All I know at the end of the day
Is you want what you want and you say what you say
And you'll follow your heart even though it'll break
- "End of the Day", One Direction
.o0*0o.
As the girls were herded backstage to wait, Thea grew irritated and tired.
Her scalp ached from the ballerina bun it had been pulled into. Sighing, she adjusted her stance so that her heels didn't kill her. Seconds passed and she sighed again. Time seemed to be slowing as she stood in the line of girls waiting for their grand entrance. They had been told that morning at breakfast that they were to cross the stage when their name was called by the stage manager. Thea had listened to the girls sitting around her make sounds of excitement as she thought of how it vaguely reminded her of cattle being auctioned off. Now, standing and waiting, Thea felt the flutters of nervousness. It was not because they were going to see the Royal Family for the first time in person. It was not because she would draw her prince that night. It was because she was going to paraded on national, and even international, TV.
The line started moving one girl at a time. Thea brushed the pieces of her hair left out to fame her face into their place and smoothed down her orange skirt. Her maids had wanted her to wear green tonight, but she fell in love with the poofed orange skirt and white crop top when she first saw them. Once she was wearing it, Candice- the only maid she had who liked the job -had grudgingly agreed that it brought out her hair better than any of the prepared green dresses. So, in lieu of a green dress and jewelry, she stood in probably one of the simplest outfits selected by the Selected.
As Thea moved closer as a brunette went on stage, she found herself next to a blonde who was, for lack of a better phrase, not as skinny as the others in the Selection. The girl wore a red dress that hid it well, though. It gave her serious curves as the top framed her nicely and the many red ruffles began at her hips. Her hair was in simple vintage waves and neutral makeup supported the idea that her dress was the focus point of the outfit. When Thea was done analyzing, she looked up to see that the sunny blonde had done the same to her. With both of them finished, the blonde stuck her hand out and whispered, "I love your hair. It's so fiery."
Thea smiled at the compliment and returned the handshake with, "Thank you. I'm Thea Tate."
"Persephone Dalton, but you can call me Seph. My real name is annoying to say after, like, three times," was the blonde's responding introduction. She struck up a conversation with Thea as they waited, and she found herself thankful for it. Whereas the minutes took forever to go bye, now they seemed to be flying. Not before long, Thea heard her name called. Squaring her shoulders, Thea plastered on a fake smile and started her trek.
The moment you see the camera follow you, that is the moment that you start to internally panic. Thea knew this as she discreetly searched for the marker of where she would stand. Once she found it, her smile slipped into one of relief. Standing on it, Thea repeated her name and province before she was motioned to a step platform like seating arrangement. Thea took her place at the next empty seat and watched as the rest of the Selected paraded themselves and folded into the seats. By a stroke of timing, Seph ended up in the seat below her. Before she took it, coming up the stairs, Seph had made a silly face at Thea and she had almost lost her still face.
She recovered it as the host of the Report, Henry Penst, announced the ending of the Selected girls and started on the current events. Thea took this opportunity to catch a glance of the Royals. From what she saw, it seemed that it was the King, Queen, and all of the children except for the youngest two and Princess Adelaide. King Andrew seemed to be paying attention while Queen Eleanor scolded Prince Ethan and Princess Poppy for squirming in their seats. The twin princesses were bored, and they showed it. Prince Mason seemed to be trying to discreetly read something, and Prince Liam was trying to be like his father. It was Prince Noah who caught her eye. He was relaxed in his chair, a drink in hand, inspecting the Selected. Almost as if drawn by her look, Prince Noah turned to her. He caught her stare for a few seconds before Thea broke it to look down.
When she looked back up, it was because Henry had finished his regular announcements over the state of the nation. He called for a commercial break and Thea stood to stretch her legs. She had used the previous breaks to talk to Seph, but if she sat any longer without standing, her butt would be numb and her limbs asleep. It lasted a bit before the countdown to On Air began and she sat down. It was time to pick.
