"Do you ever feel like a plastic bag
Drifting through the wind, wanting to start again?
Do you ever feel, feel so paper-thin
Like a house of cards, one blow from caving in?"
Firework - Katy Perry

oOoOo

As I walk through the Palace Gardens to escape my parents for an hour, I can't help but worry about what my future will hold.

I just abruptly left the meeting with our royal advisors for some much-needed alone time. Of course, I am never alone. As the Crowned Princess of Amaria, I am constantly surrounded by royal guards.

It can be very annoying at times, but I would rather not be assassinated or kidnapped. The Palace Gardens are the one place in the Palace I can come to get some semblance of alone time.

It's so comforting to walk through the rows of rose bushes, gaze at the fountains, and observe the birds at the bird feeders. I know I can always come here to get away from the stifling Palace and all my responsibilities.

I hear footsteps approaching where I am sitting on a bench near the rose bushes. I inwardly groan; I literally just got here. Looking up, I see that Blair, my guard/best friend is here. She must have been sent to escort me back to the meeting I stormed out of.

"Kate, are you okay?" Blair asks, with concern etched on her face. Being my closest friend, she is updated on my predicament.

"Yeah, I'm alright. I just needed to get out of there. I can't cope with the overwhelming pressure of the marriage to Prince Alexander. I don't even want to get married and rule Amaria until I am at least twenty-five!"

I have always had dreams of falling in love and traveling before I settle down, marry, and take over as queen. I guess all it will be is a pipe dream.

I do want to rule the country someday, but I am only eighteen years old. I want to live a little before being tied down by so many responsibilities for the rest of my life.

Just a few minutes ago, my father was telling me he plans to request a meeting with Denmark's Royal Family to arrange a political marriage to Prince Alexander.

The only positive in the said marriage is I would still be able to become the Queen of Amaria. Since Alexander has two older brothers, he is the 'spare' and it's highly unlikely that he will take his country's throne.

"That sucks. Are they even considering allowing you to attend Harvard University this autumn?" She asks.

I've been trying to delay the marriage by persuading my parents to allow me to attend university abroad. It would give me at least four more years since it would be bad publicity to be married and living in a different country from my spouse.

"They're considering it, but I can tell that they will need more convincing. You recall what happened last time I attended school." I remind her.

Two years ago, My younger sister Maeve and I were both attending Stonewall Academy, after convincing our parents to allow us to have a more normal schooling experience.

Up until then, we had tutors at the palace to educate us. Anyways, after one semester, the press got wind of our enrollment in the prep school and infiltrated the campus. There were reporters from all over Europe there to follow us and get interviews. Of course, our publicist and security teams handled the situation, but it soon got so bad that our bodyguards couldn't fight off reporters.

Ever since, Maeve and I have settled for online school. I guess there is a reason royals don't typically attend conventional schools.

However, moving from Europe to Boston would not be simple.

This is my parents' chief argument.

I would need bodyguards and security to discreetly follow me around. Not to mention, we would have to find an apartment complex that would permit the royal contractors to add safety precautions. The planning involved in this move combined with the incident two years ago is causing my parents to lean towards me staying at the Palace.

They have continuously told me to attend Amaria University as an online student. Online school is terrible, though.

Nobody in their sound mind would voluntarily go to school online when you could attend a better school, elsewhere in person.

"We can't alter the past, but I don't think we will have another incident. They ought to allow you go to school and be semi-normal for once in your life!" Blair responds to me.

Her compassionate personality and ability to always stay positive are two of the things that make me so glad to have her as a friend. Blair always helps me cheer up, which is genuinely appreciated with all the stress I am constantly experiencing.

I look over at my brunette friend and ask, "What makes you believe that? Once one person who loathes me decides to Google me or search me up on Instagram, everyone will suddenly know. Then, I'll get sent back here faster than you could say sabotage."

Blair's phone buzzes and she sighs. "Just leave that to me and Marc. You know we're on your side.

"C'mon, he is advising me to get you back to the meeting. Apparently, your parents are getting annoyed that you haven't returned. He said, 'King William looks like he is about to blow a gasket'"

Of course my parents are annoyed. My mother is obsessed with schedules, and my father is just plain impatient.

"Alright. Let's just get this over with." I say as I stand up and begin to follow Blair inside.

We walk through the halls of the palace to my father's office in silence for a few minutes.

Once we arrive at the office, Blair walks off to the Security Office to receive her next assignment.

I'm left alone right outside the office, about to open the door when I hear my mother and father talking.

"William, don't you think we should just permit her to go to America for a few years and live like a typical teenager? She's eighteen and deserves to live her life before being forced into becoming a full-time royal." My mother argues.

Instead of going inside, I let curiosity get the better of myself and decide to linger in the hallway to eavesdrop.

"Victoria, we've been over this multiple times. The last time we spoke with the Queen and King of Denmark, they were on board with the marriage. The sooner Alexander and Katherine get married and become King and Queen of Amaria, the closer we are to increased trading with Denmark and a boost in our economy. We don't want them to change their minds," my father replies, sounding exasperated.

Ugh, I hate how my father is consistently handling everything in our lives as if it were a business deal.

What kind of parent would sell their daughter off for their own economic interests?

"Come on Liam, what difference will a few years make? Katherine should be able to go to college in America. You know she has been dreaming of this for years. Our countries are now in a stable economic state and Kate and Alexander are still teenagers for goodness sake! We can wait a few more years for a royal engagement," she continues arguing on my behalf.

