I am the Queen

After Mike fetched Francisca at the airport, they made their way into her hotel.

Along the way, Francisca talked about their wedding preparations, and Mike just listened to her. He looked at the woman beside him. What Rozarria said rang in his ears.

"Do you love her?"

Is that important? He thought. All the women he dated, his feelings for them were the same. But only Francisca didn't demand his attention nor affection. She was the only one who didn't mind his lack of expression.

Looking at her, her golden curls freely forming her beautiful face. Her eyes were shining, creating a bright blue and her full lips were mesmerizing as she spoke.

She was also tall—almost the same height as him.

He bet their children's genes would go beyond the scale. The important factor why he chose to settle with her.

Mike inwardly sighed. He was always like this. He lacked sympathy and other feelings a human being had. He didn't know if it was a congenital disability or if there was something wrong with him.

He had himself checked, and he was normal. But still, if Francisca died at this moment, he wouldn't even bat an eyelid. He would just resume his day.

He was definitely a . . .

"Oh, look! A flower shop," Francisca said, pointing at a newly opened shop.

Mike's attention went into the shop. It was small, but it looked cozy and inviting.

"That's rare. I didn't know that you can grow flowers in this climate," Francisca said with a laugh.

Frizkiel's' weather was indeed harsh. And most of the time, it was snowing, and worst, a blizzard hits. But it didn't mean that there were no longer flowers in the area. There were specific breeds of plants, mainly the ones that were grown indoors.

But Mike felt it was a lot of effort explaining, so he just settled, with an "Mmmm . . ."

"Let's take a look! I'm curious as to what types of flowers are being sold there," Francisca said and asked the driver to stop at the flower shop.

Mike didn't want to, but Francisca wasn't from Frizkiel, so he might as well indulge if she was curious about his homeland. It was better that way if they were to be wed, they'd be spending their life here after all.

The little bell chimed, signaling for a customer, and Francisca uttered a low, "Wow. Its . . . cramped here."

The space was enough for just a single person to move around because the display took a lot of space.

"Now I see, they are growing it indoors with hydroponic technology. That makes sense." Francisca nodded to herself.

The flowers displayed were typical plants. Nothing out of the ordinary. They were beautiful because of their rich colors in contrast with all the white snow in Frizkiel. It was healing to the eyes.

Francisca was roaming around while having a one-sided conversation. Mike was following behind her with a closed mouth as always.

There was just a grandma, and a child in the store and Mike found it strange. Though the shop was small, it would require an adult to take care of the plants. The grandma was too old to even move while the child was . . . just a child.

Mike's eyes drop. It didn't matter. They probably had another stuff inside that closed door.

Diiinnngggg~!

The bell rang and came in a group of boys.  One of them looked at him for a brief second before he went towards the old woman. Mike wouldn't care about it if only he was not sensitive to his surroundings. The sudden heaviness in the air when the boys came and the dark faces of the grandma and the child at the sight of them.

Mike wanted to laugh at himself. He was insensitive to people but not to his surroundings. It was due to his upbringing. Being the firstborn and male at that, many was just a number with the amount of people who targeted his life. If he wasn't alert all the time, his corpse would have rot underneath a long time ago.

But when Eric was born, their father considered making him the heir because he lacked the emotion to being considered human, and Dimitri was a lost cause. Not that he minded.

"Hello, granny. Is Freya home?" one of the boys said.

"No, she already went back to her province," said the old woman.

The boys looked at each other and smirked.

"Don't lie to us, granny. We saw her just yesterday. Even with the hood, we know it's her."

The little boy stood between them and glared at the teenagers. "If you don't have anything to buy, please leave, or we'll call the cops."

The boy rose his hands and back a little. "Woah, little dude. We don't have any ill intentions. We just wanted to see Freya. Is all."

"What's going on?"

Every eye zeroed at Francisca, holding pots of flowers in her hands. "Are you guys causing trouble?"

Francisca was indeed beautiful, but she was also intimidating with just her height alone.

The boys' lips were tight before they nodded at the door and quietly went out.

"We'll visit again, granny," they said and were gone.

"Teenagers," Francisca said in disdain. She then went towards the old woman and said, "Are they bothering you?"

The old woman sighed before she said in a helpless tone. "The truth is, we just moved here, and by chance, they saw my granddaughter. Since then, they've been harassing her. My poor granddaughter couldn't get out anymore."

Francisca's eyes rounded. "Wow! Your granddaughter must be a real beauty then."

Mike looked at Francisca. There was something he wanted to say but kept it to himself.

"Grandma?"

The back door opened, and a woman peeked in. "Is there a problem? I heard loud voices."

"Nothing, darling. It's just those boys again," the old woman said and opened the door revealing a woman donned in a simple dress.

Mike caught his breath. From all the women he met, she was the most beautiful. Her ashen curls changed color to the purest crystal blue. Her face looked so pure, she might be mistaken as an angel. But what caught his attention was her eyes. They were blurry, and she was not blinking.

She was blind.

No wonder those boys seemed bewitched. She was a beauty, alright. One that struck the soul. Or should he say, struck every man's weak point. Her beauty and fragility would make every man go crazy.

"Wow. You're a beauty, alright," Francisca exclaimed and went straight to Freya. She then looked at her and said, "There's something wrong with your eyes, though."

The old woman sighed. "My granddaughter is blind. She lost her sight since she was little."

"Eh? That's horrible. Have you consulted a doctor about it? It's such a waste she couldn't see," Francisca said and waved her hand in front of Freya.

As the old woman and Francisca talked, Mike studied the girl. She was young. He bet in her twenties. She appeared meek and quiet, and the slightest noise made her flinched.

Yep. She'd definitely stirred a man's libido.