~ One must step out of the Known into the Unknown to truly know.~

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I groan as I still sense a lingering ache from last night on my right temple. I rub it a little and pull the comforter over my head a little tighter trying to fall asleep. I eventually decided to give up and go downstairs for breakfast, after what seems like hours. But as I throw my body away from the comforter and sit up, I gasp at the sight before me.

Where the fuck am I?

I sit in the middle of a king-size bed that is certainly not mine. I am not at my house, either. This room or hall I am in at the moment seems more like a dream. Expensive paintings hang on the right side of the wall while the entire left side of the wall is made from glass. The curtains were pulled to the sides giving me a glimpse of the beautiful view outside. A Givenchy Royal Hanover-like chandelier designed by William Kent in 1736 hung from the twenty-foot ceiling and tiny twinkling lights shone from the ceiling above. The room has been designed to decorate it with minimal ivory furniture that adds a subtly sophisticated touch of modernity to this medieval combination creating a comfortable and tranquil atmosphere. It seemed like a space intended for someone who is no less than a princess.

Then what am I of all people doing here?

I leap out of bed and walk to the windows, drawing the curtains fully. Lush greenery meets my eyes and I look down at the beautiful gardens below, lined with flowers in various shapes and colours. The greenery seemed to stretch very far as I tried to squint a little, trying to find out what was beyond that. But it was the darkest purple hue and a crystal-silvery fireball emanating from the sky that stole away my breath. Well, this place seemed to be out of this world but what I can't figure- 

''June, are you awake?" Alexander's voice asks from the other side of the door. 

What is he doing here? Oh my god!

Panicking, I try to jump back on the bed again ready to hide away underneath the comforter forever but in a haste, I bump into a humongous flower vase which was decorated nearby shattering it in the process while tripping on the floor and landing on my butt. I wince as the tiny shards of glass from the shattered vase prick my feet and palms.

The door to the room flies open as a panicked, dishevelled Alexander rushes into the room frantically looking around and breathes out a sigh of relief as he finally spots me near the bed.

"Are you okay?" He asks as he examines my hands and legs for any sign of injury and flinches at the sight of the shards of glass sticking out from my palms and underneath my feet. "Let me help you up, I will take out those pieces myself."

"Where the fuck are we Alexander?" I ask in a hoarse voice as I dread hearing his answer to my question.

"Not in your town," he replies curtly while he picks me up bridal style and places me on the edge of the bed.

"I know that already but where are we? What is this place?" He grabs a first aid kit from one of the drawers and places it on my side and takes out bandages, tweezers and antiseptic from it. "This might sting a little, alright? But you need to keep calm," he says as he very carefully takes my left hand in his, holding the tweezer in his right hand.

"I asked WHERE.ARE.WE?" I demand aggressively as I snatch my hand away from his hold while trying to put some more distance between us.

He huffs out a breath of annoyance while pinching the bridge of his nose and looking everywhere but me. "Home." A pause. "We are at my home, June. Welcome to Syrewa."

No, this couldn't be right. Where are mom and dad? Wait, did they already realise I am gone? 

''You are lying," I croak as I break into a sob. ''Y-you are l-lying, I-I-I k-know." 

I peek a glance at the view from the window and as much as I wished this was nothing but a nightmare, deep down I knew it wasn't. Is that goodbye, then? Will I ever get my parents to see me again? A hand-rubbed slowly around my back and I flinched at the unwanted touch.

"Don't you fucking touch me, you b-bastard," I spit venomously at the man beside me. I despised this man and everything about him right now. "Get the fuck away from me," I yell at his face.

"June, listen. I can explain why-"

"GET.OUT." At this point, I did not care if this is Alexander's house in some fucking kingdom. I just wanted to be by myself. There are just so many questions exploding in my head but I didn't feel the need to ask any because all of it comes down to one thing- I am doomed.

“I will ask one of the maids to come and help you out then,” he says softly with a defeated look on his face as he slowly walks towards the door and glances back one last time before shutting it behind him.

       
                          ***

ALEXANDER

"Your Highness?"

"Ah, yes, I am listening," I lie to Mr Ostemis. In all honesty, I haven't listened to a single word he has been blabbering for the last twenty minutes. I mean how could I? The girl I am in love with is in the room adjacent to mine and she despises even the mere sight of me. I saw how her eyes shone with disgust and hatred and lord help me, she looks like she didn't want to be anywhere near my presence. Am I that despicable? But then again, perhaps, I deserve every bit of her hatred. I just stole away her entire life for my selfish reasons but had there been another path I could choose without hurting her, I would have taken that. 

