Page 28 of Royal Academy

CHAPTER 13

Benedict slumped down next to Lia on the bus and wrinkled his nose.

“Why is it about charter buses that reminds me of the inside of the guy's locker room?”

Lia smiled, “I don’t know, perhaps it’s the attached loo in the back that carries all of those treasures everywhere we go?”

Benedict gagged, “Eww, Lia!”

She laughed, “You asked.”

He looked her over, “You look good you know. Not different, just happy.”

Lia thought for a moment. When she had first spoken with Benedict she had been miserable. The students hated her the staff ignored her and she was homesick. But in the last few weeks, many of those things had changed.

The students were coming around, even Simone, Victoria, and Franklin weren’t as terrible as they had been. Lia supposed that it also helped she was spending so much time with Nick. Just thinking about him brought a smile to her face.

“Yeah, I am happy. How about you?”

He looked away and Lia immediately noticed that his shoulders had tensed.

“What happened, Benny?”

He snorted, “Nothing, I’m right as rain, Stinky.”

She poked him hard in the shoulder, “Stop lying and tell me the truth. Is everything okay with Father? Melinda?”

“Father is the same crusty bastard that he always has been,” Benedict said dryly.

Lia snickered, “Well, I don’t miss that. What about Melina?”

Benedict looked away again, “I’m sure she’s fine, we broke up.”

Lia was more than a little bit shocked. It was true that her brother and Melinda had a very on again off again relationship. Also, to be noted, Lia never had found Melinda particularly warm or even kind. But their union was practically written out when they were infants. Everyone knew that he was supposed to marry her.

It wasn’t written in stone or anything, but still…

“What happened?” Lia placed a hand on his arm and Benedict turned to look at her concerned face.

“Stop with the Sally Sad Eyes, Stinky. I broke up with her.”

“I don’t know if it matters who does the breaking up, it still affects two parties.”

He sighed, “I just, I know this sounds shitty, but I don’t love her. I don’t even like her very much, Lia. And why should I sacrifice my happiness to toe the line for Father? I already have to take the crown and it’s not that I’m not grateful you know I am.”

Benedict was a good man, Lia had always respected him and watched as he served others. But there was something restless about him. Something that she hadn’t seen before.

“Maybe you need a break,” she suggested.

He shook his head, “No, I have tried breaks with Melinda before and the next thing I know she is hinting about china patterns and redoing the east wing.”

Lia’s eyes widened, “Mother decorated that wing.”

Benedict smiled faintly, “I know, and I wouldn’t allow Melinda or anyone else to touch it. She knows that it is important to me and it’s like she doesn’t care. Melinda is in love with being a queen, not the prince in line for the crown.”

“When I said that you needed a break, Benny, I didn’t mean from Melinda.”

Benedict looked at his little sister, “Oh, then what did you mean?”

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