Scorched

Chapter 10

Gwen sat next to Taylor at the long wooden table, anxiously picking at her shirt. It was easy to see who had succeeded in the challenge. They sat confidently in their seats, watching the unfortunate ones smugly. Gwen's eyes flickered to the doorway every time someone walked in, waiting for the person with the results.

She couldn't touch the steaming plate in front of her, although her stomach grumbled loudly. She felt too sick to eat. She reminded herself over and over that not everyone who lost their battle would be sent home. Their numbers would again be cut by five, and Gwen couldn't imagine being sent home at this point.

Gwen had more to lose than the others in this competition; she had to fix things with Xander, and maybe Rowan if he would speak to her. Losing her lifelong dream because of a silly mistake made Gwen feel sick to her stomach.

Rowan, who always seemed to be around, hung back around the wall, not eating. Her eyes met his and she felt his anger directed at her. She took a deep breath, if she was to go home tonight, she might as well apologize to the Prince. It was better for her not to have a powerful enemy if she was forced to go home.

She pushed herself up from the table, happy for any distraction from the agony of waiting and marched determinedly towards Rowan.

"Look, before you say anything or tell me to go away I just have to say I'm sorry. I know you were just trying to help but I needed to stand up for myself, and I couldn't do that if you fought my battles for me. I shouldn't have yelled and I really want us to go back to being friends," Gwen burst out before he could interrupt.

She looked up from the ground and met Rowan's eyes again, and was surprised to see they were no longer burning with rage. There was a small smile on his face, his dark eyes warm again.

"No," he said laughing quietly, "I should have known you wouldn't take kindly to someone else interfering with your pride. I know girls like you."

At his words Gwen felt a small stab of pain in her chest. Girls like her. She didn't know exactly why hearing him say that bugged her so much, but it did.

She shrugged noncommittally and shook it off.

"So I'm forgiven?" she asked brightly, momentarily forgetting about the competition results.

"Yeah, you're forgiven," he said smiling. "And don't worry too much about going home yet, you're-" he broke off, looking guilty for a second before continuing. "I mean, you held him off for quite a while, I'm sure the judges wouldn't send you home after that."

"I can't avoid being nervous." She rolled her eyes. "This is the biggest day of my life. If I lose, I lose everything."

Before Rowan could respond, the guard who had been running the trails walked in, holding a long piece of paper. Rowan grabbed her hand and tugged her gently to his side, squeezing it reassuringly. Gwen pulled away in surprise, her heart thudding. She shot him a look out of the corner of her eye, and found him looking firmly towards the front, face slightly pink.

Gwen was taken aback. Just minutes ago he had been furious with her, and now he was trying to hold her hand? The guard began reading out the names of the people staying in the competition, taking her attention away from wondering about the Prince.

He was getting near to the end of the list and Gwen couldn't keep herself still. She was bouncing up and down on her toes, her hands shaking.

"Gwen Caldwell," the guard called out, reading her name very last on the list. Gwen sagged in relief, she had come in last place, but she was still in the competition. She was grinning from ear to ear and turned to Rowan, hugging him tightly.