"It's all over, Mr Ostemis. It's over." I sigh, gripping tightly the edge of the mahogany table until all my knuckles turned white.

"Alexander, you only did what had to be done," he replies curtly, his face void of any emotion.

"Don't you understand she despises me? She won't even talk!" I punch the table leaving behind an ugly dent. "What will I even say to her? I stole her life away."

"You and I both know she did not belong there. Just because she is reborn as a human doesn't necessarily mean she has to stay there." He states as a matter of fact. "It's not up to us, son. We cannot go against the laws of nature."

"She is Autumn but at the same time, she is not. Sometimes, it's like talking to a complete stranger who exactly happens to look like her." Mr Ostemis looks at me with understanding and wait, is that pity?

"Don't give me that look," I snap. "She is Autumn, alright? She just doesn't remember it, you know for now," I trail off unconvincingly.

"Okay, I believe you." I knew he didn't. The look on his face gave him away but at this point, no one believes in me.

Only if Father did not rush with the marriage with Cathy. He just couldn't take the fact that Autumn is human but that's not her fault. She didn't ask for it. Scott warned me a thousand times regarding my decision to bring her here so fast but I did not pay heed to his warnings and here I am now, bearing the so-called consequences. Most importantly, how do I explain all of it? She will never believe me.

"You already brought her here. What are you so worried about now?" Mr Ostemis questions confusedly. 

Is he fucking crazy?

"Which part of my plan did you not understand since yesterday?" I ask in disbelief. "I made her parents be nice to her in the last two days when they have ignored the same daughter their whole life. I crash into their Christmas dinner and bring her here when she is unconscious!" I exclaim. "And as if that's not all, I couldn't even bring myself to tell her the entire truth about her. About us."

"What do you mean, Alexander?"

"She only knows my ex-lover who was named Autumn passed away and that my father, the King, wants me to marry my step-sister Catherina," I replied softly.

''Did you at least tell her that she looks exactly like Autumn?" He asks in a hopeful voice. 

I simply nod my head in response. But I couldn't bring myself to telling her the entire truth. Perhaps, a small part of me wants June to fall in love with Alexander willingly and not by force. June is in fact, completely different from Autumn. Autumn was like the soothing breeze on a warm, humid evening whilst June is that spark of hope that keeps you going forward no matter how rocky the road ahead is. And somewhere maybe, in the midst of my search for Autumn, I completely ignored June for who she really is.

A knock on the door breaks me from my train of thoughts. I gesture to Mr Ostemis to check on who the person is on the other side of the door. To be honest, I just wanted to be by myself for a while. Mr Ostemis opens the door slightly ajar and after talking with someone, he turns around, looking at me and mouths “Catherina.”

What is Cathy doing here?

I nod my head and Mr Ostemis steps aside, letting Catherina step inside the room. Her grin widens as her eyes land on me. “Brother, you are finally back,” she says excitedly.

''Yes, I am. I apologize for not going to meet up with you," I say forcing a smile. Given the circumstance I am in right now, I have no will to even give a real smile, let alone smile at anyone. All I can think about is how to clear up the mess I have created and stepped myself into.

"Don't apologize, brother," Cathy replies as she takes a seat next to me. Noticing the dent I left while punching on the table, she furrows her brows for a moment before the realisation dawns on her and her eyes dart between Mr Ostemis and me.

"Am I missing something here?" She meekly asks and looks at Mr Ostemis with an expectant look when she doesn't get an answer from me.

Mr Ostemis obviously looks back at me. “Autumn is here, Cathy.” My voice is so low, just above a whisper.

She whips her head so quickly I thought she'd snap her neck for a second. "What do you mean?"

"She is here." A pause. "In the room next to mine."

Her smile wavered for a moment until it was back to her broadly grinning at me. "Really? Can I meet her? Did she ask about me?" Cathy starts to blabber at once, her voice full of hope and excitation.

I notice Mr Ostemis rolling his eyes at Catherina but I just choose to brush it off. "There is some sort of problem actually," I say sighing.

"Alex, you can share anything with me," she smiles, as she reassuringly squeezes my hand and leaves hers on top of mine. "You know you can trust me." A pause. "With anything."

                       ***

JUNE

"Didn't I say I don't want to see you?" I yell, when someone knocks on the door. It probably must be Alexander. 

