Chapter 38 – Jesse Flynn
The next couple of weeks, Jesse felt a little better. The doctor had given him some sleeping pills, but the ones with the smallest amount of medicine in them. He wasn't that desperate about Jesse's case and only put his sleepless nights on stress and too much work. He prescribed him two days off each week, preferably the weekend, but Jesse said that the weekends were not possible since many things happened there. For one, Val went on dates mostly on weekends and he didn't want to miss that.
On the 13th of October, one of the Selected had her birthday. Jesse had to admit he was kind of jealous: Nevaeh always organized amazing birthdays, even if they were sometimes done last minute. But he thought that she worked best under pressure.
Laelia was lucky: for her 24th birthday, Nevaeh had someone come over to organize a horror escape game for her and for whoever wanted to join. Only a few joined in, though: Nathan, Gail, Emelda, and Pallas. Among the five of them, they managed to get out of the room in under 60 minutes, and that was no thanks to Nathan. Jesse had been able to come along, but he couldn't say anything or help them, he could only film and take pictures and notes.
It was hilarious, to be honest. Nathan was a scaredy-cat, and the girls were more courageous than him. True, Gail, Emelda, and Pallas did break a sweat at some point, screaming after they had been scared by an actor playing a mummy who hadn't moved from the beginning. Laelia jumped, but she was the one with the strongest heart. She had to, since she was the one writing horror stories, right?
Nathan went on a few other dates after that, but since he always ended up sleeping with the girls – Jen, Gail, and Emelda – Jesse didn't really follow on those dates. He didn't know if Nathan had gone to that level with Morrigan yet, but he didn't really want to ask, either, and he knew Laelia always pushed his advances. Why he was still keeping her was a mystery to Jesse. Maybe Nate liked that he had to fight to stay in her good graces? Maybe that's why he kept Laelia and Morrigan…
Then it was Nathan's turn to have his birthday. And it was not a small feat, since he was a quarter of a century old! 25 years old was something, even for a Prince!
"Happy birthday, Nate!" Jesse said, shaking hands with the prince. "Half of half a century, right?" They were celebrating his birthday with all the remaining Selected and his brothers in one of the parlors of the Palace, tasting Champagnes with a connoisseur who had come especially for the occasion.
Nathan laughed. "A quarter is just fine, I'm not that stupid."
"How do you feel?"
"Older, that's for sure," he replied. "But I'm getting hotter and sexier every year, so I have that going for me."
Jesse and some other girls who had heard that laughed.
"What? It's true," he said. "Look." He took his phone and typed something in the search bar, then scrolled. "Here. It says 'Prince Nathan is getting older – 25 years old today! – but he's still the sexiest man in Illéa, and no one is going to contradict us!' See?"
Jenissa rolled her eyes. "You can't believe everything you read on the Internet, Nate."
"But that's 110% true, Jen. Sorry to disappoint you." He wiggled his eyebrows and the people around him laughed. "I am and will always be the most handsome and sexiest of them all, so deal with it."
"I'm going to have to disagree with you, Nathan," Ximena said. "Silas surpasses everyone, even you."
Silas became red in the face, and everyone stared at them. Ximena was proud of herself. "You really didn't have to say that," Silas mumbled to her, but everyone heard.
"Uh, yeah I did. I couldn't let Nathan believe that he was the sexiest man in Illéa. Because he's not." She smirked and planted a kiss on his lips, surprising him, they hadn't really been showing a lot of affection in front of everyone, in the past weeks, but this was something quite new. Holding hands and sitting or standing close to one another, yes. But not that.
"Whatever," Nathan said. "Your vote doesn't count. Obviously, you're gonna think it's him." He rolled his eyes and shook his head in dismay.
They continued to banter for a while, Nathan relishing being the center of attention. He got presents from everyone. One of them was a pair of silly socks with ice cream on them from Xi and Silas. No one understood why the silly socks were a thing or why Pallas laughed at the ice cream on them, but they dismissed it as a family thing.
Jesse was glad to be surrounded by all these beautiful people. One day, he'd tell his kids he got to hang out with royalty, take pictures of them, and ask them the juiciest questions. But for him to have kids, he'd first have to find himself a wife. A girlfriend would be good, for starters, actually. And thinking about a girlfriend, his gaze went to the blonde French duchess, the one who filled his daydreams and made his heart beat a little faster. He stared at her as she talked and laugh with Leigh on one of the couches.
