The Crystal 3, Jones M [fox in socks read aloud TXT] 📗

quickly wiped away the tears that had formed in my eyes and focused on the people in front of me.

I sighed. "What is it that you wanted to tell me?"

There was a moment of silence before Elizabeth talked.

"Erick, Selena and the rest were hurt after you left. They wanted to talk to you, to change your mind into staying. Emery, they hated themselves. They ended up blaming themselves for what they did to you. They had you on their minds most of the time, and it was getting hard for them to focus on their lives. 

I noticed this after Zane had stopped you from committing suicide. They couldn't focus on their careers, and so Justin, Selena, Zane and his bandmates took a year off. They wanted to be around you, but at the same time, they were feeling awful over what they did to you."

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. I did not know that everyone had me in their minds for most of their time. I expected their guilt to come and go, mostly to remain hidden; I didn't expect it to affect them that much.

"Then you escaped. They wanted to stay, but they had to go back to their jobs. On the bright side, their music career was a distraction for them, but when they came to Crystalia, they were reminded of you. 

Emery, Erick was worse. He was depressed and worried about you. He couldn't even be a ruler for the people! I had to take over. It was hard to see the people I care about grow to hate themselves and feel depressed as the days passed by."

The Queen gave me a small smile.

"Everyone was happy when you came back. It was the first time I saw them genuinely smile in a while. Then I had to see them break down again when they thought you were dead. I hoped it would be the last time I saw them like that. After you had revealed that you were truly alive, they were relieved, Emery. But then, you left, again. I spent a couple of years watching everyone ruin themselves over what they had done to you. It even reached a point where Erick almost lost his title as ruler, and the others were close to losing their music careers. It was too much for me, Emery. That's why..."

"She chanted a memory spell over them," Ashley interjected. "Their memories of you were wiped out. We even got rid of evidence of your existence."

My eyes widened in shock.

"YOU WHAT?" I didn't mean to shout. I had no idea of what to feel about the news I had received.

"I had to," Elizabeth said. "It looked like you were never coming back. I was stuck with people who were guilty and angry with themselves, and it didn't look like it would leave soon. I just couldn't let them ruin their lives because of you."

I was still in shock as I tried to process Elizabeth's words.

"Are you saying I ruined them because of something they did to me?" I questioned, angry that the Queen would consider them over me despite all the crap they made me go through.

"I considered all of you. I'm not saying that you're responsible. It was their own fault, but you know I can't choose between them and you. I had grown used to your presence and I consider all of you as my family. 

Please, Emery. They were very sorry about what they did to you. They had no idea of what to do to fix the mess they made. I could see that they were going to spiral out of control. You weren't going to forgive them anytime soon, and that's why I did it."

I remained silent, thinking over what she said, but it was hard with everything I had learned.

"I need to think about what you just told me," I said. Elizabeth went to speak, but she stopped herself. She just nodded her head.

"Yes, that will be great," the Queen said. "I also think it will be great if I leave you alone."

I just nodded as Elizabeth started to get up from the couch. Ashley did not need me to motion for her to go; she had stood up from her seat with the Queen, also planning to leave the house. They both gave me sad smiles before walking towards the door. They didn't say anything else as they exited the house, leaving me with my thoughts.

I shook my head as I decided to get busy with other stuff. I started cleaning the kitchen and the windows. As I went to exit the house so I could clean the windows outside, a knock sounded on my door. I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion, wondering what Elizabeth or Ashley could have forgotten.

I should have checked who it was before opening the door. In front of me was a smiling Ethan.

He seemed to look like he did years ago. The only difference was that he had grown a small mustache above his lips, and he had also gained some muscle. He was handsome, but not as handsome as Zane.

Wait, what?

Behind him were eight large grocery bags floating in the air.

"Hi! You must be Emery, right?" he asked. I blinked at him before slowly nodding.

"Yeah. Ashley told me something about you needing some stuff for your house. I don't know if you need everything here or if I got everything you want. If there is something I have missed, you can tell Ashley to call me. Or you can call me yourself," Ethan informed as a small piece of paper teleported in his hand. I took it, noticing that it had his digits on it.

I moved back, allowing space for the bags to enter my house. Once they were all in, I went towards Ethan.

