The Broken Prince's Love

For the past few days, Cedar had put in a lot of effort. He had prepared everything important in utter detail, leaving only the small things.

He was used to getting up early, so he didn't mind rising at six o'clock to confirm that everything was fine. He got dressed without making a single noise before he left the room. Cedar had to admit that sharing his chambers with Lucille was wonderful, but today, he had been extremely worried about waking her. Luckily, he hadn't done that though.

Lucille still lay on the bed without moving while he closed the door.

He made sure to do that without scaring her and then immediately spun around to rush to the kitchen. It seemed like his sudden visit surprised quite a few people.

The servants all stopped to turn around and watched him. Merely the cook seemed to understand why a member of the royal family was there. He managed to get the group to work again after greeting them, but still, no one stopped staring at the prince.

Cedar ignored that and approached the people who had been supposed to make a cake for him. He came to a halt directly behind them and scanned the result before noting that this should be fine for Lucille. The cake looked flawless after all, and if it just tasted a little like the usual work of the chefs in the palace, it would be delicious.

The prince's viewing was interrupted when Clark in front of him turned around and jumped back so that he almost crashed against the cabinet next to him. “By the gods!” It seemed like Clark was rather scared.

Harris had flinched too, but that might have been more because of his lover's sudden movement. Then he turned to the prince and took over. “Really? You do like to scare people, don't you?” Not really.

Cedar was used to walking around quietly to avoid people noticing him. Maybe that was connected to him trying to hide from his mother while she was in a bad mood in his childhood or maybe not. “I wish you a wonderful morning on this joyful day. I merely wanted to check whether the cake was done already. It seems like you did make it in time. I thank you for your efforts.”

Clark looked like he was still a bit shaken. He just stood there and waited a bit to calm his pounding heart before he replied with a sharp tone. “I stood up much earlier than normal to make this, so this better be worth it.” He was quite insolent for someone talking to a member of the royal family. Good. This kind of person was better than the ones who tried to gain the prince's favor.

Cedar beamed at him and chose to reply without holding back his petty comments either. “Don't whine. You definitely didn't get up much earlier than normal if one considers that the kitchen staff usually rises around five or four o'clock. You just slept less because of Harris over there. I presume that he sneaked into your room once again last night.”

That had just been a guess, but Clark immediately got red and looked away. Bullseye.

Harris managed to seem as confident as always. He just lifted his chin to meet the prince's gaze. “You just said what everyone knows. That's nothing special. So. Do you like the result of our hard work here?”

Cedar scanned the cake again. He stayed quiet for a moment longer than he would have needed to raise the expectation. Then he replied with a bright smile on his lips. “I'm surprised. It genuinely looks good.” He turned to Clark. “So, your curse regarding cakes only applies to apple pies? I heard that you always burn those.”

Clark narrowed his eyes. “How do you even know about that?” He sounded awfully angry for someone who was just worrying about his lover, who had been blackmailed by the prince in the past.

Cedar didn't care and just replied. “Your lover talks about you a lot. And by that, I mean very often. I didn't even need to ask, and I heard a lot of interesting things. Whenever he heard a funny joke, he thought about whether you would like it and things like that. He really adores you. I think he didn't even notice how often he mentions you until I pointed it out, and he got-”

Harris cut him off. “Shut up.” Apparently, he was embarrassed still. In the past, he had been sensitive whenever his lover had been mentioned, and now it was the same.

Cedar might have made fun of this if he had time, but he couldn't stay here for too long. Still, he allowed himself to add one remark. “That's awfully mean. I'm still the prince of Artias, and yet, I have to let others insult me like this.” If he genuinely had a problem with this, he would already have resolved it by intimidating the other party, and both of them knew that.

So, Harris just continued. “Insult? Do you want to hear how I sound when I really want to provoke you?”

