Hello! I have returned to give you another chapter of Contests. Before you read this chapter, I would like to inform you that FlameRuby my beta didn't edit this chapter, so there may be mistakes here and there. Sorry! She's busy this week so I didn't want to bother her. Anyways, I hope you enjoy the chapter.
Thanks to everyone who followed and favorite. Special thanks to ZanyAnimeGirl, Lolly1o1, and Missy Missy Bounce for reviewing!
The blast of heat was too much to handle. Smoke clogged my lungs making it difficult to breath. I was going to die. I knew it. It was inevitable. The flames were coming closer now. I was surrounded. I would be devoured in no time. I fell to my knees, my body felt weak.
"Rin!" A voice called.
My vision was starting to go blank. I could see black spots. I slowly looked up.
My mother burst through the door. She pulled me out of the flames and into another room. This one wasn't completely consumed, yet. It was easier to breath here. I was regaining my consciousness.
I looked around. The flames were catching up to us. They weren't going to let us escape. I tightly clutched my mother's hand. She worriedly glanced at me, before frantically looking around.
That was when the fear really hit me. I really was going to die now. My mother may have known it too. Tears started forming. My mother knocked on the door. She screamed for help and shook the knob desperately. She hit her side against the door, repeatedly, before it finally broke down. She grabbed my arm and pushed me through the door.
The roof collapsed. My mother wasn't out yet. Half her body crushed underneath the weight of the ceiling. I ran over to her, now I was truly crying.
"Mommy!" I cried, hugging her.
She gave me a sad smile, "It's alright Rin. Shh. Calm down. You don't have much time. Go find Daddy and your brother and leave the house."
"But Mommy! I don't want to!" I sobbed.
She put her hands on my shoulders and looked me in the eyes. "Rin. You have to get out. Promise me you will."
I shook my head, "Only if you promise me you'll be safe"
An emotion flashed across her eyes. It was quickly masked with a small smile. "Yea, I promise."
I hesitantly let go of my mother and turned away. The fire was getting worse.
"Rin!" My mother called. I turned around. She was in tears. "I love you. I love you all. Stay safe."
The other half was crushed in seconds. I screamed. She was gone. I crumbled to the ground. Rinto burst in, he paused when he saw her. I could hear him choke in a sob. He picked me up and ran out of the house.
My mother had lied.
My heart was pounding. Beads of cold sweat hung on to the nape of my neck. I looked at the golden clock hung by the door. It was 9:00 a.m. There was a plate of food laying on the coffee table. I guessed I had missed dinner last night. I threw off the covers and got out of bed. Oliver said that I'd meet the maids today. I opened the door to my bathroom and walked in. It was huge. I wondered if I was going to have to adjust to my little apartment when I got back.
A toothbrush and some toothpaste were next to the sink. I picked up the toothbrush and applied some Colgate toothpaste on it. I was in the middle of brushing when I heard a knocking sound. I finished quickly and ran to the door. As I twisted the door knob, I felt oddly self-conscious. My hair looked like it was a rats nest and I hadn't showered yet. I hoped I didn't smell too bad. I shook my head and twisted the doorknob. On the other side of the door were three girl. They were more or less my age.
"Hi!" The one in the middle said, "We're going to take care of you, for the time you're here with us."
"Hello." I replied, surprised.
"I'm Galaco." she continued. She pointed to the girl to her left, "This is Merli", she pointed to the girl on her right, "and that's Aoki. They're sisters."
"Oh cool…" I mumbled, not knowing what else to say.
"Anyways, the first thing we need to do this morning is get you clothes. We need to get your measurements right now. We'll give you some clothes to wear after you take a shower. Then, we need to take you to hair and makeup. After that, the photo shoot will take place" Galaco said, pushing me into my room.
Merli and Aoki took out some measuring tape.
"Stay still." ordered Merli.
I complied and watched as they took my measurements.
"All done!" Aoki chirped.
I relaxed, but not for long. Galaco handed me a towel and rushed me into the bathroom. "You've got 15 minutes. We're already running late!"
In 15 minutes I was out of the bathroom wearing all white. They gave me a white t-shirt that was way too big for me and white yoga pants. I looked like I was in PJ's.
I was about to ask them what that was about, but they didn't give me any time to speak.
"We've got to get you to hair and makeup my lady!" Aoki said, dragging me through the hallway.
When we got to the hair and makeup room. A lady turned and greeted me. She was beautiful. She wore all red. Her brown hair was cut in a bob. She smiled when she saw me. "Hi, I'm Meiko."
"Hi" I mumbled.
"You're Rin, right?" she asked.
"Yea." I nodded.
She smiled, "It's ironic that you have the same last name as Len."
I noticed that she didn't say Prince Len. She must have been close to him.
"Yea. Ironic" I agreed.
She studied me for a moment. I felt like she was seeing through me. I felt that she knew that I didn't want to be here. My hands started to feel clammy.
"You'd look good in gold Rin" she said, surprising me.
"Gold and maybe orange? No...not for this dress. White would be a good color." She turned to Aoki.
