I will always come for you — pt 3

Emily Maine came right up to Aaron and hugged him.

"Hi Ronnie. How are you holding up, cousin? I heard about Ethan and your parents-"

"And my crown," Aria spat out.

Prince Troy looked between the cousins and gave Aria an apologetic look. He met Lady Emily Maine as he was entering the palace and she said that she had come to see her cousin. Prince Troy didn’t know that the cousins weren’t friendly.

"That too," Emily acknowledged. "For whatever it’s worth, I really am sorry. That’s really all I’m here to say."

Aria looked at Emily still holding onto Aaron and he went right back to being unsafe, right back to being the man who left her, would leave her again. Aaron followed her gaze to Emily and he took a few steps away from the one cousin in favor of the other. But Aria backed up too.

"The ball gown looks lovely on you, Your Majesty," Troy flattered, wanting to ease some of the tension in the air.

"Thank you, Your Highness. You have great taste," Aria answered.

Aaron was angry again, angry and hurt. She'd let another man dress her and the man was Prince Troy, her maybe fiance. He didn't like it, wanted to rip the dress he had so admired on her a moment ago clean off of her. But he couldn't be petty just then because something else was wrong. She looked devastated.

"Hey Ron, how about a dance for old times' sake?" Emily asked. "We should probably let Aria and her fiance have some alone time anyway."

Aaron saw red again. Why did everyone insist on calling him her fiance?!

"Not now Em," he answered tightly.

Aria turned to Aaron. Emily had advanced on him again, her hand on his arm. Bart was smiling at CC as she danced with the king, no doubt waiting on her. And Troy, sweet, dear Troy was here to prove to his ministers that he could take the crown in his brother's sted by marrying a queen. These were not her people. This was not her home. The room blurred. The people's faces became unrecognizable. Her people, her family, Ethan was dead.

"Please, don't not go on my account," Aria said, taking Troy's hand and leading him out onto the dance floor.

Emily took Aaron's hand and pulled him away from Troy and Aria.

"So you have the hots for my cousin now? She's not going to be easy to win over you know, not after you ditched her on the dance floor."

As he moved through the steps of the waltz like he had a thousand times before, Aaron's head began to spin.

"What are you talking about? I met Aria for the first time five days ago."

"No Aaron, you met her about two and a half years ago, at Bart's ball, remember? You were super all over the place about CC though, so you ended up ditching her. We had a drink and then the whole drama with CC and Prince Troy happened. Remember?"

The spinning was getting worse. No, no, no. That was just some random girl who happened to be with Emily at the time. He was just going to dance with her to mess with Emily a little, but then everything with CC and Bart started happening and Aaron just wasn't in the mood anymore. So he left her.

Aaron's eyes went to Aria, who was still in a daze. She didn't look good. Their eyes met and he recognized her, put the pieces together. Her hair was even longer than it had been when she got here, but it was her alright. He had her, smiling and laughing and eating out of the palm of his hand and he left her, like he left every single one of them after he was done messing around, because of course he fucking did. No wonder she was being all hot and cold with him. He could see it in her eyes. She was about to have a meltdown. No wonder she didn't want to be near him when she was about to lose it. She already had a reason not to trust him.

He knew. Emily must have told him or seeing them together made him remember. It didn't matter how, because he knew. How much did he know? She could never see him again, they could never talk the way they'd been talking again. Aria couldn't breathe. The weight of her family's death and the responsibilities that they had left her with suddenly overwhelmed her. They were gone, really gone. Aria had to get out.

"Are you unwell, Your Majesty?" Troy asked, seeing her go pale.

The song was ending and Bart was already making his way to CC when he saw Aria bolt. She looked like she was on the verge of tears.

"Shit," Aaron sighed, as he let go of Emily and took off after her.

Troy and Aaron were both running after Aria and after throwing CC an apologetic look, so was Bart.

All three men were now racing each other to get to her first. She saw them coming and found herself moving towards him, seeking him out. Aria started running to him and in no time she was in his arms in the middle of the corridor crying her eyes out.

"He's gone, Barry," she sniffed. "Ethan's gone. My parents, they're really gone."

Bart crushed her to his chest just as CC showed up.

"I know Ria, it's okay," he said, stroking her hair. "It's going to be okay."

Aria cried hard and loudly, like a woman truly in pain.

"They're all gone. I'm all alone," she cried.

Bart pulled away and cupped her face in his hands, looking her straight in the eye as he said, "That's bullshit and you know it. I'm here Ria. Whatever you need. I'm here."

He pulled her back into his arms as she wept, uncontrollably now, clinging to him, accepting him. Because Bart wasn't Aaron. He didn't just leave without letting you know. If he said he would be there, he would. Bart's arms were safe and true and reminded her of Ethan, which she decided wasn't such a bad thing after all. She decided there and then that she wanted to revisit the deal they’d made the last time they saw each other before everything went to shit.

Unknown to Bart and Aria, CC was standing next to Aaron and Troy as they watched the scene play out.

"Well then Princess Caroline, want to switch fiances?" Prince Troy asked.

"I thought I told you to stay away from my sister," Aaron hissed.

CC was a compassionate person, she truly was, and had she known that Aria was crying about her belated family or even thought to think about it, she might have understood. But as it was CC was as blinded by jealousy as her brother was and she had had just about enough of this woman. She was done wondering about her and just letting shit like this slide. Battle lines had to be drawn.

"No Prince Troy, I like my fiance just fine. Yours, however, better get ready. If it's a fight she wants, it's a fight she's going to get."

Aaron looked at his sister. There was nothing to be pitied about the passion burning in her eyes. He hadn’t seen this Caroline in eight months. It didn't matter if he had history with Aria or if he was attracted to her. He'd gotten soft and sentimental, let the women in his life get into his head, let Aria get into his head. That ended the moment she chose to run into Bart's arms. Aaron started this for CC and he was going to help her finish it, one way or another.

"Alright then," Aaron said, throwing his arm around CC. "Let the scheming begin."