Cedar glanced at the clock and decided that he would have to hurry a bit if he didn't want to risk being too late. “You'll just offer me coffee again. That's getting boring since I really don't have a big issue with it at all, so don't bother. Besides, trying anything in public will ruin your reputation as the perfect servant.” He stepped closer to the counter and put the cover onto the cake before lifting the tray. “I will bring this to Lucille before she wakes up. I want her to see that everyone is thinking about her as soon as she opens her eyes. That's why I need to leave now too. I hope that you have a pleasant day, and I would like to thank you for your help once more.”

Harris crossed his arms and scanned the other man. What he would say was already obvious by the look of his eyes. “I still can't believe that the terrifying prince managed to fall in love with such an innocent woman. Your personalities are very different. But that could be good. She has to balance you out, or you will be too insufferable for anyone to endure staying in your presence.”

“Don't spout such nonsense. I have a very good reputation. You should know how easy it is to win people over with a smile and some polite words. I just don't waste my skills on someone like you. So. I wish you a nice day. Goodbye.” He nodded at the two servants before approaching the door, which he opened with his elbow.

If he brought this cake to Lucille, he should be done with most preparations. Then he would only need to wait for his beloved to wake up. Afterward, they could have a relaxed day with some little surprises. Cedar hoped that he wouldn't drop the cake though. His own balance was less of a problem, but he worried about others running into him. Though, by now, no one dared to do that anymore. Thankfully. Otherwise, his mood would have soured quite a bit.

Unsurprisingly, he managed to reach the top floor without any issues. Cedar quickly entered his room, where he put the cake on the table. He decided not to set the table to avoid being loud and just sat down on the bed again. He could take a short break until his lover awoke now, and that gave him a wonderful excuse to watch her for a moment. He made himself comfortable while trying not to make a single sound and scanned her sleeping form.

Lucille didn't move in the slightest even while he had sat down and just lay there. She was cuddled in her blanket and only took over one half of the bed despite having been able to claim everything for herself. Her slow breathing sounded like she had to be in the middle of a very deep slumber.

Cedar glanced at the clock. Maybe he should go to sleep again too. Just so that his lover could wake up in his arms. He had prepared everything. Since he couldn't go out to check on anything without leaving her alone, he had nothing to do. He bargained with himself before he came to the conclusion that it would be fine to get some rest so that he could be more awake when it was time. So, he lay down next to his lover and moved as close to her as he could without touching her, mostly because he feared waking her if he did reach out to caress her face.

Cedar watched her heavenly face for a moment and fought the urge to kiss her before he closed his eyes. He hadn't even been sure whether he would fall asleep again when he was so focused on making everything perfect for his lover, but for some reason, he lost drifted off a little bit later.

When he awoke, Cedar was drowsy for a moment before he lifted his head. He immediately looked at Lucille, who still lay there with her eyes closed. A short glance at the clock confirmed that he had slept for two more hours, and nothing much had happened.

Lucille had moved a bit closer to him so that they were touching now, and it seemed like she had stolen his part of the blanket. He wouldn't try to wrestle it back now.

He was happy lying next to her and being able to see her face while she was so peaceful. Now Cedar only needed to decide whether he would allow her to stay this peaceful or whether he would have to disturb her. It was half an hour before nine, and at that time, they were usually getting dressed already. Maybe he should wake her up. But he would feel bad if he did that on her birthday.

Before he could think about that more, Lucille stirred a bit. Then she lay still again.

Cedar didn't budge while waiting for her, and a moment later, she opened her eyes.

Lucille took a few seconds to focus her gaze on her lover and another moment to fully wake up. And then a soft smile, the most beautiful one in this whole world, formed on her lips. “Good morning.”

Cedar couldn't help but grin back at her. “Good morning. And more importantly, happy birthday, my beloved.” He didn't wait for her reaction and moved closer to kiss her gently.

Lucille immediately put her arms around him and seemed to be rather happy with her first gift. She melted in his arms and returned the kiss with much more vigor than he had anticipated.

Cedar only lifted his head when he felt like his lover had enough for now. Then he held still to look at her. Even seeing her smiling at him like that made him want to kiss her again and again. Her smile made his chest feel warm and tingly, which, apparently, was what love felt like. It was definitely an odd feeling, but it was a pleasant odd. The prince watched her for a moment before she spoke up again.

