Scarlet's POV
"Do you not go home?" she asked, her voice faint but curious.
I returned her smile. "With treating you and Princess Aria, there's barely any time to go home."
'He.' It wasn't hard to guess who he meant. Prince Aaron.
Julian sighed heavily. "Estelle, I never stood by his side. I hate him, always have. But this time... this time, he is right."
"I'm scared, Estelle. If you take her there, you might lose her. And if you lose that girl…" he paused, his voice tightening with raw honesty, "I'm scared you'll lose yourself."
Violet's words came to me: Everything affects us.
How does this affect me?
She studied me for a moment before whispering, "Why do you work so much? Isn't it exhausting? Girls like you, so beautiful, should use that to find a good man to love them." A ghost of a smirk played on her lips. "Don't fall for those independent woman ideals. I lived that life. Wouldn't recommend it."
