Chapter 36 - Vanessa

"I volunteer!"

"For the hunger games?" I chuckled, earning a glare from the sun-kissed beauty who was sitting near the fireplace.

"No," Brooke replied, staring back at Cybele. It was the perfect timing to catch a glimpse of her beautiful face. Brooke had the features of a model- long ebony hair, dark almond eyes, and high cheekbones. I could go on and on about it, but she would probably kill me if she found out that I was thinking about that. It seemed that only her majesty was the only one who caught her eyes. Too bad for her because Cybele was madly in love with the princess.

"As I was saying," Brooke continued. "Since we've been stuck in this house for almost a week, we've started to run out of supplies. There is plenty of water but the food won't last for another day or two." She flipped her hair behind her back. Sexy. "Because Iris and Talia can't go to the town to get supplies, it looks like I need to be the one to do that."

"Why can't we just go back to England your highness?" I chimed in, looking from the princess to the supposed queen Cybele. The four of us were sitting on the living room, discussing about our plans for the next few days.

Cybele shook her head. "We can't leave the house yet. The guards are everywhere. They have doubled in numbers trying to locate the princess. That's why you can't go to the town for now," she said directly to Brooke. "It would be too dangerous."

Brooke sighed. "But what about food?"

"I guess we have no choice but to ration it," Cybele said.

"It won't last long," Brooke said, standing from the sofa. She turned to my direction. "We need to find another source. What do you think Vanessa?"

I wiggled my eyebrows at her. "I think you're sexy baby." Talia burst out laughing while her majesty Cybele tried hard not to smile. In the meantime, I got another disapproving look from Brooke. "What? You asked me what I think."

"Rubbish," Brooke said.

"Is that another term for you want me too?" I joked, winking at her. "Cause you know I'm interested."

"Cybele," Brooke started with a warning tone. "If you don't make her shut her trap I'm going to lose it."

I raised my hands in a conciliatory manner before her majesty could tell me off. Everyone knew I was kidding. Everyone except Brooke. She was so irritated with me that it made me wonder why she rescued me in the first place from the fire. Maybe to get on her highness good side, I thought in despair. Or maybe she had nothing better to do that day than to save pathetic girls like me from being killed. Must be the former.

"Okay, okay I'm going to shut up and just stay here in the corner. Just don't get mad oh beautiful Goddess. You might get wrinkles." I clamped my mouth, not willing to risk having an argument with her.

Talia spoke for the first time since having our conversation. "So what do you guys propose we do? We can't go to the town cause me might get discovered, but we can't stay here and starve as well."

A small smile flitted on Cybele's lips. "Why don't we just eat each other?"

Talia wrinkled her nose. "Like cannibals? That seriously sounds disgusting. I'd rather starve thank you very much."

"You know I'm not talking about that," Cybele said. I caught Brooke pursing her lips at that comment. Her majesty must have noticed it too since she diverted the conversation quickly. "Or we can always eat porridge if there's some in the house. What do you say princess? I'll spoon feed you."

"If I hear that word one more time, I'm. . ."

Cybele smirked. "You'll what princess?"

Talia gave a self satisfied smile. "It's going to be a very long and dry spell for you." That wiped the grin from her majesty's face. Way to put Cybele on her place Talia, I thought while watching silently from my corner. It was like a tennis match between those two, but it was clear who was winning.

"Can we get back to the topic at hand?" Brooke intervened. Unlike me, it looked like she wasn't too thrilled to see the two being all mushy. There was no doubt that she still had the hots for her highness. Well not if I could help it. Brooke continued. "There is a forest nearby. If we can't go to the town, maybe I can go to the forest and hunt for food."

Cybele nodded. "That sounds like a good idea. Maybe I can come with you and. . ."

"No," Brooke cut off. "We can't risk you and the princess from being seen. You have to stay here."

"But it will be very unsafe if you go alone." Cybele frowned.

"I won't be alone. Van is coming with me."

"Me? Vanessa?" I pointed to myself, looking disgruntled.

"Is there any other Van here?" she asked, giving me a look that said let's cut the crap and get down to business.

"But you hate me," I blurted.

Brooke didn't answer and simply stared at Cybele. In turn, her majesty tried to appease me. "Well then it's going to be the perfect opportunity for both of you to know each other isn't it?" The green eyed royal stood up from her perch on the sofa and walked to me. As soon as she was near, she said in a whisper. "Go get em tiger." In a louder voice she said, "This is the time to reconcile your differences and be friends."

"I wish," I muttered under my breath. "But it's going to be hard. The girl still likes you your highness.

Cybele clapped my back. "You're not Vanessa for nothing."

That afternoon, Brooke and I said farewell to the two royals and set out for the forest on foot. We had nothing but water on our backpacks, wires and ropes for the traps, guns on our holsters, and knives in our pockets. Brooke looked particularly attached to her dagger as she played with it over and over, tossing it in the air only to catch it expertly while we walked on the grassy path leading to the greeneries. She has been ignoring me for hours. I decided that if I wanted to get close to her, it was now or never.

With a slight shake of my knees and pounding in my heart, I gathered the courage to be the first one to break the silence. I wasn't usually like this with girls. But with her I was smitten. "Uhm. . ." Brooke remained silent.

I said her name to call her attention. "Brooke."

She glanced at me briefly and continued walking. "Yes?"

"What kind of music do you listen to?" There, I said something normal for once. I took a deep breath, waiting for her reply.

"Why do you want to know?" she asked with a hint of suspicion in her voice.

"Because I'm going to murder you in your sleep by singing the songs you listen to," I said rather sarcastically before I could stop myself. God what was wrong with me? I wanted to slap myself hard for saying that. A peek at her face told me that she wasn't mad though. Rather, it seemed that she smiled, albeit secretly.

