Prince Nathaniel Gabriel Schreave
"Lexus, what does my schedule look like for the rest of the day?"
Lunch had just finished and I was eager to get to bed early today. My day had not started off right. I was stuck in bed for the majority of the morning with a major headache which caused a huge backlog on my work, so I had to be focussed for the rest of the day.
"So right now, you have to speak to the girls about their first task -"
My pace slowed down, and eventually came to a halt. "What task are we talking about?"
"The first task for the Selected. They have to walk the runway in your sister's charity fashion show next week. It's like a mini pageant, except somehow even more superficial. The only catch is that they have to design and wear their own clothes. Those are your sister's rules, of course."
"And that's useful because...?"
Lexus sighed, "Because the public will then poll on their favourite girls based on that show and how much money each girl raises."
I rolled my eyes, my mother and sister were definitely behind this nonsense. "That's so stupid. Beverly sure knows how to turn her first charity event into something about beauty and appearance."
"Look, I don't agree with this pageant either but stupid or not, you're doing it. Besides, your mother came up with the idea to keep them busy for a while. She says she finds their 'incessant chatter disturbing'."
I laughed at the thought. Of course my mother couldn't even handle a week with the girls, despite her being the one championing this whole Selection shebang. I wondered if she realized she once was a Selected too.
The conversation still begged one question, "Why can't Beverly introduce it to them? It's her project."
"First of all, she's fourteen, none of them will take her seriously. Second, if someone were to give you bad news would you rather Beverly tell you or a handsome young man such as yourself?"
I exhaled loudly, it was hard to fight that logic. "Well, I am handsome."
"That's right, go get 'em, tiger!" Lexus continued, "Anyway, then you have a short meeting with the vice-president of that big oil company, just the usual convince-them-to-follow-our-environmental-sanctions type of thing. And then you have a date with Lady Jaci!"
Date? Since when? She had to be joking.
"Very funny, Lexus. I don't have a date today, the first one is tomorrow, with Celica."
"Nope, it's today. I told your parents that you and Lady Jaci have a date tonight this while you were moping in bed this morning."
"Why?!"
Lexus was great and all sometimes but sometimes she took the 'assist' in assistant too far. I didn't need her to be my personal matchmaker, everyone knew that was Beverly's job.
"Because you looked really sad this morning so I thought some company would help you. Besides, you like Jaci, right? You talked to her for like, forever on Monday."
I ran a hand down my face, "It was a five minute conversation. I'm not in love with her or any of them, for that matter."
"Five minutes in real time is like seven hours in Selection time."
"Great, now I have another woman nagging me to go on dates. You didn't think Mom and Beverly were enough?"
She cringed, knowing full well how intense the female Schreaves got. "I'm really sorry, Nathan. I can cancel it for you, if you want."
I laughed as she got the calculating look on her that only made an appearance when she was figuring out some hard math. "It's fine, Lexus. Jaci is nice, I'll go."
"Good, because I wasn't going to cancel anyway. The tickets are non-refundable."
"Oh, so this date is somewhere that requires tickets? The movies, perhaps?"
Lexus wagged her finger in my direction, "Nuh-uh, mister. It's a surprise!"
"Excuse you but as a citizen of Illéa and your future king, I demand my right to knowledge!"
As soon as I entered The Womens' Room, all eyes were on me. It was unsettling, having that many people stare at you, especially since they were supposed to be 'vying for my heart'. As uncomfortable as I was, most of the girls seemed distressed to see me. A couple of them were
trying to discreetly check their hair, while others avoided my glance completely. Not quite the reaction I was hoping for, but I'll take it.
"Uh, good afternoon, ladies. I trust that Lauren's teaching you well...which might be a stretch since she doesn't actually have a teaching degree." That got a few laughs out of them, although most were nervous. Lauren smiled, amused. "I'm not sure if Lauren gave you a heads up earlier, but today you will be starting your first task of the Selection."
Not going to lie, but the looks on their faces were laughable. The way their faces fell immediately and panic began to settle in reminded me of the first time Ace missed his curfew. One of the girls even started to choke on her water.
