Diamond Legacies: Part 15

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New York, August 2226

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Eden Balev

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The ceremony was beautiful. I didn’t even know these people and yet you could just tell how much they loved each other. Everyone applauded as they walked back down the aisle together and all the bridesmaids followed. I followed the guests into the ball room that was serving champagne and swiftly declined the drink being pushed into my hand with a polite refusal.

“You don’t drink?” Nicholas was right behind me. How did someone sneak up on a part vampire creature? Twice, in one day.

“I prefer not to no” I responded and turned to face him, he had a champagne glass in his own hand, balanced on two fingers.

“you’re quite the surprise Eden Balev” he said with a smirk but i avoided his gaze, I looked around his arm to see the bridesmaids entering the room.

“Why do you say that?” I asked curiously but was trying to find Lara as fast as possible. I caught the corner of his lips twitching into a smile, but he stopped himself. He stepped forward so his arm barely brushed mine. He stood facing the opposite way to me and paused at my side so he could lower his voice when he responded to me.

“The three-thousand-dollar dress” he uttered and carried on walking away from me to greet someone he knew. How did that man know everything? Only a keen eye would recognise my aunts’ style and brand. I caught the eye of Lara across the room, and she beamed me a smile as she ran over to me.

“Thank god that’s over” she sighed as she took a glass from a waiter who just walked past us with a tray of them.

“You did great” I praised her, and she rolled her eyes.

“Yeah, it’s so hard walking up the aisle” she mocked me and looped her arm with my own. “Now it’s time to party and find a cute available singleton to make wedding conversation with” she said as she began walking me across the room to the tables where everyone was settling for the food. “don’t worry we’ll find one for you too, so I don’t abandon you.” I rolled my eyes at her as she began getting food from the 'all you can eat' tables. I copied her, knowing id have to puke it up later but I couldn’t get away with not eating all day with this many humans. Someone could notice. Eating human food was like eating cardboard but I did it anyway, I also decided half an hour in to go against my normal rule and have a few glasses of champagne along with it. At least this was something my body could absorb, it made the feeling of the food in my stomach a little less irritating, plus when I puked later it would be less of a surprise if I could claim the alcohol made me do it.

I watched Lara watch someone across the room, her scowl gave it away before I even had to look who she was staring at. He appeared at our table. He had taken the jacket of his tux off to reveal a very well fitted and tailored shirt. He had loosened the tie and undone his top button. His sleeves were rolled up in a very relaxed attire.

“I’m just doing my duty and checking everyone is doing okay, have you enjoyed the wedding so far?” he asked with a charming smile.

“we’re doing great, it’s a lovely wedding” I praised him, but he was staring at Lara expectantly. His aura was slightly mischievous.

“Are you okay Alara?” he asked, and she nearly choked on her drink with him calling her her full name.

“Just because you don’t like shortened names doesn’t mean everyone likes their full name” she scowled back.

“It’s what’s listed on your table placement” he said with a nod to the tiny card on the table.

“You already knew my name was Lara” she glared at him.

“I apologise” he said but he made the mistake of smirking at her. It was one of those bad boy 'I’m purposely teasing you to get a reaction’ smirk and I knew it made Lara’s blood boil. I ran my fingers over my lips to stop myself from smiling. I didn’t approve of him winding up my best friend but at the same time, she didn’t have to give him the reaction he wanted.

“Get lost Nic-holas” she taunted back, pausing after the first syllable of his name before finishing it. She had told me he hated people shortening his name and she was playing with fire by pausing to make it sound like she wasn’t going to finish the word. His smirk dropped in response and his aura flared with anger and any hint of humour faded from my expression. This was the closest id really been to him since meeting him. I stared at the colours of his aura. From everything Lara had told me so far about Nicholas Disney, and what I had seen of him myself from a distance, I expected a more arrogant, harsh and narcissistic aura. There were no such traits in his essence that I could see. But I was never an expert at reading auras. I knew what grief looked like though. And loneliness. His aura was coated in it. The anger covered up the hurt of broken trust. I wondered what had happened to this man to make him like this. His aura had so many conflicting emotions. I could see loyalty at the heart of his essence. It beat strongly along with his heart, but it was surrounded by mistrust and solitude.

“Enjoy the free alcohol whilst you can” he remarked and turned to walk away a flash of hurt went over him as he disappeared. We sat there in silence for a moment, but her stare could have burnt a hole in his perfectly sculpted back.

“Alright Lara, give it to me” I said as I sat back ready for the rant.

