Chapter 1: Under One Condition
Andrew sighed as he stared out the window. He couldn't bear to face his parents at this moment; he didn't have the strength.
"Andrew, please, you must understand why we are asking this of you…" King James pleaded, voice raspy from his illness.
"No, Dad, I really don't." Andrew said, trying to contain the anger his voice. He kept his gaze fixed on the palace gardens. He knew if he turned to face his father all the anger would go right out of him and he needed it to try to get through this argument.
"Andrew, you can't take the throne all by yourself. That isn't how things are done here in Illéa and I won't allow it. We both know that I'm in no condition to stay on the throne for much longer and while I wish I could give you time to move past Sophie there isn't any time." King James said before breaking out in another coughing fit.
"Sophie broke off our engagement three weeks ago, and you expect me to just get over it?" Andrew's voice shook and he felt the tears stinging at his eyes, but fought to hold them back.
"I understand that you are heartbroken, but sometimes you must put your country before yourself. I need you to do this for me. We both know that I'm sick and I can't remain king forever. You need to find a queen so that you can take over as soon as possible." King James told him before rising out of his chair.
"Dad…I can't…"
"You must and that is the end of it, Andrew. A Selection will be announced tomorrow and the names of the young ladies chosen will be announced on Friday on the Report. The ladies will be brought to the palace by Monday." King James said and walked towards the door.
"They'll be here in a little over a week!?" Andrew turned to glare at his father, but when he faced the older, stooped man with tired eyes he couldn't manage to remain upset.
"Yes, the sooner the better. I also want you to narrow it down as soon as possible to show the people that you are indeed serious about this. I expect you to take no longer than a month to be down to the Elite." King James said as he left the room and allowed the door to close behind him.
Andrew sank into the nearest chair and ran a hand through his hair. He felt the tears threatening to spill over and didn't fight them anymore; he didn't have the strength. Between the recent broken engagement and now being faced with choosing a wife in the next few months, it was all too much.
"I can't do this." Andrew thought aloud. "I can't."
Monday arrived bright and sunny like the world was mocking Andrew's unhappiness. The weather was perfect and beautiful – the perfect temperature and not a cloud in the sky. The Crown Prince couldn't bring himself to go out and enjoy the day even though his younger sister Eliana had asked if he would like to go out to the pool with her Sebastian. He suspected that his parents had put them up to it.
When evening approached. Andrew was escorted to the studio by one of the servants and sat down so a stylist could make him presentable. As the dark circles under his eyes were covered and his messy hair was tamed with gel, Andrew let his mind wander to Sophie; a place he didn't like to go, but couldn't resist.
In his memories, he always saw her the way she had looked that last night in Paris. Her auburn curls loose around her shoulders and her bright blues sparkling in the moonlight. She had been wearing a knee length light blue dress that looked silver under the stars. It had started out the perfect night until that moment in the gardens when she tearfully informed him that she was no longer in love with him.
She had had the audacity to cry like it was hard for her. Like she was the one whose heart was shattering into a million pieces. Like she wasn't the one who had meet someone else and wanted to be with them more.
He should have been angry with her, but he had never been angry person. He had simply felt sick to his stomach and he thought that he was going to throw up right there in front of her. Instead, he'd heard himself mumble something that sounded like "okay" before walking numbly to the palace and getting in a car to the airport. He hadn't lost it until he was on the private jet back to Angeles.
"That's enough primping," Andrew said and jerked away from the stylist, who started to protest until another staff member shushed her. Everyone always did that – acted like he should be treated with care, like he was fragile and going to shatter.
"Prince Andrew, are you ready?" The host of the Report Carson Kendall asked him.
"As I'll ever be." Andrew said and forced himself to smile.
"Wonderful, the teleprompter is all cued up with everything you have to say so just follow along and don't forget to smile. We'll make this as quick and painless as possible," Carson assured him and gave him a tentative pat on the arm. Andrew figured this was meant to be a comforting gesture.
Andrew made his way to the place that had been marked with tape and faced the camera. The crew scurried around to set everything up and soon Andrew say a crew member counting them down to air.
