Chapter Text
Wille: Hej! I guess we're number neighbors
Wille: This isn't even a thing people do anymore is it?
Wille: This is probably weird
Wille: Feel free to ignore this
Wille: Sorry to bother you.
He was aware of how desperate he must have seemed to whoever was receiving those messages. Wille prayed that the number wasn't in service anymore, but he knew that luck had never been on his side. He figured, best case scenario; the person would just delete the text, they'd both move on with their lives, and he could pretend he hadn't acted emotionally and done something impulsive that could have wound up getting him in trouble with his mother and the royal court again.
The fight he'd been caught in had been bad enough already. It was ironic that the fight had started because he'd said no to taking a photo with a girl at the party–he had tried to be responsible, knowing that a “party prince” wasn't the image the royal court would want him to convey to the public. And he couldn't bare the look of disappointment he'd see on his mother's face if his actions reflected poorly on the crown. When the girl's boyfriend grabbed him and jerked him backwards, Wille panicked. He was in a crowded stairwell and the music was so loud. The smell of alcohol and smoke felt suffocating.
He was the Prince of Sweden, who had just been roughly grabbed at by a stranger.
And Malin wasn't there to protect him. His sense of self preservation outweighed his logic.
The context of what led to the fight was never reported, because it wasn't good entertainment for the public. And none of it mattered to the royal court or his mother. They only cared about the “royal scandal” he had caused. It was decided for him that he'd publicly apologize in a press meeting, where he was to announce his enrollment at Hillerska.
Because he couldn't be trusted anymore in their eyes.
Hillerska, as it turned out, was even more suffocating than that dreadful stairwell had been. August was behaving like an entitled ass. Wille had expected that of his second cousin. August had been that way for as long as he could remember, at every Christmas dinner or family function they'd had in his lifetime, his cousin spent all of his time trying to make an impression on Wille and Erik–trying to worm his way into their immediate family for reputation. He had expected the rest of the wealthy students to behave in the same manner, he'd thought he'd been prepared for it. But being fawned over by every person he crossed paths with in such a closed off environment with no outlet was suffocating. And most of all, it was isolating. At least when he'd been at home he could always talk to Erik, but here at Hillerska, he had no one.
That feeling of loneliness was what drove him to lose all sense of logic and decide that texting a complete stranger, from his personal cell phone, in the hopes of making a friend who cared about Wille, instead of his status as a prince, was a good idea. Meeting someone anonymously through text had seemed like the best way to make a genuine connection at the time. Now though, he covered his head with his duvet and groaned, feeling like an idiot and wondering why his brain couldn't function like everyone else's.
Beside him on his bed, his phone vibrated. He bundled the blankets around himself like a cocoon, keeping his head covered and peering through the small opening as he reached for his phone. The text was from an unknown number. Wille took a deep breath, expecting to be met with annoyance from any reply he received, and opened the message.
Unknown Number: Haha hej!
Unknown Number: It's a bit weird yeah
Unknown Number: It's all good though
Unknown Number: I never did this when it was a thing people did anyway so might as well do it now😂
Wille read the messages a second time. Then a third. He honestly hasn't expected any response, and certainly not one so kind and forgiving. Now that he had one though, he didn't know how to respond. Was he even meant to?
This stranger had implied they were comfortable texting hadn't they? Or were they just being polite?
Fuck. He should say something back right? Or would that make this situation more awkward.
Would it be more awkward if he didn't respond now?
Was Wille over analyzing this situation and starting to spiral? Definitely. Why was he like this?
Wille: I'm so sorry
Wille: Please don't feel like you have to keep talking to me
He'd barely had time to close the conversation and press the power button when his screen lit up with a new message.
Unknown Number: I wouldn't have text back if I didn't wanna talk you know
Wille: I hadn't really considered that
Unknown Number: Safety first though
Unknown Number: You're not an old creep or whatever right?
Wille: Would an old creep admit to being an old creep though?
Wille: Fuck that makes it sound like I'm an old creep doesn't it?
Wille: Which I definitely am not
Wille: I'm 16 if that helps
Unknown Number: It does make you sound like an old creep
Unknown Number: But I'll believe you for now 😂
Unknown Number: I'm 16 too
Wille: Happy to have confirmed neither of us is an old creep then 😂
Unknown Number: haha same
Unknown Number: So any reason you decided to reach out like a decade after this was a cool thing people did?
Wille: Ursäkta!
Wille: Are you implying I'm not cool?
Unknown Number: I would never! 😂
Unknown Number: Still haven't answered my question though
Wille paused. How did he explain to this stranger how he'd been desperate for some form of connection that went beyond trying to climb in social status? He didn't want to lie–this conversation was just surface level small talk still, but already it felt more authentic than any conversation he'd had since Erik had dropped him off at Hillerska last week.
Wille: Honestly?
Unknown Number: Yeah
Wille: I just started at a new school last week and I don't really have any friends right now
Wille: Everyone here is so fake
Wille: It's been lonely
Wille: That's probably a lot more of an answer than you expected sorry
Unknown Number: I asked you to be honest didn't I?
Unknown Number: Starting a new school is hard and it can feel really lonely. My mom divorced my dad when my sister and I were kids and we had to move and start a new school
Unknown Number: It was scary not knowing anybody and trying to make new friends but I found some. They're still my best friends 6 years later
Unknown Number: You'll find friends at your new school too
Unknown Number: And you have me now 🙂
Wille: I'm glad things got better for you and you made some friends
Wille: You have me now too 🙂
Wille: Does this mean we're friends?
Unknown Number: Yeah we're friends 🙂
Unknown Number: You good with that?
Wille: I'm definitely good with that.
Wille: You mentioned you had a sister. Are you close?
Unknown Number: Yeah. She's my best friend.
Wille: That's how it is with me and my brother too.
Unknown Number: Are you the older or younger sibling?
Wille: Younger. What about you?
Unknown Number: Also younger.
Unknown Number: It's getting late and I've got classes tomorrow. I should probably get some sleep.
Wille: I should probably do the same.
Wille: Thank you for talking with me tonight
Wille: I'm sorry again if this was weird
Unknown Number: Weird can be good. It doesn't always have to be a bad thing.
Unknown Number: We can talk more tomorrow if you want?
Wille: I’d like that
Unknown Number: Same
Unknown Number: Goodnight new friend 🙂
Wille: Goodnight 🙂
As he closed out of the conversation and got himself ready for bed, Wille felt lighter. He knew he'd inevitably end up reading through their conversation in the morning and over analyzing everything he'd said, whether or not this person was just being polite, but they'd seemed genuine. They'd offered him words of comfort and their friendship. They didn't have to share what they had about their own struggles with starting a new school and anxiety over making new friends, but they had chosen to share it with Wille anyway. It was the most honest thing anyone had told him all week.
Wille didn't know this person, but he wanted to, because as short as their conversation had been, for the first time in a long time, it felt like someone cared about him. And not because he was the prince.