Between 2 Hearts – Episode 21

       The party continued in full swing, with Naomi and Mia busy serving drinks to the guests. Diva stood chatting and laughing with a group of ladies, her eyes gleaming with amusement.

As Naomi walked by, Diva called out to her rudely.

 “Get us more drinks.” Naomi turned to leave, but Diva’s voice stopped her. “I didn’t ask you to leave it.”

Naomi stood still, her face calm and composed.

 “Is she your personal maid?”One of the ladies turned to Diva, a curious glint in her eye.

 “Never. I could never have her as my personal maid. I can’t stand her smell.”Diva’s laughter was mocking.

The group of ladies erupted into laughter, their mocking gazes fixed on Naomi. But Naomi remained calm.

Unbeknownst to Naomi, Diva snuck one of the lady’s phones into Naomi’s bag. Mia, however, witnessed the sly move and her eyes widened in surprise.

“You can leave. And please hurry up with the drinks.”

Naomi took two steps forward when suddenly she felt someone grab her from behind with full force. The empty tray of glasses flew out of her hands, crashing to the floor and shattering into pieces.

The sudden commotion caught everyone’s attention.

  Naomi spun around to see who had dragged her, but before she could react, a hard slap struck her face. The room fell silent, with all eyes fixed on Naomi.

Alex and the others rushed over, shocked by the sudden outburst. 

“Diva, what’s going on?” Alex demanded.

 “Stay out of this, Alex. I’m dealing with this thief.”

 “What are you talking about?”Queen Lala asked stern.

 “I saw her sneaking that lady’s phone into her bag.”Diva pointed accusingly at Naomi.

The room erupted into a mixture of shock and murmurs. The lady in question quickly checked her table and bag, only to realize her phone was indeed missing.

“I can’t find my phone!” she exclaimed.

“She took it!”Diva’s voice rose. 

 “That’s not true.”Mia stepped forward, her voice firm.

But Diva was relentless, grabbing Naomi’s bag and dumping its contents onto the floor. The phone fell out, and the room gasped in shock.

“She’s a thief!” one of the guests cried out.

Alex stared at Naomi, his expression speechless, while Naomi’s face remained bowed to the floor.

 “That’s not true! I saw Princess Diva sneak the phone into Naomi’s bag.”Mia’s voice rang out again.

The room fell silent once more, with all eyes fixed on Diva. Queen Lala’s face turned red with rage.

“How dare you!” she yelled, slapping Mia across the face.

Mrs. Ruth rushed over, having been informed of the commotion.

 “You dare accuse me?” Diva shouted.

“I am not lying, i…..Mia tried to defend herself, but Naomi stopped her. 

“I’m sorry,” Naomi said, her head bowed to the ground.

 “You’ll never learn, will you? You steal whatever you set your eyes on. This is a party, and you have to bring out your bad behavior.”Elora turned on Naomi, her voice scathing.

 “You’ll be dealt with.” She called out to the guards. “Take her away and let her kneel in the rain until I free her.”

The guard obeyed, leading Naomi away. The queen addressed the remaining guests, and the party continued, with Alex approaching his mother.

“Mom, please reconsider. We can resolve this,” Alex said.

 “Resolve what? A thief is always a thief, and she can never stop her bad habits.” she said and walked away.

  

   Naomi knelt under the pouring rain, her eyes cast downward. Suddenly, she heard footsteps approaching. She turned to see Mia joining her, kneeling beside her in the rain.

“Mia, what are you doing here? You might catch a flu,” Naomi said, concern etched on her face.

 “I don’t care. You’re innocent, and I won’t let you take the punishment alone.”

 “You’re really stubborn.”

 “It’s a good thing you know me too.”

The two friends shared a laugh, the sound carrying through the rain-soaked air.

 “Is Mom angry about what happened?”

 “No, she’s very sad. She knows you are innocent too….I can’t believe Diva could be this evil. I saw her putting the phone in your bag.”

 “You should know I’m not affected by this. I know I’m innocent, so I don’t care what people say about me. I only have a month to endure the torture here.” Her voice was matter-of-fact.

   “Let’s play a game,” Mia said, a mischievous glint in her eye.

 “Like what game?”Naomi raised an eyebrow.

 “Rock-paper-scissors. The one who loses has to look up at the rain with their eyes open and stick out their tongue.”

 “Let’s do it then.”

The two friends started playing the game, their laughter and shouts carrying through the rain-soaked air.

Meanwhile, Alex stood at the window, watching the scene unfold with a mix of sadness and longing on his face. Nathan appeared beside him, a drink in hand.

“Look at how happy she looks, despite being punished for stealing,” Nathan said.

He took a sip of his drink, his eyes never leaving Naomi’s smiling face. “I don’t think she’s a thief. She looks decent and pure of heart.”

Alex sighed, his eyes clouding over. He gulped his drink, then turned and walked away, leaving Nathan to stare out the window, lost in thought.

As the evening drew to a close, the king and Elora’s father remained oblivious to the commotion that had unfolded earlier. They had slipped away to a quiet corner, deep in discussion about their children’s relationship, unaware of the drama that had played out under the rain.

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   ***°°°°*****

    Naomi stood in the laundry room, washing clothes and struggling to stifle a sneeze. The rain from the previous night had left her feeling under the weather.

Just as she let out a particularly loud sneeze, Nathan appeared behind her. 

  “You might want to need this,” he said, holding out a small packet.

Naomi turned to him, surprised. “Um, good morning.”

 “Good morning to you too.”Nathan smiled warmly.

 “Is there something you want?”

 “Not really. I brought this tablet for you because someone asked me to.” He held out the packet

 “What is it for? Her confusion deepened as she stared at the packet.

 “It’s medicine for the flu. It helps kill cold and flu faster.”

 “Who asked you to give it to me?”

 “Well, the person said I should keep it private.”

Naomi’s curiosity was piqued, but Nathan just handed her the packet. “Go on, take it. Just take two of them and give two to your sister.”

 “Thank you.”She took the packet, her hands brushing against his.

Nathan handed her a bottle of water. “Go on, take it.” She took two tablets out of the packet and swallowed them down with water. Nathan handed her two lunch paper bags. “You need food to subdue the drugs,” he explained. “I know you’ve been restricted from eating in the palace for weeks, so you need this.”

 “Thank you.”She hesitated for a moment before taking the bags.

 “I don’t need this thank you, but I’ll deliver it. The other one is for your sister too.” He smiled.

 “Okay, tell the person thank you, and I really appreciate the kindness.”

Nathan smiled and walked away, leaving Naomi to wonder who could have sent the medicine and food.

  

★Alex’s room★

  Nathan entered the room to find Alex standing at the balcony, lost in thought.

“Are you thinking of jumping off?” Nathan teased, trying to lighten the mood.

Alex turned to him.”Did you deliver it to her?”

Nathan sat down on the bed, a casual smile on his face. “Yes, I did. She said thank you.”

 “Did you tell her I was the one who sent it?”

 “Nope, I told her it was private, and she really appreciated it.”

 “Thank you.”

 “You’re welcome. You can relax your mind now.”

 “Did you see her take the tablet?”Alex’s eyes locked onto Nathan’s.

 “Yes, she took it in my presence, so no need to worry.”

Alex let out a deep sigh, his shoulders relaxing slightly as he turned back to gaze out the balcony.

TBC