The Luna Choosing Game

I stared at Julian, disbelieving my ears. Did he really just ask me for a solo date?

Yet everyone in the whole ballroom was looking at us. Julian still held the microphone up to his mouth.

This was definitely happening. It wasn’t a dream.

Which meant that Julian was up to something.

“Why?” I asked, before I could think better of it.

A few girls around me gasped. Only then did I realize my mistake and covered my mouth.

Julian also looked shocked, his eyes going wide for a moment. But then, just as quickly, he burst out

laughing.

His good humor seemed to erase the surprise of the other onlookers. Everyone seemed to think I had

been telling a joke.

With the microphone lowered, he said to me, “I insist this request is genuine, Piper.”

I didn’t believe him.

Julian always played the angles. Asking me on a date had to be some kind of move for his benefit, but I

couldn’t begin to figure out how. I’d only scratched the surface of the inner politics of the royal family.

for my answer. Everyone

didn’t know how, but I couldn’t exactly turn him

I was just a

I said,

smiled. Into the microphone, he announced, “She

nobles cheered. Most of the girls clapped politely. A few

said, no longer speaking to me, but to

His face was an emotionless mask, but his

as he stared straight

I

to tell him that this didn’t mean anything. Julian was only

just for the

him without publicly dismissing Julian. I had to stay

Nicholas didn’t need an explanation anyway.

anymore

something inside of me, like a memory

screamed to soothe away

meant nothing like that to

I looked at Nicholas now, that look

He turned away from me and, even an hour later, had not

charmed by Julian and his antics.

stop telling me how funny