The Royal Agreement

Chapter Seven

The next day, after what felt like an eternity in the hospital, I was finally discharged.

Thankfully, my doctors took pity on me and decided not to keep me locked up in that medical asylum any longer. Just kidding—the hospital. I do actually dream of working in one someday, but that’s going to require me to crawl through the treacherous terrain of my undergraduate diploma first. Baby steps, right?

It was already Monday morning, and while my parents busied themselves with breakfast preparations, I sat at the table, trying to look patient and not like I was counting down the seconds until freedom.

It was like a scene straight out of a sitcom—Dad juggling a pan of eggs, Mom pouring orange juice with the precision of a brain surgeon, and me just… waiting. Waiting for the breakfast interrogation that I knew was coming.

Once Mom and Dad finally settled down across from me, we began eating, and—right on cue—all attention turned to me.

“Ciella, your medicines—have you packed them?” Dad asked, his tone hovering somewhere between concerned parent and drill sergeant.

“Yes, Dad,” I replied, trying not to sound too exasperated.

I’d packed my meds the moment I got home, figuring it was the quickest way to avoid a lecture on the importance of following doctor’s orders.

“Do you want us to drive you to school?” Mom chimed in, her eyes narrowing slightly as she scrutinized me like I was hiding something.

“I can drive,” I said, trying to sound confident, but their synchronized eyebrow raises made it clear they weren’t buying it. I bit back the urge to roll my eyes. Really, was there anything worse than being treated like a fragile vase that could shatter at any moment?

“Ciella,” Mom said, her tone deepening in that way that only moms can manage—like she was both commanding and pleading at the same time.

I sighed, feeling the weight of their overprotectiveness settling on my shoulders like a heavy, itchy blanket. “What’s the purpose of asking when you already have an answer?” I shot back, my tone clipped.

I hated these moments, these post-episode aftercare sessions where they hovered like I might suddenly collapse at any second. It was driving me nuts. I just wanted to go back to my usual routine, to school, to anything that didn’t involve being coddled.

After breakfast, Dad insisted on dropping me off at school, which came with a begrudgingly long list of dos and don’ts. Exasperating? Yes. But despite my frustration, I knew it was all coming from a place of love. I couldn’t blame them—not entirely, anyway.

The school day was long, a blur of lectures and note-taking, but at least it was a return to normalcy. By lunchtime, I found myself sitting alone in the cafeteria, my eyes scanning the crowd for any sign of Paige and Jamie.

They were nowhere to be found, so I settled in for a solo lunch date with my wheat bread vegan (?) panini. I was just about to take a bite when Victor appeared out of nowhere and plopped down across from me.

I shrugged and continued eating, trying to ignore the little flutter of self-consciousness that arose from being close to someone who looked like they should be starring in a Hollywood movie rather than sitting across from me in a college cafeteria.

“I heard you were hospitalized,” Victor said casually like he was asking about the weather.

I looked up from my panini, narrowing my eyes slightly. “Who told you that?”

“Paige and Jamie,” he replied, not missing a beat. “Are you okay though? Shouldn’t you be resting?”

I waved a hand dismissively as if swatting away the idea of rest like an annoying fly. “I’m alright. I mean, the doctors discharged me, which means I’m fine, right? If I had stayed one more day in that hospital, I would have gone insane.”

He nodded, accepting my explanation without further probing, and started eating his burger. The cafeteria was still buzzing around us, but I couldn’t help noticing the not-so-subtle glances being thrown our way.

Victor, with his devilishly good looks, was like a walking, talking magnet for attention. Meanwhile, I was trying to focus on my panini, but it was hard not to feel like I was suddenly in the middle of a burger commercial starring him. Seriously, this guy could sell anything with that face.

But then again, maybe it was just me, overthinking as usual. My mind drifted back to what I knew—or rather, what I didn’t know—about Victor. He came from Denmark, that much I knew, but every time I thought about Denmark, a vague sense of familiarity tugged at the edges of my mind. It was like trying to remember a dream you’d half-forgotten, just blurry fragments that didn’t quite add up.

“Victor?” I ventured, breaking the comfortable silence between us.

“Hmm?” He looked up, a half-smile on his lips as he paused mid-bite.

“You live in Copenhagen, right?”

He nodded, placing his burger down, and giving me his full attention. “Yeah, why?”

“Nothing… just curious what it looks like. I feel like I’ve been to Denmark before, but I can’t think when. My doctors told me I should always acknowledge my dreams or memories, but I don’t even know how to distinguish between the two.”

Victor’s eyes softened, and he leaned back slightly in his chair. “Copenhagen is a very beautiful place. I’m sure you’d love it there. Why don’t you try to go to Denmark? See if it triggers anything.”

I sighed, maybe it was not such a bad suggestion but then again—"I’m still trying to finish my studies, but I would definitely like to go there someday."

He nodded in understanding, his expression thoughtful. “If only I didn’t need to step out of my comfort zone back in Denmark, I wouldn’t have left.”

I offered him a small, sympathetic smile, knowing what it’s like to be forced out of the familiar and into the unknown. We continued eating in our comfortable silence, but my mind was already wandering, imagining what it would be like to walk the streets of Copenhagen, to see if anything—anything at all—would stir some long-buried memory.

But the idea of bringing it up to my parents felt daunting. They’d worry, they’d panic, they’d wrap me in bubble wrap and never let me out of their sight again.

But I’d go. Someday. I could feel it in my bones. I had to. Something was waiting for me there—something I needed to find.

For now, though, I just focused on finishing my panini and enjoying the quiet company of the ridiculously attractive guy sitting across from me, who somehow made even eating a burger look like an art form.

Because life, as confusing and chaotic as it was, had its little moments of calm, and I was learning to savor them, one bite at a time.