"Do you come down here to make snacks often?" Kohen asked, leaning against one of the counters with a soft smile at the servants. He was clearly comfotable around them, even if it was the first time he had been in this particlar kitchen.
Alex glanced around at the servants, offering them a matching soft smile and following Lacey for a few more steps, stopping near the door of the pantry and looking inside. His eyes widened at the size and he nodded, commenting easily, "This is impressive, how much food in in here? It's bigger than our pantry at home."
"Absolutely," Lacey said. "Well, not as often as I should. I come here often enough, anyways. I need to eat, after all." After straining a bit, her fingers managed to grip the corner of the bag. She pulled it down, and stumbled, barely managing to catch it, before turning to look brightly at them.
She grinned at Alex. "This isn't the only pantry. We have a lot of people to feed, especially with you guys, now."
Alex had stepped towards her, arms outstretched to steady her as she had stumbled, and he stepped back easily, smiling back. "The princess needing to eat? Unheard of," He joked, winking at her and motioning to the bag, "I can carry that if you'd like."
Kohen walked to the pantry, looking in with eyes wide. "How many pantries are there?" He asked, clearly impressed at the sheer size of the room and the amount of food inside.
"I know, right? Completely audacious. I can't believe it at all!" Lacey snorted. "No, I got it. I'm not as weak as I look." Also, I want to eat as I walk, was what she didn't say. That was so unladylike… not that she cared. But her father wouldn't be happy if two candidates dropped out because she wasn't being a proper princess.
She glanced at Kohen's awed look and grinned. "In this wing of the palace? About twelve. And then there are the cellars and cold rooms, too. So, there's a lot of food."
Kohen was almost gawking at the facts she gave him, pausing to look around the pantry again before snapping back to reality and replying, "Are all of them full of food? How does one place go through that much food?" He couldn't imagine it, but then again, he had come from a lower class where food wasn't plentiful. Alex and Lacey were most likely use to this.
"I don't doubt that you're strong enough to carry it," Alex replied, his easy-going grin reappearing, "I just figured you might want to grab more than just straight chocolate." He wouldn't deny that just straight chocolate was a good treat, but he almost was in the mood for chocolate chip cookies, though he wasn't going to ask directly. After all, he didn't want to mess up the kitchen and make more work for the servants.
Lacey laughed at Kohen's face and awe. "They are full of food. And we have a lot of staff. You know, the cleaners and the guards and the attendants and the cooks and all those people. Also, we have to be prepared in case a foreign dignitary makes a surprise visit." She shook her head with a rueful smile. "When the kitchen staff are preparing, I have almost no time to grab snacks."
Speaking of snacks… Alex sounded like he wanted something. Lacey raised an eyebrow at him and waved the bag of chocolate back and forth. "I'm always in the mood for chocolate anything, if that's what you're asking." She flashed a wide grin. "Aren't you gentlemen going to eat anything?"
Kohen nodded slowly, finding what she said made sense. It was better to be overprepared than under after all, especially when it came to food. He headed out of the pantry at that, leaning hesitantly against one of the counters as he now took in the amount of equipment in the kitchen. Having space and materials to prepare that sheer amount of food made more sense.
"I'm hungry for chocolate chip cookies, though I can guarantee that I would burn this place down if I attempted to make them," Alex replied with his same grin, chuckling, "I'll pass otherwise, don't want to become known as an arsonist for the rest of my life." It was extremely tempting to make a very dirty joke in response to what Lacey said, but he bit his tongue. The mischief was still clear in his eyes though, even as he forced himself to behave a bit more gentlemanly than usual.
"You will? A pity. I can't cook, either, so that's a loss for both of us." Lacey saw the glint in his eyes, and realized what he was thinking. It was a look that she recognized. She herself made it, too, sometimes. But unlike many girls her age, she didn't get embarrassed for what she had said. She simply smiled innocently at him and moved across the kitchen to another giant pantry.
"We have packaged cookies, if you want. Not as good as the fresh kind, but it's still pretty good," she said, turning and winking at Alex.
Alex watched her, grinning as she winked at him and shrugging, "Sure, I suppose that works for me, some sort of chocolate chip cookie has to be better than none." He followed her after she turned to look at him, hoping that the cookies she was talking about were in the pantry. Fresh cookies were better than packaged, but packaged were better than nothing. Plus, it was more time he got to spend around Princess Lacy.
Kohen stayed where he was, either lost in thought or studying the rest of the kitchen in amazement. He would willingly spend much more time in this kitchen, but he knew it was frowned upon to have more interest in the food and cooking than in the princess. After all, he was selected as a suitor for her.
Lacey felt Alex behind her, following her, and grinned. She led him into the giant pantry, which appeared to be the third largest in the kitchen, and opened the door. It was pitch dark inside, and her hand slid along the wall, looking for a switch, unable to find it for the longest moment.