“What?” she asked shaking her head out of her trance to look at me.

“Nicholas Disney. The worst person in the world, the playboy crown prince. Rant away.” I said with a smirk. She sighed but she couldn’t resist. I knew she wanted to talk about him so I prompted her to get it out of her system so we could both enjoy the night without her giving him death glares every second. I didn’t believe a word I had said, I knew now that Nicholas Disney was far far more complex than Lara gave him credit for, but I knew she needed to say this because not everyone could read people like a book.

“He doesn’t think anyone is good enough for him or for his perfect family. My brother had to sign a prenup to keep him away from any Disney money. Nicholas doesn’t approve of his sister ‘marrying down’ and she has to give up her life just to be with my brother” she said with quotation marks with her fingers. I'd heard all this before but I wanted to give my friend the validation.

“So, he’s a snob” I responded. Honestly if what she was saying was true, it was pretty shitty of him. But I had only heard Lara’s side of the story and I had a feeling that his mistrust was routed in a trauma, not to mention the grief he carried. I didn’t know what had happened there either.

“Yes. Disney aren’t like your family. They horde their money for themselves and the expansion of their media empire.” She said with disgust.

“How do you know my family don’t do the same?” I asked carefully.

“Cullen’s?” she asked and frowned at me. “Everyone knows the original Carlisle Cullen saved people from ruin, the old healthcare system was bankrupting every citizen in the country. No one could afford it anymore. The world was destroying itself with climate change and Americans were paying the price. Carlisle introduced his hospitals to save humanity. And he did. Your family may be one of the richest in the world, but there have been countless of inquiries into the spending of those hospitals, and they all give away more than they take. Your family use your money for good. To help people. Disney’s use it to extort people, to create entertainment, sure, but it’s all the same.” She said and I couldn’t help the small smile on my face. I had never really heard a human’s side of the Cullen history, id only heard it from my parents and family. If only she knew how closely related to Carlisle I was.

“How do you know so much about the Cullen’s?” I asked curiously.

“School” she said with a bluntness as she looked at me. “You didn’t learn about them when you were a kid?” she asked as if I had grown two heads.

“I mean yeah, but from my family themselves. Not an outsiders view on it” I said with a shrug.

“Did you not go to school?” she asked.

“I went to a private school in Seattle. They kind of skirted around the topic of money.”

“Oh sure, why teach the rich kids how to use their inheritance for good?” she joked, and I smiled back.

“I had good teachers at home.” I told her, which wasn’t a complete lie but even my parents didn’t understand the real world when it came to money.

“Your parents. You don’t have to tell me. But if Alice Cullen is your aunt. Does that mean…?” she asked but stopped herself.

“My father is Micah Cullen” I said as quietly as I could with her still being able to hear me.

“Your what?!” she asked in almost a shout. The couple on the next table overturned to look at us with a frown.

“Sorry” I said to them quickly and turned to glare at Lara. We both started laughing infectiously at her response. Before she could ask me anything else Nicholas Disney appeared at our table again.

“Are you two having fun?” he asked, and we both turned to look at him.

“Um, yes?” I asked awkwardly.

“This isn’t some bar in Manhatten. Please be more respectful” he scolded us, and Lara pulled her tongue out at him. His poker face stayed intact, and he walked away again.

“He’s so unbelievably arrogant” she sighed. I didn’t want to disagree with her, so I just nodded in agreement, and we went back to our meal. “I would love to tell him you’re richer than him” she said with a wink.

“Lara” I warned her.

“I won’t. Of course, I won’t” she said. “I’d just love to see his face.”

I wasn’t sure he’d react the way she wanted him to, but I smiled none the less. He wasn’t one of the snobbish rich kids I had met at my private school growing up. He may put on the face of a disapproving rich boy, but I watched as he moved around greeting the guests and taking time to speak to each of them and I couldn’t stop myself thinking about him most of the night. After insisting I would be okay, Lara went off with one of the other bridesmaids halfway into the night. She was having fun flirting and meeting someone new and honestly, I was more interested in trying to get closer to Nicholas to see his aura again so I could investigate more but he never seemed to relax for me to get a real reading on him. He spoke to everyone and continued to make his rounds of the tables, not staying too long in one spot. He was at his sister’s beck and call any time she needed something or wanted the wedding party to move onto the next event of the night. He was in control of everything, from the food to the music to the band and the entertainment. He conversed with the staff and organised every intricate part of the reception. It was pretty impressive honestly; I had a feeling he and my aunt Alice would get along great. He had an answer to every thing and a solution to any problem.