Aoki smiled and gave Meiko a thumbs up. "Already got it boss." she said before rushing out of the room.
Meiko turned her attention back on me and gestured for me to sit in a chair. I did as I was told. She wheeled me in front of a mirror where she analyzed me once again.
"Want to dye your hair? It'd look good in Red." Meiko said.
My hands flew to my head. "No thanks. No dying please."
She chuckled and nodded, "Alright. How 'bout some highlights then?"
I hesitated, but shook my head.
Meiko sighed,"Alright. Anyways, hair and makeup is a must for the contest. What style are you going for to woo the public? We can go for punk, cute, mature, anything you want."
"Can I be me?" I asked. "I don't really want to change for millions of people whom I don't really know"
Meiko grinned, "That works too."
I nodded, feeling a little scared at what she was thinking. Meiko pulled out a notepad and got out a pencil. "I need to know a little about you to create your style" she explained.
"Ok" I replied.
"Favorite food?" She asked.
That one was easy. "Oranges," I replied.
"Favorite thing to do?" She asked.
That one was easy too. "Sing," I answered.
"Favorite person at this moment?" She asked.
This was a hard one. "I don't have one, but a lot" I said.
She nodded thoughtfully, "Nice answer. Can you name a few people and tell me what you like about them?" she asked.
"Rinto. He's my big brother. He's always protecting me. My adoptive parents, they raised us with so much love. Miku Hatsune. She's always been there for me. Finally, my dad, he hasn't really raised me, but I know he loved me a lot."
"Loved?" Meiko asked.
"Yea…" I answered. I didn't want to talk about it.
Meiko didn't pry. "Alright. Um...What career do you want?" she asked.
"I want to be a Singer" I said.
She nodded. "Tell me three words to describe yourself?"
"Sarcastic, interesting, and odd."
She smiled and shook her head. "Next question, are you a virgin?"
I gaped at her and she laughed. "Guess you are."
"Are you?" I retorted, still shocked.
"Of course." she said grinning.
I narrowed my eyes, "I don't believe you."
She just rolled her. "Moving on, are you lower class, middle class, or upper class?"
"Middle…" I replied.
"Have you ever wore makeup?" She asked
"Yes." I said.
"How regularly do you use makeup" she asked.
"I've used it about 5 times in my whole life" I replied.
She paused, "Really?"
I slowly nodded.
She blinked before giving me a tight hug, "You're so cute! No wonder your skin seems so smooth nice."
"Suffocating" I breathed.
She let me go. She had a sheepish smile on her face. "Sorry, it's just you don't see that around much these days."
I nodded, looking at her as though she was crazy.
She noticed. "Well, I've got enough information for now. I'll get the rest as I get to know you." she said.
"Alright" I said.
She nodded. She seemed to be turning serious now. "Alright Rin. Not many girls in the competition stay themselves. Are you sure you want to do this? It could work out in your favor or not. I'm not sure if it is the best decision. The current queens of our country didn't choose to be themselves either. The contestants will probably take after them. You'll be unique in that sense, but….."
"I want to be myself" I confirmed. She just said that less people might support me. Of course I was going to choose this.
"Alright" Meiko said.
"Your maids are sewing a dress at the moment. They are extremely talented so the dress should be done by the time I finish makeup. The makeup and hairstyle that i'm going to do are going to go with the dress."
I nodded, "Ok"
"I'm going to put on some light makeup," Meiko continued.
I nodded again, "That's fine."
"Close your eyes and don't move." she ordered.
I did as I was told. Meiko went on doing my makeup for about half an hour. When she told me to open my eyes, I was surprised. The person looking back at me was pretty. She was beautiful. She was me. Everything Meiko had put on didn't change the way I looked. It enhanced it. My eyes were brighter. My lips were slightly redder. I didn't look like a different person as they described in books and movies, I looked like myself and I loved it.
"Like it?" Meiko asked.
"Yes!" I squealed, before immediately shutting up. That outburst was unlike me.
She smiled, "As I've said before. Everyone's going to change their style, but this just might work out for you. Being yourself doesn't give you a set style. You can be anything you want and that's the beauty of it."
"It looks amazing. Thanks" I breathed.
"Of course it does. I did it" Meiko said. I could sense how proud she was. She looked at my hair, "Now what to do with this?"
"Anything you want, except for dying" I answered.
"Highlights?" she asked again.
I shook my head, "Not going to happen Meiko"
She frowned, "How do you want me to put your hair?"
"The same way it usually is."
Meiko nodded. She brushed my hair with a comb and put white hair clips on my bangs. "I'm going to give you headphones to wear, instead of your headband" she said.
"Alright I said."
The headphones didn't look much different from my headband. They were also white and gold, with my signature bow on them. "It's to fit your image as yourself. It shows people your love of music." Meiko explained.
I nodded, "I see."
There was a knock on the door and then a creak. I turned to see what it was. Merli and Aoki walked in the room with Galaco. They were carrying a dress. It was pretty. It was a white knee length summer dress. A gold belt wrapped around its waste. The hem of the dress was gold. The dress had golden flowers blooming all over it. It looked amazing.
