Chapter Text
Simon ran into the kitchen of their small home in Denmark and put two apples in his bag, jumping as he heard his mother’s voice behind him.
“Where are you running off to?” She smiled, knowing she’d caught him in the act.
“Just going to meet up with Yub.”
“Oh?” She lifted her brows as she sat down at the table.
“Yeah, we’ll probably go to the park for a little bit.” Simon shrugged his shoulders, and Linda had to smile and shake her head as she watched him formulate his story.
“Liar,” Sara said as she walked into the kitchen holding one of her school books.
“Sara!” Simon stomped his foot, and Linda chuckled, unable to stop herself, enjoying the occasional times he acted his age.
“What? You are lying. You and Ayub sneak into the garages and play in the cars, and I know Sonia lets you in to play with their piano when they’re not at the palace. You really should stop. You’re going to get Papa in trouble, and then what?” She opened her book to the page she’d marked and then looked at him, waiting for his response.
“That’s enough. Simon, your sister is right, you really shouldn’t be sneaking around at the palace. Now, why don’t you and Ayub actually go to the park? It’s getting cold out, so there won’t be that many more days you’ll be able to.” She stood and walked into the kitchen, giving him two pieces of bread to add to his apples.
“What are they like?” Sara asked at the table.
“Who?”
“The Swedish Royal Family. Papa doesn’t say much, but the articles say they’ve been pretty cold, I guess. The oldest brother seems nice, though.” Sara leaned in, waiting.
“Like I said, I haven’t been going to the garages, so I wouldn’t know. But it’s hilarious that you want me to gossip about them after telling me I shouldn’t be there.” Simon rolled his eyes as he moved the items around in his bag.
“They say the youngest son doesn’t talk. Is it true that he doesn’t speak? I can’t believe they haven’t published a picture of him. There are loads of his older brother.”
“He can talk.” Simon says, thrown off by the question.
“Oh? I thought you didn’t know.” Sara smirked and went back to her book, and Simon narrowed his eyes before Linda straightened his jacket.
“To the park and back, ok?” She said, and Simon looked up at her and gave a tight smile before walking out of their house.
“Why can’t we just go home?” Wille asked, landing back on Erik’s bed. They’d been visiting with the Royal family in Denmark for over a week, and he’d been miserable. He didn’t always love his life at home at the palace, but at least he had his own bed, and it was easier to convince his parents to let him hide out in his room.
“We only have a few more days here, little brother. I think you can handle it for a bit longer.” Erik smiled at Wille’s antics before sitting next to him on the bed.
“They don’t like me,” Wille said, barely above a whisper.
“Who doesn’t like you?” Erik’s forehead creased as he looked at him.
“The people here in Denmark. I’ve seen all the articles they write about me. That I’m a spoiled brat, that I don’t talk, that I’m rude.”
“Well, you’re a ten-year-old prince. I think the expectation is that you’d be a spoiled brat.” Erik joked.
“Erik!” Wille slammed his fist down on the bed, and Erik chuckled before he lay down next to him, and they looked up at the ornate design on the ceiling.
“These people don’t know you, Wille. You don’t need to pay any attention to the things they say. Do you want to know what I think?” Erik asked, and after a few seconds of silence, he looked over to see Wille give him a soft shrug, “I think you’re fiercely loyal, much smarter than you let on to most people, and you’re just finding your way in a world that hasn’t always been kind to you.”
“You don’t mean that.” Wille pouted.
“Of course I do. Now, I have a gift for you that I was going to wait on, but seeing as it’s been much harder than usual to pull you out of the dumps, I can give it to you now. Bring me the box, just over there.” Erik pointed at the box sitting on the table on the other side of the room, and Wille climbed off the bed and ran to it. He returned and hopped up on the bed as Erik sat up and took it from him, “I saw these earlier when August and I were shopping and thought they’d be perfect for us.” He placed the box in Wille’s lap and lifted the top, pulling out a small snow globe that fit easily in the palm of his hand. Wille smiled as he turned it over, and the snow fell to the top before landing again.
“Is that Uncle Johan’s house?” Wille took the globe in his hand and flipped it upside down again.
“It isn’t, but it looks just like it, right?” Erik asked, and Wille nodded, “I’ve talked to Mamma and she’s said we can spend a full month there this summer. She promised.”