“Thank you. I'm happy that you are here with me.” Lucille lifted her hand and brought it to the side of his face.

He hadn't even been able to say what he wanted to tell her yet. If his presence made her happy, he was glad too, but he still wanted to offer more. Cedar enjoyed her touch for a moment while smiling at her, but he quickly forced himself to speak again. “Of course, I am here on your special day. I need to congratulate you first, right? I wish you a wonderful nineteenth birthday. May you have a perfect day, which is followed by a just as perfect year. I hope that you will stay in good health and become happy.” He gently moved her hand to his mouth to kiss her skin right below her wrist. “I adore you. I promise to be with you whenever you want me to. I will do my best to help you with everything you wish for or require. And especially today, I will fulfill all of your wishes.”

Lucille still hadn't moved to lift her hand and lay next to him while grinning. “I'm already overjoyed if you are with me. But can I ask for something if you want to fulfill my wishes?”

Cedar hadn't just said those words for nothing, and he was happy to prove that. “Of course. I will do whatever you ask of me if it is within the realm of my capabilities.”

“Then how about another kiss?” Lucille's reply came immediately, and there was no uncertainty in her voice. Apparently, she was rather assertive today. And yet, she was the same woman as always. Her bright smile made it seem like she wasn't embarrassed, but the slight red tint of her cheeks gave her away.

As always, Cedar would be happy to indulge her. He moved a bit closer to her again. “Another one? You truly are insatiable. But this is your birthday, so it's fine.” It was fine on any other day too as long as he was the one that could make her happy. He slowly brought his face to hers and kissed her.

Lucille immediately hugged him again and happily kissed him back. It almost felt like she was more demanding than him. For some reason, she seemed to go a bit farther than what she normally did.

In any case, Cedar didn't mind that much when she experimented with him. He would love whatever she offered.

When the kiss ended this time, Lucille's face was completely red. By now, it seemed like she remembered her usual hesitance again and averted her eyes as soon as they separated. That didn't stop her from holding her lover's hand though.

Cedar had to admit that he was in a rather good mood already despite nothing much happening. This was perfect when he planned to make Lucille as happy as he could. He slowly sat up without letting go of her and waited for her to do the same before he spoke. “I may have prepared a few small things for you. How about we get up and slowly begin your day with your first gift?”

Lucille immediately glanced at the table. She only found the dishware that hid her cake, but she could probably imagine what was hidden below it. She looked back at her lover and gave him a bashful smile. “Thank you. It wasn't necessary, but I am very happy that you took the time to do something for me. I hope that you didn't spend too much time on this though.”

Cedar wasn't even sure how long he had taken. It had probably been fine. He had had some help, and normally, the events in the palace were much harder to plan. “I didn't need to do too much. That doesn't mean that I didn't put in effort to create the perfect birthday for you, but I didn't over-exhaust myself. So, don't worry about that. What we do need to worry about is you receiving your gifts. Let us begin with the first one.” He rose from the bed before offering his lover his hand.

Lucille allowed him to help and stood up as well. For a moment, they looked at each other while both smiling before she let him lead her to the table. She scanned the dishware and the metal cover that hid the cake before grinning at her lover. “So, breakfast is already special? It's not good for me to eat too much in the morning, so I will have to hold back quite a bit.” She sat down immediately without even waiting for him to tell her anything.

Cedar had planned on making her turn around away so that he could add the finishing touches, but he would have to do it differently now. “I need to do one more thing before you can look. Give me a moment, please. Close your eyes, and I will prepare everything. But you have to promise that you won't cheat. You can't see it before I'm done.”

Lucille looked like she was curious now. “Alright. I will not look.” She closed her eyes.

Cedar already knew that she wouldn't lie to him, so he lifted the cover and revealed the cream tart. He lit up the candles on top of the cake. Today, he didn't even have any unpleasant thoughts despite seeing the fire, which only proved how focused he was on making this perfect. When he was done decorating the cake, he waited for a moment and inspected the tart again. He was content with this result, so he turned to his lover before moving closer to her. Of course, this was just a shameless excuse for him to lean to her and whisper into her ear. “You can look now.”

