"Oh father, it's beautiful," Erica said as her father slipped another diamond necklace around her neck.
"My daughter, you do not seem happy with it," he said. "Is there something else that you wanted?"
"No father, it's perfectly okay. I just, well, I just feel like I'm missing something, that's all."
"Good. I'll see you in the morning."
"Good night, father," she said and gave him a quick kiss and headed upstairs to her bedroom. Her long, blue velvet dress made it almost impossible for her to walk quickly up the stairs without almost falling a couple of times. "Stupid dress," she mumbled as she walked into her bedroom that her and her older sister, Elizabella, shared.
"Did you say something sister dear?" Elizabella asked from inside their closet.
"Oh, no I didn't."
Elizabella emerged from their closet and gasped. "Oh what a beautiful necklace, Erica! Oh, where did you get it? Did your fiancé give that to you?" Elizabella went up to her and gently touched the necklace.
Erica yawned and stepped away. "No. It was just another gift from father. That's all. And my fiancé, don't ever speak of him."
"But you are to be married to him! He is one of the richest men of this county!"
"What's your point?"
"What's my point?" Elizabella repeated. "My point is that father has chosen only the best for you."
Erica unclasped her necklace and set it, not so gently, down on her table and glared coldly at her sister. "And that's my point!" she shouted. "Father chose him for me. I had no say in the matter." She sighed. "It's not like Brian needs me or anything. And it's not like I need him either. What about love? Does love not matter to anyone?"
"Love! We don't speak of such words. Brian is good to you."
"And his money is good to our father. Brian does nothing for me. I do not love him."
"I'm not going to get into this with you. Good night, sister dear," Elizabella said.
The next day, Erica flew down the stairs in search of her father. When she found him in the study, she cleared her throat to get his attention. He looked up.
"Father, we must talk," Erica said.
"Erica, must it be right now?" he asked her.
"Yes, father, right this second. I do not wish to marry Brian."
"That's nice dear, but you are. At the end of this month. Good day, Erica."
"But father-"
"Good day, Erica."
Erica stamped her foot on the floor. She needed to get out of there. Everything was so binding; she was to be sold to Brian in less than a month. She ran out of the house but then slowed her pace down once she cleared her property. She looked down at the ground as she walked, her large green dress burdening her to no end. It dragged along the ground, gathering dust and dirt along the bottom edges of the fabrics.
All of a sudden, she was bumped into by someone. She looked up into the most beautiful blue eyes she had ever seen. They took her breath away, but she recovered quickly and stood up straight.
"Excuse you, Sir," she said.
"Oh, I'm sorry," he plainly said.
"Forgive me, but is it not proper to address a lady by her full title?"
"Uh," he said. "I beg your pardon, my lady..."
"Erica," she stated.
"Ah, Erica. A very beautiful name for a beautiful lady." He bowed.
Erica curtsied. "Thank you, Lord..."
"Nickolas. Just Sir."
"Well then. Good day, Sir."
"Miss," he said and stepped aside. He watched her as she started to walk away. He watched her until she disappeared among the crowd.
When Erica walked back into the castle and headed up to her room, she heard sobbing coming from the inside. She slowly crept into the room and saw her sister, crying on their bed.
"Elizabella! What ever is the matter?" Erica asked her. Concerned, she walked over to the bed and sat down next to her sister.
"Father has chosen a suitor for me as well," Elizabella replied.
"So why are you crying?"
"Because you were right, Erica!"
Erica smiled inside, but did not show it. "But I thought that it was our duty-"
"Forget about duty!" she yelled standing up. Then, with her back to Erica, she quietly added, "I have fallen in love."
"Excuse me? What did you say sister dear?" Erica pressed.
Elizabella turned around. "I said that I have fallen in love."
"With whom?"
"I know not his name. I saw his face among the crowd and our eyes met."
"Oh!" Erica cried disgusted. "You have not fallen in love!"
"What do you mean?"
"You know nothing about this man! He could be a killer!"