“Really?” Wille’s jaw dropped, and Erik nodded.
“So, something to look forward to. Now, go grab my jacket for me. I’m supposed to be downstairs in 10 minutes.” Erik straightened his tie, and Wille handed him the jacket in his hand, and Erik placed the one he had been previously wearing over Wille’s significantly more narrow shoulders. Smiling, Wille put his hands in his pockets and pulled out a small silver case, opening it and closing it again.
“What’s this?” He asked, and Erik looked over, surprised to see it in his hands, before there was a knock at the door, and it opened seconds after. Erik reached out, putting the case back in the pocket of the jacket, and Wille wrapped his hand around it.
“Wilhelm, we’ve been looking all over for you,” Kristina said, clearly exasperated. You need to get dressed for the ball this evening. We mustn’t be late. Your father and August are already dressed.” Kristina walked over, smoothing Wille’s hair out of his face.
“Mamma, do I have to go? Maybe I can just stay here, and Erik and August can go. I just –“
“Wilhelm, that’s enough. You are going. As it is, because of the alterations they need to make to your jacket, you will have to arrive separately. August’s attendant has already confirmed with the garage that they will have a separate car for you.”
“I can wait and ride with him.” Erik offered, and Kristina let out a heavy exhale.
“I can’t show up to the reception without either of my sons. Now come, Erik, you need to finish getting ready, and Wille, they have the tailor waiting for you in your rooms.”
“But mamma, I –“
“I will not hear another word.” Kristina raised her voice, immediately closing her eyes afterward and doing her best to regain her composure, “Now, please.” Wille slouched as he slid off the bed and started to walk to the door.
“Wille.” Erik called out, and when he turned around, he saw his hand holding out his small globe for him, “Don’t forget, something to look forward to.” He tapped his arm, and Wille glanced at him one more time over his shoulder before he walked out of the room.
“Why would they ever even need this many cars? They should have to give me one.” Ayub stood with his hands on his hips, eyeing the long row of cars in front of him.
“You won’t be able to drive for years.” Simon laughed, “But don’t ask me. I’ll never understand why the Royal Family does anything. Come on.” Simon and Ayub moved into the garage, looking around to make sure they were alone.
“The three cars at the end are gone, doesn’t that mean that we can go in? I’m starving. I’m hoping Sonia can give us some of whatever they had for lunch.” Ayub started to walk to the staff entrance, and Simon tugged at his coat.
“That’s Papa’s car there. Or it looks like it? I don’t think it’s always had that charm hanging in the window. He’s been the one driving the little princes around. If his car is still here, they’re not gone yet. Sonia will come to get us when the coast is clear. She never forgets. Let’s wait over here. That way, we can hide if we hear someone coming.” They walked over to the secluded corner of the garage, and Simon slid his fingers over the different items on the countertop in front of him.
“How long do you think we’ll be out here? It’s cold.” Ayub pulled his coat closed, adjusting the collar to cover his neck.
“You’re hungry, you’re cold. Maybe mama was right and we should have just gone to the park.” Simon reached into his bag and pulled out a piece of bread to hand him, “This should hold you over.”
“What do you think it’s like?” Ayub asked, biting into his bread.
“What?”
“Having all this. Never wanting for anything.” He looked down the row of cars again, and Simon did the same.
“How would I know? My parents can barely keep food on the table with Papa struggling to find something regular, and Mama picking up extra shifts.” His hand slid over a hammer, gripping it before it slid to the next tool.
“My parents were talking about them over breakfast this morning. The Swedish royal family. The papers are saying the princes are spoiled rotten, but I told them we saw the youngest one feeding ducks by the pond last week, and Sonia told us he snuck down to the kitchen and was really nice to them.”
“How did you possibly explain how you knew that?” Simon asked, lifting his hand, still holding the crowbar he’d been touching before he put it back down.
“Just said it was hearsay,” Ayub said, looking guilty.
“Maybe Sara is right, we do need to stop hanging out in here. We’re going to get Sonia and my dad in trouble.” Simon opened and closed a box cutter in his hand, but set it down quickly and crouched down as he heard footsteps coming.
“Shit,” Ayub said as he ducked down behind a car.
