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Pink had no idea what to focus on more: her sister spending a lovely afternoon with her boyfriend or making sure her perfectly polished shoes won't get dirty from the ground she was currently kneeling on. She held her heart-shaped binoculars tightly to prevent them from accidentally slipping down if Red and Louis suddenly kissed or something like that.
As a daughter of the Queen of Hearts, she shouldn’t be stalking anyone. That’s not what princesses do. If anyone were to do it, then it would be a VK. And Pink wasn’t one, obviously.
Growing up surrounded by people filled with nothing but kindness and loyalty, Pink had little experience with those who might want to hurt her. But at the same time she wasn’t naive or scared, especially of other teenagers. As a proper princess, she would often remind the VKs to keep their mischievous pranks away from her and her friends, even if they didn’t really bother her older sister.
However, after teaming up with them to defeat Maddox Hatter, she realized that maybe some of their actions weren't that bad, and that sometimes you have to screw all the etiquette if it holds you back. And right now, the urge was stronger than ever.
She was young and still had plenty of time to find her soulmate. Yet, seeing Red, possibly the happiest she had ever been, with Louis… it made her wonder what a perfect relationship even looked like.
Sure, by now she knew every detail about Cinderella and Prince Charming’s fairytale romance, as well as learning more and more about Mal and Ben, the current rulers of Auradon. But seeing such a story unfold with her very own eyes? That would be like a dream come true.
Too focused on trying her best to hear every single word of the conversation, she didn’t even hear the rustling in the nearby bushes. Even if she had, it could have been literally anything. After all, there were all kinds of bizarre creatures walking around Wonderland.
For example, a young Hatter who was even more complex than his father. At first, he was the one Pink wasn’t fond of the most, being related to someone the Queen of Hearts considered too dangerous and whom she sent to the Isle of the Lost herself. But over time she found herself growing more fond of him and couldn’t quite figure out why. Perhaps it was because they both came from Wonderland and had more in common with each other than with the other VKs?
That didn’t change the fact that Max didn’t even seem to notice her until she forced herself into the spotlight. Everyone was too focused on Red to pay attention to the second Princess of Hearts. Pink didn’t want to be more adored than her, she just wanted to stop being left out.
“Like what you see, Princess?”
Speaking of the devil. Pink jumped up immediately, almost stumbling backward, and let out a scream that was too loud for her liking, but the binoculars stayed in her hands. Max, however, smoothly moved aside, successfully managing to avoid the girl falling on him.
“Oh my hearts! Don’t scare me like that!” Her lips formed a pout, making her look like a kicked puppy. An oddly pink one, but still a puppy. “What are you even doing here, sneaking around the garden?”
“You know, I could ask you the same thing. And that device in your hand? At least I didn’t come here with an entire recording set.”
“I wasn’t planning on recording anything! Just… making sure my sister is being treated right.” With that said, Pink brushed off imaginary dust from her skirt and tossed her hair. She tried her best not to look intimidated, but something about Max Hatter startling her like this made her feel more uneasy than if Red or Louis had caught her.
Max raised his eyebrows, not quite believing her words. Sure, Pink always followed Red around, but making sure she was treated right? By none other than Louis? It was clear that she had nothing to worry about.
“Well, if I were in Louis’ place, your little stalking would be much more reasonable. You still don’t trust me, do you?”
“That’s not what I said.”
“But it looks like it.”
“I-”
She didn’t have any comeback, and he knew it. He always did, somehow. Even though they barely knew each other, he seemed to notice all the little things about her. The way she hopped like a bunny instead of keeping an average pace, or the smug look she had on her face after proving to the VKs that she was the one right. There were a few other things, but he preferred to keep them to himself.
And he didn’t need to be a stalker to know all this. Pink was just too obvious.
“Why are you even suggesting being in Louis’ place? Red doesn’t need more suitors when she already has a perfect one.”
“What about you, Princess Pink? Do you need a suitor?”
Judging by the look on the girl’s face, Max’s question really caught her off guard, maybe even more than when he startled her. The worst thing was that he was neither right nor wrong. Deep down, she wanted to have someone to care for her. Now that Red had a boyfriend and her best friend Chloe, Pink once again felt all alone.
She took a deep breath.
“Since I look like I don’t trust you then tell me, Hatter, do I look like I need a suitor?”
The boy narrowed his eyes, then moved his gaze from her head down to her bubblegum-colored platform shoes. In fact, he saw nothing except a pretty, all in pink girl.
“No.”
She let out a sigh of relief, her lips twitching slightly upwards.
“But you look like a stalker. A terrible one, by the way.” Max made a rather insulting remark, and with a quick move of his hand, he took over her binoculars, holding them up to his own eyes. “Props for trying, though.”
