The Prince and the Punk [EDITING]

Chapter 18

Xavier

"So, Your Highness, tonight's the night!" Craig Manning announces, more to the camera than to me. "The first contestant elimination. Are you ready?"

"Not really, to be honest," I reply, trying to bring some life into my tone, as though I were enjoying the whole thing.

He laughs. "Well, of course! Who would be? I've met them all, and I can tell you, most of these girls are wonderful!"

I don't miss the fact that he said most and not all, but I just nod in agreement.

"So tell us, who's the favorite so far?" he asks, miming whispering in my ear as if it were gossip.

I force an uncomfortable smile and pause like I'm considering the question, when really I'm trying to remember the names my father gave me.

"Come on, top three!" Craig presses.

"Uh, they'd have to be..." I take a deep breath. "Elise Jennings, Fiona Reynolds, and Desiree Adams."

"Ah, interesting. Good picks, but a difficult choice."

"You don't know the half of it," I mumble.

He lets out a fake laugh. "Well, as you know, we'll be moving the girls into the palace after tonight's primary elimination, and then we'll really start narrowing things down!" He looks at the camera. "We have everyone here now, but tonight, one of them will leave. That being said, let's bring out our top three! Why don't we start with Elise Jennings? Elise, come on out!"

Elise appears from behind a curtain, grinning like a maniac. She's probably the most down-to-Earth girl in this stupid thing, which is a lot like being the fastest turtle. She's black-haired, tall, and unnaturally thin.

She takes a seat next to me on the couch and I kiss her hand like I'm supposed to. I ask her all of the questions I'm expected to, I laugh, I smile, and I play my part as well as I can. I manage to keep up my good behavior through the interview with Elise and the one with Fiona—who, from what I can tell, has never once been told to shut her damn trap, which is why her interview is a good fifteen minutes longer than Elise's.

Just when I think I might be able to make it through this after all, Desiree comes out. She sashays into the room in a tight blue dress, sits down, and crosses her legs.

"Desiree Adams, last but not least!" Craig exclaims, shaking her hand. "Always a pleasure. Now, top three, that's a rather impressive feat. What do you think sets you apart from the other ladies?"

"Well, Craig, I think it's really just a matter of confidence," she starts. "It's important to always believe in yourself, and first impressions are also really important, so it's, like, I don't know, everything sort of lined up for me. I believed in myself and here I am!"

Yes, it was obviously her unwavering self-confidence that brought her this far—her family's wealth and connections had nothing to do with it whatsoever. On top of that, her babbling answer didn't even make sense. Is she running for queen or Miss Pangea?

"Fantastic!" Craig says with an inane grin. "Desiree, how do you think your chances are at winning?"

The rest of the interview nearly drives me insane from a painful combination of boredom and homicidal rage. Is this what being a political figure is? Forcing a smile while trying to make it look like you tolerate the existence of the person in front of you?

I take the reins from Craig and manage to ask the rest of the pre-scripted questions without any issues. After what seems like an eternity, the interview finally ends.