Chapter 1
"America?" My Mom called for me.
"Yeah?" I looked up from my studies on the history of Illéa.
Her excited face appeared in my doorway. "It's good news!" I groaned, her "good news" weren't always good news for me. Mom ignored my obvious and loud groan and continued. "You know, your father and I have been thinking…" Mom smiled wistfully, the only kind of smile she had when she was recalling a memory, a happy one.
"Spit it out already, Mom!" I say, picking up my cup of and drinking from it.
"Well, I was hoping that you would consider…" Mom fidgeted a little bit. I observed that. If Mom was nervous telling me, I'd better get ready for this news. It had to be something I didn't want to do. "If you would consider having your own Selection!" I nearly spit out my water and started choking.
I gasped, trying to get some air into my lungs. "What?!" I put my cup down and sighed. Mom and Dad had been bringing this up a few times in the past months. "Mom, you know I don't want to have my own Selection!" I had been especially adamant about that.
"America, please don't be that stubborn! Give it a thought, okay? Don't just dismiss it." Mom pleaded.
"Okay." I sighed, knowing however much I thought about it, it would have definitely been no.
"Remember, the Selection is how your father and I met. It was a great and grand day, and the months I was there… he chose me, and I'll never forget that moment. And, America, don't you need a partner? You're 17, and you're going to be queen soon. You can't carry all of that weight and responsibilities by yourself!"
As if right on cue, Dad walked in. "Yes. You need someone to help you handle some work, and to make decisions! It's hard being the King enough even with your mother helping me. With us both working hard, even there are some days when we have to stay up later then we should have to finish paperwork. It's hard work, and you need someone to help. Please consider the Selection as your choice. I did it, and it made me the happiest man on Earth." Dad and Mom gets sappy rarely, but whenever they try to persuade me, it's quite common.
I made up my mind, and to my surprise, the words that came out of my lips were, "Fine. I'll do the Selection." Mom and Dad both looked so overjoyed, and Mom leaned over to hug me.
"I'm so glad you're doing it, America. Think about it! All of the possibilities and boys. Anything can happen!" Mom says. Now that she mentioned that, I was actually kind of glad that I agreed. It would add some excitement to my life. And, as usual, Mom and Dad were right. My responsibilities were sometimes too much for me. Even though the thought of 35 boys in my home was overwhelming, I actually couldn't wait to meet them!