Pink blinked a few times, unsure if this was really happening. She heard Max muttering something to himself, but she couldn’t make out what exactly. Not to mention, he leaned out quite a bit, making them more visible to casual passersby.
“There are so many thoughts in my head right now. I don’t know if I should be angry or laughing or-”
“Shhh, it’s getting pretty interesting. They’re holding hands.”
“Holding hands?!” Once again, she was too loud, but that didn’t seem to bother her now. Red and Louis were holding hands, that’s huge news! “Give it back to me!”
“Are you sure you want to see this? I don’t want you to faint all of a sudden.” Max said, his tone sounding weirdly worried. As if he would feel horrible if she passed out.
“I won’t faint, I’m a strong girl.” Pink put her fists on her hips to keep her cool, but inside, she wasn’t so confident.
“I would believe it if I hadn’t seen you faint after finding out that my dad imprisoned your mom. How long ago was that? Two weeks ago?”
Oh. So he was worried. Not just for show, but for real. Well, Pink was an overly emotional girl who often took things too seriously. Fainting wasn’t uncommon for her. But someone caring for her? Someone other than her mother or sister? That was a new one.
“Hey, don’t make that face. Your time will come too, you don’t have to spy on them to feel something. And if you keep doing that, the only thing you'll feel is jealousy, trust me.”
Max was right. He was so right that it made Pink’s blood boil. She wasn’t often angry, she wasn’t even angry now. Just straight-up frustrated and confused.
After a moment of awkward silence, he finally handed her the binoculars. She hesitated for a second, but eventually took them.
“Thanks.”
“You’re welcome, Princess.”
They both stood there, no longer looking at each other. Instead, their gazes were fixed on Red and Louis, who were sitting at a table filled with cookies, some other treats and teacups.
In the silence, Pink’s stomach rumbled loudly. This made Max steal a not-so-discreet glance at her.
She felt horrible, as if her entire world was falling apart, when actually it was just her older sister going on a date with the boy she loved. It wasn’t something Pink should have been upset about; in fact she was happy for her. Yet at the same time, she wished the same thing would happen to her.
“I want to go on double dates. I want to gossip about our boyfriends, buy matching outfits for us. Feel the butterflies in my stomach, and experience all that stuff that comes with having a significant other. I don’t want to be a third wheel, but I feel like one. It’s so frustrating.”
She wasn’t supposed to open up to him like that, especially regarding that matter. He was just messing around after Maddox was imprisoned again. Somehow, Pink caught his eye in a way he never intended. Of course, she had no idea how he really felt about her. Sure, she might have suspected him of having a crush on Red, but never on herself.
Max looked between her and her sister, as if analyzing something. It was true that Red received more attention from their mother and friends, but that didn’t mean Pink was any worse. She deserved to have her happy ending as well.
“I’m not sure about this whole ‘double date’ thing. If I wanted to spend time with someone I love, I'd prefer to keep everything just between the two of us. I value my privacy, and hanging out with another couple would only restict both me and my partner.
“Why do you always have an answer for everything? And why does it always feel so right?” Pink asked, as if it was some sort of a bad accusation.
“The truth is, I’m never fully right. I just happen to have good luck with you, Princess.” The boy grabbed his hat and simply placed it on Pink’s head, carefully to not mess up her perfectly done hair. She said nothing, only looking at him, stunned. She rarely saw Max without his hat, and now he was giving it to her? It was too much.
After a while, she finally spoke.
“Do I look good in it?”
“Black is not your color.” He stated, clearly holding back his laughter. Pink rolled her eyes.
“Why, thank you, Mr. ‘I always wear black and purple to look cool’. Have you ever tried pink? You have no idea what you’re missing.”
“I would look the same in pink as you do in black. A colorful mess.”
They both burst out laughing, no trace of seriousness from a moment ago on their faces. The girl tried to think of anyone who had ever made her laugh the way Max just did, but came up with nothing. Maybe having him sneak around here wasn’t such a bad thing after all.
“Now that I made you feel better I hope you stop thinking you need a double date to be happy.” He held out his hand, waiting for her to give him his hat back. Surprisinly, she shook her head, still smiling.
“No. I like it.”
At first, he was confused and didn’t understand how her words were connected to his. Then, when she tapped on the tip of the hat, he quickly realized what she meant.
“That’s good to hear, but seriously, I need it back.”
“We’ll see about that. See you at dinner, Hatter.” With that, Pink blew him a little kiss and happily marched off, no longer paying attention to Red and Louis.
He stood there, frozen. Had that perfect princess just stolen his hat? Hazel really had a terrible influence on her. Yet, he didn’t mind.
When Pink finally disappeared from his view, he let out a heavy sigh and ran after her, determined to get his property back.
Next time, he would love to learn something from her as well.