It was late and I had a few too many drinks to make my stalking look normal at this point. Lara was off enjoying dancing with her new date, and I sat on one of the tables watching her feeling my head spinning slightly from the champagne. A man in his sixties stumbled across the floor over towards me. I shifted back in my seat as he sat next to me, I could smell the alcohol seeping out from his pores.

“Hey beautiful want to dance?” the man said slurring his words.

“No thanks” I mumbled and gently pushed him away as he leant towards me, he was trying to whisper in my ear, but it came out more of an awkward shout over the music. I wasn’t a vampire, but I was glad I was strong than him at least. Even if I was a little bit tipsy myself. It was slowly wearing off.

“Hey, I want to dance” he said again, and I felt his arm reach for me. So did I honestly, but not with him. I stood far too fast and swayed. Arms caught me before I could reach for the table by my side. I turned around to see Nicholas standing there with a frown on his face. The frown wasn’t for me though, he was staring at the man next to us.

“The lady said no uncle John” he said, and I felt a wave of relief flood through me. I felt safe with him standing there, like no one in the world could hurt me. It wasn’t a feeling I was used to. The only time I ever felt truly safe in my life like that was when I was with my grandmother Esther, and I hadn’t felt that in six years.

“Kid, I will dance with the pretty lady” he said standing to push his nephew away. Nicholas stood unmoving. He tucked me into his side away from the ripe smelling old man.

“She said no.” he said his anger flared with his voice, I couldn’t see his face, but his expression was enough for the man to step back with a huff and tumble towards the bar. Nicholas turned to face me and for the first time since meeting him his eyes locked with mine. Really locked with mine. We stared at each other for what felt like hours, in reality, it was a few seconds. There was something about him drawing me in, everything about him was just so fascinating to me, he was a walking oxymoron.

“I apologise for taking away your opportunity to save yourself. Girl power and all that. I just hate the sight of men like him praying on young women. He does it at every family event.” Nicholas said stepping away from me when he realised our bodies were still touching.

“Yes, you did steal my thunder. I was going to punch him on the nose, so he’d get the picture” I joked.

“I’d like to have seen that” he smirked, and my god did my heart jump at that smile. I tried to focus on his eyes and not his lips. Nicholas took this focus as a sign of tipsiness.

“You said you didn’t drink” he responded.

“I lied” I told him honestly. I didn’t have anything to prove to this man. I knew it wasn’t likely id ever see him again, especially after we filmed the commercial for the studio, so it didn’t matter what he thought of me now.

“You’re quite the surprise” he said echoing his earlier words.

“I’m really not” I said with a mumble. “I’m gunna go find someone that isn’t an old man to dance with.” I said ignoring him and attempting to step past him. His arms wound around my waist, and he pulled us onto the dance floor.

“You can walk away if you want to” he said giving me permission to end the dance but my head span with his proximity.

“you’re as good as anyone else I suppose” I joked with a shrug. My head suddenly felt clear as if I hadn’t drunk alcohol at all. He chuckled in response and continued to twirl me.

“It will keep my uncle off you, he’s scared of me” he nodded in agreement.

“Thanks for being my knight in shining armour” I remarked.

“you’re welcome” he said softly as we twirled on the dance floor. “I prefer being the prince that saved the princess though not the knight” he joked and winked. I realised he was watching my face intently.

“So, prince charming. Do you make a habit of saving the damsel at the wedding?” I asked. He smirked at the nickname. It was fitting considering his family made billions off princesses.

“To clarify I don’t think you’re a damsel” he said, and I caught sight of Lara running off up some stairs with her date. I was glad she hadn’t seen me this close to Nicholas. She’d kick off big time thinking he was trying to seduce me into being one of his one-night stands.

Was that what this was? I could see his interest in me in his aura. It wasn’t lust exactly, but it had romantic undertones. I wasn’t good at noticing lust or love in an aura. I had seen it in my parents, but they weren’t exactly a blueprint for a normal relationship.

“Ok not damsel, a conquest?” I asked him with a curious look. His aura flashed with confusion and realisation I knew more about him than he probably thought.

“How old are you?” he asked, and I couldn’t contain my laugh. That was his response to me accusing him of seducing me?

“I’m twenty-one” I informed him. His aura flashed with an emotion I wasnt quite sure of.

“That's far too young,” he responded but something about his aura caught my curiosity. He didn’t fully believe what he was saying. It was like he was trying to find an excuse not to admit he was interested in me in anyway.