Lucille's eyes flew open, and she instantly noticed the burning candles in front of her. She scanned the cake and gave the prince the exact reaction he had hoped for. Her eyes widened, and she looked like she was in awe. She held her breath for a moment before she turned to him.

Cedar grinned at her and replied before she could ask. “You said that blowing out candles was a tradition in your family when you were young. So, I thought that it would be nice for you to do it again this year. You can wish for something while blowing them out, right?”

Lucille nodded and seemed a bit surprised for a moment. But then a smile slowly spread on her lips again. “I didn't think that you would remember that. I mean, I did bring you a cake with candles, but I wasn't sure whether that tradition even made sense to you.”

Cedar didn't trust that wishes would be fulfilled because he voiced them. But if Lucille believed in it, they might as well do something like this. “It made you happy, so how could I forget it? I wanted to do the same for you. Now then. It would be best to blow them out quickly. We don't want wax dripping onto the cake. Make your wish.”

Lucille looked down again and quickly agreed. She leaned closer to the cake, which made Cedar hold her hair up so that it couldn't get too close to the flames. She took in a deep breath and then blew out all candles at once. Apparently, she was rather content with her wish since a bright smile formed on her lips after she was done. She turned to her lover. “I made a wish for our future.”

Cedar was a bit curious, but he remembered her rules. “But you can't tell me, right?” He waited for her to nod before resuming. “Then I guess that I must accept this for now. I will barely survive so much tension, but it will work one way or the other.” He grinned while he lifted the knife and pushed it over to her. “Now you will have to cut open the cake though. I hope it's tasty. I still worry, but I would guess that the person who made this is skillful enough.”

Lucille took the knife from him and quickly began cutting off two pieces. She froze in place when she noticed that molten chocolate with a gooey consistency slowly came out of the cake. “It looks beautiful. Whoever made this is really talented.”

Cedar had to agree in this case. He knew that Clark had a reputation for being as good as a confectioner, luckily. The cake looked perfect from the outside and the inside. Cedar was content with that and could only hope that it was delicious too. “The man that made this is actually Harris' lover, so you might see him at some point. If you thank him, he will probably get really embarrassed. I know that he hates me, but he is passionate when it comes to cake. Come on. Let us find out whether we have to praise him or whether I need to go complain about the taste.” He was sure that it would be good, but he would leave the first bite to Lucille either way.

Lucille waited for him to move and quickly saw that he would let her go first. So, she took her fork and brought a small portion of the cake to her mouth. She chewed a bit before she swallowed. Then she made eye contact with her lover, and a smile came upon her features. “It's really good. You should try it too.”

Cedar relaxed a bit. It would have been bad if she hadn't liked her birthday cake. Now he could focus on teasing her again. “I will try it too. But unfortunately, I cannot reach my utensils.” They were lying right in front of him. “If you want me to eat, maybe you will need to coax me into doing it.” He expected her to tell him how good the cake was now.

But Lucille didn't do that. She didn't hesitate to pick up another piece of cake before bringing her fork to his mouth. “Open up. It's really good, so I can't let you miss this.”

Cedar went along with it, even if this was more of a reward for him than it was something nice for Lucille. He opened his mouth and received the cake, which already tasted sweet from the very beginning. He chewed on the bite in his mouth and drew it out a bit.

Lucille looked at him with curiosity. As she should have expected, her lover made her wait so long that she became impatient. “And?” When she asked like that, it would be hard to tease her even longer.

“It's heavenly. As expected. But I would guess that everything tastes so wonderful if you are the one feeding it to me.” He waited for her reaction and wasn't disappointed.

Lucille averted her eyes and blushed a little. “That's good to hear. Then I might need to feed you more often.” She was too cute. Hopefully, he would be able to make her look at him like that a few more times today.

Cedar had been sure before, but this scene only underlined his desire for the day. Lucille was supposed to be happy and smile at him. He would make this day perfect for her, so he needed to put in some effort and do the very best he could.