By now, Blanche was sure. She would never develop feelings for another person. Her heart was already too focused on Theodore even though she had barely known him for two weeks. It was ridiculous, but maybe that was just how it was supposed to be. Maybe she was supposed to fall for him at first glance and love him for her entire life. Maybe it had been fate, or it could have been a coincidence as well. But in either case, she was well aware that her feelings were real and that they probably wouldn't ever change.

That realization made her a bit nervous. They were from two different worlds. Could this really work? In fairy tales, it did. But would she have her happy end even if this was real life? She prayed for it. After all, it seemed like Theodore liked her too. Either that, or he was a horrible person and liked to make others fall in love before he dropped them. Blanche was almost sure that he wasn't like that though. He probably didn't hold her hand and act like this to hurt her. So, it had to mean that he liked her too.

Blanche was silent for a bit before she couldn't take it anymore. “Theo, I need to ask something. That day...you hugged me and held my hand. And now you're doing it again. You've been so kind to me that I wasn't sure. I don't want to misinterpret anything. But...but...” She didn't have the courage. She couldn't just ask him whether he liked her. Even if she was almost sure that the answer was the one she wanted to hear, she couldn't risk it. She pressed her mouth into a thin line and stared at the floor.

Theodore waited for her to finish her question and only spoke up when he realized that she wouldn't continue. “Are you...” He also took a moment before gathering his courage. “Are you asking me whether I like you? Because you said that didn't want to misinterpret anything and...” His voice trailed off as he scanned her face from the corner of his eye.

Blanche didn't dare to look to the side and just weakly nodded. She could only hope that he wouldn't suddenly change his attitude and laugh into her face. He had given her enough reasons to come to this conclusion, so he couldn't be upset now.

It was quiet for a way too long time.

Then Theodore began to speak in a barely audible voice. “I like you. I like you a lot. In fact, I think that I never felt anything like this ever before. But we only met two weeks ago. This is a bit...fast. So, I'm reluctant to say anything that makes this more...official. We just saw each other once, and back then, I already felt the urge to hold you. That's not...normal. It's also not normal for me to be so thoughtless. I'm still unsure what to make of this.” He was silent for a few seconds and then tensed while continuing in an even weaker voice. “And you?”

Blanche's ears were ringing, and she felt like the air had been knocked out of her lungs. He liked her. Theodore liked her, and he had admitted to reacting strongly to her too. That made everything so much easier even if her heart just felt like it would explode. If he liked her, she had no issue confessing even while her face was bright red. “I like you too. In fact, it's even more than that. When you are there, my whole day brightens. That's why I want to continue to spend time with you. I don't want to see you less because of some rumors. I want to eat with you and take walks. And I want to hold your hand too. I'm pretty sure that this is-”

The emperor squeezed her hand. “Don't say that yet. We don't know whether this is a permanent state or whether it's just a...a short phase. You are very young, so I want you to be careful with things like this. We can't just do something rushed because we are drawn to each other now. We will need to wait a bit longer to find out what it is that we are feeling. Since you will stay here for a while, as long as you want to at least, we have time. So, we can go very slowly. We can just spend some time with each other, and the rest will come naturally.”

Blanche doubted that her feelings in this regard would ever change, but she just nodded. It would be better for her heart if they decided to move forward slowly. At the same time, she was a bit upset though. Wasn't Theodore basically saying that he expected this to go away just like this? For her, it certainly wouldn't, but the fact that he believed that he might change his mind in just a few weeks was rather unsettling. So, she was torn between squealing because he said that he liked her and being sad because this didn't seem to be as meaningful to him as it did to her.

Theodore scanned her expression for a moment before he spoke up again. “Did I say something wrong again?”

She considered holding back, but she wanted to be honest this time. “I believe that I know what I'm feeling. I've never been this nervous when someone touched me nor did I ever want to be close to someone. This is completely new, but my heart isn't swayed so easily. What you said made it sound like you don't... Like you just think that this is temporary. That you will wake up one day and think that you've had enough of whatever this is.” She was aware that she sounded bitter and was upset despite not having the right to be sad at all.