Finally, she found the light switch and turned it on, revealing shelves upon shelves of carb-and-sugar-filled goodness, from cookies to chips to candy to weird packaged french cookies whose names were unpronouncable. "You can pick what you want to eat," she said, grinning at Alex.
He followed her easily, stopping inside the dark pantry as he waited patiently. Normally he would try to find the lights, but he assumed she knew where they were better than he would. And soon enough he was proven right as the lights flicked on. Alex grinned at the selection of cookies that was now visible in the light and he studied his choices slowly. "How badly would I be smacked if I turned your words into a flirty response?" He asked slowly, already knowing his choice. It was a battle between his gentlemanly side and his flirty side as he spoke, but he hoped that didn't show in the grin still present on his face or the mischief in his eyes.
Lacey snorted, turning to look at him with a smirk and a wink. "Depends on who's listening," she purred to him, hair gleaming under the fluorescent lights. "If there's someone here besides me, then I think they might blow up the castle in the process of killing you. If it's me, though…" she trailed off with a suggestive grin, then shrugged. "Well, I'll let you decide that."
If her father had seen her now, in her nightgown, in a pantry flirting with a guy she barely knew, he would be so pissed. Lucky for me that he's not here then, huh? She thought.
Alex's grin only grew at the semi permission. "I think I made the choice on what I want as a treat, if I do still get to choose what I want," He started, voice holding a seductive edge as he winked, "I'd like to choose you…Princess." Any of his words were enough to get him in enormous amounts of trouble if Lacey decided she didn't like the interaction, and he knew that fully well. At least he figured it was worth it. "If you kill me for my words, I understand," He added on in a bit of a playful tone seconds later, "Just make it a quick death, Princess Lacey."
"Well, I hear that I'm quite tasty," Lacey said with a small grin. "I wouldn't know, though. After all, the chef never tastes their own meals." She pulled a piece of chocolate from the bag in her hand and popped it into her mouth, closing her eyes for a moment in bliss as it melted in her mouth.
And then she grinned at Alex. "I'll be sure to make your death as painless and… fast as possible."
"Why I thank you for your consideration, I'd prefer if my death is also not a public event," He replied again, grinning easily, "Maybe you can be my final meal? At least then I'm guaranteed something that I'll like." Alex was having more fun than ever flirting with Lacey. Unlike a lot of girls he spoke to, she actually flirted back, and as an extra plus, she was gorgeous. Definitely two things that he had no issues with. Easily he turned to look at the selection of cookies, then at her again, shaking his head and letting his grin settle on permanently, "Can I get you anything? Besides just your bag of chocolate?"
"I wouldn't be so sure," Lacey said, snickering. "You can't guarantee that I'll be up to your tastes." With a simple, practiced move, her head moved just enough to let her hair fall over her shoulders in glittering waves. She grinned at his question and looked him up and down slowly, dragging her eyes over him. "There aren't many things that taste as good as chocolate does."
"Hmm, I think you're perfectly suited to my tastes, princess." He didn't try to hide the quickly intensifying amount of mischief in his eyes, just crossed his arms and smirked, "But first, what comes in as tastier than chocolate?" Alex took a small and slow step closer, turning to look at the selection of food again as he waited for what she was going to do, ever aware that the game they were playing was dependent on what she genuinely thought of the step he took towards her.
A spark of excitement flashed through her, and Lacey's smirk widened. "Well, thank you, kind sir, but unless you've tasted me before, you can't know if I'm your type." When he took a step closer to her, she didn't move, just stared at him with her glimmering eyes, as if daring him to come closer. And to answer his question, she smirked. "There are a few things I could name, but I'm curious as to which you think I'll say."
(Gosh, Alex and Lacey, ya nasty flirts lol)
He turned back to look at her, his smirk only growing as he asked in a slow flirtatious voice, "Is that invitation to taste you to make sure you are my type?" Alex winked at her, the same mischievous glint in his eye, though this time he only took a half step closer, just enough so that he was in arms reach of her. "I think it would be more entertaining to hear what you'd name before I list off what I think you'll say."
(Right? Imagine if this happened around our innocent little Sam and Holly… I love these guys so much lmao)
Lacey shrugged. Her eyes glittered, mirroring the look in his eyes. "It depends. Is that how you want to take it?" She was in a pantry with no staff, in her nightgown, alone with a guy who could be her potential husband. There was no supervision.
It was perfect.
"Well, hot guys are definitely at the top of the list," she said, tapping her finger to her chin and pretending to think. She stayed where she was, waiting to see what he would do.
(Oh my lord Sam would be a flustered mess lmao… Sam and dirty flirting don't go together well)
"Is it vain to ask if I make the cut of hot guys?" He asked, "At least in your eyes?" Alex wasn't sure how much longer she would allow him to flirt like they were currently doing, but he was filled with ideas of what to say…as well as some ideas of what to do. "As for how I'd like to take it, yes princess, I would like to take that as an invitation," He continued, meeting her eyes before looking her up and down slowly, "If permission is given."