Out of nowhere, she turned her face towards him and their eyes met. He didn't realize right away, though, and she smiled at him.
"Hey! that's my cousin, you perv!" Nathan said, throwing Jesse a pillow, which made him spill his drink all over his fancy pants.
"Aw, come on!" Jesse said, standing up to wipe away the champagne and to make sure it didn't go on the cushions. "I'll have to dry-clean this! Damnit."
Everyone laughed and Jesse stomped out of the room to get cleaned up. He didn't notice how Nevaeh's face had turned bright pink, though. Because though it was Jesse who had received the pillow in the face, it was Nevaeh who had smiled back. Both were at fault here.
He huffed as he pushed the men's toilet door on the same floor, splashing water on his ruined pants. He also looked at himself in the mirror and ran a hand through his beard. When was the last time he had actually shaven? Not cleaned around the beard. He couldn't even remember his face. Of well. The beard suited him quite well and–
"Hey, are you okay?" Nevaeh said from behind the door. She knocked. "Jesse, are you in there?"
Jesse sighed. "Yeah, I'm fine." He paused. "But my suit isn't." He opened the door and walked out into the hall. "How do you take champagne out of a suit?"
"Give it to Hanna, she's a mastermind when it comes to getting stuff out of expensive clothes."
"Hanna?" Jesse asked, raising an eyebrow.
"My lady's maid, you silly boy." She pushed him playfully in the arm and Jesse looked around them, making sure there was no one.
"Are you sure if it was a good idea to follow me out, after what Nathan said?" he asked, feeling the heat climbing in his own cheeks. He tried to push the blush down, but it resisted.
"He's drunk," Nevaeh said. "I don't know why I thought a Champagne tasting afternoon was a good idea in the first place." She sighed. "Besides, you're a grown man, you can look at whoever you want."
"Really?" he said, dubious.
"I mean– no, that came out wrong." She chuckled awkwardly. "Not whoever you want, but if the person you're looking at is okay with it, I guess, then, that you can stare." Nevaeh didn't meet his eyes and checked her manicure instead.
"Huh." Jesse crossed his arms over his chest and leaned on the wall. "So if the person doesn't mind, then it's okay to stare?"
"I guess."
"And is the lady in question okay with my staring, then?"
"Maybe." Nevaeh still didn't look up at him. "It's not like she can do anything about it anyway, right?"
Jesse laughed softly. "No, I guess she can't." He then reached out to take her manicured hand in his. "You don't mind me watching you, then?" he asked softly.
Nevaeh tensed when he took her hand but relaxed a little after a second or two. She didn't let him hold her hand for too long though. "Anyway," she said, straightening her shoulders. "As I said, you can give that suit to Hanna, and she'll take care of it. I'm going back to the Champagne tasting if you don't mind." She hurried away, not waiting for him to answer that, and left him alone in the hall, his pants wet from the spilled drink.
-o-0-o-
Jesse spent the next three days before the Report editing some things for the recap video and making predictions on who would be the next eliminated girls. He wouldn't post those, of course, because he was not God and he did not choose who left or stayed – Nevaeh had made that very clear, the other week. But he did have some ideas as to who may be gone next, and who may win the two remaining princes' hearts.
Sydney had done a nice decoration for this week's report, with pumpkins – most of them came from Val's date with Essie – and orange and yellow flowers. It was getting really Halloween-y, though that was only a week away.
A week! Damnit. Jesse needed to find a costume! He knew it wouldn't be a huge party like the two previous ones and that the families would be invited this week, after the Report and the last eliminations. Jesse really didn't want to be in their place, being eliminated just before the Halloween party and the family time! When was the last time he had seen his own family? Huh. He had absolutely no idea. Last Christmas, maybe?
The chatter of girls, the swish of gowns, and the clicks of heels made him jump back to reality. Right. He had a Report to conduct. Thoughts of his family would come later. Hey, could he invite them for Halloween, too? Nah. Too much.
"Good morning, everyone!" Jesse said. "Please find your seats, we're going to be filming in five minutes!"
"Do we always have to be such in a rush every single time?" Abigail asked, huffing. She was wearing a grey pantsuit with bright green shoes, and her hair was pulled back in a tight ponytail.
"Maybe if you didn't take so much time to get ready we wouldn't have to be late every single time," Jenissa retorted. But from the tone in her voice, she was just teasing.
