255: Be Prepared

Be Prepared

When Oriana woke up, it was still dark outside, the sun yet to rise. Seeing Arlan sound asleep, she straightened her clothes before tiptoeing out of the prince's bedchamber.  1

She hurried towards the servant quarters, wanting to bathe in the communal washroom before the other servants woke up. The event from last night continued to flash in her mind but she did her best to not think about it. 

Back in her room, she proceeded to dry herself while laying out a fresh set of uniform on the bed. However, a glimpse of herself in the mirror made her drop the towel she was using to dry her hair. She walked closer to the mirror to take a better look, her eyes wide in disbelief. 

Her neck was covered with discolored patches. 

'Spirits be damned!'

Her breath suddenly turned shallow at the realization of what those were. Her determination collapsed and last night's intimate moments flashed vividly in front of her eyes. 

The way his lips sucked her delicate skin, the way his teeth grazed along it her neck, his hot breath seemingly caressing her with wanton promises—

A light gasp left her lips, and in order to stabilize her rampaging heart, she slapped her cheeks with her hands. 

'Wake up, wake up! That was a dream, nothing but a beautiful dream! You can't be like this, Ori, you can't…' 

She exhaled through her mouth, trying her best to calm herself. With her hands pressed against her face, she could feel her cheeks burning in shame.

'I need to hide it.'

She would be judged if anyone were to see those glaringly visible marks. 

'What shall I do? I need to cover it.'

Grabbing her headwrap, instead of wrapping the fabric only to hide her hair, she made use of its length to hide her entire head in a scarf, tying the ends of the fabric under her chin. This way, the fabric wrapped around her neck. As for the excess, she fastened them to a knot before tucking corners under the collars of her dress shirt. 

It made her look like she was wearing a babushka cover preferred by the nomadic people from the Northern grasslands in winter, which undoubtedly stood out in the warm climate of Othinia.

'Who cares! Being an eyesore is better than being the center of dirty gossip. The mansion maids already talk about me spending nights in the prince's bedchamber…if they were to see these bites…ahhhh!  Nothing happened!'

With the determination to forget and act normal, Oriana prepared for her work day as the personal attendant of Prince Arlan. By the time she went to his chamber, he was still in his bath.

As usual, she took orders from Neil about which accessories to bring out from the wardrobe room. By the time she returned to the main chamber, Arlan was already getting dressed in front of the mirror in a meticulously tailored black ensemble, designed to impress and command respect. She bowed to greet the prince and waited for her turn.

For some reason, the prince looked…more attractive today?

Oriana shook the strange thought away as she stepped up to do her part. She glanced at him, but found him  staring in the mirror and not at her. 

'He doesn't remember…' It should be a good thing, but a small voice inside her was disappointed. 'Ah, what the hell am I thinking? This is normal and it's better too. I misunderstood him before but it's just his usual mood due to a hangover, right? Anyone would be like this after drinking so much.' 

When she was busy fixing his cufflinks, Arlan finally lowered his gaze towards her. She looked different today, and only then did he notice it was because she changed the way her headwrap was tied.

"It's done," he heard her say and she lifted her head, only to find him looking down at her. 

The moment their gazes met, her heart once more skipped a beat. She quietly took a step backward and lowered her head. 

As usual, his gaze left her puzzled. She could never read his thoughts.

"Everything is done, Your Highness."

Arlan's gaze remained fixed on her. Today, he didn't smell that tempting scent from her. She had stopped bleeding, which meant he didn't have to be walking on eggshells when she was around. 

Their relationship could finally return to normal. 

"Your Highness, your meal is ready," Neil informed him. 

Arlan turned his gaze away from her and headed towards the dining room.  Oriana let out a shaky sigh of relief before following him quietly. 

'What's with that look? He doesn't remember last night, right?' 

She felt anxious but tried to console herself again and again. 

'He was too drunk to remember anything. Don't worry, he doesn't remember anything—'

She had complicated emotions about him remembering their kiss, be it the first time or the one the night before. Yet on deeper thought, if he were to  remember last night, she would be damned. Her feelings for him would be exposed! 

Oriana prayed in her heart that he would never, ever remember any of those drunken nights.

As they walked through the hallway, Neil, who was walking with Oriana, whispered to her. "What happened to your neck?"

"I sprained my neck so I applied some ointment and covered it with cloth for better effect," she lied without any hesitation. 

"How did you sprain your neck?" he whispered.

"I didn't sleep in the right position," she answered back. 

"Oh, hope it gets well soon."

"Don't worry. I am a physician."

Arriving at the dining room, Arlan sat down  and the servants served him his morning meal. He glanced at Oriana who was standing in the side. Their gazes met, and she flinched. As if guilty for a reason, she subconsciously moved her hand towards her collar, making sure her headwrap was tucked in place and no gap could be seen.

After Arlan finished his meal and was ready to leave for the eight day of the summit conference, he spoke to no one in particular, "Once I am back, we are going out."

Neil, who was closest to him, replied, "Yes, Your highness."

Arlan turned his head to look at Oriana. "Be prepared." He then climbed up his carriage and closed the door. 

Oriana was taken aback. Was he talking to her, saying they were going out and asking her to be ready? She silently watched the carriage depart through the gates. 

'I am looking too much into it. As his personal attendant, I have to follow him everywhere so isn't that a given? Maybe I can use this chance to tell him the words he didn't get to hear last night…'

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