"Um, thank you, Ethan."

He did not seem bothered by the fact that I knew his name.

"You're welcome. Hope I'll see you around," he said with a smile before walking away from me. I blinked, my form feeling suddenly heavy. 

I had just seen Ethan and Zane in one day. I could only imagine how I would feel when I would see the rest.

With quick movements, I closed the door behind me and moved farther into the house. I needed to do something to distract me from the events of the day, and so I began arranging everything that was bought.

I opened one of the bags, only for something large to pop out of it. My eyes widened at the sight of a large flatscreen TV. It was floating in the air by magic, taking most of the space in front of me. With furrowed eyebrows, I took my time observing it. There was also a stamp with its specifications. It was a 60-inch TV, and I was surprised by the specification of 8K support. I mean, I could have been okay with a regular HD, QHD or 4K screen, but an 8K screen? Who had a storage device with lots of memory for that?

With a shake of my head, I moved the screen forward with my powers. Using telekinesis, I moved it around the house, looking for a room for it. I decided to put it in an empty room I had forgotten existed in the house. It was a large one with a window that faced the way to Crystalia's castle. Then I went to deal with the other electronics that were bought, like the home system. Afterward, I went to arrange the groceries.

My mind went back to the conversation I had with Elizabeth and Ashley. I still found it hard to believe what they had told me. I had no idea they cared so much.

It was then that I remembered to do some serious thinking about the issue. It was a good thing that I had finished arranging everything.

I walked towards the room with the TV and plastered myself on a seat near the window. I fixed my gaze on the snowy ground and the clear sky.

My mind replayed the events and the memories that had me hating Erick, Selena, Justin and my ex-bullies. It was hard, and I was reminded of every awful emotion I felt during those times. I even recalled the things that led me to the mental hospital and the therapy sessions I had with Charles. More importantly, I recalled the lessons I had learned.

Charles had told me about how those who betrayed me had felt. They wanted to make things right and talk to me, but I still hated them at the time. 

I mean, eight people had betrayed me; eight people who I once considered my friends and family had betrayed me. The memories of the awful tour I was forced to go to still made me angry and sad, but the emotions were not that strong like they used to be years ago.

I felt like I had grown and had come to accept what had happened. There was nothing that could have been done to fix the past. I just had to focus on the future.

However, I was scared. The thought of accepting everyone's apology and befriending them again was the kind of mentality that had ruined my life. Years ago, I had decided to do the same thing with my ex-bullies, and months later, things had gotten worse for me. I was scared that if I were willing to forgive everyone who hurt me, I would be opening myself to emotional and physical scarring again.

I sighed just as I thought of the words Elizabeth had told me. Those who hurt me had learned a huge lesson. Hearing about how depressed they had been did not make me glad. It did not even bring satisfaction. I thought I would be happy they had suffered. 

Okay, I was happy at first, but as Elizabeth further explained to me what they had gone through, I became sad.

Why did I feel sorrowful over what my ex-friends had been going through? They were the ones who betrayed me, and they had no reason to feel bad over what they did to me. They knew what they were doing, and they should have just gone on with their lives as if I didn't matter.

Things would have been a lot easier if they didn't care. Justin, Selena, Erick and my former bullies could remain the enemies I believed they had become and I could go on with my life without feeling bad for them. However, that was not the case. The things they had done to me had only made them depressed and angry with themselves. They couldn't handle what they had done, and Elizabeth had to wipe out their memories of me for their sake.

The situation was undoubtedly difficult for me. I sighed, rubbing a hand through my hair to release some of my tangled curls.

I began thinking again. I had indeed gone through some emotional crap, and honestly, it made me stronger. It got rid of the shyness and fear I felt around people; it had made me the confident person I currently was. In a way, I owed everyone— No, I did not owe them anything. It was just an advantage I had gained over the years.

I continued sitting there, thinking of what to do. Sometime later, I looked out the window, noticing that the sky had been covered by gray clouds. The evening had come, and it looked like it was going to snow.

I could not believe I had sat on the chair and thought for that long. I felt an ache on my back as I slowly stood.

My mind had been made up; I knew what I had to do. I had to go to the castle and face everyone who betrayed me. We needed to have a long talk.

I just hoped it would not be another mistake.