-----------------------------------------------------------

"I'm going to meet with Daniel," Callie announced after school the next day.

"What?" all three of us shouted in sync.

"I'm going to talk to him," she shrugged. "Remember what Trey said last night about having no regrets?" She took a deep breath in. "I've thought about it and to move on, I need closure."

I hugged her and she sighed and hugged me back. "I can't believe he's back. It still feels like I saw a ghost."

"What about Demetri?" Melissa asked. "Not that it matters what he wants right now."

"I haven't told Demetri yet..." Callie trailed off. "He's kinda mad right now and I don't want to push it. But either way, I'm doing this for me, so he's gonna have to deal with it."

"Preach girl," Melissa cheered.

We drove off towards the Royal Realm. I anxiously drummed my fingers along the window. Kevin started beatboxing to the drumming. I looked over at him with a laugh and he grinned.

"You finally laughed today," he smiled.

"You noticed that?"

"Duh! Of course I did. You're still worried about Ashton aren't you?"

"Yeah... and Micah too." He still wasn't at school either.

"I don't know about Micah, but you don't have to worry so much about Ashton. He's tough, he'll get through this."

I nodded, deciding to take his advice and calm down. Raúl had told me that Ashton's fever had gotten higher. That made me worried. Somehow I had gotten used to having him beside me, and now that he wasn't there anymore I felt kinda empty.

When we got to Ashton's place, Callie came out of the car with her hair curlier than usual. Her lips glistened with gloss and mascara accentuated her already long lashes.

"I thought you just wanted closure," I said, surprised.

"I do, but I'm going to make him realize what he missed out on." She flipped her hair with an alluring smile.

"Yaas, queen!" Melissa hyped her up.

"Okay, I'll try and find that jerk so Callie can talk to him. Come with me Mel, I'll show you around the Royal Realm. And you, go find your boyfriend," Kevin teased.

"He's not my boyfriend," I protested, but he only waved and walked off with them.

I did the usual fingerprint and iris scans and rang the doorbell, but nobody answered. Should I just go inside?

"I'm coming in," I announced as I walked into the mansion, feeling very intruder-ish.

I went up to the second floor, and without even pausing for a moment, I sprinted to the third floor. Kevin had told me to stay away from Ashton's dad and I was going to do just that.

"Aaah!" I screamed as I stepped onto the third floor.

CaVaughn's green eyes stared back at me as he made his way towards the staircase.

"You've got to stop doing that," I said, holding my heart. He scared the living daylights out of me.

"This is my house," he pointed out.

Welp. That was true. I was the intruder anyways. I blushed and nodded. "You're right."

I observed his black sweat suit. "Are you going jogging?"

"Training."

He cocked his head towards Ashton's door. "You can go in."

"Okay," I smiled, running past him.

I knocked twice, even though I wasn't really expecting an answer. I pushed the doors open and made my way into the room.

Ashton was still unconscious. I frowned as I felt his temperature. It wasn't alarming, but he was still hot. I pulled a chair closer to his bed and sat down, resting my chin in my palms.

"Hey," I spoke to him. "How long are you going to sleep? It's been almost two weeks, aren't you dragging this out too long now," I complained.

His eyes remained closed and for a second my heart dropped when I thought about the possibility that he might not open his eyes again. A tear slipped from my eye, but I didn't pay any attention to it. I lightly stroked his face with the back of my hand.

"Ashton, please wake up, I miss you," I sighed as another tear slid down my cheek.

It was crazy to think that this was the person who could make my tears flow so easily. No-one else had ever made me cry, except during the time when Callie's heart had gotten broken. Not even that heart wrenching seventy-nine percent in Physics had made me cry, even though I had teared up a bit.

"Ashton just open your eyes please," I sniffed, taking his hand in mine. "I'll never lose my necklace again and I'll go to your next party and I'll share my gummies," I said as my words stumbled over themselves. "How can you make me cry like this, you arrogant jerk?" I shouted at him as I buried my face in the sheets and willed my tears to stop.

"Mmm... you're so loud," a raspy voice whispered.

My head shot up. Ashton winced as his eyes began to open. The rays of light filtering through the windows swam around in his dark blue pools.

