The Bluest of Eyes

Chapter three

Clothes scattered all over the floor, an open closet and makeup products spread across the room made Kenzie’s room look like it had been struck by a tornado. The entire Saturday morning had been spent picking out clothes and getting her hair and makeup done for the contest, all while freaking out over her song choice and re-thinking her participation every five minutes. It had been an emotional turmoil, and all she wanted was for the contest to be done with so she could move on with her life. She wasn’t optimistic about today’s outcome but she was determined to get through it with her head held high.

Hopefully.

“Portia!” Kenzie screamed from her room and moments later her younger sister stood by the doorway.

“You called, my lady?” she teased and entered the room “There used to be a floor here…” she mocked as she made her way through the multitude of garments on the ground.

“Funny. Here, help me decide on a dress,” Kenzie ordered and held up two dresses. One was a yellow bandeau dress and the other was a floral printed sundress, both ending right above her knees.

Portia pondered for a moment and then pointed at the yellow dress. “Yellow suits you… And I was planning on wearing floral print, which would be awkward because I’d clearly outshine you. I’ll let you off the hook since it’s your day.”

Her sister’s playful teasing wasn’t appreciated by Kenzie at that very moment. Actually, not even a cute kitten doing something really cute in a super cute video wouldn’t have made Kenzie feel anything else than stressed out and sick to her stomach.

“When do we have to leave?” Kenzie asked her sister while she took the dress off the hanger.

“Twenty minutes,” a voice, not belonging to Portia, replied and Kenzie looked up to find her mother peeking through the doorway. “Both of you get dressed so we can get moving. Kenzie, honey, do you need to wear that much makeup? You’re bea-“

“Mom.” Kenzie interrupted sternly.

“Fine, fine.” her mother held up her hands in front of her chest and wandered off.

**

 “I can’t believe you’re going to meet Colton Arden,” Portia chimed and looked at her big sister with envy. “You’ll tell him about me, right? I’m your sister and I have the right to know that Colton Arden knows about my existence.”

“I’m not going to meet him,” Kenzie explained for, what felt like, the millionth time. “I need to qualify from this round first. It’s not like he’s going to show up backstage and give all of us a group hug today.” she looked up from her iPhone and met her sister’s eyes. “Besides, Lily’s already got her eyes set on him. I think she’s already started planning the wedding. Last night she sent me a picture of wedding dresses and asked me to choose one.” she shook her head and looked at the road ahead of them.

Her father had to work, but the rest of the family had decided to come along and cheer her on from the audience. Nathan, her younger brother and Portia’s twin, didn’t seem too excited about having to spend his day in a muddy field with a bunch of delusional and tone deaf girls who were only looking to catch the attention of Colton. He had protested loudly in the backseat of the car but after a threat of having him stay with his grandmother for the rest of the weekend, he shut up.

“Hey, look Nate, girls wearing skimpy shorts. Seems like this won’t turn into a total bust for you,” Portia teased with a grin when they arrived at the park where the contest would be held.

“Okay, I’ll go register and you guys can… Do whatever.” Kenzie insisted and walked over to the registration area while her family made their way to the rest of the audience, consisting mostly of other supporting family members of the brave souls who had signed up for the contest.

It took about an hour until they got started, and Kenzie started as #7 out of 22 contestants.

Shaking from nervosity, she stepped out on stage and answered some basic questions asked by the host. The song she had chosen to sing was a personal favorite of hers, and one that she felt the most comfortable singing, having sung it ever since she was a little child.

“Contestant number 7, Mackenzie Harper, with Coal miner’s daughter. Good luck, young lady.”

Three minutes went by in what felt like a second, and she got off the stage with trembling legs, not being able to recall anything that had happened since she started singing. Her mother walked up to her with her siblings in tow, and embraced Kenzie with a warm hug.

“You were fantastic,” her mother beamed with joy and pride, resting a hand on Kenzie’s cheek.

“Yeah, good job sis," Nathan commented, his eyes then wandering to a cute girl walking past them.

“Great as always… Although I would’ve done better, obviously,” Portia remarked with a cheeky grin. “Just joking!” She added quickly after their mother stared her down.

Portia and Kenzie were both involved in music, and there was some healthy competition between the two of them in terms of singing success. The teasing nabs and comments were things they usually exchanged between the two, and both saw it for what it was – a joke.

A redhead woman walked up to them and informed them that Kenzie had to stay backstage for the remainder of the show, and that they could talk again once the show was over and a winner had been announced. The wait in the backstage area was nerve-wracking and the other twenty one contestants didn’t seem to think differently. After what felt like an eternity, they were called back on stage where the winner and runner ups would be revealed. Standing between a tall black haired girl and a girl with a skirt so short it almost counted as underwear, Kenzie listened to the host and wished for the process to be over with.

“Alright, first of all I’d like to give a big round of applauds to the contestants. You all did a good job, and the jury had a difficult job narrowing it down to three people who stood out. Without further ado, the second runner up is… Emily Montgomery! You’ll be receiving a signed copy of Colton Arden’s album, congratulations. Now, the first runner up will get to attend the final of this contest, which is hosted throughout Texas, and get to meet Colton Arden himself. However, only the winner will be competing for the ultimate prize – recording a duet with Colton Arden which will be released as his next single. Y’all ready?” He looked at the line of contestants who were nervously awaiting the results of the voting. Kenzie gazed through the crowd, trying to spot her family, but was unsuccessful in doing so. She clutched her hand and closed her eyes, desperately trying to keep the anxiety in check.

“The first runner up is… Ashley Fields! Congratulations. And now, the moment we’ve all been waiting for; the winner of the Austin division is… Mackenzie Harper! Congratulations young lady, you’ll be going to the final two weeks from now.”

The moment she heard her name, Kenzie opened her eyes and stared at the man with disbelief. Had she really won? Was she just imagining it? A woman walked up to her and handed her a bouquet of flowers, and the host handed her a microphone, asking her what it felt like.

She had actually won.