Chapter 10 - The Makeover - clara_margaux/the-disappearing-act/chapter-10/
Karina Adele Russo, 19, 4, Hotel Receptionist, Likely
After her mother had texted her for the fifth time to make sure that Karina had truly landed in Angeles safely, Karina shut off her phone, annoyed by the fact that it constantly buzzed between old friends trying to rekindle their friendship since she was now "famous" and her family worrying too much about her.
These last few weeks had been truly bizarre for Karina. She had always wanted her family to pay more attention to her instead of her older brother, but even this had been too much for Karina. Being a very social person, Karina had not minded the fact that many more people were now choosing to have conversations with her, but all the attention was going to her head, and she barely slept more than a few hours at night. Either from nerves or excitement, Karina wasn't sure, but she did know for sure that she collapsed into bed most nights.
For security reasons, the selected were being brought to the palace separately instead of in groups, like what was normally done. It made sense to Karina. Much like the phrase don't put all your eggs in a basket, one shouldn't put all their selected in a limo. Were it to have an accident…
The limo pulled into the long driveway in front of the palace gates, the beautiful Illean palace stretching up into the sky before her. It looked as if it had been plucked out of a little child's dream, the towers a mix between a medieval castle and a Christian church.
When the limo parked in front of the steps, a sharply dressed butler came around the open the heavy doors of the car. From outside, Karina was able to get an even better look at the castle. It had tall steps that went up at least two stories before reaching the grand doors carved from stone. Pages stood along almost every other step, a true display of the size of the palace staff if they could spare so many simply to greet the selected.
The butler ushered her along, urging her to hurry up as she climbed the steps.
When she reached the doors, they dramatically swung open, a grand entrance surely planned. She found it funny that after walking all those steps to get to the door, she had to walk down many steps to reach the floor. Royals and their entrances, Karina thought as she began the descent. A group of four girls stood at the bottom, a small woman with short, black hair standing in the middle.
"Finally. We've been waiting for ten minutes. If any of you want to be Queen one day, then I suggest you learn how to be on time." The lady's speech was choppy and held a menacing tone. "For all of you that do not know, my name is Diana. You may address me as Madame Diana or Madame and nothing else. Understood?" Diana looked around the circle, making sure each girl nodded. "Good. This way."
Diana turned on her heel and began walking quickly away. Though she was short, her gait was wide and the five girls almost had to run behind her. They walked down many hallways until Karina was entirely sure she could never find her way out. They arrived at another set of tall doors. When Diana snapped her fingers, butlers on either side opened the doors with perfect synchronization.
Inside the room, maids bustled all around. Many pushed little trays with cosmetics and countless other beauty products on them, while others pushed around racks of magnificent dresses, and others carried baskets filled with who-knows-what. Karina tried not to look too impressed at the sheer number of tables. 35, to be exact. She had almost forgotten how many girls would be competing for the Prince's hand.
Karina talked with the other girls from her group as some random maids worked on her hair. All the girls had been told that their permanent maids would be waiting in their rooms after they had dinner. All the girls looked nervous. Tomorrow they would be meeting the prince.
The girls in her group all seemed nice. She struggled to remember their names. It was either however to remember Genevieve's name, seeing as she had pink hair, something that was rather rare. She also remembered the name of the girl across from her, Skylar. She seemed nice. Very quiet, but nice.
Karina thanked her maids when the finally finished with her hair and told her to move on to makeup.
Micah Dario Nieves, 19, 6, Mechanic, Dominica
Micah felt out of place. She was wearing sweatpants and a cropped t-shirt in the Illean palace. It was all little surreal if she was honest. As she maids tried over and over to brush the knots out of her hair, she got a chance to look around. Most of the other girls were talking with one another. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see the batch of girls that had come in before her, the first batch, getting their pictures taken.
"Lady Nieves. Have you ever brushed your hair?" Micah looked up at the maids, then at the broken comb in the poor ladies hands. She let out a deep chuckle, and turned back towards the mirror, causing the maid to sigh.
"Please, don't call me a Lady. I'm definitely not… that."
"Pardon me, Lady, but you are. At least until you leave the palace." Micah couldn't help but feel a pit form in her chest. The lady sounded like she though Micah would be sent home right away. Maybe it would be for the best. Who would take care of her father with her gone when he came home late at night and drunk. She shook her head, looking down quietly at her lap.