"Ashton!" I gasped, throwing my arms around his neck in a hug.

"Elizabeth?" he asked, still somewhat in a daze. "What? How long have I been out?" he asked as he started to recollect his senses.

He sat up and the sheets slipped off him to reveal his toned bare chest and abs. I blushed, but at the moment I didn't care. I didn't want to let him go for anything.

He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me onto the bed so that I was sitting right beside him. He inhaled deeply. We just stayed like that for a while. Ashton was finally awake and I was overjoyed. I was seriously so worried about him. His body was still hot, but it was okay, he was going to cool down soon.

I pulled away from him so that I could look at him, but his eyes were closed and he slumped back onto the pillows.

"Ashton?" I asked in panic, kneeling beside him on the bed. I shook him gently, but he didn't budge.

Oh no! Did I hold him too tight? Was my hug a MMA chokehold or something? I panicked as I felt his pulse. He was okay, but I wasn't. My heartbeat escalated as I racked my mind trying to figure out what was wrong with him now. His fever wasn't high enough to let him pass out. I nibbled my nails anxiously.

"Maybe if you kiss me, I'll wake up," he whispered with a smirk and then puckered his lips.

A shaky breath escaped my throat as tears slid down my cheeks.

"Ashton, you jerk!" I shouted, snatching up a pillow and was about to hit him with it, but he grabbed it and opened his eyes grinning. The grin vanished from his face when he realized that I was crying. He hurriedly sat up.

"Elizabeth, are you okay?" he asked, framing my face in his hands.

I glared at him through my tears. "You don't know how much you scared me!" I sniffed.

He stared at me for a moment before gently cradling me to his chest.

"I'm sorry," he apologized, "For making you worry about me."

He tousled my hair to help me calm down and lightly kissed the top of my head.

"You have no idea how worried I was, but you just kept sleeping like a prince. Who do you think you are?" I argued.

Ashton pulled back so he could look at me. I managed to get my tears under control and rushed to wipe my face. He moved my hands and ran his thumb down the tear marks.

"I'm sorry," he apologized again. "I remember going after the king, but I don't remember much after that," he frowned.

"Mhmm," I nodded. "It's been almost two weeks, today's Thursday."

His eyes widened as he searched my face for any hint of a joke. When he realized that I was serious he growled.

"That-" he shouted and swung his feet over the side of bed in order to stand up, but I pressed him down.

"You are not going after him again. Do you hear me Ashton DeLorentes?" I warned.

"I didn't get to beat him," he groaned, bringing his fist down on the sheets.

"No you didn't. And you going after him right now isn't going to change that. You just woke up after so long. You aren't in any condition to face him."

He glared at the door and then laid down on the bed in defeat. I sat down cross legged beside him and pulled the sheet over his chest. He threw it off, dragging me down on top of him instead.

"Wha- Ashton, let me go!" I protested.

"Let me hug you," he insisted obstinately.

"At least put a shirt on first or something," I said, pressing against his rock hard chest.

"You've seen me shirtless before," he insisted.

"That doesn't mean I'm used to it."

"Then get used to it."

Well, it didn't take him long to get back to his usual self. I rolled my eyes and just let him hug me. It felt strange to me, but it did feel kinda nice too.

"Elizabeth, did he- did the king do anything to you while I was unconscious?"

I shook my head. "He didn't do anything."

I didn't tell him about what his dad had said to me. It would only make him angrier. He sighed heavily. I looked up at him. Even at the angle where I was lying down on his chest, he was still pretty handsome, but his eyes were troubled as he stared off in thought.

A low rumble sounded beneath me and I looked down. "You haven't eaten solid food in days."

He rolled his eyes and I tried to force myself up. "Let's get something to eat," I smiled.

"I don't want to get up," he sighed.

"Ashton," I pounded lightly on his chest. "I need you to eat something."

"I have a whole meal right here," he said, looking down at me.

"Ha-ha funny," I retorted. "I'll do you a favor if you come downstairs with me."

I regretted saying that as soon as the words left my mouth. I had forgotten that I was dealing with Ashton and not Melissa, Callie or Kevin. Who knew what he would ask for?

