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CHAPTER viii: LOVE ME LESS
Kleo wonders if she is doing the right thing. It's crossed her mind many times on numerous occasions. During dinners with all the royals, attempting to answer all the invasive questions from the reporters, changing her whole look just to 'fit in'. And at the end of every day, she asks herself "Is this all worth it?". She always manages to convince herself that it is, that all of what she's doing is worth it. That she's not only doing it to 'better' herself, but to not embarrass her boyfriend.
She wishes these thoughts would just go away but every time she tries to push them away, they come back a thousand times harder and make her question everything all over again. Kleo nearly trips over herself as she's lost in her own thoughts while walking down the hallway with her friends. Evie tries to steady her, "Careful!" exclaims Evie, worried. "I swear you have two left feet, K."
Mal doesn't even spare a glance at Kleo, as she blankly stares forward, while Carlos and Jay snicker at Kleo's clumsiness in heels. They all continue down the outside corridor. Dude, Carlos' dog, walks alongside him as Carlos holds onto his leash as Jay coyly smiles at girl's who call out his name to say 'hi' in a flirtatious manner.
"Why do you torture them?" asks Carlos. "Just pick someone to take to Cotillion already."
"I'm going solo," says Jay. "That way, I can dance with all of them."
"Ah! You're the expert," says Carlos. He then lowers his voice to a whisper for only Jay to hear. "Jay... if you were gonna ask someone, what's the best way to go?"
"Listen, all you got to do... is look like me," Jay chuckles, wickedly as Carlos playfully punches his arm.
"Oh, ha-ha."
"Kleo!"
Kleo stops her fumbling in her heels as she sees Jane rushing over to her and her friends. But before she can say anything to the half-fairy, Carlos butts in.
"Hey, Jane."
Jane stops and almost stares dreamily at Carlos. Over the last six months, Jane and Carlos had been getting close, closer than a platonic friendship that is. "Hey."
"I was wondering...uh..." Carlos trails off, not knowing that what he wants to ask her will be the right moment to do so and scared if she might reject him. "if you liked the... carrot cake last night."
"I had the pumpkin pie." Typical.
"Swing and a miss, swing. And. A. Miss," mumbles Kleo, watching Carlos strike out with his chance with Jane. Evie shushes her. Jay chuckles. Mal is still not listening.
"Oh, cool. Um, uh—"
"Smooth," says Jay, clamping his hand down on Carlos' shoulder.
