A knock sounded at my door as I was doing my homework the morning after the Winter Formal. I sighed, clearly not wanting to be interrupted, unless it was urgent or the chefs were wondering what I'd like for lunch or dinner.
"Who is it?" I asked, running my fingers through my straggly hair.
"Just Andrei, Miss. Is it alright if I come in and talk to you about something?"
I hoped he was coming in to apologize about his unexpected behavior last night. Sure, he's stubborn at times, but not like this. The reaction he had to me and Geoffrey kissing was alarming. It embarrassed Geoffrey for sure.
"Alright, I guess," I answered hesitantly.
The doorknob rattled and Andrei appeared, looking a little guilty. Did he regret talking that way to me and Geoffrey like that last night?
"First off, I want to apologize for last night, Miss. I was shocked and wasn't used to having my Majesty kissing a random guy in Yekaterina Palace. Next time that happens, I won't have that kind of reaction."
I smiled.
"Apology accepted, Andrei."
His shoulders relaxed and a smile graced his lips. This is probably the only time I'd seen Andrei actually smile. For as long as I can remember since I first met him a few months ago, he'd always been stubborn, short, cold, with very little sympathy for other people.
"I was thinking that we should go car shopping," he unexpectedly suggested.
I nearly fell out of my seat when he suggested that.
"Are you serious, Andrei?"
"Yes, Your Highness."
"What makes you say that? I thought that you would drive me everywhere?"
"Well, yes. But what if there's an emergency and I'm not available to be there to drive you?"
"What about Grandmother? Surely, she knows how to drive, doesn't she?"
"I'm not trying to be rude, but she is getting kind of old, Miss. Her driving skills are fading a bit. So I was thinking, if I got you an emergency car in case I'm not available, or you're in a real hurry."
"You're offering to get me a car?"
"Well, I've asked your grandmother, and she thinks that's a fantastic idea."
"Did Grandmother give a price limit?"
"There is no price limit, no," Andrei laughed. "She just told me to pick out the car that's best for you." He gave me a suspicious look. "You know how to drive, yes?"
I laughed. "Of course I know how to drive, Andrei! I've been driving since Sophomore year when Mama taught me in Manhattan! I've been driving on my own for at least a year without my Mama's help."
"Then I assume you're ready?"
I slammed the pencil that I had been holding on the desk table to confirm the answer, showing my excitement of getting my new, own car.
"Let's go."
Andrei laughed at my reaction and left the room so that I could change properly for the day. I managed to throw on a nice pair of jeans, brown leather lace-up knee-high snow boots, a dark green long sleeved shirt, and then I threw on a furry gray coat, as it's still snowing outside. We got about five feet of snow last night, but somebody must have cleared a pathway for us to drive out of and salted the road for a safer drive in case we needed to get out for the day and go to a different country.
When I opened the door sharply, Andrei jumped before turning to face me. But he smiled and beckoned for me to come along. Together, we walked down the corridors, down a couple flights of stairs, and to the grand lobby. Andrei hurried and opened the door for me, as a butler should do.
The wind was very blustery outside, and snow still fell from the heavens. But it was a beautiful sight to see, if I may say so. I turned around, walking backwards so that I could get a better look at the snow-covered palace. It looked absolutely beautiful from where I stood. I watched as a wagon, pulled by horses, glided neatly across the snowy grounds. The person behind the horses saw us and gave me a respectful nod of his head and tipped his hat, showing that he respected me. I nodded to him to let him know that I saw him.
"Are you coming, or not?" Andrei asked jokingly.
I took my focus off of Yekaterina Palace and made my way to the car. Andrei opened the car door for me and I climbed inside the limo. I made myself a glass of Coke before sitting down and getting comfortable. The ride was bumpy because of the snow, but I sipped slowly on my Coke as we drove at least a good hour before we reached the car dealership.
"Here we are," said Andrei happily.
He adjusted his suit, trying to look as presentable as he could. We trudged heavily through the snow, which seemed to at least be a couple of feet high. But it seemed as though some of the snow had been plowed back.
Once we got inside the dealership, it was nice and warm. I breathed in the warm air of the lobby, relieved to get away from the cold. While Manhattan had very cold winter months, Moscow, Russia seemed to have even colder winter months. I checked the clock on the wall that hung on one side of the room. My eyes widened and my jaw dropped when I saw that the multi-functional clock read that the temperature outside was at least -10℉.
"Can I help you?" said a woman who had a very thick Russian accent. One that I could notice right away.