Henry, or rather the crew, had set up a large glass bowl that Henry announced contained exactly 40 slips- 20 with Prince Noah written on it, 20 with Prince Liam. He then proceeded to tell the Selected that they would reach in, grab a slip, and hand it to him "to verify". Thea rolled her eyes at the entire spectacle. This really was no better than them drawing sticks. Once their Prince was announced, they would walk over to one side of the stage (with signs off screen for them to see) and wait for everybody to finish drawing. Once his spiel was finished, he went over to the Princes for a quick last minute interview which was composed of Prince Liam saying the right thing and Prince Noah saying the wrong. Then, Henry turned to the Selected and asked for volunteers.
Surprising herself, and maybe the others, Thea stood up. Henry announced, "Lady Thea, please step forward and tell us something about yourself." She walked down the steps and he escorted her to just to the side of the bowl.
Thinking for a minute, Thea turned to the camera to deliver her answer. "I have an amazing brother at home. And, while this Selection is already so grand, I honestly cannot wait to see him again. I might not have had him in my life for twelve years, but now I can't imagine it without him following me around. Love you, Scott!" Thea had said the last sentence in a hurry since one of the producers were waving her on, and Henry caught the cue. He motioned for her to pick, and Thea turned to the glass bowl holding her fate. She hadn't even wanted to join the Selection, but she needed to know who she would have to plead to in order to go home. Hoping for Prince Liam, she put her hand in, and after a second of fishing, plucked one out. Henry took it from her, and Thea felt her heart race as he drew out the suspense.
.o0*0o.
Mia couldn't catch her breath as she sat waiting for her turn.
She fidgeted with the skirt of her pastel blue gown much like the girls surrounding her. Her trip across the stage had been uneventful, thankfully, but that didn't stop her from being scared of who she would draw. She had met both of the Princes at some charity event or another when she was nine years old. There, they had both seemed pretty nice. Now, eight years later, Mia was sure that she would be meeting two different boys. Or, maybe just one. If the news was to be trusted, Prince Liam was going to still be the same friendly, responsible kid she had met. Prince Noah, on the other hand, was broken like her.
So far, seven girls had drawn and the eighth was beside Henry. Mentally, she kept track of who went to who. Prince Noah so far had Lady Thea, Lady Ophelia, and Lady Dahlia. The girls who had drawn Prince Liam so far had been Lady Winter, Lady Hayden, Lady Faylinn, and Lady Aria. As the eighth girl- Lady Elsie- started walking to Mia's left, she added her to the list for Prince Liam. Henry, ready for the next victim, called down Lady Emery, and Mia took a breath of relief. She wanted to pick already, yet she also was scared of what would happen if she accidentally drew Prince Liam instead. The first girl had obviously drawn the one she didn't want, and Mia was wishing that it would not happen to her.
Taking yoga breaths, Mia watched as Lady Emery drew Prince Noah. And the Henry was calling her name. Mia adjusted her golden belt and took the trip down the stairs. By Henry's side, she told him about the four instruments she could play and he made a joke about how her DJ-ing should count as it's own instrument. She smiled at all of the right parts and looked angelic when she needed to. And then he let her choose. Saying a prayer to any god, she put her hand in the bowl and drew the first slip she felt.
Henry took the slip and it felt like a really short wait before he told her, and all of Illea, "Lady Mia Shaugessy from Angeles, I am pleased to announce that you will be competing for Prince Liam." Mia took the slip of paper back stunned and started walking to her spot. Her heart died with each step she took. Once she was in line with the others, the girl beside her asked her, "Are you okay? You look pale."
Mia glanced at the girl, who was slightly blurry, and told her, "It's just my makeup. I'm fine. Really." She would have said more, but she swayed in her heels and felt and her arm shoot out to grab the girl. The last thing Mia saw before the floor was a flash of red hair and silver fabric.
Waking up hurt. Mia raised her hand to touch a spot on her head that was the worst, but a hand pushed hers away. An unfamiliar male voice explained to her, "Don't touch it. It'll only hurt worse." Mia opened her eyes to see a pair of brown eyes looking back at her. She blinked a few times, and they were still there. She was about to mumble something when a nurse came to her side. "Hello, Lady Mia. Hello, Prince Liam. If you don't mind, I'm going to take her vitals, make sure Mia is feeling better." Mia nodded and adjusted her position so that she looked calm, but inside she was wild. She must have fainted and been brought to the infirmary. But why was freaking Prince Liam there too? She tried to hide it as the nurse inspected her, but it must have fell.
