Celia
"You did good," Aspen grinned at me after all of the lights on the cameras went out. Chatter broke out amongst the selected girls, I was sure that I was the topic of conversation for most of them. 

"Thanks," I said.

Shalom got to his feet and left the room before anyone else. Several of the selected followed him and the room began to empty.

"Well done," America smiled at me, "these boys have no idea how nerve-wracking your first report can be, they practically grew up with it and you did amazingly."

It dawned on me the that America had not grown up in the palace either, a fact that I hadn't quite registered until then. She was probably the only person who could even come close to understanding the situation that I was in. 

I smiled at her again. 

"We have a surprise for you tomorrow," said Maxon, who was also smiling.

"I don't like surprises," I complained.

"Well that sounds like someone I know," Maxon gave America a pointed look.

"I'm not a patient person!" America laughed.

"I just like to know what I'm walking into," I replied.

"Well doesn't that sound like someone I know!" America mocked Maxon.

"There's nothing wrong with forward planning," Maxon rolled his eyes playfully.

********

Aspen arrived at my room the next morning to escort me to breakfast, which took me by surprise as I almost walked into him as I exited my room. He had been stood outside the door, with a hand raised to knock. 

"Good morning," He smiled.

"What are you doing here?" I asked.

"I thought we could walk down to breakfast together?" he offered me his arm, which I took.

"Won't your girls be jealous?" I teased as we began to make our way towards the dining room, to which we had just begun to have meals since the selection had been cut to less than forty girls. 

"What of my sister?" He laughed, "they'd be crazy."

Hearing the word sister applied to me was rather strange, and Aspen seemed to find it quite odd to say as well.

"Maybe some of them are," I suggested, "have you spoken to Cammie?"

"You have a point there," he laughed. Cammie was the selected from Kent and she had an enormous amount of personality, "but I do enjoy Cammie's company, she negates the need for conversation on my part by filling in all the blanks herself." If speaking was a competitive sport, Cammie would win every competition.

"Well, keep her by all means then, but the Women's Room would be a lot quieter without her there," I said.

"How would you know?" Aspen raised an eyebrow, "my sources tell me you haven't spent much time in the Women's Room recently."

"Who are your sources?" I asked.

"Amelia mostly," he admitted, "she likes you a lot, which I suppose is good because even if she does get eliminated she'll still always be here, it's as much her home as it is mine."

"I'm planning to spend a lot more time in the Women's Room," I told him, with a small smile.

"Is that so?" Aspen laughed, "maybe you can be my girl on the inside then, you can tell me who you think I should eliminate."

"Maybe I can." 

Breakfast was a strange affair. I was seated at the table with Maxon, America, Shalom and Aspen. Maxon and America engaged me in conversation, as did Aspen, but Shalom was silent as he read over some trade documents.

Again, I could feel the eyes of the selected on me as I ate my meal, but I tried to ignore it as best I could. 

Once we finished, Aspen bade us goodbye, informing his parents that he had a date, and leaving me with a wink. Shalom drifted off, still absorbed in his papers.

"Are you ready for your surprise?" Maxon asked me after both of the boys had left.

"I suppose." I really wasn't fond of surprises, I liked to be able to rehearse my reaction to things so that I didn't offend anyone. This was why I often sought out my birthday and Christmas presents from Mum's hiding spot under a loose floorboard which I had discovered at the age of four. 

The three of us got to our feet and exited the dining room together. I picked at my perfectly manicured nails as we walked, heading towards the third floor of the palace, which was where I knew the royal family's rooms were.

"We thought that scene as everyone knows that you're our daughter now, it would only be fitting for you to have a bedroom in the royal family's quarters," said Maxon, "we've been having this room renovated for you, we asked your parents about what you would like."

We stopped in a corridor, which was lined with several guards. 

"That's Shalom's room." America gestured at one door, "and that's AJ's." She gestured at the door beside Shalom's, "Our room is over there." She pointed at a room at the end of the hall, "and this is your room," she said, pointing at the door which we had stopped beside.

"Really?" I looked at the door warily.

"Of course," Maxon chuckled, "you can go inside, it won't bite."

I reached my hand out and pushed the door open, making my way into the room.

This room was much larger than my room downstairs and there were flowers everywhere. Hanging baskets were overflowing with flowers of all shapes and sizes, some of which were so exotic that I didn't even recognise them. The double doors were closed to keep out the slight chill in the Angeles' air, but the balcony was large, with some white garden furniture. The bed was, of course, the focal point of the room, it had green silken sheets and a throw which was decorated with white roses. There were some plush armchairs and a coffee table. The wardrobe stood open and was practically its own room, bigger than my room at home. Two other doors stood closed, I assumed that one of them leads to a bathroom, but I couldn't even start to speculate what was through the other room.

"Do you like it?" America sounded anxious.

"It's beautiful," I was breathless, stunned that they had put so much effort it creating a room that I would love as much as I loved this.

"Through that door is your bathroom," Maxon gestured at the door closest to us, "and through that one is your study."

"I have a study?"

"Yes," America smiled, "we've stocked it with books, you don't have to use it for anything if you don't want to."

"Your maids have been informed of the change and they're in the process of moving your belongings up here," said Maxon, "we want you to be as comfortable as you possibly can be here."

"Thank you," I stared at the room for a while longer, before doing something that surprised me almost as much as it surprised Maxon and America. I hugged them.