I'm Not A Princess
Kevin walked down the sidewalk, hands in pockets. Behind his dark sunglasses, he kept his gaze down, ignoring the remarks of the paparazzi and the flashes of their cameras. He started to quicken his pace before slowing as he pushed open the door to Starbucks. Instantly feeling the warmth from inside, he stepped in and removed his jacket that was protecting him from the cold winter wind.
He walked over to get in line. He saw a small girl recognize him instantly and he smiled when she squealed and ran over to him. “Kevin!” she said, loudly. He bent down to her level. “Hi there,” he smiled, “What’s your name?” “Alexa,” she smiled, before stretching out her arms. Kevin laughed and hugged her. “I love love love Lovebug!” she said happily, once she let go. “Aw, thank you cutie!” Kevin smiled. “Be right back,” she said, before running off. Kevin watched her as she ran over to her parents, who were looking at him with smiles on their faces. Kevin stepped forward in line as he waited for Alexa to come back. He felt tugging on his shirt, and he looked down to see her smiling up at him with a pen and napkin in her hands. He chuckled and reached for the two, and signed it. “To Alexa. May all your dreams come true. Kevin :)” She squealed once more before hugging him again. “Thank you!” she sang, before skipping back to her parents. Kevin continued to grin as he stepped up to the counter and ordered.
Once he got his coffee, he walked around trying to find a seat. It was fairly crowded but he was able to spot a spare seat near the far end of the café. He walked over, seeing that a girl with blonde hair was sitting opposite it. “Is this seat taken?” he asked. She looked up at him, her blue eyes staring at him curiously. “No,” she said simply, moving her bag from the table. He smiled at her then sat down. He placed his cup on the table then reached for a book inside his bag. He opened it up before taking a sip from his coffee. He kept his gaze down but from the corner of his eye, he could see the girl shooting glances at him. He looked up and she smiled at him. “What’s your name?” he asked softly. “Spencer,” she replied. “Pretty name,” he said, causing her to blush. “Thanks,” she said quietly. They were silent for a few more minutes.
“So what brings you here?” she asked, breaking the silence. “What do you mean?” he said. “Well, this is just a normal café in New York. I wouldn’t expect a rock star like you here,” she said, jokingly. Kevin laughed, “Well, when it comes to Starbucks, I’m full of surprises.” She nodded. “You?” he asked. “I come here almost every day,” she shrugged, “Especially on cold days like this when I just want to curl up alone. This café feels so friendly, so even when I do feel alone, I feel like I can actually belong here.” Kevin was silent for a moment. “No-one should ever have to feel alone,” he said, finally. “No, they shouldn’t,” she sighed, “But it sucks when you do feel that way.” “If you don’t mind me asking…” Kevin trailed off. Spencer looked at him for a moment, studying him. “But if you don’t want me to…” Kevin said quietly, turning back to his book. “No,” she said. He put his book down and looked at her. She was looking past him, staring out the window.
“A few months ago, I thought I was in love with this guy. I thought he was perfect, and he always acted that way, especially around other people,” she began, “But a few weeks into our so called ‘relationship’, he started doing things that I didn’t want to. But I thought that if I didn’t do what he wanted, then he wouldn’t want me anymore.” She stopped for a while, turning to look at Kevin. Tears had formed in her eyes. “Every girl wants to be treated like a princess. I craved for that, but what he did was the complete opposite. Every girl wants to be swept of her feet by Prince Charming, but he’s usually off saving other girls who don’t have issues like me,” she mumbled, looking down, “So, I’ve given up now. Being alone seems like a good idea to me, rather than being hurt.”
“Just because one jerk hurt you, doesn’t mean that all guys are jerks,” Kevin said gently, “I know that if I was in his shoes, I would have treated you like a princess.” “But you weren’t,” she said angrily, “I don’t even know you and I have no idea why I’m telling you all of this. But I do know that you’re out there living your dream while other people are living their worst nightmares.” “It doesn’t have to be a nightmare,” Kevin said, “And I can help you to wake up.”
She stared at him before wiping a tear from her cheek. “It’s too late,” she whispered, “What’s the point in waking when dreaming is so much better?” “Because if you don’t open your eyes, you’ll never see what’s right in front of you. You can’t let what one stupid guy did affect you for the rest of your life,” Kevin stressed. “It’s not just that!” she said, “My life is a mess, I don’t have a job, everything sucks!” Kevin reached out and took her hand. “Turn it all around,” he said, “Prove to everyone that you can. I know you’re strong enough, hold your head up high and let no-one affect you.” She looked down at their intertwined hands before looking into his eyes. She nodded before getting up. “Goodbye Kevin,” she whispered, before quickly running out the door and into the cold rain, leaving Kevin staring after her.
~
Kevin returned every day for two weeks after that, hoping to see Spencer again. But she didn’t return. He sat in that same seat, waiting for her. But he never saw her again. But that whole year, while he was off touring around the country, she never left his mind.
~
“Hey guys, I think I can see a Starbucks!” Kevin exclaimed. “Ergh, seriously?” Nick groaned. “Oh come on. We’ve been driving around for an hour now. We haven’t been back in New York for almost a year, so let’s just appreciate it,” Kevin said. “You’re just saying that so that you can go get some coffee,” Joe muttered. “Yeah, pretty much,” Kevin said, as Big Rob parked the car. “Fine, just be back in 20 minutes,” he said. “Thanks,” Kevin said as he hopped out of the car.
He walked into Starbucks, the smell of the coffee making him smile. He got in line and waited. Once he got his order, he turned to walk back outside, but he saw a familiar face near the back. He did a double-take before quickly walking over to the table where a girl with long blonde hair was sitting. She looked up at him. “Kevin?” she asked, surprised. “Yeah,” Kevin said dazed, “I’m surprised you remember me. It’s been over a year.” “Yeah, well, I don’t forget anyone who changes my life,” she smiled. “What do you mean?” he asked, sitting down. “I took your advice. I held my head up high. I moved away for a few months, got a job working for a drama company, met some new people. And now I couldn’t be any happier,” she said, "I just stopped putting myself down. Stopped listening to those people who didn't believe in me. I stopped making decisions just because people wanted me to, and started making them because I wanted to." “Wow,” he said, “I’m proud of you.” She blushed. “I just wanted to thank you after what you told me. But I never got the chance to. But you made me realize that maybe there was a chance for someone like me to actually be happy in life,” she giggled.
“Well, I’m glad you’re happy. And I was wondering…” Kevin trailed off. “Yes?” she asked, curiously. “I heard that there was this new restaurant in town. The Palace? So if you wanted to be treated like a princess for the night, then I’m right here,” Kevin said with a wink. Spencer smiled. “I’d love that,” she said softly. He took out a pen and wrote down his phone number on a napkin. He slid it across the table. “Actually, I take what I said back. I promise that I’ll treat you like a princess forever,” he smiled, before getting up and walking out. Spencer picked up the napkin and smiled. “Thank you,” she whispered.
- Hope you liked it! The idea for this just kind of randomly popped into my head one day :)
<3