Still, Theodore listened to her and replied as soon as she finished. “That's not it at all. It's the opposite. Once I have something I care about, I won't be able to let go for a long time. When it's about people that are important to me, I would never get over their loss. What I meant to say is that all of this is going too fast. You said that you think that you are twenty, right? That means that you barely became an adult. That you...feel something for me may not be as true as you think it to be. After all, I was the person that helped you. I gave you a home and many gifts and spent the most time with you. So, you may confuse liking someone in a platonic way and being thankful with something else. I don't want you to do something that you might regret. And I need to be careful too. I've never reacted like this around anyone, especially not when I had just met them.”

Blanche was still rather sure that this wasn't an error. She didn't want to cuddle with all the people who helped her. Julien had taken her in too, and she had never felt the desire to hold his hand and kiss him. She had liked it when he had praised her and patted her head, but that had felt completely different. So, she opened her mouth to guarantee Theodore that this was something else.

But he shushed her before she could speak. “It's been two weeks since we met. You have to admit that this was rather fast. I let you move in with me after we talked for five minutes. Give us some time to go slower from now on. I do not want to do anything that makes you uncomfortable. We have enough time, so there is no need to rush. Neither of us is running away.” He gently squeezed her hand and stroked over the backside again.

This made Blanche stay quiet. As long as Theodore wasn't telling her that she didn't have a chance, she was fine with this. Leaning her head against him while holding his hand felt nice enough to fill her heart with joy for an entire life. She didn't need much more than his presence, and she would be alright. She could stay like this forever.

At least she told herself that while knowing that she would only get more greedy deep inside. She wanted to be with him without any excuses between them. But for now, she would be happy to cuddle with him like this.

Blanche beamed for the rest of the day and couldn't even stop smiling when she lay down in bed that evening. She grinned until the muscles of her face began to hurt, and she still didn't stop.

Theodore liked her too. That was everything that mattered to her, and it was the only thought that accompanied her until she fell asleep.

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The days in the palace remained full of nothing for Blanche to do. She could only sit around while waiting for Theodore to be done with his work. Sometimes, she went out and tried to ignore how everyone stared at her as if she was an outsider, but she quickly returned to her room. She felt much safer there even if Stella being present sometimes made the silence a bit uncomfortable.

But the worst might part might be that she was rather uncertain about her relationship with the emperor. Were they friends? Were they more than that, or did he insist on waiting longer until they could define it?

It had just been three days since her confession, and it seemed like Theodore did his best to avoid body contact with her, which was a bit frustrating. After all, she had looked forward to holding his hand again and perhaps even hugging him. At least he allowed her to call him by his nickname, but she had to admit that she wanted a bit more. It almost felt like he didn't dare to get any closer while she desperately longed for him.

Maybe that was why Blanche had allowed herself to be a bit more brazen today. She told herself that she would only carry out her plan if Theodore came back very late and they took a walk in the dark, where they would be almost alone. Arriving early had been his last chance to keep her from trying anything, but he had had a lot of work to do, so he came to her after the sun had set. They went out for a walk, and as soon as they reached the main path that led around the palace, she looked around.

Stolen story; please report.

There were a few guards here as well as Owen and Stella but not too many people. So, she didn't risk doing something that could cause trouble for him.

Blanche took a deep breath before stepping closer to Theodore and wrapping her arms around his arm. Her heart was beating so fast that she thought that she might have overdone it and would endanger her well-being now, but she managed to stand upright. Even if her knees felt weak and her hands were shaky. “The stars look beautiful, don't they?” This had just been a small attempt to distract him and herself, but she felt like it didn't help much.

Theodore tensed as soon as she leaned against him before seemingly being unsure what to do with his posture. He patted her head with his free hand before continuing to lead her down the path. “Yes, yes. They are beautiful. The sight from here is pretty, but if you go a bit farther away from the palace and stand there in complete darkness, it's even more beautiful. I still think that you have the most gorgeous sight from the pavilion though.”

