"Do you think we'll get married?" Grace's soft voice whispers lazily through the phone.

"Yeah. I'm counting on it." Arthur's voice responds sleepily, the grin he's sporting is evident in his tone.

"You're so cocky." Grace giggles, and a quiet kissing sound is made, through the darkness.

"Nope. Just confident." Arthur whispers, "None of the scenarios in my head include a future without you in it."

There is silence, short and pensive, then Grace utters, ever so softly, "I love you."

Arthur closes the video app and locks his phone with a heavy sigh.

This is the third time he's watched that video in one hour. He feels pathetic.

The clock on his bedside cabinet displays bright red digits.

1:42am

Arthur groans; he had gone to bed at ten.

With a huff, he rolls away from the clock and closes his eyes, determined to get to sleep.

He doesn't know why he bothers. It's not as if sleep is going to stop the thoughts of Grace that consume his mind during the day.

He dreams of her too.

There is a knock on the door, soft and faint, but still there, definitely there.

"Come in." Arthur says quietly, staring at the door expectantly.

A delicate hand curls around the door, then Arthur is met with the lithe form of Rebecca... his fiancée.

"Were you sleeping?" She asks timidly.

"No." Arthur responds, annoyed. He wishes he was sleeping. "Why aren't you?"

Bex steps further into the room, leaning against the door which she had closed behind herself.

"I can't sleep."

Arthur frowns, "Too many thoughts?"

Bex nods once.

With a sigh, Arthur sits up, scooting over to one side of the bed and pats the space next to him.

With a soft smile, Bex moves toward the bed and takes a tentative seat, curling in on herself under the covers.

"She probably hates me." Bex says, after a couple of moments of comfortable silence.

"No she doesn't. Why would she? There was nothing between you. Not really." Arthur says reassuringly.

"There could have been." Bex frowns, her voice laced with sadness, "We both felt... something. But we never acted on it-"

"And now it's too late." Arthur finishes her sentence sympathetically.

"Now it's too late." Bex confirms.

She sinks down, lying properly under the covers now, pulling them up over her chest and flopping her arms on top of the material.

"Do you think we're making the right choice?" Bex's asks after a few moments of silence.

Arthur waits a beat then looks down at her, barely seeing her under the darkness of the night.

"Depends on who you ask." He says. His voice contemplative.

"I'm asking you."

"Then no. We're doing a terrible thing that will hurt the majority of people involved."

Bex blinks up at him silently, then asks, "So why are we doing it?"

"Because it's the right thing to do." Arthur replies with a sigh, "Because we're making a bunch of important people, very happy."

Bex's mouth twists downwards, "Your mum."

"And your dad."

"How did you-"

Arthur chuckles humourlessly, "We're more alike than than you think, Bex. We'd both do anything to make our parents proud."

He pauses, then adds, "Only difference is that I'm pretty sure my parents actually love me."

"Hey!" Bex protests quietly, "My parents love me! In their own way."

"Does that way include a trip to the bank and aristocracy?" Arthur teases.

"They're all I have." Bex grumbles sadly, "They love me if I do what they want... so I'm doing it."

"You are so fucked up."

"And you aren't?!" She exclaims, "Because you're definitely not marrying me because you love me."

"No I'm not. I'm doing it out of duty to my country."

"Charming."

"Oh come off it, at least I'm not doing this so that mummy and daddy finally love me."Arthur scoffs, "I'm being noble. You're being cowardly."

"That's no way to talk to your future wife." Bex jokes. She snuggles further into the covers, "Anyway, you're trying to delude yourself into thinking you're doing the right thing. That's not noble in the slightest."