“Then why are you dancing with me?” I asked trying to make sure my voice didn’t portray any hurt I felt at his words. It was amusing really. I was twenty-one both physically and technically. This was the one year of my life that I could get away with not lying about my age. I had been this age for eleven years now and before now I would have been lying to his face but the one time I told someone new my age, he didn’t care.

“Because you intrigue me, Eden Balev. Ever since I saw you dancing. I thought I had you figured out then you turn up to my sister’s wedding in a Mary Alice designer dress. You are friends with the most incessant female on the planet and yet there is something about you that is entirely tranquil. I’m drawn to you, and I don’t know why.” He answered truthfully.

I felt like I was cheating in the conversation. I knew everything he said and the emotions that went with it. I knew the kind of person he was better than anyone in this room probably knew him and yet he could never know me.

“How old are you?” I asked.

“Twenty-eight” he answered. I wanted to make a joke about our age difference, but it was clearly a sore subject. It amused me considering there were age gaps in my family that were larger than his age. “What’s so funny?” He asked.

“I find it amusing you think twenty-one is young. I was expecting you to say you were forty or something” I joked.

“Google is free you know” he responded.

“Of course, do you expect everyone to google you after meeting you?” I asked.

“Most do” he said nonchalantly.

“You’re so arrogant” I responded with a shake of my head.

“You’ve been hanging out with Lara too much” he responded with a smirk although he clearly liked I thought this of him. Even though i knew there wasnt a single part of his soul that was arrogant. He was so strange.

“I went to a private school with many like you. I got used to seeing the signs” I corrected him, and this piqued his interest. Shit.

“Private educated with a Mary Alice dress and yet you apartment share with your friend and own last year’s iPhone. You really are a puzzle little swan” he said twirling me towards the tables. I avoided answering him and so he asked me another question. “I can explain away the private school with an absentee rich grandparent but I have to know... the dress?” he asked, and he stopped us dancing when we had gravitated over to one of the tables.

“My aunt is Alice Cullen’s assistant. That’s how I have the dress” I answered his curiosity. “How did you know who designed it?” I asked.

“My sister.” He said eying his other sister across the room.

“You have two sisters right” I said with a nod remembering that the bride wasn’t his only sister. I remembered Lara telling me he had two.

“I have three actually” he said, and a flash of grief took over him. “Had” he corrected himself.

“I’m so sorry” I said realising the pain in his aura was from the loss of a sister. I couldn’t even imagine that pain. I wouldn’t survive losing my sister. I couldn’t. She was my other half, my balance to everything in the world.

He shook his head as if he was trying to clear his mind.

“I’m sorry I didn’t mean to just—” he said before cutting himself off. His walls built fast around his aura. His soft facial expression hardened as if he was putting on a mask. “I don’t know why I said that. I apologise.” He said and gave me one of his fake commercial smiles. “I see my father is struggling to stand over by the bar. I should probably go help him. Thank you for an enjoyable dance Ms Balev” he said formally and stood to leave. I gave him a small nod and watched him walk over to his stumbling father. It wasn’t that far from where I was seated. I could see the darkness in the soul of William Disney. The greed, the narcissism, the arrogance. I saw him next to the brightness of Nicholas’ soul and wondered how these two were even related. Sure, Nicholas had his anger that he definitely inherited from his father, but it didn’t consume him. Other traits were far stronger in his aura but that couldn’t be said for William Disney. He was everything that was wrong with the world. I tried to shake my head from the curiosity that ran though my mind. Nichola’s family didn’t matter. It wasn’t my brother marrying into it. Tessa was good and that’s all that mattered for Lara.

I had to shake Nicholas Disney from my mind. He was clearly not interested in me, and I wasn’t in the market for a new romantic obsession. I had to focus on my career and my dancing. I had no time for men.

That’s what I tried to tell myself when I saw him just a few days later at the studio again.

He didn’t approach me he just watched the rehearsals.

He was at the studio a lot over the next week or so and whilst I knew he had permission to be there it was extremely frustrating for my concentration. It was like I was addicted to trying to solve the puzzle that was his soul. Everything on the surface was superficial, his bad boy, player, rich kid persona was fake, and underneath was something far more complex. He had learnt to supress any redeeming qualities he had and it made me feel pity for him and only wonder why he was like that.

“Boss man is watching you again” Noah said from behind me on the barre. We were warming up before the official filming of the commercial.

