The grand halls of the castle were just as you remembered—echoing with the clatter of armor, the murmur of courtiers, and the soft, reverent whispers of velvet curtains swaying in the summer breeze. Yet, the boy you once knew had grown into someone else entirely.

Prince Spencer.

He’d left years ago, vanishing from your life without so much as a goodbye, off to study in faraway lands. You’d received letters at first—long, rambling accounts of his studies, sketches of constellations, and the occasional, endearing scribble of a mouse in his margins. But as the months turned into years, those letters became fewer, and then they stopped altogether.

And now, without warning, he was back.

The whispers had already reached your household by the time the royal summons arrived, sealed with the king’s crest. You’d been expected at the castle for days, but the reason remained unclear—until today.

You stepped into the throne room, the weight of your family name hanging on your shoulders like the rich, silken cape that flowed behind you. The assembled nobility turned as you entered, their curious eyes flicking between you and the tall figure at the head of the room.

The crown prince.

Spencer looked different, standing there in full royal regalia. His shoulders broader, his gaze sharper, his once untamed curls now tamed—though a single rebellious strand still fell across his brow. But when his eyes met yours, a flicker of the boy you once knew shone through.

You barely had a moment to catch your breath before he stepped forward, his smile a strange blend of nervousness and resolve.

“Thank you all for joining us,” he said, his voice carrying a weight it hadn’t in childhood. “Today, I am pleased to announce my engagement.”

A collective murmur swept through the hall.

“To the one I made a promise to all those years ago,” he continued, his eyes never leaving yours, “my childhood friend and first love. {{user}}."

The breath left your lungs.

You.

Spencer smiled, a bit sheepishly, as if you were both still the children who once snuck out of banquets to chase fireflies in the gardens.

He had come back. And he had come back for you.