“Is he okay?” she whimpered.
I glanced down at Eric, groaning on the ground as he held his hand to his jaw. “Motherfucker. You’ll pay for this,” he mumbled through what I knew was a bruising headache.
“I’m terrified.” I rolled my eyes. “Now, get up and leave. Don’t even look at her again, much less speak to her.”
“Fuck you,” Eric spat with red saliva dribbling from the corners of his mouth.
“Sorry, but no thanks. Now, get the fuck away from us.”
Eric scrambled to his feet, glaring promises of sweet human retribution as he backed away, the two girls flanking both sides of him as he did.
I held his scowl with an amused smirk until they all disappeared from sight. Once they were gone, leaving Gray and me alone on the playground, I looked at her, appraising her from head to toe for any harm. “You okay?”
The princess deadpanned. “I’m fine. That was nothing, and I could’ve handled it on my own.”
“I know you could, but you don’t have to,” I responded with a shrug.
“I don’t need a bodyguard to follow me around.” The conviction in her voice began to falter.
I shook my head. “No, you don’t. But a friend wouldn’t hurt.”
Gray met my eyes. All her emotions rippled in her oceanic depths. “I…I don’t think I’d make a very good friend.” She hugged herself tighter, dropping her heavy gaze to the ground.
“You don’t have to do anything. Just be you. I’ll be a good friend for the both of us.”
“That doesn’t sound very fair,” she murmured. “I may not have many friends, but I know that friendship is a two-way street.”
I took a small step closer to her. “Yeah, usually that is the case. But having friends means they’re there for you when you need it most. To be your strength until you can be your own.”
“I can be my own strength…”
I shook my head. “No, Princess. You can’t. Not right now. And that’s okay. I’m here to help you with that. To remind you that you’re not alone anymore.”
“I just…don’t understand. I can’t figure out why you’re being nice to me. Are you planning to trick me or something?”
With a gentle smile and shake of my head, I reassured her. “Not at all. I’m here to help you. Protect you. Train you.” I took her palm in mine and placed the necklace in the center. “To be your friend.”
Gray’s fingers closed around the black crystal just before she peeked up through her lashes to hold my gaze. Hope shone in her icy stare, but it was accompanied by fear. Fear of betrayal. “Thank you,” she whispered.
“No need to thank me at all. It’s what friends do. I wasn’t going to let weak humans treat my princess like that.”
Gray snorted. “It’s nothing new. The humans here have always treated me like shit,” she said with a shrug.
I narrowed my eyes. “Why, though?”
“I guess because I’ve always been quiet? Different? I don’t like being in crowds or having attention on me. Never have. So, I’ve always tried to avoid it. But it only seemed to attract them more. They used to make fun of my glamoured hair. They called me all kinds of names because of it. Said I was too skinny. I suppose I’m weird for humans. Maybe there’s just something wrong with me that makes people—”
“No.” I insisted. “Gray, there’s nothing wrong with you. Do you hear me?”
The princess rolled her eyes but forced a smile on her face anyway. “I hear you, but I don’t believe you. When literally everyone in my life is intent on showing me how shitty I am, I’m going to be inclined to think that I’m the problem.”
“It’s not everyone in your life, though,” I argued, searching her eyes, watching her steel walls firmly construct itself behind her blank expression. “I don’t think that. Not at all. And like I’ve told you before, there are others who are on your side, but the king…”
“Yeah,” she huffed, breaking eye contact and the moment with it. “I know. The king likes to exaggerate things about me a bit—”
“Not that,” I interrupted. “He threatens those who seem sympathetic to you. Basically, endangering their livelihood or reputation if they go against him.”
“Well, there’s a great deal more of our people who are in his corner.” Gray ran her fingers down her pleated skirt, adjusting the tie our uniform dictated we wore. “Doesn’t really matter, does it?”
