Everlastingly Loving You - Chapter 70

Having breakfast along with Ava made Sophia appreciate the breakfasts she had with Nicholas alone since she couldn’t go a couple minutes without talking about herself as well as her and Nicholas’ childhood.

Heck, she still couldn’t figure out why she and Nicholas were having breakfast with her in the first place. Nicholas didn’t seem all willing either. He seemed as though he was living through hell.

Ava laughed at her own jokes, and Sophia watched as she went on and on about herself and Nicholas’ past actions.

She peered over to Nicholas, who seemed to be having a rougher time than she was. He clearly didn’t want to deal with this so untimely in the morning. He hadn’t eaten anything at all, and the entire time he’d been shooting glares and other dirty looks at Ava, wishing she’d just stop talking so he’d be able to enjoy breakfast with a side of peace and quiet.

Sophia jabbed a knife down a large stack of pancakes.

It took all her willpower, not to scratch the knife against the plate; to make a loud screeching noise that’d hopefully get Ava to shut up and get to actually eating.

It was as though Ava’s main objective was to annoy the hell out of both Nicholas and her with her visit here. It was no longer Nicholas’ birthday, meaning there was no other reason for her to stay, but here she was anyway.

She’d made it known that she’d be staying for a couple more days in Beldovia, much to Sophia’s dismay.

As if her entrance hadn’t been disrupting enough.

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“We didn’t get to finish our previous conversation,” Sophia reminded Nicholas.

Nicholas nodded.

If anything, he was slightly relieved he hadn’t got to have that conversation with her, what with Ava introducing herself to Sophia and all that.

“We didn’t,” Nicholas agreed.

Sophia began, “So…”

“I shouldn’t have done it,” Sophia mumbled.

Nicholas shook his head.

There was nothing to regret.

“That’s not at all true,” he said to her.

“And it meant a lot.”

Sophia bit her lip.

She asked, “It did?”

“It did,” Nicholas answered, a twinkle in his eyes.

“I didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but…”

Sophia shut her eyes.

Oh, this was not happening.

With what she’d endured, Ava ruining a perfectly good day by talking about herself and many other things, she snapped, in the strangest way possible.

She laughed maniacally before her face turned serious.

“Just shut up, Ava,” she told Ava, before looking over at Nicholas.

Ava furrowed her brows and pursed her lips.

“I will not–”

Sophia was certain she would’ve started pulling her hair out and screaming insults at her had Nicholas not been there.

“And now it’s time we turn around the other direction,” Sophia said, turning on her heel, as Nicholas amusedly followed.

“And now we’re walking away,” Nicholas said, smirking.

“You will do no such thing,” Ava said sternly, as though it’d do something.

“Ignore her as well,” Sophia added.

“Yup,” Nicholas agreed smugly.

“Smugness is a good look for you,” Sophia praised, grinning at Nicholas.

‘You’re one to talk, Ms I Radiate Jealousy.’

Sophia shook it off, as she and Nicholas walked away, ignoring Ava’s yells and wails that echoed off the palace hallway.

Hours later, Louis visited Sophia in her quarters.

“So, I heard a couple of rumours,” Louis said to his sister.

“Rumours?” She asked.

“Of what?” She asked curiously.

“Of you and Nicholas,” Louis said.

Sophia’s heart dropped.

“What did Clarisse tell you?” Sophia asked glaringly.

“Was Clarisse supposed to tell me something?” Louis asked confusedly.

“Did I miss something, or?”

Sophia sucked in her cheeks, inhaling sharply.

“No, no, it’s nothing, just a tidbit,” Sophia said dismissively.

“So what rumours were you talking about?” Sophia asked curiously. She wanted to know.

Louis furrowed his brows, “That you met a friend of Nicholas’.”

Sophia bit her lip.

“Ah.”

“That,” she said sourly.

Louis smiled wryly, “By your tone, I suppose it didn’t go so well.”

Sophia shrugged, “I may or may not have yelled at her.”

“It’s been one day and I yelled at her to shut up,” she said to Louis.

“Yelled at her and I don’t regret it one bit,” she said next.

Louis smiled amusedly, that was before he saw Alistair knocking from her quarters’ peephole.

“Incoming,” he warned.

“What do you mean, incoming?”

Louis opened the door, and Sophia rolled her eyes.