"Relax, relax. It's very simple and not major at all. And if you need help, Lauren or my sister would be happy to help." I gestured to the back of the room where Beverly was doing her nails. She gave the girls an excited wave when they turned to look at her, although she probably had no idea what we were talking about. "What you will be doing is designing an outfit to wear to my sister's charity fashion show next week. You'll be walking that outfit on the runway, and then people will buy the dress, all proceeds going to my sister's charity of choice, of course. Any questions?"
It was silent which I almost took as my cue to leave when Lady Jane piped up. "Are we allowed to use the help of our maids?"
"Yes, of course. The entire palace's resources are at your disposal. Whatever you need, just ask."
The room fell quiet after that and I wasn't sure if I was supposed to leave or if there was supposed to be more interaction. Luckily, Lexus spoke up from behind me. "Alright, ladies. If that's all, His Highness will take your leave now. He has a very busy day."
Just before we left, Jaci sent me a playful wink, a gesture seemingly unnoticed by the other girls. Good, the last thing I needed was a catfight between the girls.
Lady Jaci Marlyssa Ashway
A knock sounded on the door, sending my maids into a frenzy. "It's the Prince!"
"Guys, relax. Remember, it's my date, not yours," I laughed as they scrambled to put finishing touches on my look. I loved the outfit they put me in, it made me feel more like pre-Selection Jaci. The black mini dress looked amazing paired with dark tights and over-the-knee boots. Considering the fall weather, we decided it'd be best to throw on a wool coat. Subtle and understated, but still very hot. "Girls, do I look like I'm ready to seduce a Prince?"
My maids gave me blank stares, not quite understanding my joke. "Good Lord, I'm only joking. He's going to eliminate me in the first five minutes, so don't worry about having to serve me for eternity."
"Oh hush, Jaci! You're looking like a bombshell, he'll drop onto one knee the minute he sees you. The fact that you can rock burgundy wool is a testament to that," Kimber waved me off, helping me into my coat. Another knock on the door caused my guard to peep his head in.
"Jaci, are you going to go on that date or should I take your place? It's rude to keep His Highness waiting." My favourite person in the palace so far had to be my guard, Graham. He reminded me of my friends back home, and he acted like my old partner, Pierce. I threw a slipper in his direction, only for it to land a couple above his head. He still flinched. Looks like the guard training in the Palace was only subpar.
"I'm coming, I'm coming. Hold your horses, buddy. Geez, why is everybody so much more excited for this date than I am?" I opened the door completely, only to come face-to-face with the Crown Prince himself. He stood awkwardly, obviously hearing everything I just said.
"You ready?" he asked simply, holding out his left elbow. I examined his outfit. It looked cute, not going to lie. He was wearing a white sweater with a pair of black pants and brown leather ankle boots. I let my hand rest in the crook of his elbow.
"So. Where are we going?"
He laughed softly, "Funny thing, I actually don't know. Lexus gave me an address so we can actually get there but that's it."
"It's only the two of us, huh?"
"Well, isn't that what a date is?"
I smiled, "I know, I meant the guards. Will they be there?"
"Unfortunately, yes. They'll be in separate cars, if that's any condolence."
"It's fine. I'm just not used to seeing these huge, beefy guys everywhere. It's a bit...unsettling."
We came to a stop in front of the palace, where a blue pickup truck stood. Despite the old design of it, there was not a single paint chip or scratch on the hunk of metal. I never would've taken the man leading me to it to be into vintage cars. "Before you ask, it's my dad's car. I crashed my car into the garage door this morning."
"I like it, very retro."
He chuckled, heaving himself into the driver's seat. "Well, come on. It's like an hour away."
As soon as I was seated, the Prince turned on the ignition. He quickly adjusted the mirrors, and set the GPS up. Once he was done checking everything, we finally started moving. For the first ten minutes or so, there was nothing but the sound of the GPS directing us to our destination. "You're a pretty careful driver, aren't you?"
He shook his head, "Only when I need to be. Trust me, I have more than a hundred unpaid tickets."
As if to prove himself, the Prince pushed harder on the gas pedal. Our speed quickly rose over the speed limit. The soft breeze from the open window quickly turned into hurricane causing my hair to fly all over the place. "Okay, okay! I get it, you like to live on the wild side."
The car slowed down, a smile gracing my date's face. I rolled my eyes, "Well, now we're going too slow, pretty boy."
