✩｡:*•. ~ The Selection - A Roleplay ~ .•*:｡✩ discussion

Serena laughed as she waved goodbye to her producer, Crane, and exited the studio. After working a bit on the schedule for the Ache tour, they had mostly goofed around, with not much work to do. Serena was excited for the tour; it had been a year since her last tour (which, admittedly, didn't seem like a long time!)

Serena started driving home, her feet tapping lightly on the gas pedal. She was going to her parents' house, which admittedly.... wasn't really much of a home. Her parents had always down looked her and shattered her dreams (which she didn't let get in her way). They didn't do much to boost her self-esteem, but they were her family after all, weren't they? The government filed the house as her "home", after all, since it was where she lived when she wasn't on tour.

Serena parked outside of the house. Deciding she would do her parents a favor, she grabbed the mail for them on her way inside. As she walked up to the door, she flipped through the envelopes. A water and electricity bill, an package of lightbulbs, and a fancy envelope gilded with gold.... with Serena's name on it. It was... from the palace. She stopped at the doorstep and ripped the letter open:

Dear Serena,
I hope you are pleased to hear that you have been selected as one of the young women to participate in my upcoming Selection. I know you are a fabulous singer! Somebody will be sent to your house to explain more details to you. I look forward to getting to know you ladies all better once you arrive at the palace. I hope you will enjoy your stay, temporary or permanent.

~Sincerely, Prince Felis Schreave~

A light sense of vertigo fell upon Serena. The Selection... The Selection. She certainly didn't enter herself, and certainly didn't want to. But she knew who was to blame for this. With a shaking hand, she opened the door and entered the house.

~'~

"Hello, dear." said her mother. Serena was shaking, how dare she speak to her in a manner as if she hadn't just entered her into a contest with a man she certainly didn't love?
"What the actual fuck, Mom?" said Serena, her voice shaking as she held up the envelope. Her mom sighed. She had the audacity to sigh.

"We were going to tell you dear. It'll be a nice experience for you! I need the benefits, and the fame, Serena. You'll understand later. The prince will be much nicer anyways than that Luis riffraff you hang around with!" She winked at Serena.

"Don't you FUCKING talk about Luis that way!" hissed Serena. "And what do you mean you need it? You're rich enough from the money you get from me! What makes you think you could make these decisions for me? It's my life, Mom. And I'm supposed to be going on tour."

Her mother gasped. "Do NOT use that language with me, Serena. I am your mother, and I decide what's good for you."

"You know what?" said Serena, about to cry. "Dad wouldn't have done this. He wouldn't have fucking done this." She ran outside into her car and slammed the door shut.

ahhhh this is sooo good

For real

The sky seemed to shift with Serena's mood. It started to rain shortly after she had slammed the door of her car. She held in the tears long enough to make the calls to postpone her tour, but she couldn't hold them in for long. The tears started pouring out, and she put her head in between her knees, shaking with sobs. Her mother was so hard to live with. Why did her dad have to die and leave Serena with her?

Serena picked up the phone and called her best friend, her guitarist Tate Brooklyn. She answered the phone quickly, and soon the 2 friends were crying together. She then got off the phone and broke down again, because of the next call she had to make.

"Goddamn, goddamn." Serena whispered as Luis answered the phone. "Hey butterfly." he said from the other end. Serena bit back a sob. God, how she would miss him saying her nickname in his accent. "Hey, babe." said Serena.... and then she broke down completely.

"Hey, hey." said Luis. "It's okay." Serena sniffled. "How about you come over and we can talk?"
Serena drove over to Luis's house. He opened the door, and she fell into his arms. He smelled like freshly shaved wood and pine. All the prince would smell of would be hell, God, she would miss Luis so much.

They sat down together on his couch. Serena told him everything, and Luis listened quietly. "It's not your fault." said Luis. "Butterfly, I still fucking love you. It's not your fault you have to go to the palace. Serena wiped her eyes. "I know, babe. It's just... I was going to go on tour, and now I might not even go. And I love you, not some weird guy I never met. I don't want to end up with him, I want to end up with you."

"I can't change the fact you're going to the palace, but butterfly... it won't be your fault. It will never be. We can hope and pray for the best."
They decided to curl up together and watch the announcement of the Selected together on the TV. Plenty of the other girls look better than me. thought Serena, using the thought as a small ray of hope. Maybe he won't choose me.

Serena was in the beginning of the broadcast. The picture her mother had entered was the one of her announcing her album Ache at the end of her last album Growing Fire's tour. She looked so happy to simply be there and experience the moment with her fans. The Serena in the picture certainly didn't know what would be happening in the future. Seeing it TV made it feel so much more real, and Serena started breaking down again. She didn't want to go home. She didn't want to see her mom, whom she hated very much at the moment. But she knew she needed to. She kissed Luis, mumbling a tearful goodbye and wondering if it would be one of their last kisses, and drove back home

~'~

The next few weeks seemed to go by in a blur. The person that was supposed to come and explain everything to Serena came and went. She barely even remembered how he had looked like. Preparations were made, and soon the day to depart came. Serena was packed and ready. She went downstairs. Her mother was waiting for her at the bottom. Her mother opened her mouth to say something, but Serena walked right past her. She went outside, where the taxi that was going to take her to the airport was waiting. It seemed like all of Atlin was outside to wave her off: a majority being fans, some just being proud of who had been Selected in their province.

Tate walked up to Serena; the 2 embraced each other. Tate whispered in Serena's ear, "You better fucking come back for the Ache tour, you hear me?" Serena giggled slightly, despite everything. She would miss Tate too.
As she was about to get in the taxi, she caught Luis's eye. Her breath hitched. But she couldn't do anything in public; she was now actively part of The Selection. Deeply regretting it, she slipped into the taxi without acknowledging Luis in any way, and the car drove off, leaving her life in the dust.