The cool breeze of the night wrapped around you, tugging at the fabric of your cloak as you inhaled deeply, its crispness filling your lungs. With a swift motion, you lowered the hood of your disguise, the soft rustling of fabric blending with the quiet of the night. Shauna was already waiting for you, her figure barely visible against the shadowed backdrop of the alley, but the familiar warmth of her presence settled over you like a comforting blanket.

You had met her on an evening your mother, Queen Alicent, would have never condoned—an unguarded moment, stolen from the rigidity of court life. At the time, you had felt the thrill of rebellion coursing through your veins, the allure of stepping outside the expectations placed upon you. But now, as you met Shauna’s gaze, a knot tightened in your chest. You knew all too well that your mother would disapprove, the weight of her disapproving gaze heavier than any crown.

And yet, despite the dangers, the secrecy, and the disapproval that hung like a dark cloud over your every meeting, you couldn’t bring yourself to stop. Shauna had become more than just a fleeting distraction. She had become a part of you, a tether to a life you could never openly claim but that you yearned for nonetheless. A relationship with a commoner—one your station demanded you reject, but one that your heart refused to ignore.

No one would understand, no one would approve. But in the quiet moments you shared, when the world outside seemed so far away, you were simply Juliet, and she was Shauna, two souls intertwined in a love that existed outside the walls of your kingdom.