"You did that in an hour?" I asked.
"Like it?" asked Merli. She had a big smile on her face.
"It's beautiful" I said.
The girls grinned. "Put it on" Galaco ordered. I turned to Meiko, who nodded.
Merli handed me the dress and I ran in the changing room. I zipped it up. When I came out Galaco handed me a pair of white and gold flats. I slipped them on.
"We need to get you to the event" Galaco said. She kept on glancing at the clock.
"When does it start?" I asked.
"Two minutes…" Galaco replied.
"What?!" I screamed.
"No time to freak out. Move!" Aoki said.
Meiko who seemed to be the calmest one in the room grabbed my hand and ran out the door, dragging me with her. "I know a few short cuts. You won't make it in time without me and I am not letting you mess up my hard work." she said.
She opened the door to a room and closed it, opening another door on the other side. It led out to a random hallway. The hallways passed in a blur. Meiko turned into so many random hallways that I lost track of where we came from. Luckily, she knew where she was going because we made it to the ballroom just in time. I was breathing heavily now, so was Meiko. Everyone in the ballroom turned their heads towards us. We seemed to catch everyone's attention. Sadly, this included the princes'. Prince Kaito raised a brow. I opened my mouth to explain, but Meiko was quicker.
"Sorry! I kept this cute little thing for far too long. I didn't look at the time" she said.
The prince smiled, "As long as you brought her here on time it's fine."
Meiko grinned, "And what if I kept her?"
"Well I'd snatch her back" Prince Len said.
It felt awkward to hear him say something like that. Part of me wanted to throw up. I wasn't some possession meant to be owned by someone. This person hadn't even properly met me.
Meiko rolled her eyes, "Well, I got to get back to work. See ya' Len. Bye Kaito!" Meiko walked out of the room. Everyone was staring at me now. I spotted Miku in the crowd.
'What was that about?' she mouthed.
'Later' I mouthed back. She nodded. I noticed that like me, she didn't look much different. Her blue hair was done in her signature ponytails. She didn't have much makeup on. She was also wearing headphones. Her dress was blue, grey, and black. It was similar to mine. I wanted to question Meiko about that later. For now, I turned my attention back at the podium, where the princes' were going to begin their speeches.
"Hello Ladies, we welcome you to our home. We hope you enjoy your stay here" Prince Kaito began.
"Today, is the official start of the competition. The photos taken today will be what the public sees. You all look beautiful, so I'm sure the public will love you" Prince Len said.
I could hear the girls competing for him swoon. I could also hear the girls competing for Kaito swoon. I gagged. Where these women even the slightest bit loyal?
"We have a few announcements to make" Kaito said. "I'm sure most of you read the rules, but for the people that haven't, we are going to state a few important ones. We would like you to keep in mind that, if you resort to harming your competition in anyway, you will be disqualified. You may not leave the castle without an escort or you will be disqualified. The princes' are the ones judging the competition, they can dismiss you at any time. Also, each round you make it through the competition. You will receive a reward. The reward gets bigger as you pass more and more rounds. The reward for passing round one is a thousand dollars."
"Well, that is it. Enjoy the photo shoot." Len said. Balloons were released marking the event. An orchestra in the back started playing music.
Miku walked over to me. "You're staying aren't you?" she asked.
"I didn't know there were prizes" I mumbled. "I can save him."
Miku smiled, "I'm taking that as a yes?"
I was grinning like an idiot, "Miku I can finally pay for the operation! My dad's going to wake up soon!"
Miku laughed, "Yep, knew it. So you're going to be serious about this? You know you are competing for the prince right?"
My happiness vanished. "I'll do it for my dad Miku. I'm not doing this to get some idiot prince."
She nodded, "I know Rin….It's just that, I don't like it."
I knew what she meant. I was going to play around with someone else's feelings.
"I'll make sure I won't win Miku. My dad wouldn't like that anyways. He wouldn't be proud. I still plan on quitting. I'll just get some money first. This way once I lose, I'll be able to pay for college fees and save up for my dad's operation." I replied.
Miku nodded, "I'll help too Rin."
I shook my head, "No. I couldn't do that to you. Besides, you need the money too."
Miku didn't say anything.
"Me and Rinto should be able to gather enough money by ourselves. He has a job too, so you don't need to help." I assured her.
"Rin, that operation is worth-" Miku began.
"I can do it" I said cutting her off. "I have too…"
"Rinto?" I was tugging his shirt. He looked down. "Is daddy leaving us too?"
He looked taken aback. He immediately embraced me. "No Rin. Daddy's not leaving us." His voice started to crack "He..He's just going to go to sleep. He'll wake up though. One day, he'll wake up."
"Rinto?" I was hugging him tightly in return.
"Yes Rin?" he asked.
"What's going to happen to us?" I asked.
He paused, "The adoption agency is going to take us. If we're lucky we might find a new home.
I was quiet. Tears were forming in my eyes again. I didn't want my father to leave us. "W… we won't be separated, right?"
He didn't responded. I started crying. He rubbed my back. "Yea, I promise. We won't be separated. I'll protect you Rin. I promise..."