Alex and Sam could've passed as cousins or even brothers, both having sandy blonde hair that was only a few shades different as well as the same lightly tanned skin and well muscled but lean frames. Where Sam had hazel eyes though, Alex's were a gorgeous turquoise color. Both of them laughed as the story finished before turning to their food. "Are you going to introduce me, Sam? Or are you going to let the girls try to guess who this handsome but forbidden snack next to you is?" Alex asked, grinning at the girls and winking jokingly.
Sam snorted and rolled his eyes, though set his fork down and explained, "This idiot next to me is my personal bodyguard and best friend, Alex. Just ignore his hopeless flirting, he's lonely." He smiled at the girls as Alex waved, looking over the girls and finding himself hoping to meet Holly's eyes.
Holly and the Prince met eyes, and she turned red, but smiled gently at him.
Lacey grinned at Alex. "He reminds me of my cousin. Tell me," she said, leaning across the table, "do you ever have a girl turn you down?"
"Probably not," Holly said with a straight face. "No one dares resist the spoiled brats who live here." She sent Sam a grin, so he would know she was kidding.
"Haven't had any girl turn me down yet," Alex replied smoothly, winking at Lacey and propping his elbows on the table as he gave a flirtatious grin. He pretended to be offended at Holly's comment but in reality his grin just grew and he shook his head, turning back to talk to Lacey instead, "Where are you from, gorgeous?"
Sam elbowed Alex's side at the flirting but didn't bother to stop him. It would be pointless to try to stop him and anyway he was set on talking to holly instead. She already stuck out from the other girls for some reason and he was curious of her. He played along with her comment though, shrugging and running a hand through his hair as he tried to play the part of a playboy prince, "Hey, what can I say, being royalty has it's perks." He didn't hold up the act for long though, laughing and shaking his head, "Alex is the girl magnet, I on the other hand seem to repel them."
Lacey snorted. "Well, if you asked me, I might just have to turn you down." She was beautiful, with strong features and glistening red hair. "And where I'm from doesn't really matter if you can't do anything about it." She tossed her head, hair flying, and winked at him.
Holly laughed. "I can see why," she teased gently. "You're so hideous, I can barely look at you." She grinned at him, feeling shy and playful and happy all at once.
Alex just leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms, grinning from ear to ear. He liked this girl and she was stunning, even if she was strictly off limits for the time being. "Is that a challenge, gorgeous?" His turquoise eyes sparkled at the banter, "Maybe you can tell me your name instead of where you're from?"
"Looking at you is only slightly better," Sam joked, a glint in his eyes showing that what he just said wasn't remotely true, "At least people enjoy my company because of my personality then."
Alex snorted in response to the princes comment, adding to the joking for a split second, "Sure, you tell yourself that it's because of your personality and not because you're a whiney royal." He laughed as Sam elbowed his side but ignored him, his focus already back on Lacey.
"I could, Lacey said, smiling mischieviously. "But I won't right now. I'll leave it to you to figure it out for yourself."
Holly laughed at her friends actions, although she was worried that she would go too far, and get kicked out. "At least I have more of a personality than you," she sniffed, holding her chin at a haughty angle. "I just have the sense to pretend I don't, and then surprise people later."
"You are a curious woman." Alex admitted, grinning at Lacey and winking, "I'll find out your name, don't worry." He knew very well that she was off-limits until Sam decided if she was one of the girls that would be sent home and so it was a good idea to stop flirting with the gorgeous girl before he actually caught feelings.
"Ouch, I'm hurt," Sam said, dramatically slapping his hand over his heart and shaking his head. "Women are hurtful," He joked, looking to Alex who returned a mocking look of pity to the prince. Sam looked back at Holly and pretended to think. "You have me curious about the rest of this personality you have, how long does it take for you to show it? Would it surface at all if I asked you to join me for lunch at the end of this week?" It was the first time he had asked any of the girls to spend time with him and he knew he could've asked more formally but he didn't really care.
"Oh, I doubt you will. Good luck." Lacey winked at him, then stopped and turned to Holly, who had nudged her in the ribs. She gave her a guilty look and piled her plate high with food.
Holly laughed. "That we are, that we are. What would we do if there weren't men to boss around and insult?" When he asked her that, she blushed slightly, but didn't break her playful mood. "It might," she said with a grin at him. "I guess we'll have to see." Mentally, she fist pumped. She would get to spend more time with this handsome, funny prince, and she wouldn't have to spend it trying to ignore the hateful stares of the other girls.
Under the table, Lacey squeezed her hand and sent her a tiny smile. Holly couldn't detect any jealousy in it.
