261: Opera House

Opera House

"You need anything, Your Highness?"

"I want you to come here," he said, standing by the wall covered by heavy curtains. 

She hesitantly walked over towards the prince. As she approached, she began to notice noise from beyond the curtain. It was the sound of a crowd's applause, followed by the sound of a man speaking. 

Seeing her dragging her feet, Arlan frowned. He strode towards her and grabbed her hand. "You are going to make us miss it with this snail-like pace of yours."

His impatience stoked her curiosity. Without her realizing it, he had walked her to the other side of the heavy curtains and the sight that welcomed her the next moment astonished her. 

The balcony where Oriana was in offered a commanding view of the entire opera house. It was an impossibly large dome-shaped hall filled with numerous red-cushioned seats arranged according to the shape of the hall, and in front, there was a grand stage with soaring ceilings decorated with intricate frescoes and chandeliers offering a warm, albeit focused lighting on the man standing in the middle of the stage.

The applause she had heard earlier came from the thousands of patrons seated in the theater. The anticipation in the air was palpable, with hushed whispers and a sense of reverence for the performance that was about to unfold. 

To her surprise, all of those visibly excited well-dressed people seated under their balcony were nobles.

She had never seen such a grand view in her life!

At this moment, she even forgot that Arlan was holding her hand.

Watching the fascination on her face was a delight on its own. Arlan seemingly lost himself in a daze, a rare soft smile lingering on his lips. 

How long had it been since he last saw such an expression on her beautiful face?

His smile widened when he felt her hand tighten around his. Mesmerized by the view, she had reflexively clutched his hand, forgetting that the hand she was holding belonged to her master.

Music began to float in the air, and Oriana tilted her body to see better the orchestra pit near the stage, her gaze landing on the rows of musicians holding their respective instruments. 

A tug on her hand brought her back to her senses. 

Only then did she realize she had forgotten something, or rather, someone. 

Her small hand was tightly grabbing a rough yet warm hand, a man's hand, and not just any man's but the prince's! She let go of his hand like she was scalded by a hot potato. 

"A-Apologies, Your Highness!" 

She lowered her head, her head buzzing with panic and confusion. She wondered when and why she was holding his hand. She was screaming internally.

Arlan looked at his hand which suddenly felt empty. Holding just her hand felt so… satisfying. 

He was tempted to order her to continue 'warming' his hand, but in the end, he refrained himself from doing so. She would obviously be suspicious of him over such a silly excuse.

At this point, the lights within the large hall were put out, causing the opera house to darken, only keeping the area of the stage bright. Arlan sat down. Only then did Oriana notice there was a plush velvet couch on the balcony.

"Sit down," she heard him say.

She looked at the empty place next to him, but she knew it was not appropriate for a commoner to sit next to a royalty. 

"I am more comfortable standing, Your Highness."" 

She was about to move behind the couch when his next words made her freeze. 

"Do I need to repeat what I said?"

"N-No, Your Highness."

"I cannot pay attention to the play if someone is standing," he said. 

"Umm, please enjoy the performance. I will go stay in the room and wait for you then…"

Arlan frowned in annoyance. 'Why was this woman being stubborn again? Can't she just go with the flow?'

He turned his head to look at her, the dim lighting causing harsh shadows to appear on his face.

"And who will serve me here? Do I need to yell loudly if I need a drink? Are you trying to find an opportunity to slack away from your duties?"

"No, Your Highness, I…"

"The play has already started. Do not waste my time," he said in finality and paid attention to the stage. 

Unwillingly, Oriana sat on the other end of that couch, trying to keep as much distance between them. It was of little use as Arlan was sitting leisurely, occupying quite a large space on that small couch. There was barely a distance of two handspans between their bodies. 

'Forget it. Just do as the brat says,' she decided. She happened to glance at the small table placed near the side of his couch. There was a crystal glass with what appeared to be fruit juice, along with a platter of mixed nuts. 

"Your Highness, shall I bring you something? Or do you need anything?"

"I need you to keep quiet," he replied. "Pay attention to the play."

Oriana pressed her lips into a thin line, feeling wronged. She was just trying to do her job, wasn't she? And this man was being rude to her. 

'Alright, I will do as he says,' she frowned inwardly and paid attention to the actors on the stage. 

Slowly, she started to get a gist of the storyline of the play, although she could barely comprehend the poetic lines and historical references sung by the actors. It was about a pair of star-crossed lovers belonging to  the royal families of two opposing kingdoms. 

Suddenly, Arlan held something in front of her. "Use this."

Oriana accepted the vintage-looking binoculars with a handle, but she figured these were opera glasses, used to view the performance on stage better.

The moment she used it, Oriana gasped. The performer playing the role of the royal prince was actually so attractive! 

If Arlan were to know she was using the tool he lent her to ogle at the main actor, he would have confiscated it back. However, he was blissfully unaware of this fact.

Arlan leaned back on the couch, and rather than watching the play, it was Oriana who had his entire attention. His gaze was closely observing each of her reactions. 

She was so close, hardly half a foot of distance between them. The sweet scent of honeysuckles flooded his senses and he let himself drown in it. He felt like his mind and soul were finally at peace. 

As the play progressed, there was an emotional part where the prince thought he was betrayed by the princess. He chose to give up his love for her in order to avenge his fallen brother. War was declared, and winning the war entailed the ruination of the princess's family. Still, in the end, he committed a crime in order to help her escape the calamity of death. 

The grief in the song performed by the heartbroken princess made many of the patrons cry.

Even Oriana could not help but shed tears. Arlan first felt surprised seeing tears rolling down her cheeks, but then, he could not help but smile inwardly. Always so strong and stubborn on the surface, yet emotionally sensitive as well. 

When Oriana realized the wetness on her cheeks, she froze and wiped her tears dry. She put down the opera glasses, inevitably catching sight of Arlan staring at her. 

Embarrassed, she was about to say some clumsy excuse when his hand held a glass of juice in front of her. 

"Huh?"

"Drink it," she heard him say without any signs of mocking. Oriana was surprised. This was not how it was supposed to be. After all, she was supposed to be a man in the prince's eyes. She offered him a doubtful gaze. 

Arlan sighed. "Do not overthink. This drink is not up to my liking. Rather than waste it, better have it yourself."

Oriana was used to having what was not up to his liking and had no reason to doubt him. She accepted the glass and started to drink the juice. She realized she felt better after drinking it. Because she had been so engrossed in the play, she did not even realize she was thirsty. In no time, she finished the entire glass of juice. 

She resumed watching the play. The story progressed where the prince gave up his stake of the crown to his more amazing younger sister, prompting the first ever queen regnant to ascend the throne. He then left his kingdom to reunite with his lover and rebuilt her original kingdom. 

There was a smile on Oriana's face by the end of it as the pair of lovers got their much deserved happy ending. She was happy for those characters, especially for the princess who soon found out that her family had been secretly rescued by the prince and were all living well. It was a plot twist that caused the entire opera house to be filled with loud applause, the beautiful song performed at the end heartwarming. 

Oriana furiously clapped as well, even standing up like the majority of the patrons, and Arlan enjoyed seeing her happy sniffles.

Only half a minute later did Oriana notice his gaze on her. By the time she looked at him, the soft smile on his lips had already vanished and he looked like his usual cold self. Arlan stood up to leave.1

Oriana got back to her senses and followed him out of the private room immediately.

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