The Selection

17- Thrilling Thursday with Brandon

Talking about someday and the long game with Josh reminded me of the reason why the selection was even happening. I was going to marry one of these boys. This thought kept racing through my head as Brandon escorted me through the gardens for our date. 

He told me about the different kinds of flowers and plants surprising me. Up until now, Brandon had been giving me the impression that he was a bad boy but now he was showing me a different side of him. I wasn't usually a fan of learning but he had a way of talking about things that made it interesting.

Deep in the palace gardens, Brandon had set up a nice picnic for us. It reminded me of our first date together. I tried to stay focused on enjoying the afternoon but my mind kept racing to all my concerns. What if I made the wrong choice and I was stuck in an unhappy marriage. I had seen my parents go through it and there was no way I could go through the rest of my life like that.

"What's on your mind?" He asked me, pulling my attention back from my thoughts. Clearly, I wasn't as subtle as I thought I was.

"Sorry." I frowned shaking my head. 

"Don't be. If you want to talk about it you can but if you don't-"

"Thanks." I cut him off. "I'm just curious about you." It was not the only thing on my mind but it was at least true. "Why did you sign up for the selection?" I asked him. 

"Because I wanted to marry a beautiful woman?" He shrugged. I smiled at the compliment.

"Is that really the only reason?" I wondered. He had depth, he had shown that when he told me the meaning behind certain flowers and the purpose of plants. He didn't seem superficial despite his answer. 

"I've always been really interested in politics." He confessed, proving me right. "I thought maybe being here would give me a chance to see some of the inner workings of the kingdom." 

"Do you think your interest in politics would make you a good king?" I asked skeptically. 

"I think it would make me a good prince consort." He countered, proving he knew what he was talking about. That was another aspect of the selection I hadn't considered much. On top of finding a good husband, I needed to find a good partner. Someone who could handle ruling a kingdom by my side. "Come on." Brandon stood up abruptly and held out his hand.

"What? Where?" 

"You need a distraction. So let's go." I took his hand and he took off. This time we weren't running away from cameramen. We were just running. We sprinted past the tree we sat in last time before ending up deep in the forest. 

"What now?" I asked as he slowed down, allowing us to catch our breath. He thought for a moment before tapping my shoulder. 

"Tag, you're it." He bolted away before I could process what had happened. 

"Hey!" I called after him. I followed his path trying to catch up. Eventually, I managed to reach him, hitting his arm before sprinting away as fast aI could. After chasing each other back and forth for a while I realized that I wasn't thinking about anything. Brandon had successfully distracted me from all of my worries. As we sat on the ground of the woods I looked at him. 

"What?" He questioned nervously.

"Thank you," I said simply. 

"For what?"

"I had a lovely time today." 

"Me too." 

"We should head back soon," I mumbled sadly. 

"Not yet." I decided not to argue enjoying the comfort of nature and the calming presence of the boy beside me. We took our time walking back, neither one of us was in a rush to return to the duties of the castle. 

He walked me to my door and lightly kissed my hand.

"Goodnight Maya." His tone was filled with words unsaid and I didn't understand how he could relax me with those two simple words.

"Goodnight Brandon."