The Choosing

Chapter 33//: Late Night Talks

[ E D I T E D ]

♕✿~♕✿~Chapter 33//: Late Night Talks♕✿~♕✿~

I toss and turn, unable to fall asleep even though the hour is late. I finally give up. Pushing the bed covers aside, I walk towards my door. I put on some slippers and shiver a bit as the cold hallway air hits me.

It was a wild hope, but maybe Rose would be down in the kitchen today. I could use a late night talk with her, especially with everything that happened today.

Yesterday, my conversation with the king was definitely weird. I spent a lot of time trying to figure out what his smile meant. As if that wasn't enough to worry about, today at breakfast, lunch and dinner, the other Chosen girls were constantly whispering and looking at me. I caught Alexis glaring at me more than once, which isn't really anything new. But Emily, who I thought I might be finally getting along with, ignored me completely. She looked at me once when walking into the dining hall, but she would just frown and look away. I didn't know what was happening. Even the king was scowling at me throughout the times when I was dining. Juliet was maniacally smiling at me with a knowing look, which made me a bit worried.

I tentatively push open the kitchen door. Please let Rose be here, I think to myself as my eyes scan the dark kitchen. A wide smile breaks over my face as my eyes land on Rose. But she's not the only one here.

"Nick! It's been a while," I greet him, a bit astonished to see him here. When he notices it's me, he smiles and immediately stands up from the table he and Rose are sitting at.

"I've missed you, Madi," he tells me as he pulls me into a warm hug. I can't help but smile into his shoulders. When we pull away from each other, I turn to Rose, hugging her in greeting.

"I was hoping you'd be here. How has everything worked out for you guys?" I ask them. They smile at each other, a secret smile for each other.

"Nothing much," Nick tells me, still smiling. I narrow my eyes at him and Rose. They were obviously keeping something away from me, but I wouldn't try to push the subject. If they wanted to tell me, they would tell me.

"Anyways, Madi. I was hoping I could speak to you." A giddy smile is on Rose's face. I raise an eyebrow. "Yeah? What do you want to talk about?" I say as I go to sit in one of the chairs at the small table Rose and Nick were sitting at prior to me entering.

Nick and Rose follow me to the table, sitting down. Rose picks something up from the floor, and I stare at her hands suspiciously, not knowing what I should expect.

It's a magazine. More specifically, the Norta News. It's the most popular magazine, as far as I know. I open my mouth to ask what the the importance of this magazine is when I catch the picture on the front cover, my eyes widening considerably.

I reach across the table, trying to snatch the magazine away from Rose, but she's too quick for me. She passes the magazine to Nick, who raises his arm high above his head. I scowl, knowing I can't reach it without possibly breaking bones in the process.

"What is that?" I demand, crossing my arms over my chest. Now I understand the giddy look on Rose's face and the humorous one on Nick's face.

Nick lowers his arm, flipping through the magazine until he comes to a certain page. He then passes it to me, and I take it with shaking hands.

My face immediately heats up in embarrassment. The article on this page was featuring...Ahren and I.

The title of the article screams Could There Be A Red Queen? in big, bold letters. In the middle of the page, there's a picture of me and Ahren on the night of my birthday. It was a faraway shot, probably by some creeper photographer in the garden, but you could still see it was me and Ahren.