16

                                    

                                          
 THE KING 
 ~ Jaxson's pov ~
The houstings family was seated in the living room with each other since Mr. Houstings wanted to spend time together with his girls. Arabella is seated on the couch, flipping through her book in utter silence while Serena plays with the curls of her hair. 
No one spoke, but Mr. Houstings waited for someone to speak first. He then huffs, knowing they weren't going to say anything. 
On the other hand, I was near the hall toward the front door, leaning against the frame of the living room wall, watching Arabella silently. 
"Can we not have a family gathering?" Mr. Houstings asks. 
"I'm here, aren't I?" Serena sarcastically states. 
Arabella sits her book down, earning her father's attention. Serena then sits up as if she's the most perfect sister, brushing a few strands of her hair out of her face. 
Arabella rolls her eyes at the sight. "Could you be more pathetic?"
"Pathetic?" Serena gasps. 
Mr. Houstings sighs tiredly. "Girls, please."
"No." Serena sits up further, leaning over the couch. "You have no right to call me that when you are the one who will never receive male attention."
"That's fantastic," Arabella replies with a chuckle. "I would rather spend my time studying or reading a book, not spending my life chasing after men."
"Arabella, please," Mr. Houstings pleads with his youngest daughter. 
"You will spend your life miserable and lonely because that is all you accompany yourself with. Don't you want to find true love?" The oldest sister of the Houstings family asks. 
"Yes, of course. I am not pushing it, I am letting love find me, not the other way." The conversation has dialed down and Arabella is speaking to her sister in a soft spoken voice. 
Mature. 
"You and the gentleman must put in the effort, not one," Serena reminds. 
"I am putting in efforts." Arabella shrugs. "I am simply not chasing after other men and waiting for my husband to be."
"Of course, you always have an excuse for everything." Serena rolls her eyes to which Arabella shrugs at again. 
Mrs. Houstings makes her presence known when holding onto an expensive looking paper, and gasping when she reads over the words. 
"What is it, Mother?" Serena asks, twisting her neck to look at her mother. Mrs. Houstings is clearly in despair and shock, she shows the paper to her oldest daughter whom shares a few gasps of her own. 
Mr. Houstings then raises a brow. "What is it?"
Serena looks at everyone in the room, even me before speaking. "The king has gone missing."
I freeze. My mother must've made guards put out a word for my disappearance, I couldn't blame her, she was going mad at not knowing where I was. 
I wasn't too worried, nobody knew of my face, only my name. 
Arabella snorts out with laughter, earning a look from her mother. "What are you laughing at?" Her mother questions her. 
"Is that not a good thing?" Arabella smiles. 
"Why would that be a good thing?" Serena then asks, quite confused as I am too. 
She shrugs. "Maybe he'll never come back again and we'll find a better king." She says.