We turned to do the same exercise facing the other way. This time I could see Nicholas standing in the corner leaning against the wall. My eyes locked with his and it sent butterflies off in my stomach i wasnt expecting. He let out a soft smile I had never seen before, and my head swam with the sight of him. I shook it off, trying to focus on the back of Noah’s head in front of me. I could hear Nicholas' voice echoing around my head.

‘You intrigue me’

Maybe he could keep his fascination away from my livelihood so I could concentrate on doing my job.

After warming up I asked the director if I could run to the bathroom. He nodded, calling a five-minute break before we start filming, and I headed straight for the door. I paused for a moment before leaving and turned my head to stare directly at Nicholas standing in the corner by the door. I hoped I wasn’t about to look like an idiot, and he would understand what I was asking of him. I left without a word and stopped halfway down the hall to lean against the wall. A few seconds later the door reopened, and Nicholas walked out. He stopped in front of me and didn’t say a word.

It infuriated me.

“Can you stop watching me please?” I asked him as I stared up at him.

“I’ve funded this commercial out of my own pocket. I can watch as much of it as I want” he answered.

“But stop watching me” I emphasised.

“I employ you.” he remarked with a smirk.

“No, you don’t, the company does.” I said shaking off the strange feeling I got when I heard him call me his employee.

“I mean I indirectly fund the company so technically….” He trailed off.

“Stop it. Just… please.” I said feeling entirely uncomfortable. He must have realised I wasn’t joking.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable. You’re right I have no control over your employment with the company, I am just a donor. I have no creative control over anything. I just enjoy watching ballet that’s all. If my family can do one good thing with their money its contributing to the arts.” He said with a nod, all teasing and humour gone. I nodded in response, my eyes dropping to the floor, so I didn’t have to look at him.

“I can feel you watching me and its off putting” I admitted.

“I apologise” he said softly. “I think you’re beautiful. When you're in the room my eyes fall on you without me even realising. I dont know what it is, all I want to do is get to know you more,” he admitted, and my head shot up to look at him. His aura radiated with nerves.

“I thought I was too young” I responded my heart speeding up in my chest.

This conversation was skirting on dangerous territory. I should stop this right now. I shouldn’t be prompting him to ask me out. I needed to smother the ember before it burst into a flame, and quick.

“I lied” he echoed my words to him at the wedding. I heard his heartbeat speed up slightly in his chest. “I said that because I promised myself, I would never date someone that was twenty-one. It was the age of my sister when she—it’s nothing about you or your age, it’s me and my trauma.” he answered. My heart ached as I saw the pain flood his aura again. “I never talk about her to anyone and yet you’ve had me speak about her twice in the same week. There is something about you... ” He said shaking his head as if he couldn’t believe he had spoken about her.

“I…I have to get back” I said avoiding talking about this topic any further. I couldn’t be friends with him, I couldn’t be anything with him. I had to stop this. I knew I did. There wasn’t a world where Nicholas Disney and Eden Cullen could dance at a wedding talking about their shared grief and legacy rich kid experiences and it not have a cascading effect on the lives we were born into.

“Eden” he said when I turned to walk back to the studio. “I know you think I’m a whore, but that’s not what this is” he said taking my rejection as a sign of disgust of his lifestyle.

“I know. I just have to go back” I said with a small smile. I hoped it wasn’t enough to encourage him but at the same time I didn’t see an heir to a dynasty with the rep of a playboy, I just saw a man, his soul bare for me to see.

He gave me a small nod and I re-entered the studio.

Noah and I filmed our part for the commercial all day and I noticed Nicholas didn’t return once to watch.

I went through various scenarios in my head of how I would see him again and what I would say. I wanted to explain to him everything and nothing at the same time. I wanted to turn up at his doorstep and run away from New York all at once. I felt guilt about how I avoided his show of vulnerability, I wanted to tell him he could tell me anything and I would be there to listen and yet I also wanted to tell him to leave me alone too.

I dreaded the thought of going the whole weekend without seeing him at the studio and was relieved at the thought at the same time.

Truth was I would barely have time to think about him that weekend, because as I grabbed my bag to leave the studio that Friday night, I had eight missed calls from my mother. That was unusual.

I redialled and she answered the first ring.

“Hi mama” I said but I was greeted with a very serious tone from my mother.

“Eden, I need you to come home right away”

 

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Author Note:
I find it ironic that my portrayal of the Disney family matches the current state of the company right now but alas, this was written long before the lawsuits were made public. Im well aware that the real Disney family has nothing to do with the company but in my version of the future they retook control when they didnt like the direction the company was going in. Quite amusing now i think about it haha. Thank you again for all the support on this story, see you next week <3