"Speak for yourself," Pallas said. "You were the one who was late, this morning."
"Someone stole my favorite shoes!" Jen said. "I couldn't find them, so I had to figure something out."
"You mean you had to change your whole outfit," Gail said.
"Oops," Emelda said. "I might have taken your shoes…" she lifted the hem of her floor-length dress. "I saw them on the floor of your room, the other day when we did face masks, and I didn't think you'd need them…"
"Ugh." Jen rolled her eyes. "Well next time, please ask before taking anything."
"Ladies, ladies!" Nathan said, coming in the middle of his girls' bickering. No one was sure if they were teasing, joking, or being serious and ready to pull each other's hair. "Chillax! We can buy you all the same shoes if you want…"
"Chillax is not a word," Jen said.
"You know, it's the ones who deny 'chillax' who need to chillax the most," Nathan replied. To that, the girls just walked past him and went to their seats.
"Trouble in Paradise?" Jesse asked.
"No, I think they're just teasing each other." He paused. "Right?"
"I don't know," Jesse said. "With girls, you never know. Especially when it has to do with shoes. Trust me." Both chuckled and headed to the couches where Val was already waiting. "Alright, is everyone ready?" he asked, looking around. The girls were all seated but still chatting quite loudly, the audience was getting restless, and Jesse wanted to be done quickly so he could go do a power nap before the afternoon of editing that was ahead of him.
People settled down and Jesse looked at Bill Mason, who gave him the thumbs-up. He made sure the cameras all had a little red light and started directly from his comfortable armchair.
"Goodeveningladiesandgentlemenboysandgirls! My name is Jesse Flynn and I'm excited to be with you tonight because we have lots of nice things in store! So stay tuned until the end!" He paused and turned towards the two remaining Princes of the Selection. "This week you've been on some dates, correct?" To which, Nathan and Valerian nodded. "Okay, let's watch some recap photos and footage!" Everyone turned to look at the big screen behind them, and they saw Nathan spending some time in the jacuzzi with Jenissa, or watching a movie with Gail, or some other romantic thing with one of the girls on his list. Jesse didn't have to point it out but everyone knew where and how almost every date ended up. Then there was some footage of Valerian studying with Pallas and Eve, some videos of him talking a well-deserved walk around the gardens with a girl or another to air his brain a little.
"Wow, you two have been quite busy!" Jesse said. "I see your dates are all more romantic than the last, Prince Nathan. Where do find your ideas?"
Nathan laughed. "Honestly, the most clichéd things in the book are usually the best." He smirked and crossed his legs, leaning his back on the armrest. "I don't believe I need to find something new and extraordinary to do every single time. A good old dinner, jacuzzi, or restaurant is just as good for me!"
"Of course," Jesse said. "It always gets you exactly what you want, right?"
"Eh, I wouldn't quite say that, but yeah, most of the time." He chuckled.
Jesse turned towards Valerian. "And you, Prince Val, thank you for the pumpkins and the apples, I think we will all have our fill of those and will not want to eat anymore until next year."
Valerian laughed. "Yeah, sorry about that."
"Because we've been eating those things in all their forms and shapes for the past three weeks…" Jesse explained to the audience and the cameras. As if on cue, the guy responsible for the screen put up a short footage of Bubba from the Forrest Gump movie saying 'You can barbecue it, boil it, broil it, bake it, sauté it,' and so on. Everyone laughed, including Jesse. He had not been expecting that, but he had to admit that the guy was a genius for adding that just then. How long had he been planning that?
Jesse was still laughing and trying to catch his breath when he prepared his next question to Nathan. "So, Nathan. You told me two weeks ago that you had a nice idea regarding fashion and modeling… have you been able to do anything about it?"
"Yes, sir!" Nathan said, sitting up straight. "I have now a good number of pictures to show you! Everyone has been such a good sport about it, and I'm so happy about how it turned out." He looked at the guy behind the computer. "You can put up the first picture, man!"
Everyone waited and looked at the screen. A picture of a photo studio showed up, and it was empty apart from some clothes and shoes scattered around the area.
"Ooh nice, what is this?" Jesse asked.
"It's my studio, and I've invited the girls one after the other – those who wanted, of course, I didn't force anyone into this – and we picked out outfits for each other, sometimes crazy ones, sometimes amazing ones, and I've picked out some pictures to show you guys!" He paused. "Actually, it's just a sample of the pictures, because everything else will be in the next Illéa Weekly Magazine, available to everyone on Monday."
