"So, Mutiara. All you need to do is dust all the table and cabinet with the duster and then you wipe them with a wet cloth."

"So I will have to fill in the bucket with water?"

"Yes, of course. After cleaning with wet cloth, you just let them air-dry. Do not try to wipe them dry with another cloth because you will only create a smear and leaving new dust from the fabric."

"Okay, Miss Mawar," said Ara.

"Call me Mawar. We're less than a decade apart," she winks at Ara.

"Okay, Mawar. You can also call me Ara. That's what all my friends call me," said Ara.

"Great! Now I know that the ship can be quite confusing in the beginning because there are so many rooms and almost everywhere looks the same, but you'll get a hang of it soon. Just try not to run into Princess Intan when you're working today," said Mawar.

"I will try my best not to run into my old mistress," Ara laughs, followed by Mawar.

Ara fills in the bucket with cold water and dumps the cloth into the bucket. She carries the bucket in her left hand while her right hand is holding the duster. 

"I love your brooch, by the way. It's a nice touch," said Mawar.

"Thank you. It's for good luck," said Ara.

"Good luck, Ara! I'll try to find you later today to see if you have any questions." 

So Ara is left alone to figure out her new tasks. She wanders around the main hall just like the day before. The only difference is that she now knows where Princess Intan's and Prince Chahaya's rooms are. She swears to herself to do whatever it takes to avoid them.

Room after room has Ara cleaned but she feels like she is nowhere near done with the job. There seems to be endless rows of empty rooms. Some rooms are only filled with one object, covered by a glass. In the beginning, Ara took the time to admire those artifacts. But after around the tenth room, she just really wanted to get this repetitive job over with. 

By lunchtime, Ara reaches the study room where she talked to Prince Surya the day before. She will be lying if she says she does not secretly hopes that Prince Surya is in the room. Even though Prince Surya's presence is a bit uncomfortable, he does make Ara's heart skipped a beat.

Ara opens the door and walks into the room.It is dark and cold. It is also empty. The person that Ara hopes for is not there. She lets out a long breath as she drags herself forward with bucket of dirty water and duster in both her hands.

She begins doing her chores, starting from dusting the long and sturdy study table. There are not many things on the table so it is not difficult to dust and clean. There is only one thing on the right corner of the table, next to the desk lamp. That thing is a necklace. The necklace is blue in color. Upon further look, Ara figures out that it is indeed made of the same material as the brooch that Madam Bintang gave her.

"A beautiful sapphire, isn't it?" A man's voice made Ara jumps that the necklace almost slips off her fingers.

She turns around to see the owner of the voice. To her surprise, it is Prince Chahaya.

"What are you doing with a royal jewelry?" he asked with an accusing tone.

"If you think I am trying to steal the necklace, you are clearly mistaken," said Ara in her attempt to defend herself.

"The way you defend yourself makes me suspicious. I was not trying to accuse you of anything but now I kind of do," answered Prince Chahaya.

"Well, I am placing back the necklace where it was before." Ara puts down the necklace on the table and turns off the desk lamp.

Prince Chahaya laughs a little. He closes the door and walks in toward Ara, causing her to take a step backward.

"What are you trying to do?" Ara tries to raise her voice but it cracks, making her sound weak and scared.

Prince Chahaya seems to enjoy Ara's fear. He walks even closer and closer to Ara who is now cornered to the table. 

Her back touches the table and she knows she has nowhere to move backward anymore. Prince Chahaya is now standing in front of Ara. He leans forward, making Ara's heart stops beating. Prince Chahaya is so close to her that Ara can smell a very nice and luxurious scent coming from the Prince's clean white shirt. She starts to imagine what is under the shirt, the softly defined abs that she got to witness yesterday.

Ara holds her breath because if she continues smelling Prince Chahaya's scent, she may lose herself. Her face is blushing and her heart starts beating again. Unfortunately, it is now beating so hard and fast that she is genuinely terrified that the prince may be able to hear it. 

***

Sorry for not updating the past few days.

I have been really busy with school.

Thank you so much for reading the story!