The Thirty Six Selected

Ten

There was so much excitement in the air as the night we were set to celebrate Halloween approached. Girls were gushing about their costumes, sampling fabrics, and cameras were there to capture every moment. It hadn't occurred to me until later, but there hadn't been any cameras intruding on my date with Travon.

The date was something only Truly Anne, Angel, and Indigo knew about. I could've told more people, but I was keeping it to myself, a little secret that I could ponder. What did it mean? He'd acted a lot less nervous this time, which made me think he was less stressed or more comfortable around me today.

"We're just here to get some shots of the Halloween preparation. Act natural." said the cameraman. I went back to looking at the table of sketches with Truly Anne, Angel, and Indigo. When the cameraman said natural, what he meant was he wanted us to pose. I pointed at a sketch and smiled across the table at Angel. "Yes, that's it!" said the cameraman. "Hold it," I smiled awkwardly, trying not to laugh as I stared into Angel's eyes. "Alright, we're going to go get some shots of Lady Honey." The cameras moved away, and I slumped in my chair.

"I'm so done with this camera thing."

"One of us is going to have to get used to it, '' said Truly Anne, looking around the room, and I glanced around too. Suddenly, the atmosphere of the Women's room had changed. It was as if we had been dragged back to earth, the unwelcome but incredibly apparent truth returning. Because we weren't here to try on pretty dresses and make friends, we were competitors. Indigo seemed to be having the same thought as me, but she shrugged. I silently agreed. Even if we were competitors, she was still one of my best friends.

Halloween night was approaching fast, and my maids were hard at work on my costume. However, there weren't a lot of things going on in the Women's room. Dates were old news, and everyone had been on at least two. The only interesting thing was hearing about the other girls' experiences with the cameras.

"Wait, he dismissed the cameras on your date?" asked Indigo, taking a cup of tea from a maid.

"Yeah?"

"He hasn't done that with me. We just ignore them."

"Oh," I said, not entirely sure if it was good or bad that Travon didn't want the cameras around with me. "Halloween is tomorrow night, right?" I changed the subject. "Are you maids almost done with your costume?"

"I think they are done, actually," said Indigo. "They got super excited."

Since Indigo, Truly Anne, Angel, and I were going to be elements, Indigo was going to be the fire.

"Mine did too." I agreed. I was going to be air. "I haven't seen what they're planning, but I think it's going to be amazing."

"Has anyone seen Truly Anne?" asked Angel, coming to sit next to us.

"No..." I said, and my voice trailed off. I hadn't seen Truly Anne all day.

"I mean, I saw Honey going to her room, but she just came out with a necklace or something. She said she had borrowed a necklace, and she was going to put it back," muttered Indigo.

Just then, Echo dashed into the room. "Someone put glass in Truly Anne's shoes! Her feet are bleeding like crazy!" Echo was panicked looking.

"Oh my god!" I rose instantly and ran toward Echo. "How did it happen?"

"I don't know," said Echo, burying her face in her hands. I put my arm around her.

Indigo patted her on the shoulder. "It's okay. Have you seen the size of the hospital wing? She'll be fine."

"What's going on?" asked a voice. That voice belonged to Travon, who was walking by the doorway. Echo wiped her eyes and raised her chin.

"Truly Anne got hurt," I said carefully. "Someone put glass in her shoes."