The Unexpected Princess (Completed)

Chapter 18

But her prayers were never answered, Naledi thought as she came to a stop as Dineo’s teary whispers reached her in the hallway.

“She can’t go on like this.” Naledi heard her sniff her tears away, her feet feeling like jelly beneath her.

She had dragged her exhausted body out of bed as she had done for the past three months and a half to go to work. She could barely stand or keep her eyes open. She was weighed down by exhaustion and the constant harassment and snickers she received from everyone in the village, which had gotten worse with the passing of days.

Naledi dreaded going out every day because of what awaited her outside her house. It was as if they found joy in tormenting her – waiting for her on her way to work laughing and hurling insults at her. Naledi did her best to ignore them. But it was taking its toll.

“She has lost weight because she barely eats, her eyes are red from crying. And…” Dineo’s voice trailed off as she sniffed. Tears pooled in Naledi’s own eyes, she could hear her friend’s concern for her and it broke her heart. “I don’t know how she continues to do this to herself. I went to the royal house and found her cleaning by herself. The other maids were sitting around doing nothing. She didn’t tell me this was happening, and it been weeks.” Dineo’s words rose in anger.

Naledi remembered that day. Dineo had given those maids a piece of her mind that they scurried away in fear of her. Dineo could be mean when she was protecting the people she loved.

“Why is she doing this Koko? I don’t understand.”

“She’s doing it for me. She’s next in line.” Her grandmother said. She sounded worn out. “If I could change our history, I would. So that she would be free to live her life. But it’s our legacy. I knew something was happening at the royal house but she…”

“I know. She wouldn’t want to worry you.”

Her grandmother sighed loudly.

Naledi closed her eyes. She swallowed the sob that formed in her throat. She turned back to her room when her emotions got the better of her. She closed the door behind her. She leaned against it hoping its sturdy frame will steady her. She needed all the strength she could get because for her grandmother, she will go all the way.

No exhaustion or hateful slurs were going to stop her from working so that her grandmother wouldn’t have to. She will have to reassure her grandmother and Dineo, make them think that she was fine.

Before she could move away from the door to wash her face in the bathroom there was a knock at the door.

“Naledi, are you awake?” her grandmother called through the door. “Dineo is here.”

Naledi felt her stomach squeeze anxiously. She breathed in deep burying all her exhaustion and emotional turmoil behind a smile she hoped they wouldn’t notice was fake. Her moment of truth has arrived. Naledi ran her hands down the front of her uniform in a nervous gesture.

She walked to the door and stared at it for a minute not sure how to approach the situation. She was not a good liar. She became flustered and her brain went blank because she couldn’t think of anything to say. Dineo always knew when she was lying.

Smile Naledi, the rest will take care of itself, she said to herself.

“Naledi?” her grandmother’s voice came through the door laced with concern. Naledi wrenched the door open, coming face to face with her grandmother. She felt guilty even though she hasn’t done anything wrong.

Her grandmother stood there, a sweet smile on her face. Naledi smiled back at her, and some of the tension left her body. Her grandmother turned and walked to the kitchen without saying anything. Naledi followed her there. As they entered Dineo quickly dried her eyes.

“Morning, my good friend,” Dineo said with a bright smile. It seemed they were going to pretend nothing happened in the kitchen earlier. They must have realized nothing could be done to change what happened, Naledi thought as she went to the fridge to start preparing her grandmother’s breakfast/lunch.

“Morning Dineo. What brings you here so early?” Naledi asked hiding her face with the fridge door. She couldn’t look at Dineo.

“I thought maybe you, me and your grandmother should talk before you go to work.”

Naledi turned to stare at Dineo. She swallowed hard, because Dineo had that look she had when she was up to something. Naledi gritted her teeth, she was doing a very poor job of pretending she was fine.

Dineo’s eyes sidled to her grandmother. Naledi closed the fridge to stare at them both.

“Talk about what?” she folded her arms on her chest. Now she wished she had stayed in the hallway for the whole conversation.

“I can see you’re not happy here,” Naledi opened her mouth to refute her grandmother’s statement, but she raised her hand to silence her. Naledi bit her lips shut. “I have eyes. And I’ve seen the way people are treating you out there and how hard you’ve been working to keep our family’s legacy going. But you’re hurting inside, and that’s not good,” her grandmother paused and took a deep breath, “I want you to leave the village. Go wherever you want.”

“You know I can’t do that.” Naledi moved close to where her grandmother sat at the kitchen table. She reached for her hand and held on. “You know it’s not possible.”

“Not if I release you, and gave you my blessing to go and find a life of your own.” Her grandmother smiled at her. Naledi could feel her love and her need to protect her.

“What will happen to you? I can’t leave you to go back to work. You’re all I have in the world. No. I can’t leave.” Naledi let go of her grandmother’s hand and moved to the fridge. She roughly pulled the door open, and took out eggs, sausages and cheese from its depths. She shifted to the cupboards and threw the doors open.

Sounds of pans and pots being shifted roughly sounded in the silent room.

“Naledi stop,” Dineo came to stand behind her, “listen to what she has to say.”

“No. You put her up to this. She can’t work in that house, not when I’m still alive.”

“She won’t have to, I promise…but you can’t go on like this. Look at you,” Dineo pointed at her from head to toe. “You’ve become a shadow of yourself. This place is killing you slowly and I’m not going to allow that to happen. Not while I’m still alive.”

Naledi felt tears fill her eyes. She turned to Dineo as they fell down her cheeks. Dineo pulled her friend in a much needed hug. Naledi went willingly.

She’d been strong for three months and a half. She was so tired of holding everything together, pretending she was fine while forcing herself not to be angry with Anthony…the prince for what he had done to her.

She leaned on Dineo’s shoulder and let everything go.

After a minute Naledi felt slightly better. She raised her head from Dineo’s shoulder. She needed that, she thought as she wiped at her face. Dineo smiled at her and helped her to dry away the tears from her eyes.

“There she is my beloved star,” her grandmother said coming close to give her a hug. Naledi held on tight. She couldn’t imagine leaving her behind. She’d wanted to live her own life for so long, but now she couldn’t take that step. This was not how she’d wanted it, not when she was going to leave the legacy’s heavy burden on her grandmother’s shoulders.

“Food, I need food. I’m so hungry. Then you can tell me what you two have conspired this time.” Naledi said picking out a pan and carrying it to the items she had taken out of the fridge.

“Pick a city because you and I are going on an adventure.” Dineo squealed jumping around the kitchen to help prepare their breakfast.

Naledi watched her with a smile on her face. She felt alive for the first time in a very long time.

The last time she’d felt this alive had been when the prince touched her so gently and kissed her lips so softly. Naledi shivered as the memory of them together in the kitchen filtered into her mind.

She ruthlessly pushed those images out of her mind, letting the anger that had simmered over the past three months and half to a boil. She was so pissed at him for doing what he did, she didn’t know what do with her emotions. She couldn’t very well be angry with the prince of her own land. But she could forget him.

She’ll forget Anthony Tloung if it’s the last thing she did, Naledi swore to herself.