"Oooh!" Jesse said, elongating the oooh each time a little more. "Do show us!"
The first picture was one of him in a crazy neon pink outfit, the one Leigh had chosen for him. It made everyone laugh, of course, but it also made everyone Oh! and Ah! at the next picture: a magnificent Leigh in a galaxy-themed gown, posing on an old Louis XIV chair. The next ones were all of the girls who had accepted to do this, but only one of each. The rest of the outfits and pictures would be in the magazine, and people would have to pay to see them.
There was one of Laelia dressed in a blood-red riding hood kind of gown with a hood; Gail was wearing a very sexy black sequin dress with two slits, one on each thigh, with a very extravagant swan-like makeup; Emelda was doing an impossible gymnastic pose wearing a completely see-through baby blue gown; the next one was Pallas in one of the hugest gowns of the photoshoot, a red strapless ball gown, with a silver wig; Malia had accepted to wear her mermaid tail and was posing on a table of some sort. There were other pictures of almost all of the girls. Only Ashia and Evangeline didn't do it, and even Ximena had accepted!
"Wow, this is amazing!" Jesse said. "Who took the pictures?"
"I did," Nathan said. "Sydney lent me one of her cameras, and I've been playing around with it."
"And the outfits?"
"All me," Nathan said.
"So you're dressing the girls up? Like… dolls?"
"No! Not like dolls!" Nathan said, horrified. "Jesse, please! Have some respect for me…" he paused. "No, I dress them in something that I think – and most of the time I'm right – will suit them perfectly well. But if they're not comfortable in this or that piece of clothing, we don't do it."
"I see. And how long have you liked picking outfits for people?"
"Forever!" Nathan said, laughing. "I'm usually the one picking out Val's and Silas' outfits for important events–"
"That's true," Val pipped in.
"But I had never really done it for ladies before, having no sister to practice on–"
"You do have a cousin," Jesse said.
"Nev?" Nathan burst out laughing. "She never let me say anything about her outfits. Besides, she's always on point, so there's nothing to add or change to her outfits."
"I totally agree with that," Jesse said.
"Yeah, so, as I was saying," Nathan continued, "the girls have been very nice about it, and I found that I love creating outfits as much for guys as for girls!"
"That's amazing. I think you found your life purpose, right?" Jesse asked.
"Yeah… I think I did!"
"Thank you, Nathan, for this little insight into your fashion idea, and I can't wait to go get my hands on a Magazine, on Monday." He paused, turning to the audience. "Don't forget to get yours, too!" Jesse looked at the princes again. "I think it's time for the back roses… don't you think?"
The two brothers exchanged a glance and nodded, taking the two roses Jesse was handing out to them. Together, they stood and headed to the group of girls. Who would go first, this time?
"Leigh," Nathan started. "We talked about this a couple of weeks ago, and I hope you had enough time to do what you needed to do?"
"Yeah, I did. Thank you," she added, smiling.
"Okay, well, then." Nathan took a deep breath. "I think it's time for you to go home…"
Leigh nodded and walked out of the group of girls. She took the rose from Nathan's hand and both hugged. "Thanks for everything, Nate." Then she turned towards the audience, and Silas and Ximena. "I wish you all the love in the world, and we'll see each other soon!" she blew them a kiss before hurrying off the stage. Jesse noticed she put a hand over her mouth the moment she was out of view. Was she crying?
Oh, well. Jesse didn't have time to dwell on that just yet because it was Valerian's turn to choose the girl who would be going home, the first one from his Elite, the first one in a month!
Valerian took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Jesse could see how much it hurt Val to eliminate a girl. He got on so well with all of them! Who could it be?
"Mia," Val started. "You are really an amazing woman, and please continue to do what you always do: be kind to others and never stop giving." He paused. "You have taught me a lot in these past months, and I will cherish the moments we spent together, may it be at the Soup Kitchen or picking apples. You've always been kind, and I know you will find a man who will love you like you deserve to be loved." He paused, fiddling with the rose. "Unfortunately, that man is not me, but I hope we will remain friends and that I will see you again in the future." He tried to smile, but he was clearly in pain to eliminate her. Jesse had heard that the queen wasn't happy about him not eliminating anyone for a month. So, Valerian obeyed, like the good prince he was.