He looked at me, smugly. "Aw, you think I'm pretty? Why, thank you. You're not too bad yourself."
I feigned offense, clasping my hand over my heart. "Not too bad? Excuse me, Your Highness, but I didn't take two hours getting ready for that."
"Alright, alright. You look beautiful. Seriously, the most gorgeous person I've ever seen. If every attractive person in the world got together and had a baby, that child wouldn't even begin to measure with your astounding looks."
I laughed, "Now that's overdoing it. Just a bit."
"You're a picky one, aren't you?"
"No, I just like to mess with you," I said, smiling cheekily.
Leaves crunched under my foot as soon as I stepped out of the car. I stretched myself, trying to get the exhaustion out of my muscles. Finally we were there. I looked up and around me, there was an open field with a bunch of tents and carnival rides.
"Fall Carnival. Not bad, Lexus," The Prince said from beside me. He was leaning against the hood of the car, rummaging through his wallet for something. He pulled two tickets out, "Aha, there they are. You wanna head in now?"
It wasn't really a question since he had already started walking towards the carnival entrance. Ever since I was little, carnivals of all kinds had been my favourite place to visit. They were chock full of cheap fun and combined with the easy picks we could get off people, it was the perfect fun day for my family. By the looks of it, the carnival wasn't that busy, which was great for this occasion. Our queue in the line came pretty fast and after handing over the tickets and giving a quick security spiel to the manager, we were finally free to go.
My first instinct was to make a beeline for the bigger rides, but as it turned out, my current company liked to take it slow. He had a bewildered expression on his face as we bustled through the initial crowd. "What's wrong? Is this your first time at a carnival or something?"
He didn't even turn to face me, just gave a small shake of his head. If this was how the date was going to be, then I felt bad for the girl who was going to be stuck with him for the rest of her life. He didn't even respond when I asked him if he saw something he liked.
"Listen, buddy, if this is your–"
He cut me off, pointing at a man dressed completely in red and white stripes. "See that guy over there? That's the owner of this carnival. We used to come here almost every year before Beverly was born, and he always would wear the same outfit. He also scammed us by tricking us into thinking he changed up the toys every year."
Well, that was random.
"Sorry, I just wanted to see if he still was around."
I patted his arm gently, "No worries. For a while back there, I thought I did something wrong."
"No, no. You're fine," he chuckled. The smell of carnival food filled the air as we passed by a churro stand. "Hey, do you mind if we grab some food first? I really want a chocolate churro right now."
"Whatever pleases Your Highness. As long as you buy me one, too."
Any miffed feelings I had towards the guy dissolved as soon as I took a bite of the fried goodness. Chocolate oozed out of the churro, probably smearing all over my face but I didn't care. I practically inhaled the whole thing. Meanwhile, the Prince had taken a whole two bites out of his and declared himself done. "Are you seriously not done yet?"
He rolled his eyes, but smiled. "No, I am not done. I prefer to savour the good things in life Jaci, not choke on them."
"Hey! You're so mean to me."
"I'm mean to everyone, darling, not just you," he said, leaning over to pinch my cheek gently.
He may have called 'darling', but he was not sugarcoating me. I wanted to see how far I could push him until he actually tried on this date. "You know what, if you're going to be this negative, I'm leaving."
"And where would you go? Last I checked, you don't have a driver's' license."
"I'll walk, thank you very much." I moved to get up from the wooden bench we were sitting on but was immediately pulled back down to his side, a little closer than I was sitting before. "Now, you want me to stay?"
"I'm sorry. Take this half-eaten churro as my peace offering." Damn, nobody can resist a good churro. I hesitantly accepted the dessert, once again scarfing it down.
"Alright, Your Highness. You are forgiven."
"I think we're at a point where you can call me Nathan or something..only if you want, of course," he said hesitantly, not quite meeting my eyes.
"Alright, something. Now can we go on some rides? Please?" I pouted, shaking his shoulder pleadingly.
"You literally just ate two churros, and now you want to be flung around in the air like one of my sister's dolls. Nuh-uh, you'll get sick."
"No, I won't. We Ashways have stomachs of steel. Believe me, I've done this multiple times."
Nathan conceded, "Fine, but don't say I didn't warn you."
