Chapter 2
Jolene's POV
Jolene was scrawling cookie types in her notebook at breakfast, focusing on how many different types she could list as quickly as she could.
Snickerdoodle, Chocolate Chip, Sugar….
"Jo, you okay?" Jolene looked to her brother, who was indicating the notebook.
Jolene slammed the notebook shut, "Don't read my stuff, Damon. That's rude."
Damon rolled his eyes, "My question still stands."
Jolene sighed, "Fine, just nervous about tonight."
Damon's nose twitched, and he smiled, "Hey, you'll be fine, after all, you're just announcing your Selection. You're not even announcing the names yet. Then, you'll be nervous."
Jolene rolled her eyes, "Oh yeah, so comforting. Thank you, Damon, for your endless support and words of wisdom, truly, a gift to man."
Damon smirked, "You're welcome, you know, I've never heard you so sincere."
Jolene fake gagged, and Damon burst out laughing at his sister's antics. Jolene sighed, and shoveled a forkful of hashbrowns into her mouth. She followed it closely with a piece - or two- of bacon; her favorite food.
"I'm going for a ride," Damon said. Jolene debated going with him, but she let him go. Maybe she could go try to fix her bonsai tree after Damon burst in her room yesterday? Yeah, that sounded good. She stood from the table, announced, "Going to my room," then left the dining hall without a second glance.
Jolene plopped onto her bed, watching her bonsai tree from across the room. It was so small and innocent, she loved taking care of that tree. Jolene sighed, stood, and moved over to the tree, carefully trimming the tree to repair the damage caused by Damon's incredibly rude entrance. She quietly mumbled cookie types under her breath, "Marshmallow, Peanut Butter, Raisin Oatmeal."
Jolene smiled when she was finally satisfied with the tree's new bird shape. She turned, and noticed that her wardrobe was slightly open, her dress for tonight barely visible. Jolene walked to the wardrobe, and opened the doors, gazing at the gauze, baby blue dress hanging there, with a matching blue, lace-up pair of boots. The outfit would certainly make a statement, and she couldn't help but smile a bit.
If the country wants to romance her, they might as well know she isn't some pretty doll. She had personality, and she wasn't going to suppress it for their entertainment.
The royal family all sat to one side of the Report stage, an elder Robert smiled brightly, he'd been the host of the show for Ray's Selection, and now he'd be here for Jolene's too. Jolene sat on the couch with Robert as he began the introduction.
"Helloooo Illea! And welcome back to the Report! I'm incredibly excited for this week's Report, as we have a very special announcement from our very own Princess Jolene!"
Jolene smiled, and took that as her cue to begin her speech. She looked to the camera with the glowing red light, and took a deep breath before speaking, "Hello Illea! I am incredibly excited to be speaking to you all tonight. I have a big announcement," She stood, and gestured widely with her hands, "It's been decided that I am to hold a Selection! I'd like to encourage all guys aged 18 to 23 to sign up. After all, who wouldn't want a chance to date the princess?" Jolene winked for good measure, to try and even out the fake enthusiasm she had to display.
Yes, Jolene was fully aware she had to participate in this Selection, but she still wasn't convinced she'd find love, or that she would even want to find love among a bunch of random guys. After all, plenty of strong queens from history hadn't had a husband, or even a marriage full of love. If they could do it, she could do it too.
Robert smiled widely, "Isn't that amazing? Well, forms will be sent out in the morning, fill them out and submit them to the nearest Province Station in two weeks!"
Jolene smiled, and sat back down, the camera light went dark, and she knew they were on a commercial break, so she quickly went back to sit by the rest of her family. She thought it would be over, but no, it's never that easy with Robert.
Robert cleared his throat, then turned to Jolene, and asked, "So, Your Highness, what type of guy do you think has a chance of winning your heart?"
Jolene was surprised, she hadn't been expecting him to ask her something so straight forward. "Oh, well...give me a moment, Robert! A girl's heart is complicated to figure out!" She forced a laugh.