"He is not-"
Erica stopped her. She grabbed her shoulders and shook her. "You may be older, but you are none the wiser. That is not love! Love is knowing the person, giving yourselves to each other body, mind, and soul. Love is coming to an understanding with one another so that you both live in peace and harmony together. Love is a feeling that can not be forced upon someone; it is mutual. Love, you do not know! I am disgusted to know that my sister, my blood relations, should even think such a horrid thought of a man that she does not even know. From where is he? What doth they call him? You are naive."
Erica turned and walked out of the castle once again. She was infuriated. Did no one in this world understand the concept of love? Of being loved? She did not think so. She walked through the town thinking about her sister, and her marriage to Brian, which was growing closer by the day. Her head was held down, fixated at the ground until she felt a strong hit on her shoulder and she was knocked to the ground. She looked up and saw the same blonde man from the other day. He held out his hands and helped her up.
"We must stop meeting like this, Lady Erica," Nickolas said, smiling.
"Yes, I do agree, Sir," she said and dusted herself off. "You must stop hitting on me."
"You mean I must stop hitting you-"
"No, I mean you must stop hitting on me."
"Hitting on you?"
"Yes!"
"I have simply run into you."
"Twice in one day!"
"I would never try to hit on you," Nickolas said.
"All I am saying is do not try to hit on me, Sir, I am to be married."
"And all I am saying is that I wouldn't hit on a brat."
"A brat! Sir, that's no way-"
"Yes I know. No way to talk to a lady."
They both paused.
"Do you love him?" Nickolas finally asked.
"That's not a very appropriate question!"
"Why not?"
"Because you don't ask that sort of question! Marriage is not based on love."
"It's not?"
"No." Erica paused. "But it should be."
"I totally agree."
"Now I know you're-you agree?" Erica questioned.
"Yes, completely. Having your parents set you up for no reason except for the money, is preposterous! There's no feeling whatsoever, it is just disgusting."
"Well I may have misjudged you, Nickolas."
"How sweet. You haven't forgotten my name."
"Maybe I didn't misjudge you afterall!"
"How so?" Nickolas asked, trying not to laugh.
"You are very sarcastic and rude!"
"Nothing wrong with that."
"Good day!" said said exasperated. He laughed as she turned and walked away, clearly on the verge of being mad at him. She only turned her head back once and gave him a look. He only sarcastically waved to her, and continued to laugh to himself.
Later on that day, Nickolas was hanging around town, when he heard his name called.
"Nick! Hey loser, wait up!"
He turned around and laughed. "Hey, Alex. What's wrong?"
"Nothing. Can't a guy say hi to another guy without something being wrong?"
"I don't think so."
"Very funny. Hey, who was that babe that you were hanging out with earlier on today?"
"Who?"
"What do you mean who? The one with the peach gown on."
"Oh, Lady Erica-"
"So she has a name!"
"Now wait a second! First of all, we ran into each other, literally. She is only a woman that ran into me. Second of all, she is more or less a glorified shrew."
"Are you serious?"
"Yeah, I guess so. She's one of those little rich girls that think they know everything."
"You are to be coming into money if my memory serves me right. When your old father kicks the bucket. So how old was she?"
"I don't know. Maybe, eighteen years of age?"
"And if my memory serves me right again, you are nineteen years of age..."
"So?"
"So you like her."
"I do not!"
"So does she?"
"Does she what?"
"Does she know everything?"
"She's the only one that I've met that believes in love."
"You're such an idiot," Alexander teased, and he and Nickolas walked off down the road.
"Elizabella?" Erica called as she walked into her room. Elizabella looked up, but then looked away. "Look, I'm sorry. It's just that the morals in this day and age, well, there are none. Tell me sister, who are you to be married to?"
"You may have heard of him. His name is Lord Kevin."
"Oh, yes. I do know of him, very well indeed. He is very handsome."
Elizabella gave her a look. "You're not helping me much. Brian is handsome."
"Sorry. Oh what are we to do?"
"We could switch."
"Or, we could set them up with somebody else." Erica said, then she paused and gave her sister and smile. "Or, set us up with somebody else."