"Within limits, of course," I added quickly as his eyes lit up.

"Limits? Never heard of that," he said, getting off the bed and stretching. He took my hand in his. "Let's go."

On our way down the stairs, he became tense as we got nearer to the king's office. Halfway down, we met who was CaVaughn coming back up.

His eyes held the slightest bit of surprise, but it was gone in a second. His eyes were bloodshot and he was covered in a sheen of sweat. What kind of intense training did he put himself through?

"You're awake," he stated hoarsely.

"Yeah," Ashton frowned. "You went training again?"

"Yes," he answered almost mechanically.

"...Alone or...?"

"The king came by."

Ashton's hold on my hand got tighter. CaVaughn's gaze drifted down to our intertwined fingers.

"What did he want?" Ashton asked.

A muscle in CaVaugn's jaw clenched. "A lot of things."

He continued walking up the stairs. Ashton stared at the ground, troubled and then turned to me worriedly. He quickly masked the worry and tugged me down the stairs. "Let's get some food."

We passed the second floor without incident and made our way to the kitchen. I decided to start Ashton off with a fruit salad while I made some chicken broth.

He munched on the fruits while I familiarized myself with his huge kitchen. Cooking was fun to me. I'd always loved watching my mom cook when I was younger.

I was slicing up the vegetables when an arm snaked around my waist.

"Um... what are you doing?" I asked as Ashton leaned down to rest his head against mine.

"Just watching you cook."

"You can do that from the table," I pointed out.

"I came over to keep you company."

"I'm good, let me go," I told him, but he didn't let go.

"I'm holding a knife."

"Ooh scary," he laughed. "I heal quickly anyways."

"Ashton," I glared and he let me go and raised his hands in surrender. He sighed and went back to his fruits.

He was so touchy ever since he woke up. It was like he was making up for all the time he didn't see me. I remembered Kevin saying Ashton was fascinated with the feeling he got from contact because of the soulmate bond. I felt it too, but I was not about to let him get so handsy.

When I was done, I placed a steaming bowl in front of him. "Bon Appétit."

I ended up making too much, because I wasn't used to cooking for one. I sat down with a bowl too. I glanced at him nervously as he took a spoonful. What if he didn't like it and it tasted like liquid trash?

Ashton cocked his head to one side. "Hey, this is really good," he said in surprise, giving me a thumbs up.

I breathed a sigh of relief and got started on mine. It tasted just okay to me. He was probably saying that to make me feel better.

He finished his before I even reached halfway with mine and went to get seconds. I guess he needed to eat a lot to make up for the last few days, but he shouldn't pig out at the same time.

"I really should marry you, Elizabeth," he smirked.

I scoffed and walked into the living room. I sat on the sofa and he did the same.

"So... for this favor that you owe me."

"Can't you just forget I said anything about that?" I asked nicely. "I even made you food."

"Nope. That was your choice."

I rolled my eyes. "There are limits to what I'll do you know," I informed him.

"Oh really?' he asked dangerously, leaning over to me.

"Uh-umm... y-yeah," I stammered as his hair brushed my forehead.

He leaned in like he was about to kiss me, but then whispered in my ear. "Do me a favor and stay away from the king... whatever it takes don't go near him. If I'm not in the house and the guys or CaVaughn aren't around, don't come in alone. Please."

My lips parted in surprise as he leaned off me and ran a frustrated hand through his hair. What was that about?

I sat up. "What's wrong?"

He sighed, obviously stressed. I reached over to wrap him in a hug. His jaw clenched and unclenched as his mind kept wandering to something that irritated him.

"What did your dad do?" I whispered.

"Don't worry about it, Eliz-"

"Didn't I tell you to stop trying to handle everything by yourself? Let me help you. I'm sure I'm involved in this in more ways than one."

"You're right, but telling you will only make you even more worried. I have to find a way to fix this," he groaned.

"It's better than you worrying alone," I insisted.

"You're very stubborn aren't you?"

"So I've heard," I laughed. "Now spill."

He sighed. "Fine."

----------------------------------------------------------

!