????Journey To The
Beauty Land????
(Once upon a kingdom…)
CHAPTER 23
By: Tofunmi Nikky
★★★★★
The beauty land***
Queen Roselia could be seen hastily dumping all her clothes into a duffel bag that was placed right on the bed. Had it been some other days; it would be the maid doing the packing and putting everything in order. But not like she cares today, she just dumped everything hazardously into the bag.
“Roselia, come out of your room right now!”she heard her mother call for her.
A knock sounded on the door thereafter and she almost gro-aned, rolling her eyes as she zipped up bag.
“Queen Roselia, your mother seeks you.”her bodyguard that was always on the stand by the door stopped knocking to say.
She grabbed the bag’s straps and as she dragged it behind her, she cursed under her breath. How she wished she could get a maid to do this for her, but it can’t work.
She turned the key in the lock and yanked the door open. She took a step out and couldn’t further because her mother was now obstructing her way.
She briefly shut her eyes, sighing exasperatedly.
“Where to?”Her mother ran her eyes all over her, before damping her arms at akimbo on her wa-istas a frown crept on her face.
“Magadascar, mother. I can’t just stay back here and expect Luciano to just come back. Who knows, he might take a decade.”she told her mother, using her free hand to crease her forehead.
“He’ll come, daughter. You can’t go to his world just like that.”her mother looked almost frightened, but looking back at Roselia’s face; she wasn’t even the least convinced.
Roselia looked past her mother, tightening her hold on the bag’s straps.
“Take care of the palace, Dante.”Instead of responding, Roselia instructed the guard who in turn nodded, and using her power as she knew her mother could be so adamant, she easily sli-pped past her.
“I’m sorry mother, but I need to go find Luciano. And I promise to bring back my hubby.”Roselia looked back behind her back at her mother and stated with a very huge determination.
She saw her mother’s eyes swelling up not wanting to see the upcoming tears and feel guilty, she snapped her index finger against her thumb and once a tunnel appeared, she got into it.
As the tunnel disappeared into the air, her mother held her hurting chest, a drop of tear meaning to escape her eye.
****
As soon as Seth stomped back into the palace, he found his emotions rushing back into his head. He slumped on the couch, feeling the wild sense of a deja vú. He looked down at his bloody knuckles and couldn’t help gritting his teeth in annoyance.
He gulped down nothing as he recollects the scene he’d just witnessed.
Could Luciano possibly like Sabrina? Or wait, what if Sabrina feels the same way.
“fu-ck!”he cussed and not able to contain his feeling, he stalked towards the bar section.
He poured himself a shot of whiskey and downed it. It went with a shrill down his throat and he winched slightly, feeling the hotness.
She’s the most beautiful girl he’s ever met. Damn it, couldn’t she see it in his eyes?
Or was it that it wasn’t that revealing for her to see he so fu-cking want her?
But then, there she was minutes ago locked in Luciano’s arm. The way Lucian was staring at her with that look that spelt admiration, he doesn’t know why but he hates the sight.
Shaking his head to get away the thought for the next few minutes, he knew he had to will himself into this whiskey and doesn’t mind getting himself drunk to stupor; as long as it was able to take away her thought from his head for the next few hours.
He quickly diverted his eyes to the bottle of whiskey and deciding to take the shortcut, he threw away its cap and grabbing the whiskey off the table, he took it to his mouth and start chunking it down the throat.
The way it felt down his throat and straight to his stomach was heavenly.
So heavenly he loves it.
He was only halfway throu-ghthe whiskey when the clic-king of heels against the flooring reached his hearing.
“Hi there?”The feminine voice greeted and as fast as possible, he snapped his head to the direction as he swirled around.
Disappointment washed throu-ghhis face when he saw the sight that wasn’t Sabrina. He grumbled something under his breath that goes along the line ‘fuc-k off’ when he saw her staring so intently at him.
“Hi.”the female before him said again, and this time flashing him a smile which earned an audibly loud scoff from Seth.
He made to turn away when she stretched her right hand in his direction for a shake.
“I’m Roselia by name.”she spoke, but Seth just kept looking between her and her outstretched palm without a word. He felt himself staggering backward and instead leaned against the counter, as he stared back at her smiling face with a huge smirk.