“Then let us go there.” It wasn't like they hadn't visited it every day for the past few weeks, but Blanche couldn't help it. That was their spot, and when they were there, she felt like she might increase her chances of getting closer to Theodore. After all, they had seen each other there for the first time, and she had been mesmerized immediately. Maybe the pavilion would remind him of how they had met and how he had consoled her. But even if it didn't, her original goal of cuddling against him had already been fulfilled. So, she was content. At least she would be if her heart wasn't beating so loudly that she feared that Theodore would hear it.

Even when they reached the pavilion and stepped inside, she could barely bring herself to calm down. Blanche still didn't want to let go, but she would probably be forced to do so now. She stalled for some time by looking around before slowly loosening her hold on Theodore's arm.

The scenery was truly beautiful. There were gorgeous flowers growing all around the pavilion, and ivy grew up the pillars. The hedges around them were high enough to shield them from spectators, but there was still enough space above the bushes to allow them to see the night sky.

Blanche would like to admire it for even longer, but she could barely focus on their surroundings. She slowly dared to turn around to face Theodore and couldn't help but be a bit worried. Why was he so serious all of a sudden? Had she upset him? She hadn't even done anything too special. She was silent for a moment before forcing herself to speak up. “Is something wrong, Theo? Tell me if something I did bothered you.”

“That's not it.” The emperor stopped and moved his hand to his forehead. “I just feel like...doing something like that may not be a good idea.”

Blanche tried to ignore how quickly she got nervous now and replied. “Why? I like being close to you, and you said that you didn't mind it either. I made sure that there weren't too many people too. This can't cause any rumors unless your knight or my maid say something to others. But I'm sure that they won't, so us being a bit closer should be fine, shouldn't it?” She tried to put all of her sincerity in her words while praying that he wouldn't push her away now.

Theodore let his hand wander to his scalp and ran his fingers through his hair. “I know. It's not about others or about me disliking it. Even if rumors are part of why I'm so worried. But that's not the main issue.” He took a shaky breath and then made eye contact with her again. “If we...do this...I won't be able to let go of you. And I don't want to take the chance to leave away from you. You really don't know what you are doing to me.”

Blanche kept meeting his eyes as she took a step closer to him. “You're right. I don't know that. But you don't know how I'm feeling either. I mean, you said that liked me, right? And then you even held my hand. Now you even get surprised when I hold your arm. I know that it's...greedy of me, but I don't want you to avoid me.” She took another step forward.

Theodore let his hand drop and met her gaze without saying anything. For a few seconds, it was quiet before he spoke again. “I'm not avoiding you. I just...feel bad. I told you that we would have to take it slow, and yet, I'm the one that keeps forgetting about that. When you are in front of me, waiting is the last thing on my mind. In the beginning, it was easy to stay away because I didn't want to make you uncomfortable. But as soon as you told me that you wanted to hold my hand, that argument didn't count anymore. Now I have to keep finding some reason not to ignore everything I said before when I see you. It's almost ridiculous. I'm the emperor. I shouldn't ever be rash and instead act deliberately. But when I'm with you, my common sense seems to dissolve into nothingness. All of this may not be as easy as I want it to be.”

Blanche didn't need to ask about that to understand. She had barely left her room, and even she had already noticed that the rumors about the emperor having a mistress spread quickly within the palace. Surely, his fiancée wouldn't like that if she ever found out. But since that mysterious woman hadn't visited Theodore in the past couple of weeks, it was obvious that Blanche already cared for him much more. She would visit him every day if she was living somewhere else. So, she didn't bother thinking about that much.

It was more important to make Theodore understand what she felt. She mentally prepared to explain how there weren't any problems on her side and that it was easy for her. That they would be able to deal with everything around them.

But after taking one more step forward, she gave up every chance to speak. She was now standing directly in front of the emperor and had to tilt her head backward to look up at him. He had lowered his head to make eye contact with her, and it felt like she was falling into his beautiful eyes again.

All of a sudden, all words seemed to disappear from Blanche's mind. It appeared to be the same for Theodore, who opened his mouth, only to close it again.

But words weren't necessary anymore.