Louis patted his sister on the shoulder.

“Go,” he signalled, unaware of his sister’s dislike for Alistair.

He and Alistair were on decent terms if you’d call it that.

“Alistair,” she called, putting on a false front to seem pleased to be around him.

Sophia managed a smile, “Ally.”

Alistair kissed the back of Sophia’s hand, winking at her, “Duchess.”

Sophia smiled at the gesture, it was quite sweet of him, she had to admit.

Louis greeted in a monotone, “Alistair.”

“Louis,” Alistair greeted in return.

Alistair offered, “Alright if I borrow her for a couple of hours?”

Sophia cleared her throat, she was not a toy nor not someone to be borrowed.

Alistair looked at her apologetically.

“Sorry,” he apologized.

Sophia shrugged, extending her arm.

Nicholas was currently with Ava, so why not?

She shot Louis a look, signalling to him she was going to be alright before she asked Alistair, “So where are we off to?”

“I planned an entire day for us.”

“Us?” Sophia asked.

“You and me,” Alistair explained.

“Right,” Sophia said with a quick nod.

“So, what does it entail,” Sophia said, placing her head on his shoulder.

The gesture shocked Alistair, but he went with it.

“Elevenses first, since you and I both know you can’t go anywhere without an empty stomach before it’s archery and sightseeing,” he answered.

“O-Oh,” Sophia said.

‘All things you’d like to do,’ Sophia realized.

‘Except for the elevenses.’

She then saw Nicholas hand-in-hand with Ava.

“Alright then, let’s get a move on,” she said merrily.

Alistair smiled at Sophia’s enthusiasm.

“Alright,” he grinned, smirking as Nicholas noticed him and Sophia arm-in-arm.

Ava found herself amused, chuckling at the sight of Sophia with another man. As long as it wasn’t Nicholas she was with.

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One elevenses later, Sophia and Alistair were playing archery.

Well, that was what Alistair was.

Sophia was merely taking her anger out on the pitiful arrow target after she’d learnt how to shoot with a bow and arrow.

“Never knew you were such an expert at archery, Sophia,” Alistair praised.

“Thanks,” Sophia said, shooting her third bullseye.

Nothing like a gratifying round of archery to help calm the nerves, sort of.

It was then she heard another laugh. One she recognized from earlier this morning. It was Ava’s laugh. Ava, who was on Nicholas’ hand.

Sophia fired another arrow at the arrow target. Only this time, it hit a statue of one of Beldovia’s past rulers.

“Whoops,” Sophia said.

She couldn’t care less about a statue during the moment.

“I missed,” Sophia said to herself.

“I missed,” she repeated.

She placed her bow on the ground.

Alistair asked worriedly, “You alright?”

Sophia wanted to scream no, that she wasn’t alright.

That for some extremely strange reason, she was distraught whenever seeing Nicholas with another woman.

And she was in complete denial about it.

Alistair watched as Sophia watched Nicholas and Ava from afar, who seemed to be having a better time than they were. She glanced at him wantingly.

He wondered, ‘Why is she–‘

The thought hit him.

Everything pieced itself together.

All this time, the entire week, he’d been trying to win her over, but it never would’ve worked.

Why?

WHY?

Why ever would she not be interested in him?

The thought then hit him.

The reason why.

Whyever not.

Because she was in someone else.

Someone other than him.

The woman he loved the minute he was capable of loving had eyes for someone else.

And here he was trying to woo and impress her when she wouldn’t even notice him. Here he was trying to get her impressed.

‘I’m pathetic,’ Alistair laughed at himself.

But there was one thing that he knew that Nicholas didn’t.

He knew she didn’t know it.

He knew she was likely in denial over everything.

She probably hadn’t realized it yet.

He knew she never believed in love, that it was capable to do great things.

She always thought love was some additional emotion.

The willingness to prioritize another person’s well-being and happiness above your own. That was love.

He breathed a deep sigh.

‘The willingness to prioritize another person’s well-being and happiness above my own,’ he said as he stared at Sophia.

“I have to let her go,” he knew.

Everything he did, was pointless.

And yet he thought he’d be able to love her enough for her to love him in return. For her to reciprocate the feelings he had for her the day he knew what love was. The day he was capable of love.

With a morose smile, “Should we just retreat for the day?”