3. The Rules
Chapter three
The Rules
N yari and Eliam move aside so I can approach the door. My hand is practically shaking with anticipation as I reach for the handle but it doesn’t open.
“You have to use the key card. That’s the reader.” Nyari points to a small, gold box beside the locked door.
I follow her instructions, watching as a warm white glow pulses behind the box, before a little click indicates the door is unlocked.
Opening the door, I amble through the entrance.
The room is immense, opulent and decorated in cream, light pink and gold.
Tall, transparent vases are filled with white rose and lily arrangements.
I keep walking, hypnotized by my new environment.
There is a standalone white marble tub in the center of the bathroom.
A beige and white rose bouquet sits on one of its corners, and a small tray filled with scented soap and body gels sits on the other.
There are a lot of other lavish amenities I need to explore, but I push open the French doors that lead to the bedroom.
A plush, king-sized bed with layers of throw pillows in cream and light pink is the focal point of the room; it sits against the wall facing the entry.
There are a set of double doors that lead to a private balcony.
I stand silently, taking in the elegance of the suite.
I feel a large presence behind me as Eliam’s scent of citrus and vanilla makes my head swim.
“What do you think?” The timbre of his voice ignites a warm, fuzzy feeling low in my stomach.
“It’s gorgeous.” I turn around to face him, realizing that his proximity in the intimacy of my bedroom is making me nervous.
Eliam is attractive, and he keeps smiling at me with his twinkling eyes and deep dimples.
“Excuse me.” I try shimmying past him, but he catches my arm before I can leave.
“Ny’s got it from here. She’ll walk you through the standard orientation and tell you everything you need to know.
” He hands me a phone which I remember humans use to communicate.
“My number’s in there if you need anything.
Or if there’s an emergency. Although, the phone’s really just a technicality—if you need me bad enough all you need to do is yell.
” He slowly lets me go once he is done .
“Noted. Thank you.” I smile.
“Enjoy, Princess. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.” He winks before popping out of the bedroom.
I walk back through the penthouse until I find the little nebula sitting on a long, curved sofa that stretches out in front of a coffee table.
There is a tower of colourful, circular items in the middle of the table.
Nyari is holding a lilac one she’s already bit into.
She tilts her head towards the tower and I pick up a green one.
I bite into it, unsure of what to expect.
The item is delicate, caving away under the pressure of my bite and releasing layers of light, sweet flavours.
“What is this?” I ask, eating the other piece at once and reaching for another.
“A macaron! Isn’t it delicious? I think the green ones are pistachio. Here, check!” Nyari pushes a small card into my lap. It has all the macarons listed by name and flavour.
She’s right, the green one is pistachio and white chocolate. The lilac one Nyari had is lavender and honey. There are pink ones, brown ones and a few more colours, and I can’t wait to try them all.
“So, I’m going to leave you to your journey but we need to go over the ground rules.” She’s reaching for another macaron.
“ Rules ?” No one had ever talked about rules.
“Mmhmm,” she replies, so preoccupied she doesn’t notice my confusion.
“Okay, so, first rule—”
“Wait, why do I need rules?” My interruption momentarily pulls her gaze to me.
“Because all of you are the same . You come down here and don’t know how to act.” I could see her eyeing the tower.
“This is undoubtedly the most important rule, because it goes over how you return. At the moment evening transitions to night, you’ll need to stand in the exact spot where you landed.” Nyari looks at me like I should be taking notes.
“I’ll remember.”
She raises her eyebrow at me before continuing. “Returning is important because you don’t want to get Earth-sick. Which brings us to rule—”
“Earth-sick?!” I cut her off again, apologizing quickly to alleviate her developing glare.
“Stars can only stay here for a specific amount of time, which varies from star to star. But if you’re here too long, you get sick.
It’s what happens when your body starts the transition to humanity and mortality.
But for royals, the outcome can be less than ideal.
” She finally picks up her third macaron, and after eating it in almost one bite, she starts talking again.
“Some royals don’t transition to humanity.
The process of draining royal stardust is too much. ”
“What happens if they don’t transition?” I can feel my brows scrunch together as I wait for the answer.
“They die,” Nyari answers casually.
“What?!” My voice comes out in a high-pitched squeak .
“I don’t know how or why. Research is being done, but not urgently since most stars want to go back after a week or two anyway.”
“Have you met any stars who haven’t wanted to return?” I was bouncing my right leg impatiently.
“Yes?” She looks at me sympathetically.
“ And ?”
“Earth sickness starts subtly at first. A couple of sneezes, maybe a light cough. But it spirals quickly, and soon you’ll have severe shakes and a really high fever.
The other symptoms I won’t go into. Most stars start to get sick around day twelve, and the plan is to have you out of here on day ten so there’s no need to worry.
” She seamlessly transitions to rule number three before I can protest. “Rule three is about your stardust.” She waits for me to interrupt with a question or statement on the new subject matter, but instead I mimic closing a zipper across my lips.
“Stardust down here is magical, so you need to be careful when using it. Stars can generally teleport, enchant, and erase memories.”
“Magical? Why has no one ever told me?” I leaned forward attentively.
“I don’t know. Maybe they aren’t allowed to? You’d have to ask someone when you get back.” Nyari doesn’t even pretend to wait anymore; she grabs her fourth macaron and shoves it into her face.