"Yes, please. We're looking for a car for Miss Anastasia Romanova II," Andrei answered as he motioned to me.
"My Lady," said the woman as she curtseyed to me out of self respect. "My name is Irina Sokolova, and I'll be helping out for the day. Is there a particular car that you're looking for in general?"
"Well, I was thinking about a Rolls-Royce luxury car," I admitted.
The woman smiled.
"We have our own section of Rolls-Royce luxury cars in the more expensive section of the store. Would you like for me to lead you there?"
"Yes, please," I answered eagerly.
"I haven't been in a car dealership since the Tsarina gave me money to get me that limo for her," Andrei admitted with a light laugh.
"Really? How long ago was that?" I asked, amazed, as we began to walk back outside again, into the -10℉ weather.
Andrei shrugged. "A few years ago, at least. I haven't been back since, until now."
We followed Irina for a while until we reached a large selection of cars. My eyes widened when I saw the many varieties of cars in front of me.
"This is our largest section of Rolls-Royce cars. I have the keys to all the cars. So if you want to start looking through them to see which one is best for you, then go ahead."
"We can start with this one," I suggested, waving my hand at the first car at the beginning of the line.
Irina smiled kindly at me again before moving to the car. She unlocked it and allowed me to take a look inside. I peeked through there and noticed that the seats were mixed with white and an army-colored green with sparkles that littered the ceiling. Two miniature TVs were attached to the backs of the driver's and shotgun seats. And, as much as I liked the color green, the style seemed to be a bit much for me. I politely rejected the first one. The color choices were clearly not what I was looking for.
The next one we looked at had dark purple seats, and the same sparkly ceiling. But as much as I loved the color purple, it was too dark for me and didn't look like it would be my style. The interior in general was too dark for my liking. But I assumed that maybe it was a good thing, so that I wouldn't have many people staring at me through the darker windows.
After looking at a few more interiors of the Rolls-Royce cars, I was starting to give up, until another all-black car caught my eye.
"What about that one?" I asked, motioning to it.
"The Rolls-Royce Phantom Serenity car?" Irine asked innocently.
"Yes, ma'am."
"A lot of people have looked into that interior before, but no one has ever thought to buy it. You might like it, Miss. I won't say anything now, but you'll see why everyone wants that car when you look into the interior."
She took out the keys once more and slowly unlocked the car door before letting me pull the door open. I was pleasantly pleased when I saw the interior of the car. It was pure black, but in the best way, as I liked the color black. My eyes widened when I saw that the ceiling was just the right shade of mystical purple. The ceiling was, once again, littered with glitter, making the interior of the ceiling look like a galaxy. Or a Nebula.
"Wow," I couldn't help but breathe with amazement.
"You like it, don't you?" Irina asked with a light chuckle.
"I do. Now I can understand why everyone wants that car. What would you say the price is for it?"
"200 Million dollars, at least, Miss. Quite the price. But, as a royal yourself, maybe you can afford the car?"
"What do you think, Miss?" Andrei asked politely. I turned to him and I could see him grinning broadly at me.
"It's a nice car," I agreed.
"It's more than just nice. It's luxurious," Andrei corrected me with a grin.
"That, too. I think that this is the kind of car that I'm looking for, Irina."
"Let us go back inside so that we can do some paperwork for the car," Irina suggested as she motioned for us to follow her.
We followed her back to the lobby of the dealership. She went behind the desk and bent down to pick up a clip board and various sheets of paper for paying the car off.
"All you need to do is add your signatures, check out a few boxes, and you can either pay with a check or a debit card," she instructed.
It took us a while to sign all the papers, but we finally managed it. Irina grinned at us and bent down again to the shelves underneath the checkout desk, and finally pulled out the keys to my new car.
"Thank you for purchasing. I hope you will enjoy your new car, Duchess Anastasia," said Irina. She sounded sincere and polite at the same time.
"Thank you. And I'm sure that I will enjoy this car very much," I answered with a light laugh.
"C'mon, Miss. We should get back to Yekaterina. Your grandmother might be worried. She doesn't want us to miss lunch."
"Andrei, lunch isn't until eleven or twelve o'clock," I teased.
"I know. But we know Tsarina Nadia does not like for us to be late."
That's what happens when you have a grandmother as a royal queen, I couldn't help but think in my head.
"Thank you again, Irina."
"No, thank you. God bless you, ma'am."
We set off. I had the keys to my new car in my hands. My hands shook as I walked to the car I'd just purchased. And I had no regrets about purchasing it.