Chosen- A Selection Fanfiction

Chapter 42

I walked down the long hallways on my way back from the women's room around a week later. I held a book to my chest, along with a piece of music to practice. I was trying to get back into the habit of reading and playing since my life had been pretty boring without them. I just haven't been as busy as I used to be without throwing balls, teas, or any other projects. 

It was just time to wait. 

Seriously, there were three of us. They stopped bringing us on the report because I think we got uninteresting. However, I'm not complaining. We would do an interview every now and again, and they would always want to talk about the tragedy of my life. I wasn't the only one either- they got on Leila's back about her sister, Jenny, when she passed away.

It's hard to try and move on when all people want to do is bring up the past. There's no escape from what happened, but you can at least try to be happy and not be haunted by what happens to you every day. It's okay to be sad, but not forever. 

I was so lost in thought that I didn't see where I was going. I knocked myself into somebody walking down the hallway, and we both fell down on the ground. I got splattered with hot coffee, but at least the book I was holding didn't get wet. 

"I'm so sorry, Lady Elisa!"

"It's okay," I laughed. I swept my hair my eyes and looked up at the man extending a hand towards me. I furrowed my eyebrows in mild confusion. "Landon? What are you doing here?" 

"I was taking coffee to one of the generals for their meeting. They can wait. Let's go get you cleaned up," he said with a smile. I took his hand and followed him to the kitchen. The coffee was hot and sticky on my skin as it seeped through my chest. 

"How have you been? It's been quite a long time since I saw you last," I said, trying to make conversation. 

"Well, I've been pretty good. I actually took a while off to go stay with my mum to help her get accustomed to her new hospital. She's doing extremely well, actually. The doctors said she's probably going to go into remission soon and she'll be able to come home."

"That's amazing, Landon," I grinned. He didn't know that I was the one who funded her new medication, and I preferred to keep it that way. I was excited for him. 

"I couldn't believe the insurance came through," he kept going. I let him talk all about the move while he maneuvered around the kitchen to make for the meeting going on. He lit up with excitement, his blue eyes sparkling. He was so happy. 

"I'm glad for you," I commented. I was treating the little burns on my skin. They didn't hurt- just procedure. The dress got the worst of it. 

"So how about you? I haven't seen you since before you were hospitalized, but you seem to be holding up great.

"Yeah, I've been fine. Just kind of waiting for this whole thing to end, you know? But, at the same time, I'm not in any rush to get married. I mean, I'm only eighteen," I explained. I gave up on getting the coffee out of the dress and just put my hair into a ponytail behind me with a rubber band that was already in my hair.

"You almost did get married a few months ago, didn't you?" he asked. 

"Yes! And it was terrifying. I had to wear this super morbid black wedding dress and black makeup and black flowers and my ring had a black  diamond, Landon!"

"That sounds depressing," he chuckled with his light Irish accent. "Well, I doubt it will be long now. It's going to end soon, you know."

"Yeah, I hope so."

He placed the coffee and condiments on a metal tray. "I need to get going. It's great to see you again, Elisa. Maybe not so long until the next meeting, yeah?"

"Definitely," I nodded. He left, leaving the kitchen doors to swing behind him. I saw he had spilled a little bit of coffee on the white counter top, so I wiped it off with a paper towel before leaving as well. 

I got back up to my room and changed out of my dress. Mary was visiting home for a few days, so it was just Diana and Cecelia tidying up. Diana left to get my coffee stained dress washed, and I sat at the piano trying to learn this new piece. 

I played through it a few times, but I noticed that Cecelia was very quiet. She usually looks at me, smiles, or makes a small comment. She seems to be stressed as she fluffs the pillows continually and worries the fabric of her skirt. 

"Are you alright?" I asked her, taking my fingers off of the keys. 

She looked up at me, her blue-green eyes startled. "Yes, I'm okay. Do you need anything, Elisa?" she asked stiffly. 

I furrowed my brow and left my post at the piano bench to sit beside her. "Are you sure you're alright?"

She averted her eyes and bit her lip. "I'm not supposed to talk about it."

"Cecelia, what happened?" I asked sternly.

"Well, there have been security breaches all over the country, primarily the state. Mary didn't go home to visit family- she was a rebel."

"A rebel? I thought we got rid of those," I mumbled quietly to myself. "Mary wasn't a rebel. She's been with me since the beginning! She was like our sister- she wasn't one of them."

"I'm as upset as you are," she whispered. "Mary has been with me since I started working here. They're investigating staff, and quite a few have already been sent home."

I sat back on the couch. "When were you guys going to tell me about all of this?"

She stood up and started to pace. "Well, we weren't supposed to. Mary was going to 'elope' after finding love in her hometown and not come back to cover it up. Only the next princess was going to find out."

"So, I wouldn't have found out unless I was crowned princess? Unless I won the selection? Then I was going to find out about these extensive investigations?" I repeated furiously.

She nodded. "They're starting to scare me, Elisa. People are disappearing- I don't know what's happening, and I'm scared."

"Don't worry about it, Cecelia. I'm not letting anything hurt my family."

#lastminuteplottwist 

Okay, so I'm going to keep this rather short. I don't know when the next update will be, so please don't harass me. Also, I'm pretty upset because my cat died while I was writing this chapter. I just can't really write and be happy right now. It's too disrespectful in a way. This cat was 16- older than me. 

questions

Did you expect the rebel return?

What about Mary?

Who's next to leave?

Where's the drama going to come from next?

What are those?!