I, of all people, had no say when it came to ordering Alexander around in his own home but right now, I need my space. Didn't I make it clear enough already that I couldn't help him? Then why would he still go to such lengths dragging me to his mess?

A maid who appeared just about my age came after Alexander left yesterday to help me tend to my injuries. She didn't slip another word out of her mouth except to give out her name. Her name is Lily. Her eyes were glued to my hands and legs as she bandaged the cuts, but she looked up and gave me a curious look once in a while. When it got too much, she simply shook her head and left the room hurriedly after questioning her about it. She came after that, only to drop my luxurious meals. Twice.

"Someone wants to meet you," Alexander says as he steps inside the room cautiously. Very cautiously.

I don't bite, you moron.

He steps aside before I even have a chance to respond, opening the door wider and a woman who appeared to be at least in her early twenties steps inside the room. The word beautiful would be an understatement to describe her alluring beauty. She just seemed out of this world. I wondered if beautiful creatures like her can even exist. It's a serious offence. Dressed in a light pink chiffon gown, the stunning dress accentuated her curves in the right places and as the seconds went by and I kept staring, hypnotised by this enchantress, I just wanted the ground underneath to open up and swallow me right this instant.

She is definitely not human.

"Hello, I am Catherina," she says, a small smile playing on her lips while she extends her hand forward. "It is a pleasure to finally meet you, Autumn."

Catherina? As in the step-sister?

"I-I am-," I pause as I seem to have no clue how to continue.

"Cathy knows," Alexander speaks all of a sudden, breaking the awkward silence. He looks up at me, "She knows you are June, not Autumn."

That's a relief. One less person to pretend to be someone else in front of. But I remember Alexander saying quite clearly that his father wanted him to marry his step-sister so what exactly is Catherina doing here? She too doesn't wish to marry Alexander?

"I still am finding it quite hard to believe. She looks exactly like her brother." Catherina says to Alexander, as I find it difficult to stand under her scrutinised gaze.

"I am still here you guys in case it wasn't obvious," I snap, rolling my eyes.

"My apologies, June," Catherina apologises instantly, as her face turns red with guilt. "I should have been more thoughtful about your feelings. I do not mean any harm."

"It's alright, Cathy. June just needs some time," Alexander tells her. "Why don't you both spend some time together, hmm?" He suggests looking expectantly at the two of us then. Catherina agrees immediately and well after a moment's convincing I too agree quite reluctantly.

But as Alexander leaves us both and I look back at Catherina, her smile disappears as she looks at me with a look of hatred and disgust. I furrow my brows confused as a wicked smirk breaks from her face.

"So, you have come to stop my marriage, eh?" She says, her voice filled with hate. "Autumn was some kind of competition at least but you-" Her eyes shoot daggers in every part of my body. "You're just another insignificant human," she laughs maniacally. "What's brother seen in a vermin like you?

"It was all a show, huh?'' I ask in disbelief as realisation dawns on me.

What did you exactly drag me into, Alexander?

"You are nothing but a poisonous little vixen slithering smoothly into our lives. You are no Autumn!" She spits, her voice full of venom. "Anybody will be able to see through your pathetic facade." 

I cross both of my arms in front of my chest trying to look a little intimidating at least, but well, it was all but that. "It would then be my pleasure to tell Alexander how kind and caring his to-be-bride has been towards me," I reply shyly, raising a challenging brow at her.

She just scoffs at my poor attempt to threaten her. "Go ahead then. I dare you," a gleam of evil in her eyes. "This time things are going to happen exactly as I want, whether or not Alexander likes it."'

Just as I was about to fire another spitball on her way, a man who appeared to be in his fifties steps in through the door and informs Catherina that the King and Queen are asking for her presence in the courtroom.

"Yes, of course, give me a moment, Mr Ostemis," She timidly answers him as if she hadn't just threatened me a while back. Turning her attention to me, she says, "I really appreciate that you agreed to help out brother, June. I just don't know how to thank you." She comes forward and gives me a strong hug and softly whispers in my ear, "Let's see how long you last, Autumn."

She adjusts her gown with that and smoothes her hair as she simply follows behind the man.

Apparently, I have another Amber here to deal with.

Catherina was no match with June's high school classmate, Amber and June had little to no idea how nothing but poison-filled Catherina's mind. And so June made her first big mistake in Syrewa - underestimating Catherina Josephine Heart.

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