"I understand," Mia said, taking the rose from him. She planted a soft kiss on his cheek. "Thank you for the opportunity and the great moments spent with you, and the other girls." She smiled at the other girls from Val's Elite before walking out, joining Leigh backstage.
"Welp, there you have it," Jesse said, inviting the two brothers back to the couches. "How do you feel?"
"Horrible," Val said.
"Eh, I'm okay," Nate replied.
"I'm sure it's going to get better," Jesse said, patting Val's knee affectionately. "In the meantime, Ladiesandgentlemenboysandgirls, don't forget to buy the next Illéa Weekly, stay safe and take care! Have a great weekend and see you next week!"
-o-0-o-
After the Report and after lunch, the girls and the princes gathered at the main entrance to say goodbye to Leigh and Mia. Jesse was sad to see them go, even though it meant that they were getting closer to the end. He also noticed that it was getting harder and sadder every time a girl went home: there were tears, friendships had been made, and hearts were broken.
"I can't believe there are only eleven girls left," Nevaeh said, joining Jesse on the sidelines of the goodbye group. She wasn't fond of group hugs, so she stayed away from them.
"Wait. Eleven?" Jesse said. "That few?"
"Yes. I honestly can't wait for this whole thing to be over." She took a deep breath and let it out slowly, her arms crossed over her chest. "How's your sleep schedule?" she asked, keeping her eyes on Xi and Leigh hugging.
"Okay, I think," he said. "The doc said I should take a couple of days off each week, and since I can't really take the weekend since lots are happening there, I might take random days here in there, you know?"
"I see."
"Uh, Jesse?"
Jesse focused on the girl who had just come up to him: Abigail Correll. "Yes?"
"Where can I get a rose?"
Jesse smirked and raised an eyebrow. "You're going to ask Nathan on a date?"
"Yes. It's been way too long since the last official one, and I'm bored. So…" she shrugged, not elaborating any further. So Jesse had been right: there had been some non-official hook-ups during these past few weeks. Interesting.
"Of course, follow me," he said to Gail. He offered a smile to Nevaeh who just gestured with her chin for him to go. Jesse walked down the hall to this office with Gail on his heels. "What did you have in mind?" he asked.
"Just to get the hell out of this place." She paused. "I hate goodbyes, and now I'm all emotional. I need to be somewhere else."
Jesse nodded. He instructed her to wait in the hall while he went inside to go get a fresh orange rose. "Here you go, milady."
"Thanks." Without another word, she turned around and walked away.
"Wait!" Jesse said, running after her. "Uh, can I come along? Since it's an official date, as you said?"
"Sure, I don't care," she shrugged. "As long as you don't tag along too closely."
"Promise, I won't."
He followed her back to the entrance hall, but it was now empty. Everyone was on the stone steps, outside, waving as the limousine took the girls to the airport to catch the first flights to Midston and Allens; first class, of course. He watched as Gail walked up to Nathan and offered him a rose in front of everyone.
Nathan was utterly surprised since it was the first time he got a rose and was clearly not expecting one at all.
"Uh, sure!" he said, looking self-consciously around him at the others looking at him. "Of course!" He took the rose from Gail and everyone left, not interested in their little shenanigans. Jesse was shocked that the other girls on his list didn't seem to care. Or maybe they did, but they didn't show it.
Gail took his arm and led him back inside. And while most of the others headed to the women's room to watch a movie on the big TV screen, Gail and Nathan went downstairs, to the gym. Jesse was also surprised. Hadn't she said she wanted to get away?
"Uh, what are we doing in the gym?" Nathan asked, looking around. From the look on his face, he didn't like the place one bit.
"I need to move," she said. "I haven't done anything remotely sportsy in the past two and a half months."
"Yeah… but you didn't choose the right partner," Nathan said, rubbing the back of his head. "What are you doing?" he asked when Gail started taking off her sweater, revealing a tank top underneath. Jesse thought Nathan was not so much bothered by her taking off her clothes but because he was standing here.
"Don't worry, I'm not getting naked… this time," Gail smirked. She took out her phone and looked for the music app on it, then turned the volume up.
"Wait, you can link it to the Bluetooth and–"
"Yep, done. Thanks," she said. "So, have you ever done hip-hop?"
"Uuuuh, no, not that I know of," he said. He had to raise his voice to be heard over the loud music Gail had chosen.
