Her Runaway Prince

One month later and the doctors were ready to pull the plug. They urged Petro to do what was best for his mother, but he remained adamant.

“Walking up is what’s best for my mother, not dying.”

Then, a few days later, his stubbornness finally paid off.

He was sitting on his mother’s bed, brushing her hair neatly, still talking about the girl who he was still so in love with when his mother’s hand suddenly stirred. At first Petro thought that it was just his imagination playing tricks on him, but then it happened again.

“Manro! Manro!” Petro yelled out excitedly. “Come! She’s moving!”

Manro couldn’t believe it when Petro had pointed it out, but she’d actually started moving. First it was her hand. Then her fingers. Within a few hours, her eyes started to open.

Petro was overwhelmed by a joy he’d never believed he could experience again. For the first time in three months, he actually felt well and truly happy. He knew his mother would be fine. He knew she would wake up. He couldn’t explain how he knew it, but deep in his soul he had always been certain of it.

“Mama!” Petro exclaimed gleefully, nearly jumping onto the bed as he he burrowed to embrace his mother.

“What… Where am I? What happened?” she asked, unable to remember anything.

Petro and Manro both sat down on the bed and began to fill her in on every single detail. They told her about the massive fight that she and Petro had had. How it had caused Petro to run away. How she become so ill from stress that she’d eventually fallen into a coma.

“Yes… I remember now…” the Queen said solemnly as memories started to return.

“I’m so sorry mother… I was so ungrateful. I shouldn’t have done what I did,” Petro said as he hugged her tightly.

“Oh, it’s over now. Don’t worry too much about it, boy.” His mother patted his back softly.

“Did you at least enjoy your time in the states?” she asked sincerely.

“I absolutely adored it. It was so wonderful. Especially because I met this girl…”

“Oh? And why is she not here?”

“Well, I kinda messed up. Badly. Not that it matters anyways. She’s not noble. A relationship between us would never be approved.” Petro slumped his shoulders sadly.

“Petro, are you worried I wouldn’t approve of this girl?”

“I know you wouldn’t…”

“No, you don’t know that, boy. I don’t care who you end up with, so long as you’re happy. So long as you love them and they love you, that is all that matters to me.”

Petro felt a sudden sense of newfound determination. His mother’s encouragement had awoken a hope inside of him that he’d tried his best to ignore.

“You really mean that, mother?”

“Of course I do, my child. All any mother ever wants is for her child to be happy. Now go. Get this girl back and bring her here so I can see what’s so special about her.” She smiled at her son with encouragement.

Petro took one look at Manro.

“Well dammit, I said I wasn’t gonna be that guy,” Manro remarked sarcastically. “Ah what the hell. Let’s go get your girl back, buddy.”