~Aria
I plucked at the lining of the car seat, irritating Elaine, the woman who has been paired with me. Apparently, it was her job to make me win this entire thing; which basically meant she would get a hefty paycheck if I did so.
Little did she know, I wasn't going to be here for long. At least I don't plan to be.
"This car is expensive," he whispers harshly, still keeping a smile on her face as she said it. The cameras were off - the man behind it wiping the lens with the corner of his shirt - so we weren't expected to keep up with any facade.
So, I took it upon myself to relax, propping my leg up under me, despite wearing a dress. The blue fabric bunched under my breast, to flow nearly down to my knees. This is the first time I've had the chance to wear something that pretty, despite the snow falling gently outside. Elaine had my faux fur coat on her lap, ready to
~AriaMacie clung to me the entire drive there, and after awhile, it got extremely uncomfortable.However, I wasn't about to call her annoying or tell her to get off me. Perhaps this strange meeting just for the cameras had secured me a friendship while I am apart of this competition. Someone on my side, to help me deal with the other girls that will be there, who I am not looking forward to meeting, let alone living with.Macie didn't seem stressed about our lack of information, about what was going to happen next. She just nonchalantly sat back in her seat, brushing back the fur on my coat, while I threw rapid fire questions at Eliane.There is no way I am about to walk into this like a blind man."So we will be staying with Malik then?" I question. I knew that his estate would be where our home would be for however long we were chosen to stay, but I couldn't fathom how living next to Malik would
~AriaSeeing all those people staring at me flushed me with a wave of utter embarrassment, in the form of pink tinted cheeks.Girls of all different Pack ethnicities were sitting on chairs in the main foyer, and they all turned to stare at Macie and I, as we were ushered in. For a few moments, no one said a word, the people at the front, who I recognised-purely from their television appearances-as the Alpha family.Malik's parents were the first I saw. The regal former Luna of the Love Pack, Cecily, stood upon a slightly raised platform, along with her mate, the former Alpha of Love, Alexander. Extremely important people were staring at me, and I suddenly don't know what to do with my hands and arms.But where is their son? The Alpha cannot be seen anywhere.Alexander, the former Alpha looked grim at our sudden appearance, whereas Cecily looked delighted by the fact that we had f
~AriaHe leant casually back against one of the reading tables, watching me.Clearly, he is amused; his expression tells me that much. His lips, which admittedly, my eyes lingered on, before exploring the rest of him, were slanted in a soft smile, as he observed me like I'm his prey, cornered against the bookshelf. The book in my hand is the main piece of incriminating evidence, that suggests that I had been sneaking around here.In the Alpha's library. Could I have dug a bigger hole for myself?"I'm so sorry," I insisted like I was trying to get him to understand the sincerity in my voice. Being punished for this can't happen...What if I get kicked out? What would Grey do to my family? "This wasn't meant to happen."Alpha Malik continued to stare at me, not saying a single word. His eyes are as hard as steel, the colour so intense
~AriaI woke up cursing myself. No, cursing the Goddess I don't really believe in.Grey never told me Malik had that close of a relationship with that necklace. I had happily assumed it would be kept in a safe, which in my opinion, would be easy to crack, then Alpha Malik himself. After last night, and my meander to the library, I'm in an even more vulnerable position.As I'm more than positive he's going to be more careful of my antics.Just as I was leaving the shower, Elaine decided to rush in undetected. Walking out of the bathroom, towel trying my hair, the sight of my assistant browsing through my wardrobe made me yelp."Elaine," I snap. "You can't just walk into my room like this! What if I was naked?"She sighs, turning around, holding a gentle fuchsia dress in her hand. I wore it to Alexa's birthday earlier this year, so it brings back memories of he
Aria"That's them!" Zariah squeals in my ear.We stare out the window in Zariah's room, which faced the front of the house, showing the courtyard where the rest of the contestants were arriving. This is probably going against the rules, but it's not like I haven't done so already, and Zariah is too curious to care.My fingers are ice cold, as the press into the window sill, while I fight for the best look at the girls. Most of them step out of the same sleek black cars we had yesterday, however, none of them looked as if they had dressed as lavishly as we had been instructed. Many wore loose pants and sweatshirts, with their hair messy from the travel. Most of them travelled days to cross the land."Sizing up your competition, Zariah?" Brynn said slyly from where she lay on Zariah's bed. We aren't even allowed to be in each others room and were even instructed to stay where Malik would be able to fin
~AriaWithout moving a single inch, I watch as Malik pulls a chair out from under the reading table, before he slumps down on it, although, he manages to make it look graceful, regardless. With closer observation, I can see the beginnings of dark circles under his eyes.He's tired? Maybe it's from all the traversing after me in the depths of night he enjoys."Punishment," I echo his last statement, trying to make the word sound a little more real in my ears. I should have suspected a repercussion for all this sneaking around; especially after Brynn's incident with him earlier today. She got away with a strict warning, while I managed to obtain a new nickname and the title - still unknown to everyone-of the first competitor to meet the Alpha.The soft curves of Malik's mouth tilts up. "This could entail whatever you would like it to."We stare at each other, blue on a slightly les
~AriaA snow drenched wind began at the same moment a rush of fear fell over me.Someone is on the other side of that door, who might just dictate whether or not I'm going home or not. Malik seems to be suffering from the same alarmed affliction I am, but he smothers it in less than a second."Quick, can you hide?" he questions, pointing back down the balcony, to where the wall reached a sharp corner.Without thinking twice, I quickly shuffle through the snow building on the edge of the balcony, dodging other benches and decorations hung off the wall. Frost bit at my arms like teeth, forcing me to cross my arms over my chest in an attempt to keep myself from going completely numb. I can't even see properly, with the lack of light that was slowly being swallowed up by the thick darkness.Grabbing the corner of the brick wall with frigid fingers, as I swing around it, I quickly con
~AriaBrynn wasn't at breakfast the next morning. Zariah and I were left to sit at a table with a bunch of other girls we weren't familiar with. Apart of the group, were the two girls from the Loyalty Pack, who looked strikingly similar; Braelyn and Maren."That's too weird," a girl I recognised as Livia, from the Wisdom Pack growled at Maren, who was trying her best to ignore the girl while eating a pancake. "You guys can't go on double dates with Malik...That's wrong."Zariah rolled her eyes, chewing on the end of her banana. She knows that the other girl from her Pack likes to start arguments."Leave us alone," Braelyn snapped. I've come to know her as the one who likes to speak out more out of the two. If I had to guess, Maren has come from a very secluded, sheltered part of the loyalty Pack. Braelyn seems to be the devil on her shoulder at the best of times, and sometimes I'm left to question whether the two are actually strangers.Livia leant back on her seat. "I'm just telling