The One (A Selection Fan Fiction)

Chapter Six

MAXON AND I SNEAKED TO the kitchens, telling everyone we meet on our way to keep this adventure as a secret. When we reached our destination, the whole place smelled fresh of food yet looked so clean. It was quite a large place. Some of the guards that were probably off-duty were eating on a long table near the corner of the kitchen. Cooks move around frantically, afraid to imperfect their dishes. Dishwashers and cleaners tried to move without bumping to the frantic cooks and servers. Maxon and I looked around the room to search for the familiar figure of Marlee.

Marlee Tames was my friend. She was a Four from Kent. We first met on the plane heading to the palace the day after the night that the names of the Selected were announced. From then on, we had been intimate friends until the Selection has been brought down to the Elite. We both made it through until one morning, I woke up to the grim faces of my maids. I had asked the three girls what was wrong but they said that their orders to keep their mouths closed about the event came from a higher position than me. I had dressed black that day, and when I arrived downstairs, we were only five instead of six. That was when I noticed Marlee was missing.

That day, I realised how dangerous Aspen and I's relationship was. That could have happened to us if we were not careful enough. That would have been us.

And that day, I was full of anger, disappointment, grief, fear and relief all at once.

I was angry because Maxon had let that happen to Marlee. He knew we were each other's friend. And it angered me more when his expression was blank when he saw Marlee's tears and heard my desperate cries to stop the caning. But he explained that he could do nothing about it but change execution to caning. Watching your only intimate friend being caned is heart-breaking; seeing them die is almost life-taking. So I understood Maxon's actions.

I was disappointed because Marlee did not tell me. She had kept it a secret when I thought I knew she trusted me. But then again, I kept my affair a secret, too. I was also disappointed on how Marlee and Carter were not careful of their actions.

I grieved of almost losing a friend. I feared for the life Marlee and Carter would face as Eights — how everyone would ignore them and be disgusted of them. And I feared because if that weren't Marlee and Carter, that could have been me and Aspen. What if Aspen and I would get caught? What would Maxon do to me, especially that I am his friend and I had hid secrets and betrayed him?

But at the end of the day, I realized: I was relieved. I was relieved because Marlee and Carter did not die, although their castes had been pulled down to Eight; because I knew Marlee could finally be with the man she loves; because that day made me realize how dangerous Aspen and I's affair is, and it made me realize our limits.

Marlee and Carter got married not long after, and Maxon sneaked them to the kitchens and stables so they could at least have something to work on. She didn't care about being an Eight because as long as she was with Carter, she'd never been happier.

Well, you cannot stop someone in love from being maudlin.

"There she is." Maxon's voice snapped me out of my reverie. My eyes darted to the direction Maxon's index finger was pointing. And sure enough, there she was. Marlee had her blond hair tied in a tight bun with a few stray strands. She was carrying a large pot towards the dish-washing area. As she released her grip on the handle for the other woman to take it, she released a breath. She smiled at the older woman before going back towards the stoves. Her brown eyes lit of joy as she saw me and Maxon.

"Oh, what a pleasant surprise, Lady and Your Majesty," Marlee curtsied. We both nodded at her and Maxon turned, Marlee and I followed him to a less public place.

"So, I heard the spreading rumors: The One will be chosen in three weeks, am I right?"

"Yes, the rumors you have heard are true," Maxon answered Marlee's question.

It was silent for a moment except for the occasional sounds of the pots bumping and banging against each other.

Marlee crossed her arms across her chest and stared at us. "Well? What's going on?" Marlee pushed for more details. "No, wait. I saw what you did last Friday at The Report. And as much as I love you and your idea for your philanthropy project, it wasn't exactly a good time. Maybe you could propose that idea again when you are princess or queen. Removing the castes won't tear the people in power of their powers, right?"

"I guess so," Maxon said, shrugging.

"I mean, the king and queen would probably still be the, well, king and queen," Marlee said. "So, Prince Maxon, why did you make a deadline for the Selection? It could take years, right?"

"Yes, it could take years. But I didn't make the decision for the deadline. My father did."

"Oh, I thought it was your decision, Maxon," I said for the first time since we entered the kitchens. "But why would he? Isn't that supposed to be your decision and not his?"

"Yes, of course, it is my decision. He asked for it, I agreed."

"But why? Why end the Selection this quickly?" Marlee asked again.

"Well, because of her project, he wanted America to leave as soon as possible. He wasn't exactly enthusiastic nor fond of America since I told that story of our first encounter. And that as soon as possible is the three weeks deal of ending the Selection and he told me to agree to it. I couldn't disobey him again."

"So he told you. He didn't ask you for it." I said.

"Well, yes," Maxon admitted. He pressed his lips into a tight line and shrugged. 

I shrugged, too, and turned to Marlee. "How about you, Marlee? How are you and Carter?"

She smiled and blushed. "We're uhh... we're good."

"Well? What's going on?" I pushed for more details, mocking her actions and words earlier. "No, wait. Let me guess. You're pregnant, am I wrong?"

This caused her to blush more deeply and Maxon's eyebrows lifted in amusement. Both Maxon and I lightly laughed at the reddening cheeks of Marlee.

"Your cheeks probably matches my hair now," I stated. She jokingly pushed me. 

"No," she said.

"What?" I asked, confused and dumbfounded. 

"I said no. You're not wrong."

As realization washed over me, I choked and coughed. It was Marlee's turn to laugh at me now. 

"Oh my gosh! No way! You must be bluffing," I said. 

"She isn't. She's blushing, as we both can see," Maxon said. "Unless you're color-blind."

"What? No, I am not color-blind," I said, crossing my arms across my chest. "How did Carter react to that?"

"Quite alike with yours," she grinned at the memory. "Then he hugged me so tight and when he released me, he asked if he hurt the baby. It isn't even five weeks old!"

"Well, congratulations, Marlee," Maxon said. "We would love to stay and chat if we have the time of the world on our hands. Unfortunately, we do not. We've got to go now. Goodbye, Marlee."

"Goodbye, Marlee," I repeated, hugging her. "Congratulations and good luck." 

"Thank you and goodbye. You two just made me happier," she said.

As we walked away, I hadn't realized I was staring at a far distance until Maxon waved his hand in front of my face and laughed when my eyes finally came to focus on him. I smiled at him. He looked so ecstatic, alive and free. I wondered if anyone else but me can make him feel like this alive.