“It’s ok, they can’t see us.” Simon kneeled next to him and looked around the car to see the youngest Swedish Prince walk into the garage, “What on earth is he doing in here?” Simon took another step forward, trying to get a better look, and gasped as he saw the prince’s shoe get caught on the uneven cobblestone, and he fell forward. Without thinking, Simon rushed from behind the car, and Ayub reached a hand out to try to stop him.
“Simon!”
“Are you ok?” Simon asked, extending his hand to help the prince up. Wille’s eyes went wide as he looked up at the helpful boy who appeared to be his age.
“I, um, yes.” Wille took his hand and moved to his feet, “I’m fine. Thank you. I just missed my step there.” He slid his hands over his newly tailored jacket, swearing softly as he noticed the stain on the bottom.
“I think there are some rags in the drawer over there. Maybe we can wipe it off?” Simon asked.
“What?”
“Your jacket, the spot? There’s a water basin, maybe we can get it out.” Simon pointed over to the counter he’d been standing at earlier, and Wille looked over at the side door that he’d just come through.
“I really have to be going soon.”
“Well, I was just trying to help. If you don’t want it, I can – “
“No, I do.” Wille nodded quickly, “I do.” Simon tilted his head toward the corner again before he started walking, and Wille followed, surprised to see Ayub standing next to one of the cars.
“Hi.”
“Hi. I’m Wilhelm.” He said as Simon opened a few drawers, looking inside each of them.
“I’m Ayub. You won’t, um, tell anyone we were here, right? Not that we’re not allowed to be here.” He added quickly, and Simon closed his eyes and shook his head as Wille smiled for the first time.
“My dad, he’s the chauffeur they hired to drive you all around while you’re here in Denmark. He fills in a lot when they have guests, and we know a lot of the staff. But yeah, if you could not tell anyone, that’d be great.”
“I wouldn’t tell anyone,” Wille said quickly, and Simon smiled softly as he dipped one of the towels he found into the water.
“Do you mind?” Simon asked, reaching for the jacket, and Wille shook his head, pulling it off quickly. Simon folded his coat over his arm and looked down as he heard two thuds on the ground between them, “Oh.” Ayub reached for the item rolling, and when he stood, he was holding the tiny snow globe in his hand.
“Here.”
“Thanks.” Wille took it quickly, trying to close his hand around it as Simon picked up the small silver case that had also fallen out of the pocket and placed it on the table next to the water basin. “I don’t normally um, this was a gift from my brother, and I accidentally took that case from him, so I wanted to give it back,” Wille said nervously, and Simon started to pat the small stain. They all looked up again when they heard footsteps. Simon quickly handed off the coat, and Ayub backed up behind the car again, “Wait, it’s fine. I’ll say you’re with me.”
Two men entered the garage, and Simon eyed them curiously, not recognizing them. They looked around the large garage, and just as Simon was about to pull Wille to hide with them, he threw his hand up.
“I’m sorry, I’m over here!” He called out.
“Wait, um – prince, who are those guys? I’ve never seen them before.” Simon asked, only speaking loud enough for Wille to hear him.
“One of them is my cousin’s attendant, who was hired to come along with him.” Wille adjusted the coat and looked back at Simon, “Are you both going to be here tomorrow? Maybe we can go to the pond, the kitchen has peas and corn for the ducks, and we can – “
“Maybe you should wait. Why isn’t my father driving you?”
“He took my brother and my cousin. I had to have a jacket tailored. My other one didn’t arrive in time, so they had to make do with this one.” Wille eyed the basic black blazer.
“Is there another adult who can ride with you? I can ask Sonia.”
“I ride in the car all the time by myself back home,” Wille said casually, and Simon nodded, trying to ignore the warnings in his head and every time Linda had told him never to get in a car with a stranger.
“Your Highness? We really need to be going.” One of the men called out as he opened the door for him. Simon watched, not having heard the question. He reached over, and Wille saw a flash of silver before Simon took a step closer, and he felt the familiar weight in his pocket again.
“I’ll be at the pond at 10. You all don’t have to come. I mean, I want you to come, but I won’t be upset.”
“Your Highness, please.” The man holding the door open called out.
“Thank you,” Wille said before smiling at Simon, who looked at him for the first time as he turned away.
“Your Highness.” He called out, and Wille looked back. “Your pocket,” Simon said firmly, and Wille nodded in gratitude before he watched him get into the car.