He also adjusted his seat and started talking. "Lady Mia, after you fainted, we had a medic check your vitals before moving you here. I felt that it would be best for me to come talk to you in person." At this point, Liam started squirming. "Lady Mia, if you prefer, I can talk to Noah and try to switch you with another girl. I mean..."
Mia held her hand up to stop him. "Prince Liam, do you think that's the reason I fainted? Because I drew you and not your brother?" Prince Liam did even bother looking at her and that's what hurt Mia the most. Feeling like she owed him an explanation, Mia told him, "I won't try to lie to you that I wanted to draw Prince Noah. But, Your Highness, that's just because Prince Noah has flaws. He's broken behind the bad reputation, something I can relate to, except for the reputation part. You? Well, you're perfect."
Prince Liam let out a chuckle at her accusation. He turned to her, finally looking at her again, and asked, "You think I'm perfect? Lady Mia, I'm not going to lie and say that I had no idea who you were before you were Selected. I mean, they'll probably deny it, but the twins are huge fans of yours. I mean, Sidney cried for three days because her mom said that they wouldn't ask you to DJ for her birthday party. Plus, not only are you talented and beautiful, you founded your own charity. That's pretty intimidating." Prince Liam smiled but looked down at his hands like he was expecting Mia to bite him.
Astounded, Mia had no idea what to reply. Her she was, being called intimidating by the Prince of Illea. How did even think that? Sure, she could remix songs and campaign to pay for lower caste students to go to school, but he could change laws or start a war. Finally, a reply came out of her in the form of a giggle. He looked at her as she continued and soon the too were laughing for no reason other than that the other was. Once she could breathe, Mia stuck her hand out to him and offered, "If you can try not to be so intimidated by me, I can definitely try to fall in love with you and not your brother."
Liam sealed the deal before her nurse came back to dismiss Mia. As she got out of the bed, she picked up the high heels with all intentions of walking back barefoot when she heard Prince Liam telling her to stop. When she looked at him to see why, he came close to her and told her to put her arms around his neck. While she was asking why, he suddenly scooped her up in his arms. Mia let out a squeal and the nurse laughed as he carried her out of the room. Confused, Mia asked him, "Why are you carrying me? I've been cleared. That means I can walk."
Prince Liam gave her a grin and replied, "Because you are a damsel in distress, and as a prince, it's my duty to take care of you."
.o0*0o.
And she finally updates on a Saturday again! Go me!
Thank you guys so much for your sweet reviews! This of course pertains to Angel Princess 31 x2, MTJAS, BellaRosa17, Artemis' hunters, MaybeIt'sJustNotThatEasy, Cookiedoodles168, and Idril of the Mountains, whose review actually made my day. Also, thank you to Idril of the Mountainsfor being my new favoriter/follower! Then there's lovewords who followed :)
So, for everybody who might have been confused, here are the main girls until the Elite are chosen!
MissAmeliaYoung's Thea Tate
UltimateMaxmericaShipper's Cassie Weston and Halley Adaire
Cookiedoodles168's Mia Shaugessy
Artemis' hunters's Megara Sutton, Dev Everard, Vivienne Danvers, and Emery Teach (What can I say? She creates amazing characters!)
MTJAS's Emilia Coburn and Corin Garrick
MaybeIt'sJustNotThatEasy's Elsie Oliverat
4Love4Love4's Lucia Van Halen
Max merica's Hayden Chaffin and Annalee Clark
Swag Giraffe's Faylinn Circus
Thedaffodilqueen's Marsden Wallace
To the creators of those girls, can you please either PM me or leave in the review what label you think best describes your girl(s). Some examples are Marlee as The Favorite and Celeste as The Diva.
Updating the tumblr now :)
Xoxo,
fivesauce'n'YAbooks