"Rebecca," Arthur responds, waiting for her to turn her gaze to him, "You are absolutely right."

~~~

"Okay, so, we've got both major popcorn varieties, two tubs of neapolitan ice cream, two bottles of wine, and a shitload of crappy rom-coms starring dumbass female leads who don't know their own worth." Elina says dropping a giant bag of goodies onto the table near Grace's feet.

"You are a goddess." Grace breathes out, lurching to grab a bag of popcorn and the television remote at the same time.

"I know." Elina grins, going to the kitchen to put the ice cream away.

Grace switches on the TV, getting ready to put it onto the correct settings.

An image flashes on the screen of a gaggle of horses racing along a track. The camera cuts to different locations around the grounds until it settles for a shot of the crowd.

Grace is a milliseconds away from changing the channel, her finger hovering over the button, when she is stopped by something popping onto the screen.

"Is that-"

"Arthur." She says breathlessly. Putting the remote down and leaning forward.

He looks... breathtaking. This must be one of those big important horse races, like Ascot or something, because he's dressed to the nines. He's in a black shit, expensive and tailored, with a grey waistcoat fitted securely around his body. On his head is a top hat, the ridiculous kind that Grace probably would have mocked him for on another day. But today, in this outfit hair slicked back... he looks posh, and expensive, and... sexy.

"He looks... nice." Elina forces. Settling down next to Grace.

"Yeah.. he really, really does." Grace sighs, flopping backwards. Then she squints at the screen, frowning a little, "Rebecca."

Elina, who had been rummaging through the bag of treats, snaps her gaze upwards, fixed onto the screen.

She says nothing, just stares at the television for a few moments until the commentators start to speak.

"Prince Arthur is here on his first official appearance since the funeral of the late King Andrew. He's accompanied by his fiancée, Rebecca Simpson." The female commentator says informatively, "They scrub up well don't they?"

"They absolutely do, Olivia," the man agrees, "They look lovely together. Positively radiant."

"Positively radiant." Elina imitates in a childish voice, flopping onto the sofa, a bottle of wine gripped in her hands, "Bex looks radiant, Arthur looks like a potential-girlfriend stealing love rat."

"Woah." Grace breathes, eyebrows shooting up comically high as she takes a swig of her own bottle of wine, "Take no prisoners, huh?"

"Sorry. I know he's the love of your life and all but... UGH!" Elina lets out a shout, "Look at them! They're laughing and happy as if this isn't just some shambolic ruse to fool the public into thinking Arthur is the perfect prince."

The clogs in Grace's head start to turn, slowly, at Elina words. The taller girl doesn't notice.

"I mean, who is stupid enough to believe they actually love each other! A month ago, Bex was making heart eyes at me! And Arthur was blubbering over all you, begging you not leave him like a child being left at daycare! This is such a farce!"

"Unless it isn't" Grace says quietly, eyes locked onto the TV screen.

Elina stops talking and looks between her friend and the television. Arthur and Bex are smiling, laughing, in fact, talking as if they're old friends... or lovers. Arthur lets out a delighted chuckle and grips Bex's hand, causing her to giggle.

Both girls stare at the image, then at the same time, tilt their heads to the right inquisitively.

"Oh my god. There's no way." Elina growls.

"They're...flirting?!"

~~~

"She would fall flat on her face!" Arthur says with a booming laugh, making Bex almost double over in laughter.

"It would be so funny! I can picture Grace screaming at her, telling her off for being so reckless!" Bex joins in.

"Okay but hands down, Will would be the funniest to watch trying to ride a horse." Arthur tries to cease his laughter.

"Oh my god, he'd be so useless! He'd probably try to eat it, the man would eat anything!"

"He'd have to fight Grace, she'd be more likely to try and save it than race with it."

"So true!" Bex grins, "It'd be worse than that time she tried to adopt all 40 dogs and cats from the animal shelter in Cardiff!"

Arthur wheezes out a laugh at the memory, grabbing Rebecca's hand to steady himself. The pair double over in laughter, leaning on each other to prevent themselves from rolling on the floor.

When they calm down, they both sigh, looking at each other sadly.

"Actually..." Arthur starts, "Grace would love this."

"Yeah." Bex agrees, turning to watch the race,

"You could have taken her to meet some of the horses."

"I would've gotten her her own horse."

"Could've gotten her a whole damn farm."

Arthur huffs a laugh, "She would love that."

Then he sighs, his classic frown adorning his face, "This is hard." He says, then looks at the girl beside him, "But you've made it better. It's nice to have someone going through the same thing. You're a good friend, Bex."

Rebecca grins, entirely sympathetic. She knows all too well how he feels.

"Thanks, Arthur, you too."