"Good evening, Illéa!" Carson said cheerfully as he walked over to Andrew, but smiled widely at the camera. "Today, I have a very special guest who hasn't been on for a while…Prince Andrew. He's here to make a quick announcement that I think you will all find very interesting."
I bet they will. The tabloids will be all over this like vultures to a corpse, Andrew thought morbidly but forced a pleasant expression on his face.
"So, Andrew, would you like to tell us what this surprise is?" Carson prompted me.
"Of course, Carson." Andrew refocused his attention on the teleprompter and began to read. "Tonight, I would like to officially announce that I will be holding a Selection. This is a prospect that my family is quite excited about. The Selection is open to all single women between the ages of eighteen and twenty-four. One woman from each from province will be chosen. The Selected will be announced on Friday evening so don't forget to enter by Friday morning at the latest. Thank you and goodnight."
Carson took over and clarified some of the finer points of the rules and how the Selection would work, but my job was over. Once the camera was off of him. Andrew walked off of the stage and out of the studio even though the sign on the door clearly stated "no exit or entry while on air." He ignored it entirely and made sure to slam the door behind him so the entire country could hear.
He walked numbly back to his room and collapsed on the bed.
This is kind of funny. You got engaged to Sophie last year to avoid having a Selection and being forced to marry someone I don't love. Now, I'm going to be forced into a loveless marriage while Sophie is off planning her dream wedding to some other man. Andrew thought as he stared at the dark ceiling.
A/N: I hope you liked the first chapter of Please Don't Say You Love Me! If you want to submit a character, the rules and form are below as well as posted on my profile!
THE RULES
1. I'm only accepting submissions through PM and I would love if you could title the PM in the following format with your character's information: Name, Age, Caste – Job, Province
2. Make sure that your character's job matches their province
3. Let's be realistic with who gets accepted to the Selection. I won't be accepting any Eights. Most girls will be Twos, Threes, and Fours. Still, I want maybe a few Fives, Sixes and possibly a Seven. All castes will have the same chance of getting with the Prince
4. If your character is accepted, I'd really like if you could periodically give me some feedback on how I'm writing your character. Every few chapters, just drop me a note in a review or a PM to let me know how I'm writing your character.
5. You can submit up to two characters
THE FORM
-delete the stuff in (the parentheses)
Name (if they have a preferred nickname include that here):
Age (18-24):
Province:
Caste (no Eights!):
Job (make sure it matches the caste):
Sexuality (I'd be totally down to have some bi or even lesbian girls because that would be super interesting so if you want to do this, PM me because I have some ideas that I want to confirm with whoever does this):
Appearance (DETAIL PLEASE – make sure to include height, weight, build, eye color, hair color, skin color, and other noticeable features):
Personality (DETAIL PLEASE):
Family (make sure to include name, age, a brief description of their appearance and personality, and relationship to your character):
Friends (same as with family):
History (again DETAIL):
Romantic History (kisses, boyfriends/girlfriends, etc.):
Reason for entering the Selection:
Reaction to being Selected:
Likes:
Dislikes:
Style Before the Selection (is she a jeans and t-shirt girl or does she like skirts and dresses more? How does she prefer to wear her hair? Does she wear makeup and if she does how much?):
Style During the Selection (what silhouettes does she like in dresses? What's her preference – short sleeves, long sleeves, sleeveless, strapless? What colors and patterns will she wear? How comfortable is she in heels?):
How Would They Treat the King?
How Would They Treat the Queen?
How Would They Act Around Andrew? (basically include how they act around a crush – if they like Andrew – and how they plan to win Andrew over if they have a strategy):
How Would They Treat the Palace Staff?
How Would They Treat the Other Selected (would they try to make friends or are they not trying to make friends?):
Just Some Character Building Stuff:
- Ideal First Date:
- Allergies?
- Things they'd bring to the palace:
- What does she find attractive in a potential partner?
- What is your greatest achievement?
- Favorite dessert?
- Cat or dog person?
- Favorite season?
Other: