Thanks for the reviews you guys! Here's another chapter for you!

So I got the idea of writing a chapter in Matthew's point of view. Let me know in the reviews if you want more of this. Thanks! Love ya!

Today is the fourteenth of November, meaning I have another meeting with Dad, the advisers, and Michael. If this meeting was held a day after Dad's party, I would've wanted to punch Michael. Tess said that during the celebration, she saw Michael making out with Evelyn Raia, one of the Elite.

I remember it clearly. It was the twenty-third of August, Dad's birthday. I remember seeing Tess at the party, looking beautiful in that blue dress. I remember seeing her leave the room and coming back with a dumbstruck look on her face. I've never seen her so conflicted. From the sidelines, I saw her drink wine. Then more and more. Then she got champagne. Then whiskey. It still amazes me that someone like her could drink that much alcohol. Then she was running around the room like the drunk that she was. Then I walked to the place I said we'd meet. She pulled me in there, and after we talked a little, she kissed me. I was surprised, really. For the past few days, she had been saying that Michael was "so romantic" or whatever crap he apparently does. Then she kisses me like she's wanted me for so long. I wondered how many guys she already kissed. Surely, I wasn't her first. No, she's way too good.

Whenever I think of Tess, the word "beautiful" comes to mind. She really is. Her eyes are dark and unfathomably deep. But they sparkle whenever she talks, always seeming happy and amused with every word she says. Looking in her eyes is like looking down at a ravine at midnight from the edge of a cliff. You're scared that you might fall but you keep looking anyway because it's beautiful. Her skin is the color of caramel mixed with toffee. Her hair... I couldn't count how many times I've wanted to run my hands through her black hair. It looks so smooth. Her slight but strong stature is also something that attracts me to her.

But Tess isn't just beautiful. No, she is more than that. I love the way she talks to me, even though it would be considered "improper." Sometimes when she talks to me, she sounds pissed off but happy at the same time, like she hates and loves my company. I've heard the way she talks to Michael. It's too polite, too demure that it's almost boring to hear them talk. It's like watching a chess match between two old men. When she talks to me, she's jocular and hilarious.

I also ask Silvia from time to time who's the smartest in the class. Even after I let the thing with Evelyn pass, I still wanted to know who was smart and who wasn't. "The smartest?" she asks. "Well, they're all very intelligent, but Lady Teresa is the one who shows true intellect. She's wise and she would make a great queen."

I could go on and on talking about Tess. I've gotten to know her better through all of September and most of October. Then her sister was taken by the rebels. I swear, if those damn rebels don't stop their terrorizing, so help me I will kick their asses to New Asia.

All of these thoughts run through my head as I get ready for the day. I find some random neck tie in my closet and put it on. When I head down to breakfast, I kiss Mom on the cheek and clap Dad's shoulder. I muss Xander's hair and pat my sisters good-naturedly on the head. They both squeal like I dropped a frog on their food. I sit next to Michael and he says, "Good morning. A little late, aren't you?"

I pile on the food—fruit, French toast, and bacon. "Shut up, Mike," I say without looking at him. "You know I need my beauty sleep."

He laughs. I look up from my plate of food to survey the room. Evelyn and that Perris girl are staring at us, wanting to know what we're laughing about. I look at Evelyn; long, black curly hair, about five feet tall, not too fat, not too skinny. She's incomparable to Tess, though. Evelyn is six inches shorter than Tess. Michael says Eva (that's what he calls her, unbelievable) can speak Spanish, Italian, Japanese, and Latin. I've talked to her a few times. She's quite shy, but I can see why someone like Michael would be attracted to her. Michael says that she's a very bubbly and outgoing person once you get to know her. Yeah, real outgoing. Outgoing enough for Michael to make out with.

I look at Tess. When we met up that October night after receiving the news that her sister, Maria, was missing, she cried in my arms. She's been different since that moment. The sparkles in her eyes are lost, all the stars in the sky gone. She's been getting thinner too. She looks so frail I'm afraid she would shatter like glass. But she would be bulletproof glass. She's so strong. After that night she cried, she's been working harder in the classroom according to Silvia. And I've heard that she's the public's favorite. At first I thought it was silly infatuation. But over the past few months, I've realized that I really care about Tess.

Tess's eyes flick over to me and I wink. She smiles a sad, little smile that makes my heart constrict. I've never fallen in love. Even though I'll never be king, I still do a lot of things for this country. I don't have time to fall in love. The closest thing I've had to a girlfriend is Madeleine Pierre, the princess of France. She's tall and thin and delicate. Her blond hair adds to that effect.

