Page 7 of Queen’s Gambit

None of the adults were paying attention to us. She touched my knee, and I jumped, my cheeks hot with embarrassment. No one seemed to notice my sudden movement. Setting my napkin down, I slowly slipped under the table, and Ana smiled wide. Holding a finger over her lips, she started to crawl away. What was I even doing? I was too old for this sort of thing. Yet here I was on my hands and knees, trailing after a girl I hardly knew like we were little kids.

Even after we reached the end of the table, Ana continued to crawl until we were out of the room and away from the open door. She giggled as we stood and reached out, snatching my hand to run.

Laughing, I looked down at our hands and then at Ana’s smiling face. Her long hair bobbed behind her, and something told me that this was the girl I was going to marry.

Yulianna – Age 9

We raced through my home, playing tag until we were out of breath. I led Eddie into the library, and his mouth dropped open.

“Wow, I’ve never seen so many books in one place,” he said as we walked through the room where I spent most of my time.

Father was always working, and Mama was busy looking after the house so the warm fire and the stories in the books had become my escape. Worlds filled with more than pretty smiles, curtsying for my father’s friends, and learning how to be a good wife. I didn’t want to get married.

Boys were so goofy and weird, but Eddie…seemed different. His hair was as dark as the night sky, and his eyes were grey like a stormy day, but his skin was tanned as if he spent all of his time out in the sun.

“Why are you staring at me now?”

“I’m not,” I growled, embarassed that he caught me looking at him.

“Sure, Ana,” he said, and I jerked my hand away from his.

“Don’t call me that.”

He smirked. “Ana, Ana, Ana.”

“I’m going to punch you,” I said, balling my hands into fists.

He laughed and ran up the stairs to the top floor of the library, but I was right behind him.

“Ana, Ana, Ana,” he yelled again, running behind the furniture and keeping it between us as he made faces at me.

I jumped onto the chair, and he sprinted away again, all the way around the room. As he started down the stairs, I climbed onto the wooden railing like I’d done a thousand times—even though my father hated it—and slid down right past Eddie.

He stopped and stared at me and then looked up at the top of the stairs.

“Can I do that?”

I shrugged and crossed my arms. “You still going to call me Ana?”

“Yes.”

I stomped my foot. “Then, no.”

“Too bad.”

He ran back up the stairs, making me angry. No one ignored me. I was Daddy’s princess.

“Stop, you can’t do that,” I said as he got on the railing and slid down with a happy yell.

“Then come stop me, Ana,” he said and ran across the library to the other set of stairs.

Sulking, I marched up to the second floor and glared at him as he ran up and slid down four more times.

“Come on, Ana, don’t be like that.”

“Stop calling me that.”

“No, I like it. It’s pretty like you,” he said. I pressed my lips together and walked toward him. He lifted a brow at me, and I didn’t like that he was taller and could look down on me like that.