LITTLE RICH GIRL
Chapter Eight
Padmé was with her mother and
sister at tea, along with the Delancres, Lousel, and Leann. Padmé sat there,
listening to the conversation, but really was in her own world.
"Oh, Jobal, tell the
Delancres and Lousel about the mix-up," Leann said. Jobal put down her cup
and started.
"Well, there was a problem
with the stationers, so the invitations had to be sent back twice." Jobal
made it seem like the worst thing that could ever happen. Padmé rolled her
eyes.
"Oh, my word," Lousel
said, as if someone had died.
"And then the bridesmaid
gowns--now, let me tell you what an odyssey that has been," Jobal started.
Padmé leaned back in her chair, and Sola patted her sister on the shoulder.
"Padmé decided she wanted lavender, because she knows I just dislike that
color. Well, we kept getting messed up on them…"
Padmé’s mother’s voice seemed to
die off as she turned her head and saw a girl of about ten with her mother. The
mother was encouraging the child to sit up straight. Padmé had a flashback. At
the age of ten, she had acted like grown woman. She looked around the room, and
she was stuck with these people. And in a few months, she would be one of them
forever, always talking about how bad things were, that nothing was right in
the galaxy. Having that same laugh, sitting up straight. Always bragging about
what she had. She looked around and at her sister, who was not enjoying the
talk but pretended to. A life with Bail would mean she would get whatever she
wanted, when she wanted it. But what about a life with Anakin, a life with a
Jedi Knight who was almost a master?
*****
Tea was over, and Padmé and Sola
were walking back to their quarters.
"Sola?" Padmé asked her
older sister. "What should I do?"
Sola walked over to her sister.
They were three years apart, but shared a twin’s relationship. It was so deep
that if one of them got hurt, the other would cry. Or one would start a
sentence and the other would finish. But Sola always watched out for Padmé. And
she could see it now. Her sister needed help more than ever.
"I can’t tell you what you
must do. It’s up to you. You can marry Bail, have whatever you want. Or you can
be with Anakin and have to work for what you want. But who will give you love
and be there when you need it?" She kissed her sister’s forehead and left.
*****
It was dusk when Padmé walked out
to the palace hangar, were she found Anakin cleaning a small fighter.
"Hello, Anakin," she
said, and he turned around. "I…I changed my mind." She smiled at him,
and he smiled back. "They told me…" But Anakin hushed her and held
out his hand. She took it and he pulled her close.
"Have you even seen Naboo at
sunset?" he asked.
"Of course I have."
He shook his head. "I mean
from up there." He pointed to the sky.
The little fighter turned on, and
Anakin’s droid, R2D2, whistled from the back.
"You know I could get kicked
out of the Order for doing this?" Anakin asked as Padmé got comfortable on
his lap.
"Really?" she asked as
the cover came over them.
"Yeah, so stay down."
The little fighter took off, went out of the hangar, and they went into the
clouds. The clouds were orange and pink and very puffy. Padmé was in awe.
"The old tribes of Naboo called these skies Perlas Cielos."
"What does that mean?"
she asked, turning her head to him.
"Skies of Pearls."
"It’s amazing. My dad took
me up once. Just don’t do what he did. What do you call it? When you flip
over?"
"A barrel roll?"
"Yeah." Padmé looked
off in the distance.
"I won’t." But he did
anyway, and she screamed in excitement. "I could not resist."
"I liked it."
"If you like that, you’ll
love this." He flew down to the lake. It was a huge lake, almost like an
ocean. Padmé’s mouth dropped at the horizon.
After diving in the clouds,
Anakin landed the ship. He got out first, then helped her. But he kept her
close, and she looked into his eyes. He leaned in and she followed, and their
lips met in a kiss. The kiss became deeper and deeper as the sun set
completely.