My father, King Maxon, said he had a similar situation in life. Queen Daphne knew Dad since they were kids. Daphne used to be the princess of France but she got married to King Fredrick. Daphne told him before the Selection started that she loved him. When he told the story, he said it quickly, like he didn't want to dwell on it any longer but thought it needed to be said anyway.

I know a lot about Madeleine. I know that she smells like vanilla and strawberries. I know that she is deathly afraid of animals. I know that she has a scar on her shoulder (We wanted to see who could run faster in the woods. Needless to say, I won.) I know that she likes to dance ballet and paint. I know that she's best friends with my sisters.

"What are you thinking about, Matt?" Alexandra asks.

I snap out of my reverie and look at her. "Alexa, could you pass me the maple syrup?"

She looks at me with concern, but she hands me the syrup anyway. I go through the whole day in a daze, thinking about Tess.

After dinner, Dad, Michael and I head to the conference room. I walk behind both of them. They're chatting with each other, and whatever Michael says makes Dad laugh. I've always been the neglected child. I mean, think about it. Michael's the heir to the throne and the eldest. Alexandra and Rilane are twins and they're the girls of the family, making them both precious to both my parents. Xander's the youngest, or the so-called "baby of the family." And me? I'm the second to everything. It used to really bother me before, no one really paying attention to me. Then Tess came along.

I smile at the thought. If only she could be mine. But she's here for Michael. Every time I see her, I don't waste a single moment. We talk a lot and kiss. She's my first kiss. It's a little disappointing that my first kiss was with a drunken person, but when Tess kisses me everything feels right in the world.

We enter the meeting room and discuss the war with New Asia. The update is that they've just sent a new batch of soldiers and hopefully the war might be over before the Grateful Feast. I start paying extra attention when someone says they've found the Northern rebel headquarters. An adviser pipes up, saying that we need to attack. I say that we should have a double agent, someone who is loyal to us but will pretend to be allied with the Northern rebels. That way we can actually find out what the rebels want. After a pause of deliberation, everyone agrees to my idea. That rarely happens.

For the last few minutes of the meeting, we talk about the remaining girls of the Selection. Perris has connections. The public likes Sierra. My brother obviously likes Evelyn. Annabel is a great public speaker. They don't bring up Tess and I wonder why. The public loves her and she won the debate on the Report a few months back. I raise my hand like a schoolboy. They don't acknowledge me until I clear my throat. My father and Michael look at me as well as all the advisers. They all seem slightly annoyed.

I quickly say, "What about Lady Teresa?"

They all exchange a glance full of meaning, full of something I don't know. "Son, we were planning to eliminate her," my dad says.

"What? Why?" I spit. "She's the public's favorite! You can't eliminate her."

"Matthew," my brother scolds. "Her sister is missing. Tess should go home to her family."

"What good does that do?" I say, starting to get up from my chair. "The rebels wouldn't return Maria Renaldi just because her sister's out of the palace."

Dad looks around. "Meeting adjourned." The advisers nod and leave the room. I sit back down in my chair.

"Matthew," my dad says, "you're getting married to Madeleine Pierre."

"What?" This is an outrage.

"It's been arranged. It will strengthen our connections with France and plus, that's the only girl you like."

I couldn't say anything about Tess, not now. I put my head in my hands and hear Dad exit the room.

"Matt," Michael says. I look up at him. "Why would you care if Tess leaves?"

"Because I care about her. I have feelings for her."

"Were you doing this behind my back?" he asks. He doesn't sound mad, surprisingly.

I nod. Though I've always been second fiddle to Michael, he's still my brother. "Tess is kind, funny, beautiful, she has connections with Italy—"

Michael gasps. "She does?"

I nod. "Yeah. How didn't you know that?"

He shrugs. Michael seems to be deep in thought as he rubs his chin and paces back and forth. Someone knocks at the door. I open it and see Madeleine.

"Hello, Matthew!" she says cheerfully with her accent.

"Madeleine," I say formally. "When did you get here?"

She smiles. "A few minutes ago."

I nod and say, "Well, you must be extremely tired so I'll lead you to your room now."

I drop her off at a guest room on the third floor and. I contemplate saying anything to Tess but I walk to my room in a daze instead. I sit on the edge of my bed and put my head in my hands. What am I going to do now?