"Okay, watch!" She dropped into a nice rhythm and started to do complicated hip-hop moves. Nathan and Jesse looked at each other, confused, and then they watched her with jaws practically to the floor. Jesse filmed as she danced and he couldn't stop his foot from tapping in sync with the music.
Nathan just crossed his arms over his chest and waited, watching her.
At the end of the song, she was completely out of breath and fell to her knees. "I'm totally out of shape!" she said, gasping. "This Selection is making me soft!" She turned down the volume of the music and then looked at her belly. "Look! Totally out of shape…"
"Oh, if you want to play that game, I can beat you," Nathan said, lifting his own shirt and making his belly rolls talk. "Look. I'm fatter than you," he made his belly say.
"See? My point. We need to work out."
Nathan burst out laughing. "Hell no. I don't do workouts," he said, sitting on the floor. "I know another way to work out, though," he said suggestively.
"Pfft. That's not enough." She pushed herself off of the floor and held a hand out for the Prince. "Come on. I'll show you some easy steps."
"No."
"Please?" she continued. She tucked some hair behind her ear. She darted a quick look at Jesse, and then back at Nathan. "We can do your workout afterward as well if you want." She reached down and whispered something in his ear, which Jesse didn't catch. But from Nathan's smile and gleam in his eyes, it was something good.
"Okay." He stood. "Let's do this." For the next hour, Gail taught him some easy steps, and by the end of that hour, they could dance pretty much in sync, without messing up too much. Jesse was so happy he had recorded that because it was epic. In the end, both were drenched in sweat but smiling.
"See? I told you it was nice to move a little," she said, wiping her face with a clean towel she found on the shelf. "How do you feel?"
"Exhausted," he said. "And you know I'll never admit I feel good after doing sports. That would be completely out of character for me."
"Whatever." Gail rolled her eyes and then untied her hair, fanning them out over her shoulders. "So, what do you say we take a shower, now?" she asked, smirking.
"I say yes to that," Nathan replied, standing up in less time than Jesse could realize what Gail had just said. So that was the deal? She taught him hip-hop dance moves and then they had shower sex? Interesting…
Nathan helped Gail up, and they left the gym to go upstairs. Jesse didn't even try to follow them since he knew they wouldn't really accept them for the rest of their date. Oh, well. At least he got most of the dancing part on camera. The rest was up to them…
-o-0-o-
Since Valerian mostly dated his Elite during weekends, Jesse was on the lookout for the next pink rose. It only came on Sunday afternoon, after everyone was done with the brunch. The girls were all heading to their rooms in small groups to do whatever girls liked to do on a Sunday afternoon – nap, binge-watch a show, do face-masks, or whatever – but Valerian discreetly tapped Malia's shoulder before she was gone upstairs.
"Yeah?" she said, turning at the tap– "Oh!" The smile on her face was all Valerian – and Jesse – needed to know. Then she saw the pink rose and a matching color filled her cheeks. Her smiled brightened even more.
"Would you like to go on a walk with me?"
"I'd love to!" she said. "Let me just grab a jacket and I'll be right down!"
Val nodded and waited in the foyer. He was already wearing a sweater.
"Seriously, Val?" Nathan said, coming over and ruffling his little brother's hair. "A walk? Can't you think of anything more interesting to do?"
"Like what?" he said. "That's the only thing I could think of today."
"Hey, kid, are you okay?" Nathan asked, genuinely worried, wrapping an arm around his shoulders. He wasn't a lot taller than him, but he could still look at him from above.
"Yeah," Val said. "I'm just tired." As if on cue, he yawned. "Doing the Selection and studying at the same time is exhausting. I thought it would be easier, you know?"
"Hmm." Nathan nodded. It wasn't as if he could understand Val's dilemma since he had stopped after high school and hadn't touched a book since. "I can date your girls for you if you want, and then I can give you a report on what we did?"
"Shut up," Val said, pushing his brother away. "Why are you always being a d–"
"Language!"
"Sorry, Nev," Val said, blushing slightly. Jesse was shocked, to be honest. He had never heard Valerian swearing like that before. "I was going to say douchebag."
"No, you weren't," Nathan said, elbowing his brother, laughing. "Seriously, though," Nathan said, frowning. "Don't you want to do something more… I don't know… fun?"
"I'm ready!" Malia said, joining the small group surrounding Valerian. Everyone chuckled when they saw her. She was wearing a heavy coat, a wool hat, gloves, boots, pants, and a scarf. But she was grinning.