The couple just looked at each other for a while. Blanche's heart was pounding, and she couldn't calm down even if she wanted to. She knew well that she wasn't in full control of her actions anymore. She acted out of an impulse when she slowly lifted her hand and brought it to Theodore's cheek. Blanche gently cupped his face while scanning his eyes for a reaction. Feeling his skin like this enchanted her even more. It was a wonderful feeling as she realized that he didn't mind her touching him like this.

Theodore looked right back into her eyes and shivered slightly for a moment. He closed his eyes for a second, and when he opened them again, there was some undefinable emotion twinkling inside them. He lifted his hand as Blanche slowly lowered hers. His touch felt like a soft breeze as he let his fingers brush over the side of her face. He only put his whole palm on her skin when a few seconds passed, and he was still as careful as if she was made out of porcelain.

Blanche already longed for more. She leaned into his touch, and he gently stroked over her skin. Almost without knowing it, she stepped closer to him so that she was touching his chest with her hands. It felt like his heart was beating rapidly as well, but she might just have felt her own heartbeat due to her nervousness. Blanche was already out of breath since she knew what would follow now. At least she hoped that it would follow. She had waited for this long enough.

Theodore's gaze felt like it was piercing her very soul, but she didn't want to hide. Blanche wanted to show him everything. She wanted him to know who she was, and she wanted to get to know him in return. She wanted all of him.

His hand slowly moved downward and rested on her cheek for a moment before it wandered down again. He stopped at her chin and slowly let his thumb brush over her bottom lip.

Please.

She could only beg him in her mind. She wanted this so badly. He had to grant her this one wish. Even if it was just a peck, one that lasted for a single second. Blanche wanted him to finally do what she longed for ever since he had first found her here. She tried to show all of that on her face and just looked at him.

Theodore's expression was conflicted. For a moment, she panicked and thought that he would pull back. But then a few more seconds passed, and he only stared into her eyes. Then, in an instant, his intention changed.

He leaned forward and brought his face down to hers. He kept his hand on the side of her face and gently held her in place as his lips finally reached hers.

Blanche could have cried tears of happiness at that moment. She was so nervous that her heart seemed to jump around in her ribcage and she thought that might lose her balance if he just retracted his hand. She had no idea what to do, and her desire to do well almost pressured her a bit.

But when their lips met, she couldn't think about anything anymore. Just about Theodore.

His kiss felt even more wonderful than she had ever imagined it. It was like their souls entangled, as novelettish as that sounded. Small sparks seemed to run through her entire body and made every single fiber of her being squeal with joy. It was perfect, just like a fairy tale. She felt like she was stuck in time while the world around them faded and only left behind what was important.

She didn't know how much time passed before Theodore slowly pulled back. Even then, she couldn't say anything. Despite it having been a gentle kiss, she was panting, and her face felt hot as if she had a fever. Blanche was full of utter bliss as she looked up at Theodore with nothing but pure adoration.

He didn't show her the same emotion though.

Instead, obvious shock was painted onto Theodore's features as he took half a step backward, almost as if he regretted this. “I'm really...” He didn't finish that sentence. He froze again and scanned her expression. That was the moment in which a switch inside him seemed to have been flipped. He didn't regret this for very long.

In an instant, he stepped closer to her again and lowered his head for another kiss. He was still gentle but a little more passionate this time.

A second passed, and it seemed like their emotions took over at that point. Theodore put his arms around her and pulled her against him while she reached up and tangled her fingers in his hair.

Blanche had never been happier than while being here in his embrace. This kiss meant more than just a small distraction for the time being. It was the start of something wonderful, she was sure of it. They couldn't go back after this. There shouldn't be any doubt regarding their feelings now. A kiss could only feel this beautiful when they were utterly in love. She felt like she was surrounded by fluffy, warm clouds that tingled her whole body to let her know that she was with the person that she was destined to be with.

Theodore was her fate.

If she hadn't been sure before, she was certain now. From now on, her feelings could only get stronger, and she already loved him so much. Even though they had only met each other a short while ago, she couldn't imagine a life without him. She didn't know whether he felt this strongly about her too, but their kiss made it seem like it. His embrace was as passionate as her hold on him while she wrapped her arms around his neck.

She hadn't just met her dream prince in a gorgeous castle. He also liked her back.

This really was a fairy tale.