.

*

The Dinner.

When she emerged out of the room in her gorgeous red gown, Kile’s jaw dropped. Quite literally. It was their three-month anniversary and they wanted to do something special. So Sarah forced Alice into that dress. All throughout dinner, he couldn’t keep his eyes off her. This was the first time Kile realised and entertained the idea of falling in love again. They were comfortable around each other but haven’t gone as far as to say those three little words. So he decided to test the waters and gave Alice a sort of initiation to get through. He already liked that they had the housing unit in common.

“If you weren’t an engineer, what would you be?”

“A writer.” When she saw the surprise on his face that she replied so quickly, she proceeded to elaborate, “I’ve always wanted to be a writer, but my parents didn’t think it was a stable career so they made me take up engineering and here I am. I still do write from time to time but not as much as I used to or would like to.” Her eyes lowered sadly at that last bit.

So they went back and forth like that. Kile talked about how his mother’s overbearingness almost stopped him from pursuing the housing unit project. Alice asked of his thoughts on settling down and he shared that he’d like to travel the world for a bit before settling down to start a family. This was when Alice became excited because she felt the same way and they discussed of the places they’d visit.

Little did Kile know that Alice was performing her own initiation through this conversation as much as he was. Sarah had been their Cupid, silently working behind the scenes. She had given each of them, hints as to what to get the other. Kile pulled out her perfectly wrapped present while Alice’s one for him was messily taped all over the place.

“Wrapping presents is not exactly my best suit.” She admitted, sheepishly. He smiled, his lips quirked up a little. It amused him endlessly that Alice was so adorable sometimes.

“Nobody’s perfect. Could you open mine first?” He requested. She nodded and was careful to unwrap it. Sarah may have been the sister with OCD, but when it came to unwrapping presents, Alice was just as bad.

“Al, we aren’t getting any younger here.” She huffed and quickly stripped her present off the wrapping paper. She gasped, with tears in her eyes. “Sarah told me you’d like a notebook. I think you should get back into writing, Al.” She ran over to him and threw her arms around him.

“I love it! Kile, this is amazing!” She kissed him all over the face and hugged the notebooks to her chest. He got her three of them, all with velvet covers and a special quote printed on them. He also sweetened the deal by getting her a stationary set to go with it. He laughed at her joy and kissed her before pulling up her chair next to him. Being across the table was just too far away from each other. Alice watched excitedly as he ripped the wrapping paper off her present to him. She slightly cringed at his method of unwrapping. Her joy of him getting his present overruled that.

He gasped when the book underneath the wrapping paper was revealed. He choked up a little. He understood the thought she put into this.

“Alice, I can’t take this. It’s your favourite first edition.”

“Well I want you to. You know I’ve told you that I would give this to the person who matter the most. I’m giving you a piece of my heart, Kile Woodwork.” She had given him her favourite book and she knew all Kile ever wanted was to get out of the Palace. So when their 3-month anniversary came around, she had no idea to get him. He didn’t need anything else and he was a hard person to get a gift for. So she opted to give him the precious part of herself.

No words could ever describe how elated the couple felt with their gifts and how their counterpart loved the gifts given. Nothing could hurt them in the moment.

*

Alice sat up abruptly, with that memory fresh in mind. Kile was startled. She moved her head to face him ever so slightly. She gave him a demure smile. It said everything but he wanted to hear it from her lips. He nodded, prompting her.

“Yes, Kile Woodwork. I’ll move to Angeles with you.”

***

Alice was nervous. A month ago, she along with Julian and Sarah had moved to a small apartment near the Palace in Angeles. Today, she was going to meet Kile’s family. That didn’t just include his parents and sister. The Royal Family were involved. Alice’s heart was beating so far, she feared it would run out of heartbeats and she would just drop dead.

“Al, relax. It’s just my family. They won’t bite.” Kile rubbed her back comfortingly. She gave a snort.

“Just your family, my ass. The Schreaves are our sovereigns. I’m just a commoner to them, oh dear lord. What if I mess up horribly and am banished? Queen Eadlyn did banish you for near nothing!” Her boyfriend chuckled and she slapped lightly across his chest.

“Not funny, Woodwork!” “If it makes you feel better, I invited Sarah and Julian.” Her eyes widened in panic when he mentioned Julian. “Julian Henry?? Do you want us to be embarrassed?” Kile could only shake his head at her. “He’s been Palace groomed before, remember?” “Oh…” Suddenly Alice felt very inadequate for the Palace. Kile sensed this and hugged her close.

“You can just pretend that its just the two of us. Just us, having our normal dinner.” “Yeah, with the Royal Family as an audience.” “They aren’t that scary, you’ll see.” He pulled her into the dining room. They weren’t the only couple there. Kile and Alice did not recognize them, mostly since they were making out. Until Kile caught a flash of familiar blonde hair.

“JOSIE?!” His sister pulled back sharply, accidently biting on her boyfriend’s lip.

“OW!” Kaden cried. “Shit!” Alice found this all too amusing and started laughing until she saw Kaden. She immediately dropped her stance into a curtsey.

“Your Highness, I apologise.” Now this made Kaden giggle.

“Oh please, I’m just Kaden to you. You are Alice, right?” She nodded slowly, not comprehending how he knew her. Her explanation came in the form of a shrieking future sister-in-law.

