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“Yay!” Vallie clapped her hands together as she jumped up and down. “Come on, if I miss Sie’s interview, I will kill you.” I was grateful Vallie took the spot closest to Yuri and her friends as I slumped onto the bench to Vallie’s left. I always felt slightly guilty seeing the two of them together. She and Yuri used to be best friends before I ruined it when Vallie ultimately defended me. They are still civil, but Yuri has never invited Vallie over to her place again since the night she brought me.
“Hi, Vallie,” Yuri’s high-pitched voice rang through my ears as she smiled at my friend. I did my best to zone them out as they started talking about Sie’s abs and what it would be like to be his Queen. I focused on the monitor screen. It didn’t look as if we missed the fighting portion of the tournament. Still, with the buzz and gossip flying across the room, it was hard to hear anything coming from the screen.
I felt a tap on my shoulder and turned to see my only other friend at school. “Hi, Miles,” I smiled as he pushed Vallie out of the way to squeeze down in between us.
“Hey, Scottie. Hey, sis.” Miles grinned at his twin and me. There was no denying that Vallie and Miles were related when they smiled. They both shared the same wide grin with teeth that were too large for their mouths. They were both on the tall side, but while Miles was lankier, Vallie had a more feminine figure. She had curves in all the right places, something I wished I had. Miles’ hair was a shade lighter than his sister’s. More of a strawberry-blonde while Vallie’s was a flaming red. She stuck out in any crowd. Especially when in the sun and the light hit her hair just right, hues of orange and gold showed through, complementing her amber eyes.
Vallie was gorgeous, and her personality matched her looks. She was light-hearted, open, and sweet. She made friends wherever she went. Miles was more of a loner like me. In fact, he probably didn’t have any other friends either. He always had his head in a book, studying for the AASP, the Allium Advenian Space Program. Whenever we would hang out without Vallie, we didn’t talk much, and usually just read our own books in silence.
Vallie stuck her tongue out at her twin. “Nice of you to join us, Miles.”
Miles gave her a nod before turning his attention to me. “How is training going?” I bit my lip as his russet eyes met mine. He sometimes made me feel uneasy with the intensity of his gaze. I would catch him looking at me, and he wouldn’t look away. I wasn’t used to the undivided attention that he gave me, no matter how much time I spent with the two of them. Most Advenians avoided me altogether. He was attractive, and I was aware there were many females interested in him, but I just never thought of him in that way and I was thankful that, because of Vallie, he never made a move on me.
“It’s good,” I managed to choke out.
Vallie slapped my arm, saving me from whatever Miles was about to say next. “Ah, Scottie, that’s him! Oh. My. Gosh. He is so… hot.”
I looked up at the monitor, and I had to agree with her. A reporter was currently interviewing Sie as he appeared front and center on the screen. The man staring back at me had a dark, masculine persona. He was tall, really tall, about a head above everyone else.
Some of the other males standing in the background were bulkier than him, but he looked more athletic. Powerful in a different kind of way, every inch of him corded in lean muscle. His facial contours captured my attention as his dark, black messy hair fell into soft waves over his forehead.
As he shook his head to brush the few strands away, I caught a glimpse of his eyes. They were the most striking feature about him. His dark gaze was piercing. He didn’t smile and kept his mouth set beneath his straight nose, exposing his angular jawline. Every feature somehow fit him perfectly, making him appear like a weapon, like someone you wouldn’t want to face in battle. He didn’t even look like someone you would want to hold a simple conversation with. He looked dangerous in a cold, mysterious kind of way.
The screen zoomed in on Sie’s left wrist which had the number five burned into it. After the Trials, once you received your official ranking, everyone had to get their number branded onto them. It was meant to symbolize your strength.
I found it cruel. Most people had the one or two rank burned onto them, a common number. Fewer had a three or a four, but no one in Tennebris had a five. Not until Sie. At least not anyone who was still alive. I found the rankings as a way for Advenians to brag, giving them an excuse to feel superior over others. All the competing males had their gazes transfixed on Sie. They looked nervous, intimidated by his number.
Vallie leaned over her twin and pretended to wipe something off my chin. “Drool,” she smirked with a gleam in her eyes.
I swatted her hand away. “Did we miss the beginning?” I asked the group of girls we were sitting with, wholly ignoring Vallie’s comment. Miles seemed to notice too.
One of the girls responded, “Yeah, the written portion of the tournament just finished. It took about an hour for everyone to be done. Sie finished first, of course.”
“Oh,” I responded, slightly disappointed. I knew that it was generally the boring part, but I wanted to watch the entire thing. The tournament had three stages: two fighting stages and a written exam in the beginning. Thousands of males apply for the tournament every decade, but only the top fifteen are accepted to take the written exam.
“I never understood why they have to take a written exam. It’s a waste of time if you ask me,” Yuri huffed.
Miles looked at her in disbelief. “You’re kidding me, right?” When she didn’t respond, he added, “You’re telling me that you don’t want to make sure the future ruler of Tennebris is intelligent? The fact that he has to be able to make logical and just decisions for our Kingdom, and is responsible for meeting with Lux every year to negotiate the Peace Treaty, doesn’t concern you at all?”
“Isn’t that the purpose of the High Council?” she asked as she inspected the ends of her blonde hair.
“The King gets the final say. He has more sway than anyone. If the King—”
“No one cares, Miles,” Yuri cut him off as she turned her focus back to the screen. Miles continued to stare at her in disbelief.
“Did the results come back yet for the written exam?” I asked, hoping to break the tension. I wanted to know how many passed and would proceed to the fighting portion.
“Yeah, the results are back. Ten people failed it,” another girl answered. “Sie and four others passed. I honestly forget their names. They just started the interviews, so they should come up on the screen soon.”
As an interviewer asked Sie a question, the whole room grew silent. “As you know, during the first round of the tournament, you and your opponents will be fighting all at once. Are you aware of the rumors circulating that the other opponents may try to team up against you? Since the first round is combat only, you won’t be able to rely on your powers at all. Does this concern you?”
Sie looked at her unamused, or unbothered, by the question as if he expected it. Everyone was gossiping that the only way to beat him was for all the contestants to work together from the start, take him out first and then fight amongst themselves. It was a good strategy, and probably the only feasible one, if what they said about his fighting skills were true. However, it wasn’t fair.
“No,” he remarked. His voice was flat as he added nothing else.
“He sounds cocky and arrogant.” I blurted as I sat back on the bench. Everyone around me, including Vallie and Yuri, hushed me so they could hear what else Sie was saying. Miles chuckled.
The interviewer continued to ask question after question, trying to get a juicy remark out of him, but he didn’t indulge her. I wondered if he was even capable of speaking more than one-worded answers. He maintained a serious and composed face the entire interview, showing no signs of nervousness or display of any emotion.
