Mating Call

Part 3

 The time came for each girl to choose the boy that had won her heart over the course of the three trials. Giddy girls fantasized with their friends over what the next few years of their life would look like with their ideal mate. Talia was talking my ear off about Zander, but occasionally threw another boy, Ricky, into the conversation too. All of the words around me meshed into one blur of noise; I could only focus on Cassian's message. My palms were sweaty and I laced and unlaced my fingers as an anxious habit. The hostess hushed all of the girls and explained that they could bring up to three guys on stage to determine their final decision. The hostess then signaled for the first girl, Nicola VI, to stand up and make her decision. A man, presumably the hostess' husband, approached Nicola with a microphone and held it just below her chin.

"First of all, I want to take a moment and remember my great-great-great-grandmother who ingeniously created this ceremony," Nicola announced, sending the entire amphitheater into an eruption of applause. "Now, for my decision. I chose the boy who, by far, stood out the most. He impressed me in almost every category, but I knew just by the sound of his voice--"

"Yeesh! Does she really need to give a whole speech? I get that she's an important person, but we've already been here for hours and you know how indecisive the girls in our grade can be! We're going to be here forever!" Talia cried, dramatically dropping her head onto my shoulder.

"Oh, it'll all be worth it in the end. Just close your eyes and picture yourself with Zander or Ricky or whoever it is that you've been obsessing over," I comforted and teased Talia at the same time, patting her head gently. My mind wandered off to think about what Cassian's reaction would be when I called his name. I repeated his name over and over in my head, not wanting to say Caspian Hiran instead of Cassian Hiram and end up with the boy known for drinking toilet water. I repeated it so much in my head that I believe I began to hear it out loud.

"Cassian Hiram."

Or maybe I actually did hear it out loud.

I didn't fully process what was happening until I saw Cassian walk onstage and have Nicola VI's name pinned to his shirt.

"What?! Nicola picked Cass?! I thought she was picking Henry! Everyone thought she was picking Henry! Even Henry thought she was picking Henry! I mean, that's great for Cass, but it sure was surprising. I'm happy for him, aren't you? Alexia? Alex? Hey, are you okay?" Talia's words sounded so far away. The entire room was spinning and enfolding into madness. This wasn't what was supposed to happen. I knew it was a possibility that I wouldn't end up with Cass, but her?! She would treat him like a show horse, exactly how he begged not to be treated. Everything was blurry until I locked eyes with my friend on the stage. Even from as far away as I was, I could see the melancholy in his deep brown eyes. His eyebrows twitched as he looked down at the name pinned to his shirt, locking his fate forever. He didn't walk off the stage but, rather, had to be forcefully removed, earning a grunt of irritation from Nicola. Henry was snatched up by the next girl, but I paid no attention. I only thought about how dark my world was without Cassian. I didn't even realize that it was my turn to choose.

"Um... miss, could you please make your selection," the quiet man pleaded. I looked him in the eyes with mine that were still in shock.

"No," I stated. I want to be with Cassian, I thought. I had become so set on the concept that we would be together forever, that I had no "back-up plan" like most other girls did.

"I'm sorry Miss Chiden, did you say 'Nolan' as in Nolan Minthe?" The hostess on stage asked for clarification.

"No," I answered. What if I picked Nolan? How do I know that there isn't a girl out here who is just as in love with him as I am with Cassian...

My thoughts stopped. Love. I had come up with this word that I had only ever used to describe how I felt about pizza, pink carnations, and going to the beach. If someone asked me to give up everything I had said I loved in order to be with Cassian, would I? There was no doubt about the answer in my head.

"Well, what did you say? We're having trouble hearing you."

"I said 'No'! Do you need it louder?! My answer is no!" My voice cut out at the end. I was just as shocked at my quick shift in temper as the hostess was. My emotions became a hurricane inside of me and I couldn't tell what I hated most: Nicola, the hostess, this stupid mating system, or myself for not realizing these feelings sooner.

"What do you mean 'No'? Is that a nickname for someone? Please, we need you to calm down, Alexia," the hostess tried to reason with me, but I was past the point of reasoning. I once again imagined apologizing and choosing Nolan instead, for he wasn't the worst pick. I imagined him smiling sadly as he walked onto stage, just like Cassian, staring up towards a girl other than me, wishing she would have gotten the chance to call out his name.

"No, I mean I refuse to pick! I won't treat these boys like I could buy them from the market! I refuse to praise this system that abandons the concept of love! Do any of you even know what that word means?" I shouted, not exactly sure who my speech was aimed at. Did I even know what that word meant? It was the only word left in my vocabulary that could provide some reasoning as to why I was acting like this all of a sudden. The silence of the site overwhelmed me, and I could hear Cassian's plea repeating over and over in my ears, trying to fill the silence.

"You all would say you do, but I have heard you and you base a life-long decision on the body and mating-call of a stranger. I'm tired of objectifying and silencing them. I don't care what this makes you think of me, so long as everyone here knows that I will not stand for this one-sided community where only the opinion of us girls matters!" I finished, tears once again staining my face. Quickly, security came upon me and dragged me out of the amphitheater, finally falling silent after my out-of-character explosion.