"I listen to Coldplay. You know them?"

I shook my head. "Sadly the tribe where I came from doesn't listen much to those kinds of music. We only chant when there is a full moon or a sacrifice of a virgin is to be made. But aside from that, we are forbidden to listen to what you consider cool music, with the exception of Demi Lovato."

She stared at me with her mouth open. "Seriously?"

I laughed at her reaction. "No of course not. I'm a normal person okay? Of course I listen to those kinds of music. And I didn't come from a tribe either. I was raised in a busy town and went to college too."

Brooke frowned. "You think you're so funny don't you?"

My smile vanished, followed by a gnawing feeling in my stomach that told me how wrong I was to pull that prank on her. "Well don't you? It used to work on girls I dated before. They said my humor was exceptional."

"I'm different," she said.

By this time, we began to enter the vast forest. I had to cut the conversation short because the quietness of the place called for silence. But after ten minutes of walking and dodging branches, I deemed that it was safe to continue where we left off.

"You said you're different. How?"

"Jokes don't amuse me," she said with a poker face. "Oh there's a river." Brooke pointed to the near distance where I saw the clear blue water. "Let's settle here and put some traps."

"Okay," I mumbled as I stopped behind her and rummaged in my backpack for the ropes. Brooke was doing the same in front. "Hey, you know how to make a trap? If you don't I can teach you."

She turned to me before wiping the sweat on her forehead. Even while she was sweaty and her black top clung to her body because of it, Brooke looked extremely hot. Hallelujah for great genes. Her parents must have looked like models themselves. "Yes I know how to make one, she said, getting back to the task at hand.

I decided to tease her. "I thought rich kids just sit on their comfortable chairs all day and eat caviar. Where did you get the time to make a trap or even learn how to?"

She took the wires out of her bag, her eyebrows wrinkled in concentration. "Cybele may not look like it but she really loves to learn. Learning for her includes everything, from theories to actual practice. There was a time that she was severely interested with survival so we just had to try it out."

"Oh her majesty looks like the bookish type alright. If you don't count the overall royalty who just stepped down from her pedestal in heaven appearance." I took a good look at Brooke who was now searching for torn branches nearby. "Is there any interest of yours that doesn't involve Cybele?"

Brooke was about to grab a branch on the ground when her hand froze due to my question. "What do you mean?" she mumbled before shrugging and proceeding to gather the branch, as if she didn't understand the question.

"Well you know," I said with a coy smile. "You're too caught up with your best friend."

She stood up, wearing a poker face. "Am I?"

"Yeah. Iris this. Iris that," I emphasized, uncaring if she got pissed. Brooke needed to understand what was happening right in front of her. "But the thing is she has Talia now. Where does that leave you?"

She didn't answer immediately and began to create the traps from sharp branches, ropes, and wires. Her fingers expertly looped the rope, making me stare at her in awe. "I think I'll end up alone," she murmured after a while.

"Why did you say that?"

"I don't know," she sighed. "I just can't imagine myself with someone other than Iris. I've known her for the longest time. Loved her for the longest time," she added. "How can I get rid of that feeling when every time I look at her, all I think about is our future together?"

"Why not try loving someone else?"

Brooke met my gaze and smirked. "Who? You?"

I stood up from my kneeling position. "Yes me. Wanna?" I wriggled my eyebrows at her, attempting to make her smile. But inside I was feeling a million emotions at once. Nervousness was on top of the list, making my hands tremble and my palm sweat. I had to open and close it to get the circulation going. All the while Brooke stood there with her poker face, not even knowing that her mere presence was enough to produce butterflies in my stomach.

"What are you saying?" she asked.

My heart drummed wildly against my chest. As if a small bird was enclosed there, trying to break free from my rib cage. "I meant why don't you try being with me?" Her eyebrow went up. "Before you say no," I said in a hurry. "Think of it like practicing for the future. You don't have to really love me. But you can pretend to be my girlfriend."

"And how will being with you help me Van?"

"I'll make sure that you won't think of her," I said smoothly, as if I just thought of that idea and it didn't affect me in any way because I was playing. In reality though I was wishing that her majesty would vanish from her heart and she'd really give me a chance.

"And?" she prodded.

"And I'd do anything you want, as long as it makes you happy. Because that's the kind of person I am. I want everyone to be happy, especially those that I care about."

"Anything at all?"

"Anything at all," I answered. "But in return you have to be my girlfriend."

Brooke walked towards me, a small smile appearing on her face. How could someone look as perfect as her? I thought, my head beginning to get dizzy. But that was just a bonus. There was something really sexy about her. It must be the fact that no other girl treated me like this. I was used to those types who got head over heels for me. With Brooke, it was all about dominance. And she was on top.

"Being your girlfriend means what?"

I considered for a second. "It means eating the breakfast I prepared for her every single day. Being my girl means never having to bring a sweater again because feeling cold is not an option when my hugs are always warm. It means staying up all night watching our favorite movies. Never waking up alone because I'll always be there by her side. And other sappy things like that. You get the drill." I gave her a lopsided smile.

"How will we do that if we're in the middle of nowhere with guards searching for us?"

"I guess I have to settle for a smile from you then. But it needs to be only for me. Not for her majesty. Heck not even for the princess."

"I don't have to love you right?"

It felt like she just stabbed me with a steel pole right in the lungs. It made it hard to breathe for a second or two, but outside I was smiling like an idiot. "Of course. You don't have to love me at all. Just agree to be my girlfriend and the rest as they say is history."

"I'll think about it," she said, her dark eyes twinkling. "How hard can it be right? You said you'll do everything for me. Plus I don't even have to fall in love."

"Yeah. But I can't promise you that," I whispered.