(Oof no. That would be something to see, for sure. And poor Holly would be dying…)
"Of course it is, but arrogance is my favorite trait," Lacey purred. She raised an eyebrow at him and rocked her weight onto her other foot, crossing her arms and looking up at him, meeting his gaze.
She pretended to consider, before smirking. "Permission granted. I'd like to see what you can do before we get caught."
(It would give me so much secondhand embarrassment but at the same time it would be so entertaining to write lmaooo…our two innocent beans)
Alex smirked and closed the space between them, leaving less than a few inches between them as he replied, "I'll suppose that means I can't take too long then." He glanced down at her, matching the look in her eyes as he reached out and slowly brushed a strand of hair out of her face. Smoothly, he gently rested his hand at the back of her head. "Can I kiss you?" He purred, bringing his face closer to hers but doing nothing more, just brushing his lips softly against hers, "Princess…?"
(Oh my goodness yes… that would be so much fun and I would be so embarrassed for them…)
Lacey smiled mischievously at him. Her heart was pounding pretty fast, but she was enjoying this a lot. She hadn't imagined that going to get chocolate would result in kissing a hot guy in a pantry. She stood on tiptoe and reached up to wind her arms around his neck. "I guess I'll have to say yes," she said with a smirk.
(I can honestly imagine it too lol….there would be so much blushing and tripping on words…gosh lmao)
Alex smirked when she replied and moved his hand to the small of her back, acting like a gentleman now in how gently his hand was placed. Without any more words, he closed his eyes and pressed his lips to hers in a soft but strong kiss, waiting several seconds before breaking it and looking at her again. The mischievous look was still present and he purred, “I was right, you taste perfectly amazing. Though…to be sure…another test can’t hurt.”
(Oh my goodness yes! They would probably have to read off of scripts, because they're too pure to know how to slide them into conversations very well, if at all XD)
When he rested his hand on her back, Lacey's face flushed ever so slightly in surprise. She hoped he didn't notice. She hated being caught off guard, but this… this had startled her. He pressed his lips across hers, and she closed her eyes, sparks flashing through her. He pulled away and she opened her eyes. At his words, she smirked. "I do have to admit, I think you taste exactly how I like. But, I'm not quite sure about that, so I think I'll have to try again." This time, she took the lead, pulling his head down to her level.
(Yesss lmaooooo Sam would probably write what to say on his hand so he didn’t forget lol)
Alex grinned as she pulled his head down to her level, meeting her lips again without hesitation. He seemed less cautious this time, though even as he wouldn’t hesitate to go rougher and less soft, he let her take the lead. After all, this was the princess. He was kissing the princess, she was kissing him back, and for what he assumed was the first time, he was actually getting butterflies in his stomach. It wasn’t enough to make him blush, but he did wonder if she had put some sort of spell on him to get him tied around her finger so fast.
(Oh, Holly probably would too. Or maybe Lacey and Alex would create a script of a bunch of stuff they knew, and how to respond to it. It would be over 100 pages long, probably lmao)
Alex was giving her the control, and so Lacey took the opportunity willingly. She kissed him harder than the first time, passionate… although passion was about the only feeling in the kiss. Her fingers clasped around the back of his neck, weaving into the strands of hair there, and she stood a bit taller to get him even closer. It was bliss. Strange little tingles moved from where his lips met hers to the rest of her body, and it took all of her willpower not to shiver in delight.
(Other roleplays: the first kiss doesn't come at least until page 30. And then there's these two XD)
(Lmaooo I can already imagine Sam asking Alex for help awkwardly and him just rattling off what to do while Sam scrambles to remember anything)
Alex met her with the same passion in the kiss, knowing fully well that if they were caught, it wouldn't be good. That didn't stop him from running his hands down her back until they rested on her hips, gently pulling her closer to him. He was more than tempted to lift her up so he could kiss her without having to bend down as much, but the same voice in his mind that warned him about being caught warned him not to do that. At least not without her permission. He had to be more gentle with Lacey, for both of their sakes. Still, in compromise, he slowly kissed her harder and his thumbs ran slowly over the material of her nightgown.
(These two are little flirtatious things lmaooo of course their first kiss is going to happen within the first ten pages)
(Or just having Lacey and Alex try to make them a script to follow, but the packet is over 100 pages and heavy as fuck, and they're just holding these giant piles of paper and trying to flirt dirty while stumbling over the words and dropping the script and blushing like crazy XD)
(And of course it happened. They're such adorable flirts and I love them so much. They're kissing in a pantry, no less lmao)
With Alex's actions, Lacey couldn't hide back the little shiver that coursed through her at his touch. He pressed his lips harder against hers, and she smiled, running her fingers through the hairs on the back of his neck as if she couldn't get away from him. His thumbs caressed her hips, and she made a small noise in the back of her throat, pulling him as close as was humanly possible.
"Your highness?" Came a voice from not too far away. "Where are you? Are you okay?"
(Because otherwise something else might happen… XD not that I'm protesting)