The maid finally managed to get the comb through Micah's hair, not being careful to be gentle. Micah didn't mind anyway. She had never been one for being gentle.
Micah had been dressed in a short dark red dress. Though it changed a lot from her regular apparel, Micah found that she enjoyed the way she looked. The maids had tamed her hair and pulled it up into a loose bun on top of her head. Both formal enough for the palace, yet casual enough so that Micah felt comfortable. Though the maids' manner could use some work, the maids were very skilled at their jobs.
Micah pulled loose some baby hairs at the front, perfecting the look. Most of the girls had now arrived and her group walked over to a small couch in front of a white screen, along with photography lights and a massive camera.
The photographer positioned them on the couch, some of them behind it and others on it. Some other maid came over and pushed a finger into her lower back, forcing her to sit up straight.
The camera flashed multiple times before the photographer was satisfied. He then moved on to individual shots, leaving the girls that were not being photographed to chat amongst themselves. Micah stood apart from her group, who seemed to have already gotten to know one another. She leaned against the wall, half listening to their conversation. From what she could tell, they were gushing about the "gorgeous" and "hot" prince, not a conversation that Micah felt as though she wanted to take part in.
She was happier by herself anyway, staring off into the distance, lost in her own thoughts. As always, Micah made sure to keep her face neutral, maintaining her tough facade.
Micah ended up being the last one called to take her photo. The photographer looked exhausted, and from what Micah could tell, this was only his second group.
After being instructed on how to sit and stand, each position feeling more awkward than the last, she saw the photographer grimace at the camera, before deciding that he was too lazy to try again and waved her on. She had no doubt that they would likely "fix her" in post-op.
Ethan Schreave
Ethan paced the floor of his room. Dinner had been sent up to his room, all of the royal family having been instructed to stay in their rooms all night as to avoid any "unfairness". Ethan sighed, feeling more like a caged animal than the Crown Prince.
He was just about to settle down into bed for another sleepless night when he heard a soft knock on his door.
He grunted, an obvious signal for whoever was on the other side to go away. Or not. Emily pushed into the room, carrying Jessa, who was still very small for her age, in her arms. Behind her walked in Thea and Enver, one carrying a basket full of blankets and the other one full of vintage board games that their mother had bought for them on Christmas one year.
"We had a feeling that not one of us would be able to sleep tonight, seeing as there are 35 girls we've never met, among them your future wife." Ethan rolled his eyes as Emily said this, putting down Jessa. The happy nine-year-old ran straight to Ethan, jumping up into his lap. Ethan couldn't help but laugh at her unicorn themed onesie, something the public would laugh to see a royal wearing. Emily pulled Ethan's comforter from his bed and laid it down on the floor, making a makeshift picnic blanket while Thea called in an ash girl to light the fire, thanking her with a few pieces of German chocolate.
"So, what will it be, brother. Monopoly or Uno?" Ethan laughed, unable to pick. As the rest of his siblings debated amongst themselves between the two, Ethan's thoughts quickly became somber. Here he was, unable to pick between two games. How would he ever pick his future wife out of such a large group of girls? Ethan sighed, resigning himself as his siblings set up the monopoly board.
Looked like Emily had won the debate like she always did. It was no shock that she had picked Monopoly, a board game based on shopping. Even though it was real estate, to Emily, shopping was shopping.
The siblings took turns rolling the dice and pretending not to notice as Ethan continuously snuck Jessa monopoly money from the bank. Because of this, it was no shock that the kid won. They continued playing, sometimes laughing, and other times in complete silence, with only the crackling fire in the background.
Even though being a royal was bad, having siblings made it worth it. Well, almost worth it.
A/N: Hey, guys! Y'all mostly said you wanted more of the royals and I honestly love them so much. I've got to admit, it feels good to update regularly again, but we'll see if it holds up :) Thanks to everyone who commented. Obviously, those with characters who comment will likely get further in the story because it is nice to hear opinions not only about your characters but also reactions you think your characters would have to events occurring. Also, plot ideas/theories are always welcome as I love reading them and incorporating them into the story. I should have another chapter of Price Of Love tomorrow or Saturday (2-2-19). I look forward to reading your reviews and if you have any questions or requests, feel free to either leave it in a review, PM me or message me on Pinterest. Also if you're wondering, that link at the top of the page is a link to the mood board for this chapter so feel free to go check it out. I think I'm going to start putting them at the beginning of each chapter so let me know what you think...