“YOU MUST BE ALICE! I’ve been dying to meet you! Kile would never tell us about you, it’s almost like he was keeping you all to himself.” Josie practically ambushed her and both girls fell into the floor because Alice didn’t gauge how well she could catch Josie. As if to sweeten the deal, Queen America and King Maxon came in. She noticed that she walked forward and the King trailed behind her happily. This was a different dynamic from what she’s seen on the screen.

The King and Queen stared down at her quizzically. She immediately stood up and helped up Josie before falling into another curtsey. “Your Majesties.” Queen America gave a little giggle before turning to Kile, “You were right, Kile. She’s absolutely adorable.”

Did the former Queen of Illéa just call her adorable?

They all took their seats as Mr. and Mrs. Woodwork came in. Marlee seemed more happy with Alice now that they were both actually in Angeles. Now everyone was here…except Queen Eadlyn and Prince Consort Eikko. The one person Alice was dreading to meet.

“I apologise for my daughter and her husband’s tardiness, I think they wouldn’t mind if we started without them.” King Maxon announced just as Queen Eadlyn threw the doors to the dining room open and ran in. She seemed to be panting and her dress and hair were slightly crumpled. Prince Consort Eikko trailed behind her with a smug expression.

“Sorry I’m late! I was doing stuff…” She walked to the head of the table as the Prince Consort giggled something to himself in a foreign language. Kile caught its meaning and gave a small laugh. He leaned towards his girlfriend and whispered,

“So remember how I picked up Finnish because of Henri and Eikko? He just said ‘I’m stuff’.” Without realizing, Alice bellowed in laughter. Everyone stared at her, confused.

“Oh um… excuse me. I just think that Prince Consort Eikko is hilarious.” Kile and Alice simultaneous turn to him and he winked at them.

He actually winked at them and that set off another laugh from Alice.

***

Overall she had a grand time with Kile’s big family. Queen Eadlyn wasn’t as intimidating as Alice pictured her to be. Josie was a sweetheart and by the end of the night, Eikko and Alice were best friends.

This was over two years ago. Now, after three years of dating, Kile and Alice were married. Alice just went through an intensive 14 hours of labour.

Warren Owen Woodwork was brought into the world.

Everyone was flocking to see the latest addition to Woodworks. Alice, of course was the first one to see her little man. She cooed at him.

“Who’s my little man? You are!” Then Alice gently placed little Warren in his father’s hands. “Oh my god, Alice. He’s beautiful.” She smiled sleepily. “We made him.” She yawned and was knocked out. Understandable considering the last 14 hours.

“No, Josie! I’m the Queen of Illéa and his best friend. I get to see the baby first!” Kile could hear Eady before he saw her. He stood there, watching the door in amusement as Josie and Eady wrestled to get to the baby first.

“I’m his sister! And possibly the Godmother!” They both came to a halt when they saw both little Warren and Alice were sleeping. They immediately shushed themselves and the incoming family.

***

15 Years Later

Kerttu had a brother named Laden after a six-year wait. Little Warren became not-so-little Ren and he along with the Schreave siblings were thick as thieves.  Ren also grew up to be a big Mama’s boy and was very close with Alice. He was their pride and joy.

He was very shy and slightly awkward but he was mostly comfortable around the Schreaves’ company. He was smarter than both his parents’ combined and they knew this when he picked up an encyclopedia at the age of 3. Now at 15, just like his Uncle Kaden, Ren was very knowledgable in various areas of studies but just like his mother, he picked up writing as his forte. He was a natural at it. He was so brilliant that he had gotten his first deal to publish one of his works at 15. He had gone with his Uncle Gunner to look over the contract since his Uncle Gunner was already a published author.

Everyone was happy but we all know too well that you can’t always get what you want.

He practically ran back home, dragging Uncle Gunner to the Palace with him, so that he could break the news to his parents. “MAMA! POPS! You’ll never believe what I did today!” He reached his parents’ room, panting frantically. He caught sight of his father and ran up to hug him.

“Hey Pop, you’ll never believe what happened to your Little Man!” Ren stopped bouncing excitedly when he saw his father’s sullen face and eyes brimmed with tears. Ren’s heart dropped to his stomach. His father was always a happy man.  Ren was confused as to what could have made him so upset. His mother…

He looked around for Alice, panicking.

“Pop, where’s Mama?” With that question, Kile collapsed onto the floor, breaking down. “She…went…to…surprise…you….” He barely managed to choke it out.

*

Alice had gone to pick Ren up from the publishing firm after Gunner had helped him do up the contract. She wanted to surprise him with congratulatory ice cream. Her car swerved the wrong way and it twisted itself around a tree. She was killed on impact.

Ren learnt this from his father after Kile had composed himself. Ren then broke down, blaming himself. Kile pulled himself together to be strong for both him and his son. He firmly reassured his son that it was no one’s fault. The father and son spent the next few days curled up in bed, mourning their loss. Today was the funeral and all they had to do was pull themselves together for a couple of hours.

‘I can do that.’ Ren thought to himself as he put on his suit for the wake. There was a soft knock on his door and he mumbled for them to come in. The door opened to reveal the youngest Schreave, Laden. Ren immediately felt comforted by his best friend’s presence.

“Ren, are you ready? It’s about to start.” Ren nodded solemnly once before turning to his best friend. Without prompting, Laden pulled him into a hug.

“I’m always going to be here for you, Ren. Never forget that.”

***

Kile and Alice’s love story was a simple and powerful one but it ended in tragedy. Alice had no regrets as she died, she was proud to have had a son like Ren. She had loved Kile more than life itself.

What is a legacy?

It’s planting seeds in a garden you never get to see.