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Disclaimer: I do NOT own The Selection. That belongs to Kiera Cass.

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Chapter One

My nights have been filled with horrid nightmares since Kriss's death. I know that it wasn't my fault, but somehow I know that all this started with that Friday Report last month. The same report that nearly cost me my place in the Selection. I've continuously apologized to Illea for my stupid idea and Maxon - along with his family - have forgiven me. In fact, King Clarkson explicitly told me that all was pardoned. However, deep down in my gut I know that his father would rather see me dead than ruling by Maxon's side, so why am I still alive? With only two girls left in the Selection, when will Maxon choose his wife? I don't want to stay if he's planning on picking Celeste.

I get up from my bed and walk over to my piano. I sit down and simply stare at the instrument. I've always wondered how such a large thing could make any song sound so beautiful. Hours pass and eventually someone comes to sit next to me on the piano bench. "America," they say. "I'm sorry if you're scared, but please don't leave me." I look over at the man I fell in love with all those months ago. "I won't ever leave you, unless you want me to go." And I meant it. My life revolved around the man sitting beside me.

My response to his question got a smile out of him, but then it faded. "She's just using me and I know it. My choice is you. It's always been you." I wish I could say the same, but I couldn't lie to him. He would see right through the falsehood of my story and I would only embarrass myself. "You should go," I said. "We wouldn't want anyone to know that you were in my room, now would we?" That got a small smile out of him. "I love you," he said. And with that, he made his way out the door.

The next morning I went down for breakfast in a shimmering sky blue dress. It came to just above my knees and had a simple satin white ribbon that was tied around my waist. It really brought out my curves. My white kitten heels were already beginning to hurt my feet. My hair was tied up in a ponytail and the soft curls fell down my back in cascading waves of red. I sat down next to Celeste, as it was only the royal family and the two of us. Oddly enough, the room was absolutely silent, expect for the sounds of people walking. As I shifted around uncomfortably, I avoided everyone's eyes, even though I could feel their stares on my back. They must have been worried about how I was coping with the loss of a Selected. When the waiter brought out the food, I couldn't touch it. I'd barely eaten since I'd seen that rebel kill Kriss last week. I couldn't shake the feeling that something was off. No one had come to her defense, but me. Even Maxon had run only ran after us to keep me safe. Clearly, Kriss had loved Maxon and vise versa, so why hasn't he shed a tear for her yet? At her funeral, he'd said a few nice words about her, but seemed preoccupied with how I was doing, rather than grieving for his dead girlfriend.

Keeping my gaze averted, I got up to leave, but not before Maxon saw me. "Please America," he called. "Don't go." My heart hurt to know that I was leaving him in this cage, but I had to get some fresh air soon, or I would go insane. I ran out of the room and into the garden, where I burst into tears. My heart wanted to stop aching - to unsee the horrific murder of one of my friends, or at least, I hope we were friends. I was never quite sure of where Kriss and I stood. All I knew was that I would never forget the look in her eyes.

I was so focused on my thoughts that I didn't hear Maxon when he came and sat down on the small bench next to me. "How are you doing," he asked. He always seemed to know just what to say. But then again, he was the prince – my prince. "Fine, I guess," I said. "However, I may never get over her death. Kriss and I had a mutual understanding of each other and she was the only other person who I could talk to that knew how I felt and what I was going through. She listened to my opinions and to her I wasn't a competitor – I was a friend. And now, I don't have anyone else who I can talk to about the Selection." He seemed slightly hurt by something that I had said. "Mer, I hope you know that you can always talk to me. Honestly, I love you too much to let you suffer from this completion, so I just wanted to tell you that I talked to my parents and they are both fine with you, Celeste, and I going to see your families. I get that we have all been having a bad week and I think that seeing your families will make you both feel better." He was right. There was nothing more in this world that I wanted than to see my family. I missed them all so much.

Just then, I heard someone clear their throat. I looked over and saw five guards standing there with their arms crossed. They all wore expressions of concern, as if Maxon and I were attracting rebels by just sitting there. "Your Highness," said a guard with short ash blonde hair. His blue eyes were locked on Maxon's brown ones. "It's not safe out here. The rebels are everywhere and you could easily be attacked by a group of them at any given moment." I looked at his nametag – George it said. He was already coming closer until a piercing noise rang through the air. It was the rebels. It was as if they had sensed George's warning and I wondered how. Maxon scooped me up in his arms and we made our way to the safe room with the five guards trailing behind us.

When we reached the safe room, I collapsed on the nearest empty cot. I had hardly slept this past week - seeing that my nightmares had been continuously keeping me awake at night. The thought that we were visiting our families soon was all I could think about. Not Kriss, not the rebels, and definitely not the Selection.

I let my mind wander off to my utopia, where there were no wars, or Selections, and definitely no doubt in Maxon's mind about whom he would marry. We lived together with our families and had one of our own. Our eldest child - Josh - had the freedom to get married to whomever he wanted and our daughter – Emily – wasn't married off to strengthen bonds with other countries, but rather chose to do so because she wanted to. She had fallen in love with Prince Zachary of France and was extremely happy.

A few hours later, I felt someone gently nudge my shoulder. When I finally managed to open my eyes, I saw Maxon leaning over me. "Hello, my dear," he said with a gorgeous smile on his face. "I thought you knew how much I hate it when you call me that," I responded. Even though that nickname was beginning to grow on me, I would never admit it to Maxon. As far as he knew, I get annoyed when he calls me his dear. He laughed while helping me up. "I do, but I always enjoy seeing that angry look on your face afterwards. It's quite funny." Then, as if proving his point, he began to laugh. "It's not funny Maxon," I whined. "I'm not your dear – at least not yet." I hoped he could tell that I wanted to be his dear, but he had yet to decide whom he would marry and even though I knew he would pick me, he had yet to eliminate Celeste - the only person keeping me from my future with Maxon.

He just continued to laugh as he escorted me to the table where everyone else was already sitting. I took my place in between Maxon and Queen Amberly. Celeste was sitting on the opposite side of Maxon and I had to resist the urge to grab his hand and run in the other direction. I was still surprised when he'd eliminated Elise two weeks ago instead of Celeste.

We enjoyed an amazing lunch, filled with spaghetti and plenty of vegetables. For dessert, we had strawberry tarts that were just as delicious as they were when I had them that first day. However, the silence that passed between the five of us was excoriatingly painful. No one said a word and by the time they brought out the dessert, I'd had enough of the silence. "So," I began. "Anything interesting happen today?" Even though I had just wanted to make small talk, I got a glare from the king that said I should have kept my mouth shut. On the other hand, Maxon began rambling on about how they were close to creating a peace treaty with New Asia. It was fascinating really. The king was being nice about Illea's victory. I could have sworn I saw him smile a little when Maxon mentioned how happy he was with the way that things were turning out. Then Celeste asked the question that was on my mind as well. "Maxon, darling, when will we find out who wins the Selection," she said. She sounded so innocent, that I wanted to scream. "Well," Maxon began. "I will be making the final decision soon and I will let you all know-" Just then I heard a bang come from the door. I looked over to Maxon. "When, Maxon?" He turned to face me. "Well America, I will announce who will become my wife on…"

Did you like it? Who do you think the man that came into America's room in the beginning of the chapter was? Also, I'm bad with cliffhangers, I know.

Until next time...

- Hearts And Crowns