Okay, so this story takes place directly after the end of The Elite. Please read the note at the end! I know it is long but it will explain some important things! Happy reading!

I spent the rest of the day helping my maids clean and organize my room. My room had been a mess from the rebel attack, but because my maids had been so concerned with sending me off in style, they hadn't worried about putting it back together. We were able to finish by dinner, so I had food sent up to my room and the four of us sat on my bed, eating and discussing what to do now.

Anne reiterated her thoughts about the situation. "We need a plan, miss." I nodded, agreeing, running over everything Maxon had told me when informing me I could stay. The list was long with what I had been doing wrong and what I needed to improve on.

"Well, the broad version version we need is how to gain back Maxon's trust."

"And quickly!" Lucy piped in, "There are only four girls left miss. He is supposed to choose a bride when it gets down to three." I nodded, taking that information in. In that moment my mind started wandering to Natalie, I would guess she is on her way home now, if not already there. I ached for her. I could imagine only too easily how she must feel. If I were to lose May, I'm not sure I would be able to move on.

"Miss, are you alright?" Anne was watching me cautiously.

I felt something warm and wet roll down my cheek and I realized I was crying. I quickly wiped the tear away and smiled. "I'm fine; I promise."

Anne didn't look convinced, but didn't press the matter. "Alright," she answered slowly. After watching me closely for a few seconds more, she decided that I was telling the truth, or that there were more important matters. "If we are going to help you win, Lady America, you will need to tell us everything his majesty said to you, as close to word for word as you can, not leaving anything out. We need to know exactly what to do."

I was taken back a bit by her boldness; it was uncharacteristic of her. She seemed to realize that when I didn't answer right away, because she quietly added, "If that is alright, of course."

"Of course. Well, he told me that I had his heart, and that I still do, but he couldn't trust me." I relayed to them the long list Maxon had given me. When I am not happy, I act rashly, shut out and blame Maxon. And occasionally, like the last report, I try and change the entire country. He needs to be able to depend on me and trust me with his secrets; he needs to know that I won't judge him, question him, or hold things back. He needs me to be completely open with him; he needs me to have faith in him.

In the end, we decided that I needed two plans. One for Maxon, which sounded simple enough. In order to gain his trust, I needed to trust him completely. I needed to trust his actions, his decisions, and trust him with me—all of me. I needed to trust him with all of my secrets, all of my feelings, everything. The second plan, however, was miles more difficult and we had no idea how to go about it. I needed to convince the king to at the very least not want to see me dead, or thrown out onto the streets as lower than an eight. I wouldn't be surprised if he added a ninth level to the caste system just for me. Anne, Mary, Lucy and I were all in agreement that something had to be done to convince King Clarkson, but none of us had any idea what.

After hours of planning, my maids and I decided that we had gotten as much done as we were going to be able that day and got me ready for bed. "Sleep well, Lady America. You are going to need it tomorrow." I thanked them for all they had done and wished them goodnight.

Though I was warm, and comfortable, and happy knowing that I would be staying, I had a difficult time falling asleep. My mind kept replaying the conversation I had had with Maxon the night before and earlier that day. I could understand why Maxon didn't trust me anymore, but it still hurt. He had been nothing but kind and loving toward me and how did I repay him? I announced live to all of Illea that we should demolish the caste system, showed the diary he entrusted to me which lead to his father beating him. Then there was that. How could the King do that to his own son? I mean, I knew he was cruel, but that? And Maxon was hurt because of me. I caused that pain.

I knew Maxon was strong and brave, but I hadn't a clue how much until last night. He told me he took those beatings for me. I recalled Gavril's words to me after the report. "He must love you very much...he's never stood up to his father like that." I could only imagine how frightening that must have been for him, but he still did it for me.

Then it dawned on me.

Maxon loves me.

He loves me. That is why he did everything. That is why I am still here. Considering all this,, mulling it around in my head, I came to another realization.

I love him.

I made a decision right then. I would never give Maxon a reason to doubt me, never again. I was determined to make sure he never felt like he had to go to Celeste again. I was entirely his from now on; here was no more tossing an turning between him and Aspen. I was going to fight for Maxon; I would prove to him that I loved him and that I was willing to take on the job that came with him, that I was capable of taking on that job.

With this new knowledge, I drifted off into peaceful sleep.

Hello everyone!

A few years ago, while waiting for The One to come out, I started a story titled "The Fight" that was what my version of The Onewould be like. I finished that story and had started on a sequel when some personal things came up and I decided to completely separate myself from fanfiction. And now I have decided to come back and bring my story back!

This won't be exactly the same as I had written it the first time (because I didn't keep a copy of the original), but I will do my best to keep it as close as I can. I had started the story originally because I was excited for The One to come out and there were certain things I was hoping to see happen in it. So while waiting, I had decided to write my own story where all of those would happen. I needed some outlet for my obsessing and this became it.

Before going any further in the story, I wanted to share what some of the things I wanted to see were (these will be things that will be included in the story):

1) America and Queen Amberly: I was super excited to see these two grow closer. We had been told by Amberly's sister Adele that once the selection was narrowed down, we would see more of the Queen. And to be honest, I was a bit disappointed in The One with this. I felt like there was so much potential between these two. So there will definitely be a lot more of the queen in my story, and most specifically, more with the relationship between the queen and America.

2) America finally giving up on Aspen and finally focusing on Maxon: I mean, in the safe room they both basically admitted to loving each other, but didn't say it out loud because they assumed that America would be leaving. It drove my nuts in The One how they both refused to say it and how America kept Aspen around like a lap dog. I really wanted to see what would happen when America chose Maxon and really put forth effort there.

3) August and Georgia: Okay, so The One came out about a third of the way into my story, and I read it and had decided to incorporate some things from The One into my story. August and Georgia were basically my favorite. I felt like there was real potential there, especially between America and Georgia and I really wanted to see those two grow closer. And I thought the relationship between Maxon and America and the rebels was really interesting.

4) Maxon learning more about the lower castes: I really, really loved the scene in The Selection where America was trying to explain to Maxon why she could almost justify stealing. I felt like she really opened his eyes and I felt like he would really want to learn more after that.

5) Celeste and America: I loved how in the end, Kiera Cass changed that relationship!

6) Overall, I just really wanted to see America act more, become more involved instead of just skating by. I really wanted to see her try.

I really could make this list go on forever, but I am going to stop there. I am really excited for this (though I know it is a bit behind in where current fanfiction for this series is) and I really hope you guys enjoy this! I am hoping to be able to post a new chapter at least once a week. I may post more often, but will try and guarantee at least once a week. I love to get comments and will try and respond to everyone (usually at the end of chapters).

Thanks guys!

(extra note: This story will be CLEAN! It is rated a little higher because there will be more on the relationship between King Clarkson and Maxon (and then some rebel attacks), but other than that it will be clean. No language, nothing explicit!)

(Disclaimer: I don't own The Selection series, it's characters, settings, plots, etc. This story and plot were made up by me. There will be some crossover between this story and The One [there will be a few scenes that are very similar to some in the book, but what happens because of those scenes will be different]. Also, most of the characters will be from the series, but they will be a bit different than from the books, and there will be some new characters who I created.)