“Whew, that was close. Maybe Sara was right.” Ayub said as he stood next to Simon and looked down at the item in his hands, “Oh, shit. He forgot his brother’s case?”
“Guess we’ll have a good reason to feed the ducks tomorrow.”
“I guess we will.” Ayub smiled, and Simon continued to watch the car as it pulled away, “You think we should just go? Maybe it’s not ok for us to go in today. Simon?”
“Do you think we should tell someone?”
“Tell someone, what?” Ayub asked.
“That the Swedish prince just got into a car with people we’ve never seen before.”
“We don’t know everyone, Simon. If we tell them what we saw, we’ll have to tell them we were here. Is it worth your dad losing his job to tell them?”
Wille slouched in his seat as he pulled out his small snow globe, flipping it over in his hand and smiling as the snow fell around the tiny house in the middle. His eyes flickered as he got more comfortable in his seat, the car feeling arm, and letting out a loud yawn before he felt his eyes closing, smiling as he flipped the globe one more time.
When he woke up, unsure how long it had been, he sat up, confused at where he was before he looked down at the coat and remembered. When he looked out the window, he realized that the sun was going down and he could no longer see the city. “I thought it was only a short ride,” Wille said, still waking up.
“I received word from your mother. She said you didn’t have to go this evening. I’m taking you to the King’s country house, where you’ll meet your brother and cousin. They told me exactly where I was to take you.” The driver adjusted his cap, pulling it lower over his eyes. Wille’s eyes narrowed, shifting in his seat, confused at what he was hearing.
“I didn’t know the King had a country home,” Wille said, confused as he sat back in his seat, biting his bottom lip, a bit nervous, and trying to recall the conversation he’d overheard a few days ago at breakfast. His mother was inviting the royal family to join them at their home, and the Queen mentioned how much she missed having a country house like she had as a child to get away from the city.
Wille felt a chill run up his back as he looked around, having no idea how long he’d been asleep, but starting to realize it may have been longer than he thought. Nervous and needing something to do with his hands, he reached into his other pocket and was surprised to feel a foreign shape as he wrapped his hand around it. He pulled it out to find a much narrower silver item than the case that had been Erik’s. He slid his thumb over the glider and was surprised as a sharp blade came out, and remembered how the boy in the garage hadn’t recognized the men.
“I’m sorry, how much longer did you say it was going to be?” Wille asked, and the driver ignored his question, “I need to use the restroom, can we pull over please?”
“I think you’ll wait.” The driver looked up in the rearview, and his mask seemed to fall as he felt the car speed up.
“Let me out!” Wille said with as much conviction as possible.
“Shut up, brat! I was told where to take you and what to do, and that’s what I’m going to do.”
“What to do?” Wille questioned, and the driver shook his head.
“It’s not personal. It’s just a job.” He answered as though he’d been reciting it to himself, “It’ll be easier if you just shut up, kid.” Wille reached for the door handle and started to pull it open, but the car swerved and the door slammed shut. “You stay put before I make you.” He growled, and Wille looked out the window to see how close he was driving to the railing, making it impossible for him to push the door open.
“Please! Just take me back.”
“SHUT UP!”
“PLEASE!” Wille cried out, starting to pull at his seatbelt, and the driver reached his arm back. Without thinking, Wille pushed the glider back up on the box cutter and stabbed it into his arm, surprising himself as he saw blood, and the driver screamed in pain, and the car started to swerve violently. Without warning, the car flipped over the railing, and Wille felt himself lifted off the seat, only held down by his seatbelt. When the car flipped again, he heard glass shattering but couldn’t make out anything more than his own screams.
The car came to a stop at the bottom of the ravine, and Wille was unconscious, his body limp in his seat, his head leaning awkwardly, still bleeding from how hard it had hit his window. When he woke minutes later, he looked around the car, confused as he looked at the glass covering him and gasped as he tasted blood. The car was empty, and when he looked up, he could barely see the road they’d come off of. He groaned as he unbuckled his seatbelt, every inch of him in pain, but knowing nobody would be able to see him from the road.
There was nothing around him but woods and brush as it started to get dark. The only sound he could hear in the thick woods as he walked was his own sniffling. Minutes later, he looked back, wondering if he should have tried to climb the ravine instead, but with how much pain he was in walking on the level ground, it seemed impossible that he would be able to climb. He thought it was around 10 minutes later that he stopped suddenly, too dizzy to take another step. He reached his hand into his pocket, hoping to get them warm, and felt confused as he felt the circular cool glass in his hand. He started to pull it out, but felt his legs buckle just before everything went dark.
“Is he breathing?”
“Yes, I told you, I felt a pulse.”
“Well then, why isn’t he awake?”
“You think you don’t have a pulse when you’re not awake?”
“So then wake him up.”
“I tried!”
Wille blinked, confused at the voices he heard around him, and let out an involuntary groan as pain shot through his head and leg.
“Oh, good, you’re awake.” The woman above him had her hands on her hips as she watched him, “Our boy found you half dead out in the woods. We didn’t recognize you from around here, and that being said, there’s not much around here.” Wille blinked again as a man walked up and stood next to her.
“Well, answer her child. Who are you? Where on earth did you come from?” He asked, and Wille shook his head, unable to form any words.
“Can you understand me?” The woman asked, leaning forward, and Wille shook his head again.
“Well, what do we do with him? We can send word to the police, but the whole country is in an uproar with the Swedish Royals. Can’t imagine they’ll pay much attention to a runaway with what happened with the King and Queen.”
“I guess you’re right.” The woman answered, and she shook her head as Wille cried out again, attempting to stand up.
“Careful now, you look like you’ve been to hell and back. You need someone to look at that leg and that cut above your eye.”
“So, what do we do with him, Oscar? You sure you don’t remember anything?” She questioned, and Wille shook his head, the pounding getting more intense as the minutes went by.
“Well, let’s take him over to Karin. Her house has practically been operating as a children’s home. You know she has the space, and the doctor will come by. We barely have enough food for ourselves, so we can’t keep him here.”
Wille listened, trying to keep up with their conversation between the bickering, but the pain was starting to become less tolerable, and he felt so tired. He knew he was supposed to be somewhere, but he couldn’t recall where. He leaned back, his body so close to giving out again.
“What do we call you?” Ida asked, and Wille looked at her blankly.
“You don’t know your name either? Name? Name. Do you have a NAME?”
“Wille.” He said, surprising himself.
“Alright. Wille it is. I’ll make you some tea, get you warmed up before we take you over to Karin’s. Bit easy to get lost in the shuffle over there, but you’ll have a roof over your head and a few warm meals a day.”
“Ducks,” Wille mumbled, and they were just barely able to make out that he’d said a word.
“What?” Oscar asked, stepping in as Ida put the kettle on. The last thought Wille remembered before his eyes closed was that he was supposed to feed the ducks.
10 Years Later
“How much longer do you think we have?” Wille asked Felice as he leaned back in the hay at the top of the barn.
Wille had spent the last ten years at the farm that Ida and Oscar had brought him to. It was an old farmhouse that had too many beds and not enough bedrooms, but it had been a safe place for a lot of people without homes to call home. The night of the accident, he'd gotten a concussion and broken both a rib and his leg. They'd told him that his memories would most likely come back, but nothing ever had. Occasionally, he'd see a flash of something, but he could rarely understand what it came from, and it was never enough to remind him of who he was.
Karin had told him that she'd reported him with the only information that she had, and that she'd let him know if anyone came to look for him. For a lot of years, that gave him peace of mind, thinking that there was a chance that someone out there was looking for him. Felice arrived a few years after him. Her family had fallen on hard times just before her mother had gotten sick and passed away. Her father needed to go find work and left her at Karin's farm, promising that he would come back as soon as he could. She believed him, because she didn't have much choice not to.
“I’d say about an hour before Karin is back from town.” She flipped another page in her book and started reading, “Maybe two hours if that wheel gives them trouble again.” Wille lifted his head to look at her, and she kept her eyes on the page.
“You didn’t… Fel!”
“What? I MAY have forgotten to tighten it up. It’s really not a big deal.” They burst out laughing, unable to hold it back.
“She’s going to realize you’re doing that eventually.” Wille shook his head, smiling.
“Well, until then, let’s enjoy the extra hour without someone tasking us with a new chore.” She continued reading, and Wille looked out the barn door at the trees surrounding them.
“I counted up the money yesterday.” Wille said carefully, and Felice put her bookmark into her book, looking at him, “It’s enough. I can get a ride on one of the wagons to the city, and I probably have a few days in a hotel.”
“A few days? Wille, what are you going to do for a few days?”
“I have to try something Fel. I’ve been saying I was going to go for years now, you know that.”
“I know.” She nodded as she sat up, crossing her legs, “But, Wille, you don’t even know what you’re looking for.”
“So what? I stay here and keep hoping that one day my memories will come back? I can’t do that anymore.”
“Guess you already made your mind up?” She asked, her eyes lowering. She heard him shift, his legs crossing, and saw him hold out the tiny snow globe she’d seen hundreds of times.
“I can’t be Wille the orphan forever. I have this, and it has to mean something, right?” He tilted his head to make eye contact with her and waited for her soft smile and nod.
“I’ll miss you.” She said.
“You could come with me.” He said, already knowing her answer.
“My dad said he would come back for me. I have to wait here, you know that.” She shook her head, and Wille pressed his lips together. They’d spent so many years in this holding pattern. Both of them holding out hope for something, and neither of them brave enough to tell the other one to let it go.
“I know, but I had to try.” They sat awkwardly as Felice pulled at the straw under her boot and Wille reached for her hand, “If I’m going to be gone longer than a few days, I’ll write to you. Then, once I find my family, or I guess if I don’t, I’ll come back, ok? Whatever happens, I’ll come back to see you.”
“You will?” She asked, “You promise?”
“Yes,” Wille nodded, and like so many times before, he felt a flash of something he couldn’t quite put a finger on, “It’ll be something to look forward to.”
“Simme, did you see this?” Ayub held up the newspaper, and he glanced at it quickly.
“Has it already been another year?” Simon asked, his eyes taking in the picture of the youngest Swedish Prince.
“Yeah, and it looks like his brother is raising the reward money.”
“Am I reading that properly?” Simon leaned forward, reading it again.
“Yeah, five million for his return. Imagine what we could do with that. I could help my parents buy a house where the roof didn’t leak.”
“Mama could stop working double shifts all the time. I could get Sara the horse she’s always wanted. Maybe a piano.” They smiled at each other, and Simon zipped up his coat, “You think he could really be out there? After all this time?” Ayub shrugged.
“Who knows. Let’s not do that again, though, ok? We did what we could. We went and told. There wasn’t anything else we could do. We couldn’t have known.”
“I know. You’re right. I guess I just,” Simon bit the inside of his cheek as he watched people walk by. “He seemed nice.” Ayub nodded, and it was obvious they were both replaying the day in their head before Ayub cleared his throat.
“You uh, heard from your dad recently?” He asked, and Simon shook his head.
“No.” Simon shifted uncomfortably in his seat before rubbing his hands together, “You want to get out of here?”
“Yeah. Let’s get inside.”
“So, I tell him, it’s not on me that your package isn’t what you wanted it to be. I’m just delivering it. I’m not the one who ordered it, or the one who sent it. I’m JUST the guy delivering it, and do you know he still tried to blame me for it being the wrong size?” It was a few days later, and Ayub and Simon had just gotten off work, another long shift of parcel delivery, and they were in the middle of their daily venting session as they walked through the busy streets.
“I’m sorry, how did he even logic out that this would be your fault?” Simon asked, moving out of the way of a guy on a scooter.
“Said I must have grabbed the wrong box, like it didn’t have his name on it. He’s lucky it was payday for us today. I swear, one of these days, I –“
“HEY! LOOK OUT!” Simon reached his hand out, gripping the arm of the coat in front of him and pulling back roughly, barely able to brace himself as he took the brunt of the off-balance body landing against him. They both hit the ground just as the bus drove past, all of them watching as it drove away, realizing how close that was to a disaster.
“Shit, man, that was close. Simme, are you ok?” Ayub reached out, helping Simon to his feet.
“Yeah, I’m fine.” Simon looked down to see the man still on the ground and took a step closer to him, “Are you ok?” He extended a hand to help him up, and Wille felt a pain in his head as he took it and was pulled to his feet.”
“I, um, yes.” He shook his head as he tried to get his bearings. He looked up for the first time to thank the man who had saved him, and was surprised to see two men looking back at him, their jaws dropped.