"But-" My father starts before my mother cuts him off.

"No buts, William. This is our daughter we are talking about, not some sort of business deal. We can revisit this issue in a few years." Yes, exactly! You tell him, Mom!

"D'accord. Tu as raison" I hear my father say quietly in response. I take that as his acquiescence and my face lights up into a beaming grin. (Translation: Okay. You are right)

"Je sais. j'ai toujours raison," My mother quips. (Translation: I know. I'm always right)

Wiping the beaming grin off my face, I walk in and try to act nonchalant, as if I weren't just eavesdropping.

As I walk in, five heads snap up and look over in my direction.

Juliet, my Royal Assistant is sitting at the conference table along with my parents and their Royal Assistant, Louis.

Marc is standing right next to the door and gives me a subtle thumbs up. I guess he knew I was eavesdropping.

My mother and father both look at me with mild annoyance, with what I call their 'impending lecture' faces on. I know I will get an earful later tonight.

"Now that you're done eavesdropping, we can continue on with the meeting," My father says dryly while shooting me a pointed look.

Oh shit. He rarely misses anything. I feel my face heat up.

Out of the corner of my eye, I see Marc fail to suppress a snort from his spot. I send a glare his way. My feeble attempt at seeming menacing merely makes him laugh harder.

"By the look on your face, I assume you overheard what we were just discussing and already know we are allowing you to attend Harvard in September. Over the next six months, you and Juliet will be getting things ready, while Marc will discuss the protocol with our Security Team." He finishes.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" I squeal, running to my parents for hugs, as my father winces.

"No problem sweetie, let's just finish discussing how we will postpone the marriage without offending Denmark. We can discuss more details on a later date." My mother says with a gentle smile on her face.

I sit back down in my chair and try to focus on the rest of the meeting, but it proves to be too difficult. My mind is racing with the exciting experiences coming.

oOoOo

A few weeks pass by, with private meetings with Juliet before I find myself back in my father's office for a larger meeting about logistics.

Walking into the room, I take a seat between Marc and Juliet, who greet me with slight bows. My parents arrive soon thereafter and sit down at the head of the long conference table.

"Now that everyone is here, we can start this meeting about Princess Katherine's move to Boston." Our Head of Security, Robert starts.

"As you can see, we have purchased this penthouse apartment in one of the buildings on the outskirts of the campus. I have ten of our contractors scheduled to make adjustments on the week of... April 19th," he continues as he references his notes and points at the PowerPoint Presentation displayed on the Smart TV.

"They will be installing our standard security system into the apartment and doing basic remodeling."

There are various pictures displayed of the unit that Juliet and I selected in one of our one-on-one meetings last week. It's the penthouse floor in one of the upscale apartment buildings. There are four bedrooms, three-and-a-half bathrooms (two of which are en-suites), a full kitchen, a living area, and an office.

I thought it was a little extravagant to purchase an entire penthouse, but at least it's in a secure location and has amenities, like a game room and gym.

"We have Agent Marc Greene and Agent Blair Sommers assigned to pose as Her Royal Highness' roommates. They will be staying in two of the spare bedrooms. Greene and Sommers will be there to protect the princess and ensure her safety. They will be reporting any issues directly to me and we will be in constant contact."

Surprised, I look next to me at Marc, who is giving me a knowing smile.

It'll be so much more relaxing knowing two people at Harvard already. I've been worried about how difficult it will be to make friends. Since I've been sheltered in a palace for my entire life, I have very few friends. It's sad, but true.

Making friends is not one of my strengths, due to my lack of experience.

"The matter of Her Royal Highness' identity has been brought to my attention by one of my guys. To avoid unwelcome attention, we propose that Princess Katherine change her name to something of her choosing. Fewer people know about the Royal Family of Amaria in the United States than in European Countries, but it is better to alter her name and be safe rather than sorry."

"So I can change my name to anything I want to?" I pipe up with a smirk on my face. This could be interesting...

"Yes and no. We recommend you stick with Katherine, but you may select your surname," Robert replies to me.

Well, there go my chances of having a cool name.

"Oh ok... Um, how about Kate Maxwell?" I suggest after a moment of thinking.

"Perfect, we will contact the school and inform them," Juliet says as she furiously jots this down in her notebook.

"Yes, and that brings me to another topic of conversation. The school is fully informed of the situation and everyone working in the Admissions and Dean's Offices have all signed Non-disclosure Agreements. Over there, you will be referred to as 'Kate Maxwell' and anyone who knows of your true identity will be legally prohibited from telling anyone else." Robert explains, looking around at everyone in the room, before making eye contact with me.

"One of the last things we need to do is have Princess Katherine select her classes so we can sign her up."

"Victoria and I have already discussed this with Katherine." My father pipes up.

"She has selected Political Science and Government as her major. Juliet has received a copy of the classes she has expressed an interest in. And we have also decided to enroll Greene and Sommers in graduate programs at the university, as they are too old to pass for college freshmen."

"Oof. That hurt. I didn't know I look that old." I hear Marc say under his breath.

My father shoots him a look, which shuts him up real quick, which causes me to start laughing quietly.

Marc jokes around too much for his own good.

"Okay, now that all of this is resolved, I am finished speaking. Does anyone have anything else to add?" Robert asks. Thankfully, nobody speaks up. "Great, well enjoy the rest of your day everyone."

oOoOo

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