"I won't have to because I'm going to prove you wrong. Now let's start with that blue one over there." I pointed giddily at a spinning tower a few booths away.
I'd show him who was going to get sick.
I did. I was the one who got sick after being swung around at least a hundred times. Currently, I was sat in the grass, heaving into a small garbage bin. My date was holding my hair back with his good hand while simultaneously trying to comfort me with his prosthetic one. After a couple minutes of silence, I sat back against the wooden fence.
Nathan handed me a napkin, a look of concern in his eyes. "Are you you're alright? I can take us back, if you'd like."
I waved him off. No way was this isolated incident going to ruin this night. For heaven's' sake, we were at my favourite place in the world. "I'm completely fine, my pride's a little hurt, though. I will, however, take a quick trip to the bathroom to freshen up."
He nodded, gesturing to one of the guards to go with me. I sighed, "Nathan, I'll be fine. It's a couple of metres away."
"I know, I know. I hate being babysat too but it's protocol. Don't worry, You won't even notice Officer Kelly is there," he said and pointed at the tall brunette behind us. Reluctantly, I let her follow me into the public restroom. Surprisingly, they were pretty clean. What the hell was wrong with Angeles? Even their bathrooms were prestige.
After washing up (taking extra care to rinse my mouth properly), I took a good look at myself in the mirror. Way to go, Jaci. Puking on the first date, and that too, a date with the Prince, I thought to myself. The date was going so well, too. Now, I wasn't the type to get sentimental over strangers, but my chances of staying in this Selection were pretty slim right now, considering I just almost threw churros up on the Crown Prince of Illéa. And I was kind of starting to like the guy. I felt bad too, he was being so nice to me. I was starting to feel like I had a chance with him, which is why it was better to tell him my past sooner rather than later.
"Lady Jaci, if you're ready, then shall we go find Prince Nathaniel?"
I snapped out of my thoughts. "Yeah...yeah, of course. Lead the way."
It took us a while to find Nate, he somehow managed to wander off to a knife throwing game, how princely of him. Unsurprisingly, he was failing. "Having trouble there, pretty boy?" I called out as I approached the booth. He threw a knife before turning to smile at me.
"Feeling better?"
I nodded and continued to watch him throw knife after knife. He grew increasingly frustrated as he handed the worker more and more money for more chances. "Here, let me try. It's paining me physically to see how much money you're blowing on this game."
I could tell he was about to say something but instead, he handed over the bucket of knives to a quick flick of my wrist, the knife went flying and hit the target. Not a bullseye, but much closer than Nathan ever got.
"Damn, you've got some skill." I threw another one, this one landing a couple centimetres closer to the centre. I picked up the last knife, ready to finally hit the bullseye.
"You know, most people that have the same skills I do are professional criminals."
The knife hits its mark on the bullseye only by a hairline. The gangly teen working the booth sighed and rolled his eyes as a siren went off, letting everyone in the vicinity know that I won. He pulled down a huge elephant plush. It was a bright pink colour, so bright that it was hurting my eyes. Nonetheless, I accepted it.
"I never would have took you for the edgy knife-thrower, Jaci. What else are you hiding behind that smile?" Nathan looked at me, clearly impressed.
I decided now was a better than ever to be upfront about everything; tell him about my past, my family and how I got to being here. Just lay it all out...to a guy I met on Monday. "Nate, could we–"
For the second time that night, I was interrupted. Only this time, it was by a guard, notifying us that it was getting late. Nate nodded, tentatively taking hold of my hand as we pushed through the growing crowd. It looked like the carnival was reaching its peak crowd, probably better for us to leave now. When we were finally in the truck again, I had lost the courage to tell him.
"Sorry, Jaci, were you saying something earlier?"
Without missing a beat, I made up an excuse. "Yeah, I was just wondering if you had any name suggestions for this big honking elephant?"
"Hmm, I'm particularly fond of the name Elmer for this guy."
I smiled, stroking the small tufts of fur sticking out of the elephant's head. "Elmer it is, then."
Hi guys! Here's chapter 11 for ya, let me know what you think by leaving a review or something! As always, thank you to the reviewers and readers of the previous chapter, you guys make my day hope you enjoyed this chapter, and keep a look out for the next one!
Stay fab,
Star