"Uhm, it's only 62 degrees, outside," Val said. "Are you sure you should be wearing all that?"
"Val," Malia said, looping her arm in his. "In Hawaii, it's always above 82 degrees. Anything below 75 degrees is freezing for me."
"True," he said, though he wasn't really convinced. "Shall we?"
"Yes!"
Jesse and the others watched them walk away.
"Aren't you third-wheeling them?" Nathan asked, leaning his elbow on Jesse's shoulder. "Are you alright, man?"
"Perfectly fine!" he said, glancing quickly at Neveah. Surely, she hadn't told everyone about his messed-up sleep schedule? "I'm just giving them a minute ahead. I'll follow up, don't worry." He gestured with his phone to show him he was ready.
"Okay, cool," Nate said. "You almost scared me there for a minute." He put his hand on his chest, dramatic as always. "Anyway, I've got stuff to do," he said. "And when I say 'stuff', I mean girls." He winked at Jesse and Nevaeh, who both rolled their eyes and sighed at the same time. Yeah, it was getting old.
"I better go, too," Jesse said, gesturing to the retreating couple.
Nevaeh nodded and walked away to her own room. To be honest, Jesse was torn. On one hand, he wanted to go sip some tea during that 'walk' date, but on the other hand, he wouldn't be opposed to sipping actual tea with Nevaeh, curled up on a couch, watching a movie. Couldn't he have one date, just one time?
Oh, well. Nevaeh was already gone, anyway. He had only one thing left to do: follow Valerian and Malia outside. Knowing he would only stay outside for a few moments to film them just to have enough footage to add to the recap video, he didn't go back to his room to get a jacket.
Outside, the couple was just walking hand in hand, slowly, following the gravel path to the flower garden. Damnit, he should have taken the drone with him: aerial footage of the palace gardens was always beautiful. He quickly texted on their little text group to see if Otis or Sydney would be around to film the couple with the drone. He got an instant response from Otis.
Otis Channing: On it. I'll film from my room, I'm on the right side of the palace. ;) [15:56]
Jesse: Thanks, man! I'll film from ground-level, we'll mix them up. [15:56]
Otis Channing: :ok_hand: [15:56]
Jesse followed at some distance, wanting very much to overhear their conversation, but alas, he couldn't really walk just three feet behind them, now, could he? But from what he could see, they were having a good time and Malia was laughing at whatever Valerian was saying.
Jesse had to wonder: She was the only one not on Silas' list wearing blue in her ball outfit. And Valerian did say that it was a good thing the girls had shown their 'true colors', so to speak. He had already eliminated Mia who had been wearing pink, which is a mix of red and white. Would he eliminate Malia next? Since she had mixed blue and white? Jesse was not a player, but he'd wager good money on that.
That would leave Valerian with only four girls left: Odessa, Evangeline, Dyani, and Ashia; the four who had worn only white at the Ball…
But Jesse – and everyone – would just have to wait and see. Valerian didn't seem to be leading on anyone, but he seemed to be torn equal measure towards everyone.
Jesse continued to film, taking some liberties and walking on the grass to have them from another angle. He also heard Otis' drone above them, so he quickly finished filming so Otis wouldn't have Jesse in the camera angle. He walked away a few minutes later, leaving Otis to his expert drone filming, and headed back inside. It was not cold, so to speak, but there was a slightly chilly wind going around, and he was glad to be back inside. He quickly thanked Otis through text and went to his room to just be alone until it was dinner time. He would also send his footage to the Dropbox file, so Sydney and Otis had access to it. One more dinner with everyone, then he'll be able to go to bed early and take the Monday off.
Helloooo! I hope you enjoyed today's chapter! What did you think of Nate's date with Gail? and of the Birthdays Nevaeh organizes for everyone? I wish Nev organized my birthday, tbh. LMAO (also OMG... almost 400 reviews!)
I would like to thank DreamerDash and Rowe for giving me Leigh Altman and Mia Williams! They were a blast to write! (I'm not quite done with Leigh, though, yet :eyes:)
The last Interview Article comes out on Saturday! (for those answering the questions in the articles [Slyther and French], the deadling is Jan 1st! Thank you Dragon SIlvertongue for your quick reply already^^)
I'll see you all next year! xD (that was not funny, sorry).
OH WAIT. And watch out on January 1st... the first part of the SISTERS prologue will be out... :eyes:
