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“I do like being a prince, but mainly because I don’t have to slay any dragons,” he replies, and Ava bursts into laughter.
“That’s knights, silly,” she says.
“Did I get that wrong? Sorry,” Alexander replies, all easy charm.
“Prince Alexander is silly,” I say. “But let’s keep that between us, okay?”
She gives a solemn nod. “Okay.”
Dr. Dalgleish suggests we say goodbye to Ava, which we do, and she leads us to the next bed, where we meet another girl, named Lola. In contrast with Ava, she’s in a navy pajama set, her head completely bald.
“Hello, Lola. It’s great to meet you,” I say.
“Hey,” she says without a smile.
“Lola’s having a bit of a down day today,” Dr. Dalgleish tells us.
“I’m so sorry to hear that,” I say. “Tell me, do you want to be a princess when you grow up, too?”
She shakes her head, her lips twisted. “Nope. I want to be a police officer and catch bad guys or drive cars really fast on a racetrack,” she replies with an endearing lisp.
“Lola’s one of our tomboys here on the ward,” Dr. Dalgleish explains.
“My sister, Amelia, is a tomboy,” Alexander says.
“Is she a princess, too?” Lola asks.
“Of course. But between you and me,” he says, leaning closer to her and speaking conspiratorially. “She’d much rather wear jeans than a ballgown, and she used to be an excellent tree climber, although she does less of that these days, now that she’s a grown up. Do you like to climb trees?”
“I used to,” Lola replies, and my heart breaks for this young girl, unable to do what she loves.
“It’s one of her goals when she’s better,” Dr. Dalgleish explains. “All our patients have lists of things they want to do when they leave here. We find it works for them to have something to look forward to.”
“How high have you climbed?” Alexander asks.
“So high. Way higher than Stuart. He’s my brother,” Lola explains.
“Would you say you’re the champion tree climber in your family?”
“Definitely. Do you know what else I can do?”
“Tell me.”
“I can hold my breath under the water for ages.”
“That’s impressive, and very useful,” Alexander replies.
I watch as he chats with Lola, and then other children as we make our way around the ward, always with ease. They respond to him as though talking with a fellow child, not a grown up or a prince.
Something moves in my heart.
I feel a connection between us I did not see coming. More than friendship. More than attraction.
And it’s both exciting and terrifying.
Chapter 17
Alexander
