Chapter 15: Forbidden fruit or fruit of love??
[Zory's POV]
Truth be told, I was having doubts about the two of us after he obviously ditched me to be with "the guys" on my first lunch at school, but he's forgiven.
He acts differently—and I think it's when we're in public. Is he ashamed of me?? Well, if he is, he's justified. Or maybe he doesn't want people thinking he's dating his cousin, sister, or whatever the royal family told people that I am.
Daniella, on the other hand, must have really bad anxiety because she acts way too awkward around me. Seems she wouldn't be a problem after all. I'm lowkey happy she turned out to be unproblematic, but still sad she has huge anxiety problems. We may never get to relate like two normal teenagers at this rate.
Anyways, let's celebrate big wins—Daniel collected my number, yayyyyyy.
Wait... why am I super excited?? Do I have a crush on him??
Well, if I do, it's justified. He's funny, cool, has this aura… not to mention he's so good looking, omg.
But why hasn't he texted? It's been hours now.
[Ding]
Just heard my phone ring—please be him!!!
Opened my Elchat only to receive a message from the only person I wanted to hear from:
[Elchat]
Unknown number: Hey, prince Daniel here [wink emoji]
You: ohh, hi. Took you long enough.
(You saved this number as "my prince charming")
My prince charming: hehe, you know you don't rush excellence [smirk emoji]
You: heh!, you could say so. Well, better late than never.
My prince charming: could be late but never, never. Who in their right senses wouldn't text someone pretty like you [melting face emoji]
You: Someone who's handsome enough to bag someone prettier [teary smile emoji]
My prince charming: hehe cute [grinning face emoji] [smiling face emoji]
You: you say that a lot.
My prince charming: hmm hmm, yh I do.
Have you been shown around yet??
You: well I have, but who would say no to a kind gesture?? Definitely not me.
My prince charming: ok, meet me at "Jardín de residencias" if you know where that is [smiling emoji]
You: you know I said yes to your last question. Ofc I know where that is [unamused face emoji]
My prince charming: ok, meet you there at 8pm. Two hours before curfew—except your bedtime is before then [face with open mouth emoji]
You: ofc not. I'm like months older than you, child [relieved face emoji]. See you there, my prince [blushing smile emoji]
My prince charming: Can't wait, my redhead [red heart emoji]
You: same, see you soon [face with hand over mouth emoji]
'My prince charming' reacted [heart emoji] to 'same, see you soon [face with hand over mouth emoji]'
I locked my phone and flopped backward
Why was the chat so funny and flirty… or was it just me??
He's so funny, omg. He was definitely flirting with me.
I loved his use of emoji, it was just so funny.
I was laughing my heart out and blushing so hard my chin hurts now. He's so, so funny.
I love whenever he says "cute"—it always had that tummy-twirling effect on me, and it did even in text.
I'm wheezing—he's so cute. Our texts are so cute.
I read it over and over again till I noticed it was a few minutes past 7pm.
Oh no, I have to get ready.
He hadn't texted yet... but I had a feeling tonight would be interesting.
---
[Danielle's POV]
I swear I was going to confess in texts. I just don't know what happened.
Now I have a date with my redhead—or rather, my twin brother does.
I feel bad. I have to quit this. I will. In person.
But of all places to pick, it was the lovers' garden.
What if people saw us and got the wrong message?
They'll probably think it's Daniel, but that doesn't make it any better.
What about him and Ana? He seems so happy with her. I don't wanna ruin it.
Ugh. It's 7pm. I should get dressed.
I got dressed—overdressed.
I wore a dark green polo tucked into well-fitted black chinos, paired with a vintage brown leather jacket and crisp white sneakers. My hair was slicked back slightly, and I added a classic wristwatch. Casual, but annoyingly sharp. Just like him.
Made my way to Jardín de residencias.
The garden was glowing under soft fairy lights, trailing like stars through the hedges and trees. Dandelions danced with the wind in scattered patches, and faint music from a far-off dorm echoed through the night air. A paved stone path split the garden into curved lanes, all leading to the center—where a heart-shaped apple tree stood, glistening with gold leaves from the moonlight.
Amidst the dandelions, my eyes caught something more beautiful—my freckled redhead.
Why was I so happy to see her?
Do I have a crush?
I am hopeless.
"The stars look good today," I said aloud, trying to catch her attention.
"Seems like you're competing with them—and I must say, you are most likely going to win," she replied, rather cocky… and I felt the caterpillars in my belly become butterflies.
"You didn't come to play either. If the stars could feel, they would shiver in envy," I said as I made my way to hug her.
It was meant to be a simple royal greeting, but it felt… different.
We melted into each other. Her scent was sweet. Our breathing synced.
It should've felt wrong.
But it didn't.
As we hugged we inhaled each other's carbon dioxide that was meant to be toxic, but was sweeter than honey this night.
We broke apart, the silence that followed not awkward, but peaceful.
I was at ease.
"Seems someone came overdressed," she said, in a successful attempt to break the beautiful silence. We both chuckled.
"Well, I'm always fly. Can't imagine the Prince getting caught unfresh," I said as we made our way, slowly walking.
When will be the right time to confess?
We walked quietly, enjoying each other's presence.
This was rather so lovely.
A lot was said without words.
Is this what love feels like? Or a crush? Just to be safe...
We approached the apple tree shaped like love, centered in the garden.
It was lit from below by soft golden lights, its leaves rustling gently in the breeze. All around it were small white benches shaped like half-moons, and heart-carved initials decorated the bark—some old, some fresh.
Luckily it was empty, seems the love birds were still settling in. It's still the first day of resumption remember.
"Okay, scholar. Quick quiz," I said, breaking the silence. I didn't know how long it had been—I wasn't checking.
"Hit me, fly boy," she said, chuckling hard.
"Well, what's this tree called? The forbidden fruit or fruit of love?" I said, as we somehow found our arms crossed around each other.
Our shoulders touched. I was looking down at her, and she was looking up at me from the side. We were that close. Glued, almost. The space between us disappeared.
"Well, it's the forbidden fruit and fruit of love, because love should be forbidden," she said, laughing really hard.
There and then again, I noticed our height difference. Cute.
I was smiling.
"Just joking. Fruit of love hehe."
"Ugh, she's a beauty with brains too," I replied, and we both laughed hard.
"So only lovers should be here. I guess we should get—"
The gong interrupted her just as she spoke.
"See? The time agrees with me," she added.
The gong signified it was 30 minutes before curfew, and everyone should make their way to their dorms.
We both waved each other goodbye as she walked to our dorm.
I would have followed her through, but I'm supposed to be Prince Daniel, who stays in Dorado dorm.
So I stayed back… watched her go before slowly tracing behind.
What did I do??
I should have told her.
I messed up… but was it worth it??
I asked myself as I began replaying the night's event in my head, entering my room.
Well… she wasn't wrong.
Love should be forbidden.
This love was forbidden.