“Whoa,” Ayub said, leaning in to get a closer look at the man standing in front of them, “Can’t be. Right? There’s no way.” He leaned closer, and Simon pulled at his coat to keep a distance between him and the stranger.
“Excuse me.” Wille made a face, uncomfortable being gawked at.
“Sorry about my friend, it’s just uh, you kinda look like someone. It’s impossible, but a little bit.”
“Impossible?” Ayub asked, “You see what I see!”
“I see a guy who needs to pay more attention when he’s crossing the street.” Simon said, “Do you need directions somewhere?”
“Uh, if you don’t mind. I guess I need a hotel.”
“You guess?” Simon asked, his eyes narrowing.
“I’m in town for a few days. Looking for something.”
“Looking for what?” Ayub asked.
“You don’t have to answer that,” Simon said, quickly, and Ayub elbowed him in the side.
“What’s your name?” Ayub asked.
“Wille.”
“You’re shitting me,” Ayub said and looked at Simon with his eyes wide.
“The prince’s name is Wilhelm, not Wille. Would you cut it out?” Simon said. He reached out and picked Wille’s bag up from the ground and handed it to him. “Just up the street to the left. Rooms are small, but it’s the cheapest and it’s clean.” He started to walk away, but felt a hand on his arm and looked back, surprised to find Wille holding him in place.
“What prince?”
“It’s nothing you need to worry about.” Simon shook his head.
“Have you been living under a rock or something?” Ayub asked, “The youngest Swedish prince? He’s been missing for 10 years now, and his brother has been looking for him this entire time because they never found him. They don’t even know what happened. But we were the last ones to –“ Ayub is cut off as Simon hits his arm.
“I think you’d know if you were a prince, right?” Simon put his hands up, questioning, “So, just forget it. It’s highly unlikely he’s ok after all this time.”
“I wouldn’t,” Wille said, shaking his head softly, and Simon and Ayub both leaned forward.
“You wouldn’t, what?” Simon asked.
“I don’t remember anything from the first 10 years of my life. I um, well, I don’t really know what happened. They found me in the woods on the outskirts of a small village. They reported what they knew to the police, or at least that’s what they told me. But nobody ever came to get me.” Wille looked at Simon and Ayub, who both seemed frozen as they heard his story.
“Simon.”
“No.”
“Simon.”
“Ayub, no.”
“How can you say no? You heard him. You heard what he said, and LOOK AT HIM!”
“So, what do you want to do? You want to call up the King of Sweden and say, HI, we found your brother, at least we think, we really have no idea, and neither does he.”
“Yes, that’s exactly what I want to do.”
“King?” Wille asked, and Simon rubbed his face in his hands, trying to process the conversation.
“Yeah, after what happened with his parents –“ Ayub started casually, and Wille cut him off.
“What happened to his parents?” Wille asked, and Simon looked at him, sensing the concern. He heard Ayub take a breath to explain.
“Wait. We can’t just stand here. If we’re going to have this conversation, this isn’t the place.”
“Your mom’s not home, right? We can go there.” Ayub suggested.
“Last chance. Just up the street to the left.” Simon offered, and Wille stood up straight, adjusting the straps on his bag.
“No, I want to hear what happened.” He said confidently. Ayub smiled, and Simon shook his head as he pointed in the opposite direction from the hotel.
“Well, after you, Your Highness.”
“You want water or anything?” Simon asked as he closed the door behind Wille and Ayub.
“Water would be great, actually,” Wille answered.
“When was the last time you ate something?” Simon held his hand out to take Wille’s coat, realizing for the first time that it was much too large on him.
“Not long, just the water is fine.” He said shyly.
“I’m sure it is.” Simon shook his head, “Yub, why don’t you take him to my room, and I’ll grab the waters. They walked out of the living room, and Simon let out a frustrated groan, wondering how his afternoon had taken such a turn. He didn’t actually believe that this was the lost Swedish Prince, but Ayub was right; they looked so much alike, and if he was telling the truth, the story was hard to ignore.
He walked into the kitchen, seeing the note on the counter from his mom letting him know that she’d picked up another shift and that she would see him in the morning. He opened the refrigerator and pulled out some sausage and cheese, then quickly cut them up, throwing them on a plate with the fruit they had.
When he walked into his bedroom, he was balancing the plate on his elbow as he held their waters, and Wille hopped up to help.