Oh, how she wanted to say that she wanted someone who would stay out of her way. Who would let her rule, and wouldn't mind doing their own thing either. She wanted someone she didn't have to worry about trying to overshadow her. She wanted a calm personality….or do you? Maybe you want excitement, passion, carelessness….
She shuddered, and remembered Robert was waiting for an answer, well, which was it going to be? She threw on an award-winning smile, and leaned into the microphone, "Well, Robert, I think the key to winning my heart is just being yourself. Someone just as independent as me, after all, we all know I'm not one for clinginess, and I'm not looking for my "other half", just a partner."
Robert turned to the camera, mouth agape a little, "Well, you heard it here folks, Princess Jolene wants a match, not a romantic, but don't be afraid to let your true colors shine. Well, until next week Illea! Next week will simply be an update by King Rayden, but the week after that be sure to check back to see if your name is the lucky one pulled!"
The camera light blinked off, and Jolene turned to Robert, "Robert, did you need to make me sound so cold?"
Robert winced, "I'm sorry, Your Highness." Jolene sighed, she could tell by his tone though that he thought she didn't need help sounding cold herself.
"Thanks, anyway, Robert." She said, standing, and walking away, rubbing her arms. She stepped outside one of the stage doors into the night's cool embrace. Goosebumps soon covered her arms, but she stayed outside, staring up at the stars.
She traced constellation after constellation, trying to gather her composure. She thought she'd been careful with her words, but in hindsight maybe she just should have given even more of a lie and said she wanted her prince charming. But she didn't want a prince charming, she wanted someone who could break the rules with her, let her be independent, joke with her, see her on a saturday morning with a messy bun, 5 cups of hot chocolate, and a plate full of only bacon and still love her more than ever. Was it so hard to find someone who would let her be herself while she was focusing on being queen? Maybe, just maybe she needed to find someone who understood a lot of stress...but how were you going to find that perfect match in a group of 35 guys between 18 and 23? Sure, there was college, but come on, there was a difference between college and being Crown Princess...right? Right?
Jolene groaned as her maid opened her curtains. It was so bright already, she must have slept in later than usual. Her maid turned to her, "Your Highness, anything I can get for you?"
Jolene sighed, guess I'm not going back to sleep, she thought, "Just a bath please." Her maid, Willa, nodded, and headed towards the bathroom. Water could be heard running, and Jolene grabbed her phone, scrolling through the media. She bolted upright, staring in horror at her phone screen.
All over the media were images of Jolene, and her words taken coldly, and out of context. She was painted as a girl who didn't want a Selection. She didn't but still, she needed to have one. Articles upon articles, pictures, Teddit posts, everyting. She wanted to scream. She did scream.
Willa came running out of the bathroom, "Your Highness?"
Jolene turned to her, "Look at this!" Shoving her phone into Willa's hands.
"Oh...I-"
"It's awful! This whole thing is ruined! How is anyone going to submit now?" Jolene huffed, glaring at her phone. "They all think I'm so some cold b-" she stopped, taking a deep breath. "Sugar, Creme, Oatmeal, Christmas, Double Chocolate Chip….."
Willa stood quietly, looking at the articles. "It seems, ma'am, that not everyone thinks it so bad. Look at this one, for example." Willa gently handed Jolene back her phone. Jolene looked down, and almost cried with happiness.
There was a Teddit post, titled, The Honest Royal: Jolene tells it like it is. Below was how the Teddit poster praised Jolene for being honest, saying she didn't expect a fairytale, only someone she could match with best. Someone who could work out of only a few months knowing 35 guys. Others commented below, agreeing, and adding more points like how she was independent, and guys who didn't like it just shouldn't submit their forms, or how she was amazing for knowing she wanted something real, not posed.
Jolene smiled softly, looking back at Willa, "Thank you."
Willa nodded, "You're welcome, now, your bath is ready."
Jolene laughed, and stood, following Willa. After her bath Jolene was sitting on her vanity stool as Willa styled her hair. She was curling it, and putting half of it to the other side, pinning along so it looked like it was all falling to one side naturally. It looked great, as Willa's styles always did. Next she dressed in a pair of ripped jeans, and a rock band t-shirt, with a red and black flannel thrown over. Today was a casual day, and she was going to live by it.
