Sparrow

The masquerade ball was going to begin in less than an hour, but I wasn’t ready. Yet. It is going to start at 12:00 midnight at the dot. I turned over in bed and looked at the alarm clock, “omg...omgomgomg...I'm DEAD!!” I literally fell off the bed and started getting ready for the stupid ball.

By the way, the name’s Angeline. Call me Angel or A, both work. Anyway, I’m the most important person to the Queen because I’m her daughter, you know, the princess. I stare at my huge closet, seeing rows and rows of t-shirts, jeans, runners...and wow...only three dresses. O-okay? Well, I'll just pick one, no biggie. I went over the invitation once more to see if there where any loop-holes for me to wear jeans.

You are hereby invited to the royal masquerade ball …

Dress code: Formal dressing and a mask.

Nope.

I heard two sets of footsteps coming down the hall towards my bedroom, one I recognized as my mothers (angry, loud and obnoxious, just like her), the other unknown. I decided to put on a pair of jeans and a comfy sweater just to get her riled up. Soon after I heard a knock, I opened the door and unsurprisingly my mom stormed into the room dressed for a ball looking like Cinderella’s step-mother. Strange, I heard two footsteps. My mom looked at me disapproving as I knew she will, and then she smiled her signature smile and announced: “Princess Angeline Ashcroft, I command you to meet Prince from the kingdom of Strathclyde!” Wow! Does she think I’m 5 and stupid? Is this a joke? I raised my eyebrows questioning her announcement. "Um...there's like no one behind you? Just thought you should know"

She looked at me scolding without moving her lips. Show some respect. I was about to angrily close the door in her face when I heard it; an embarrassed clearing of the throat “Um, sorry to interrupt. My name is Skyler” I looked around to see where it was coming from.

Seeing that the person was right behind me gave me a shock“Geez! You almost gave me a heart attack!” He blushed a rosy pink color and mumbled an apology. He had endless blue eyes, a shock of blond hair and strong chiseled jaw. And he was blinking in and out of existence.

I just realized I was gaping and cleared my throat with a mumbled hello. “Here we go again with the morals, Princess.”She said in an excited voice, “You are to bow when you meet with the representative of a Kingdom”.

I replied by doing the most childish act ever; I stuck my tongue out at her, which as usual, earned me a disgusted look. I smiled, that was the look I knew her for.

At that moment I realized a guy was standing behind me in my room. I waved my arm and an invisible force shoved him out. “You sure you’re a Prince? Get the hell out of my room!”

“Oh! I’m sorry” he grumbled. ‘‘You know you could be more observant’’. He smirked at me and that did it. I snapped and slammed the door in their faces.

I didn’t miss the shocked gasp from my mom and an annoyed snort from Skyler. I got about dressing for the ball with a smug look on my face. That should teach him to mess with me. I thought he was done, but I didn’t know this for sure. The worst was yet to come.