“You really didn’t have to,” Wille said, but Simon saw his eyes on the bread resting on top.
“It’s fine. Seems like you’ve had a long trip.” Simon sat in the open seat and rubbed his eyes, exhausted after working all day.
“I like your room. It’s cozy.” Wille said before biting into the small sandwich he’d made from the items on the plate.
“Thanks,” Simon answered, a bit thrown off by the comment.
“So, about the lost Swedish Prince…” Wille prompted.
“Right.” Simon nodded, bringing himself back.
“So, 10 years ago, the Swedish Royal family was here in Denmark doing one of those long visits or whatever. Just royals hanging out with royals, you know?” Ayub paused, and Wille didn’t respond, so Ayub moved forward, “Anyways, so there was this ball they were all supposed to attend, but three cars left and only one showed up to the ball. The Crown Prince and his cousin. They’re like brothers, but they’re not really brothers. We heard he was kind of a jerk, actually.”
“Who?”
“Who, what?” Ayub asked.
“Who was a jerk?”
“Oh, the cousin. Anyways. They find the first car that left, the King and Queen, and they’re –“ Wille tenses as Ayub continues.
“Yub.” Simon cuts in, watching Wille and seeing how he’s reacting, “They um, they didn’t make it.” He said gently, and Wille nodded, processing what he was hearing.
“So, they spent weeks looking for the third car, but the issue is that the car doesn’t exist.”
“What do you mean?” Wille asked.
“They had switched out one of the cars in the garage for another car, so all they knew was that they were looking for a black car with something silver hanging from the window. No license plate, no other information. They look and they look and they look and it’s like it disappeared. But you have to keep in mind, they had no idea where to look. The police didn’t really know what to do. They had to find out what happened to the King and Queen, and then they had a needle in a haystack for the youngest prince.”
“And you think that could be me?” Wille asked carefully.
“Yes,” Ayub answered confidently.
“No.”
“Why not?” Wille asked Simon, surprising him.
“You have to understand how insane that would be. We just happened to come across the long-lost Swedish Prince?”
“How do you explain the fact that I can’t remember anything from before I was 10? And you said I looked like him, right?”
“Right!” Ayub pointed at Wille, agreeing before looking at Simon, “How do you explain that?”
“Stop it!” Simon reached out, lowering Ayub’s hand and looking between both of them, “This is a really big coincidence,” Simon looks at Wille, attempting his most gentle tone, “I’m sorry that you don’t have your memories, but this is just too crazy. I think you know that.”
“Here’s what I do know. I came here to look for my family. I have to have come from somewhere. I didn’t just appear out of thin air. If I don’t remember who I am, who’s to say I’m not a prince?” Wille asked, and Simon sat back in his seat, searching his mind for an argument. The longer the silence went on, the larger the smile on Ayub’s face got. Wille set the plate down on Simon’s nightstand and stood. “Um, do you mind if I use the restroom?”
“Last door at the end of the hall,” Simon said, happy to have some time to think without Wille’s eyes on him. Ayub waited until he heard the bathroom door close before he turned on Simon.
“Five. Million Simon.”
“That’s only if he is who you think he is, and if he’s not, we’ve gotten his hopes up for what? He can’t remember half his life. Do you know how insane that is? Sounds like he’s been through enough.” Simon listened to make sure he couldn’t hear Wille coming back.
“Ok, for argument’s sake, let’s say he’s not the lost Swedish prince. He’s looking for a family, and the King is looking for a brother. Sounds like a fit to me.”
“Yub!”
“Ok. Ok. We’ll play it by ear. Neither of us has ever been to Stockholm. Maybe it’s just a weekend trip. What do you say?”
“I don’t say.” Simon shook his head.
“You could retire Linda. She could spend the rest of her life just enjoying a good book, taking trips of a lifetime, and relaxing.” Ayub said, and Simon pictured the note on the counter. Thinking as he heard the bathroom door open down the hall.
“So, this King, um, how do I get in touch with him?” Wille asked, walking back into the bedroom. Ayub studied Simon’s face, smiling again before he looked up at Wille.
“We’ll take you. To Stockholm, I mean. We’ve always wanted to visit, and he’s meeting everyone in person.”
“You will?” Wille asks, his eyes hovering over Simon, who hadn’t looked up since he walked into the room.
“We will.”