*****
“What the fuc-k ?!”he screeched the car to a sudden halt just before her house, his eyes snapping towards her…
“Well, that was what I dreamt about.”Sabrina shrugged her shoulder, though a little scared at his reaction. That only means that he himself has no idea.
It was a 70-30 percentage. The lowest percent of him doesn’t want to believe what she had just uttered.
While the huge part of him- 70%- knew there was no reason why Sabrina would tell him lies. And since the huge part of him went with that believe; be stared ahead as he tried recollecting few memories.
Few memories of how he’d once heard a certain voice that kept calling him home. He remembered how he’d sticked with the fat ‘No’ and didn’t allow whatever enchantment the strange voice was conveying to get to him.
He also remembered when Anita had all of a sudden disappeared into a tunnel yesterday at school.
A tunnel.. For all he knew; a tunnel was a magical thing. It can’t just been seen on rare occasions.
He knew it was connected with a strange power and not just anybody could see it. So why did he?
He saw it that day but why?
He raked his hand in his hair, without even knowing he was tousling it. ‘Whatever that strange thing is, it’s not going to end well’ he thought to himself.
Luciano’s ringing phone broke into the silence, and striking a fist upon the steering wheel, he retrieved his phone from the cupholder and into his hand.
Boldly written across the screen was the name; ‘Seth’. Peaking a look at Luciano’s phone as she leaned against the leather seat, she saw his name too but quickly looked away when she saw a little bit of furiousness in his eyes.
“A minute,”he doesn’t know why he had glanced at her and said, but he was relieved when she gave him a positive nod.
At the last ring, he successfully slides the call to receiver and placed it across his ear.
“Yes?”he said into the phone, his voice developing a little sharpness that he wished Seth wouldn’t notice, but Seth is Seth anyways. He resisted the urge to roll his eyes when he heard Seth’s slump response.
“No need to be so mean about the call, Lucian. I just called to tell you to come back real quick cause you’ve got a visitor.”
‘Is he drunk?’he immediately thought. And he knew the answer without the help of a soothsayer; Seth has drank himself to a high degree, that was sure.
Seth had hanged up the call instantly. So he placed his phone back at the cupholder and started the car.
Since Sabrina’s house was about few feets away now, the drive didn’t take long. He stopped the car and she unho-oked the seatbelt that was against her body.
Turning, she opened the car door and climbed out of it.
Not fully though because he caught her wrist and stopped her before her second feet could touch the ground.
Sabrina meets his eyes and she saw a certain feeling roaming them. But before she can fathom whatever that look was, Luciano had blinked it away the next second.
“Thank you for relaying the dream to me.”he told her, an uneasy smile on his face.
Looking down at Luciano’s soothing hand that was wrapped around her wrist, she nodded. Was it foreign how she so much likes his touch on any part of her body?
After he’d earned a nod from her, she released her wrist and leaned away. A disappointed feeling seeped up her skin and not wanting him to see throu-ghher nor read her emotions, she quickly dropped her second foot on the ground.
“Bye.”she choked on her word as she slammed the door shut, avoiding his face as she ran into her house.
Confused, he reversed and drove the way back to the palace.
Now; who could his visitor be?
***
Palace***
Roselia noticed the way Seth kept sneaking little glances her away from the opposite couch he’s seated, but decided to act oblivious.
For a second there, she didn’t know Seth would agree easily to place a call to Luciano on her behave. She was thinking to use her power before if he proves adamant. But it turns out he was an easy bone after all.
The minutes later, the main entrance door was opened and Luciano took slow strides in.
Her man… This is her man! Her eyes glinted at his ravishing sight. His dishevelled air that gave him the smoky hot appearance. His royal black shirt and black jeans matched the colour of his hair. His pink eye catching li-ps and heck… the way he was walking in such a royally way.
She found herself falling for her king again. Even though it’s been long they’ve seen each other… He was still her king and she still remains his queen.
Luciano looked round the room and his gaze moved from Seth’s longing eyes and to the unfamiliar lady on seat who was lost staring at him.
Roselia rose up on her feet and ran towards him.. Jumping and embracing him unannounced.
“Hubby, I miss you.”she cooed, her mouth trailing ki-sses down his neck as she snak-ed her arms around his neck.
*
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TBC