She stepped out of her room, and went downstairs to breakfast. Surprisingly she wasn't too late for breakfast. She walked in, and Damon glanced up, then back down, avoiding eye contact.
She sighed, and raised her chin, "I know what they're saying about me online. I don't care anymore. If they don't like me, they don't submit."
Marcus grinned, "Yasss!"
Jolene chuckled, but her father frowned. "Jolene, the people should like you. If they don't like you, they could get anxious, start to get restless, and that's how a rebellion starts," Ray stated.
Jolene sighed, "I know the people have to like me, but I'm not queen yet. Besides, this is for love, it's not like this is how I'm going to treat every subject."
Ray shook his head, "Jolene, this is serious. This is where people really get to know your nature. They see how you interact with the Selected, what type of dates you go on, who you choose, what they're like, it tells them what you're like, what you're really like."
Jolene sighed, she supposed her father was right. The Selection would basically be like a reality tv show, well, kind of, and the people would have a quick way to get to know her before she stepped into the role of queen. She looked to her father, smiling bitterly, "At least half the country already won't be in my Selection if they don't like me. Guess I'll have to win them back during."
Ray looked like he was about ready to burst a nerve, but Brendan gently spoke to him, and Ray sighed, "Jolene, I just want to make sure you're ready when you take the throne."
Jolene gasped, "I will be!" It came out a bit desperate, and she immediately clamped her mouth shut. She'd be ready, right? But why did this whole Selection business feel like it would ruin all confidence she had? Was she suddenly in too deep over her head? Was this going to be more than she expected?
After breakfast, Jolene was called into her father's office. She made her way to his office, and opened the door, peeking in. She saw her father looking over paperwork, and she cleared her throat. He waved her over, and she approached slowly, tilting her head to try and read the papers.
"Jolene, you know how we agreed you'd choose 5 Selected?"
Jolene hesitated, this is not what she thought this meeting would be about. "Yes." She said slowly, curious now.
"Well….I want to place a guard in your Selection."
Jolene blinked, trying to process the words. "Wait, what?"
Ray sighed, running a hand through his hair. "I want a guard undercover in your Selection, to protect you if anything goes wrong. With people already against you now, and rebels still hiding across Illea, I want a guard there, someone close to you."
"And what if I accidentally eliminate him?"
"I'll tell you who he is if that happens. But you won't know who it is, no one will except me, him, and a few guards." Ray replied.
Jolene's nose scrunched up, "So, you're saying he counts as one of my hand picked ones? So I only have four?"
Ray nodded, grimacing, "Yes, I'm afraid so. So, when forms start coming in you can choose 4 more, and the rest will be random."
Jolene nodded slowly, this could work. She supposed she didn't need to hand-pick 5, 4 would be fine. She was curious though to see if she could puzzle out which of her Selected the guard was. It would certainly be a fun puzzle.
"Alright, when's the earliest the forms would be coming in?" Jolene asked.
"Probably Monday, since the mail doesn't run Sunday, and people are really just getting the forms today. If they sent it out today or Monday, they'd be here from Angeles by Monday. Everywhere else would be sometime after that until the deadline."
Jolene bit her lip, that was so soon. Would she just pick the first 4 and call it good? Or would she decide to wait until they all came in to decide? Maybe one every couple of days? Should she choose based on caste? Job? Fame? Looks? She sighed, she didn't know. It would be nice to have someone famous in her Selection, but she also wanted normal people. But….at least famous people would understand the stress of constant work and paparazzi. She grimaced, this would be harder than she thought. But, she still found that deep down she was excited to see who she chose for her possible husband choices.
Hey everyone! Chapter 2 here we go! Whoo, we got a lot of people reserved or planning to submit already LOL I'm so excited! I'm hyped to get this going, and so excited to explore new characters. So! We already know there's going to be an undercover guard now hehe, wonder who that will be…..Anyways! I hope you're all thinking long and hard about who you're giving as a potential suitor to this feisty princess. She deserves someone who can be her match. So! Get going, go go go! (but also plz don't stress yourselves out *hug*)
See you all in the next chapter~
