My Long Lost Princess

Chapter 16: Ayana's Birthday

It was late morning and I was walking to the dining room. Today I'm twenty years old. Of course we'll be having a party tonight. It will be the first birthday I'll be celebrating with my family as far as I can remember. I couldn't be happier. Once I entered the dining room I was greeted by a smiling Luis. "Good Morning Ayana. Happy Birthday." I smiled back. "Thank you Luis." I sat down at the table. I'm the only one here. I guess it's still early, but usually father and mother eat before I wake up. "Luis where is everyone?" "Their majesties are still asleep. They had a long day yesterday. Aaron, Diane, and Kimberly are still asleep as well," Luis replied as he set my breakfast in front of me. I then asked, "They're all asleep? I'm about an hour and a half later than usual. I'm surprised that no one is here yet, especially father and mother." He replied, "As I said earlier their majesties had a rather excruciating day yesterday. Also Diane, Aaron, and Kimberly arrive only a few minutes before you arrive." "I'm just shocked that's all. Father and mother always wake up early even when they had an exhausting day. They must have been very busy yesterday. I just think it's strange." Luis then said, "I'm sure they'll be here soon. You should eat your breakfast before it gets cold. After this, the servants will be preparing for the party. You'll need your energy for tonight. You won't be able to eat until you've greeted all of the guests at the party." I nodded and started eating.

A short while after, mother and father entered the dining room. "Good morning Ayana! Happy birthday," father said to me while smiling. "Happy birthday Ayana," my mother greeted me. "Thank you," I replied. Father and mother sat down, and Luis gave them their breakfast. Then father asked me, "Are you ready for tonight Ayana?" "Of course. It will be the first birthday I remember celebrating here." Then the doors opened to the dining room. Diane, Aaron, and Kate walked into the dining room. Kate walked up to the chair next to me and sat down. "Happy birthday Ayana!" I smiled. "Thank you Kate." Diane and Aaron also greeted me and sat down. It was silent after that. I quickly finished my breakfast and excused myself.

I returned to my room and the maids were waiting inside the room. I asked them, "Isn't it a bit too early to get ready? The party isn't until tonight." One of the maids replied, "Well getting ready will take a bit longer than usual today and we're sure that you'll want to have a small snack before the party. You'll be greeting many guests before you can eat and by the time you're finished, you'll be starving. So that's why we wanted to do this earlier." "Thank you for thinking of me." I then started to take a shower. After that the maids started to fix my hair. It took longer than usual to fix my hair, but it looked beautiful. I then wore the purple gown they chose for me. The maids then started applying makeup to my face and once they were finished, I looked amazing. One of the maids told me, "Ayana you look beautiful!" The other maids nodded in agreement. "Thank you so much." Then there was a knock on the door. The door opened and another maid entered with a small cart. "Ayana we brought you a little something to eat before the party." I smiled at everyone. "Thank you for always thinking about me. I couldn't be more grateful for the kindness you give me." One of the maids replied, "It's you who treats us kindly. You allow us to be so casual with you. Thank you. Now if you will excuse us, we still have to make preparations for the party." "Alright. Thank you again."

They left one by one but before the last maid left she said, "Ayana someone is here to see you." When she left the room another person entered. "James what are you doing here so early?" He replied, "I wanted to see you sooner. Happy Birthday Ayana." "Thank you James. Anyway would you like to join me? The maids brought me a snack." He replied, "Are you sure?" "Of course." He sat down next to me and we started eating. James spoke up, "You look beautiful Ayana." I smiled at him. "Thank you James. If this didn't look nice, I probably would have cried since it took much longer than usual." He laughed at that. "Well no one has the right to say you're not beautiful tonight." I then asked, "So what are we going to do for the next three hours?" "Well we can finish eating and that leaves us still with two and a half hours so why don't we talk. I enjoy our conversations. I get to learn more about you." I smiled at him. "I would like that." So we started talking to one another. I enjoy our conversations too. He doesn't hide anything from me anymore. He's always honest with his feelings. Maybe that's why I fell in love with him the minute he showed his true feelings. I just wish that one day, he'll say those three special words to me. We continued to talk and soon the guests started to arrive. Time flies when I'm with James. Then there was a knock on the door. The door opened and Luis walked in. "Ayana you should get going. The guests are arriving." I nodded and looked at James. He said, "I'll see you in the ballroom." I nodded and smiled. Luis, James, and I walked out the door and James and I went our separate ways.