"Hey Sam, her name is Holly right?" Alex asked, not asking quietly and instead glancing at the girl he had been talking to only moments before. Sam nodded and chuckled as his friend perked up and shot a dazzling smile at Holly, "Quick question, do you happen to know the name of that gorgeous young lady next to you?"
Sam's grin grew as she accepted and he just elbowed Alex again when he started talking to Holly, "We'll definitely have to see." He ate a small bit of his food and turned to look at the girls again, this time a question directed more broadly, "How has everyone's time in the castle been so far? Any questions you girls would like me to answer?"
Lacey heard Alex's words and rolled her eyes with a grin. What a persistent idiot. She shook her head, hair flying, and started to eat.
A girl spoke up, in answer to the Prince's question. "Do we get snacks whenever we want? Or do we have to wait for meals?" This girl was thin, with a hollow look, but a beautiful face.
Alex didn't seem discouraged even as he got no answer, he just grinned at Lacey and sat back in his chair. It was most likely a slim chance, but if Sam decided that Lacey was no longer in the runnings, he told himself he would wait until then to try to do anything more than learn her name.
"You are allowed to eat whenever you want. You are honored guests here ladies and so your maids are under the orders to bring you whatever you would like to eat whenever you want." Sam smiled and looked around, listening for any more questions as he ate more and relaxed.
"Oh, thank goodness," the girl sighed in relief.
Sophie spoke up. "When will the interviews be? Like, when the kingdom will get to see us all and vote among us?" She and Casey seemed to be excited for this prospect, as if they wanted all the favor from the crowd.
Holly and Lacey exchanged glanced.
"I believe they are scheduled for tomorrow afternoon from about five to whenever they end." He replied, thinking back to what his mother had told him, "Specifics will be delivered to you girls as soon as I hear about them though." Sam ate the rest of his food before speaking up again, "I think during that time the first pictures will be taken, both of each of you individually and one with me as well."
Sophie nodded, looking pleased, no doubt not able to wait until she could seduce the prince. Holly sighed. Some girls were in this for the money, or the power. She was here to find someone she could love. And, if not that, somewhere she could be happy. Like, for instance, the library. She could work here and go to the library during her free time. She finished up her breakfast.
Sam and Alex both seemed to go back into a normal banter once the prince finished talking to the girls, eating and relaxing in their seats for a few more minutes before both giving charming smiles at the girls as they stood. "Have a good day ladies, feel free to seek me out in the castle if you have any more questions before dinner." He nodded to them and left without another word.
"What are we going to do now, your highness?" Alex asked, grinning and looking over at the prince, "Time to see how much I can beat you up while training? Or are you going to go hide behind a mountain of books?"
"You're on." He said with a laugh, turning to walk towards the training area, "Prepare to have your butt handed to you Al."
After the Prince and Alex had left, Holly and Lacye stood. Holly picked up her book from the floor and turned to her friend. "What do you want to do?"
"Maybe go for a walk? I want to explore. All the places we're allowed to, of course," Lacey added hurriedly.
"Alright." Holly shrugged. "But I should drop this off." She held up the book.
The two reached the training room a few minutes later, talking smack as they decided hand to hand fighting was what to work on. Sam shrugged off his jacket and grinned at Alex as he took the tape from him and started to wrap his hands. "Best out of three, point of yield."
"Ah so you really want to get your butt handed to you prince, that's what I'm hearing." Alex said with a laugh, making sure his hands were properly wrapped as he started to stretch.
Sam snorted, joining Al in stretching, then in warm-ups, "I said best out of three. You're good for about one round, then you go kaput and I'll beat you easily."
As the two girls passed a window, Lacey spotted two guys working out outside, and she rushed to the window. She turned back to Holly with a grin. "Do you know if we're allowed to go outside at all?"
Holly laughed. "I guess we'll have to ask."
Warming up took a while but soon they were both circling around each other, staying inside a taped-off square in the center of the room. "Last chance to back out Sammy," Alex said, a grin on his face. Both of them had abandoned their shirts and dress shoes as well, having enough knowledge to know that it was easier and less sweaty to spar like this.
"You wish I would Al," Sam said, grinning right back at him and making the first attack. There wasn't a consistent style or type of fighting they were following, just using whatever techniques and tricks they could to try to bring the other to the ground. Mostly it involved trading punches and kicks, though they both kept away from each other's heads. No one needed any broken noses or black eyes.
After asking around, Holly and Lacey got permittion to go outside, as long as they stayed within the castle grounds. A guard followed them as they wandered around.
Lacey headed straight for the direction of the training rink, no doubt wanting to see the two men sparring. Holly rolled her eyes. Sometimes, girls were just weird. Whether in books or in real life, they were strange enough that she didn't understand them at all. She shook her head with a smile as Lacey started to walk faster, turning the corner to see the prince and his friend striking at each other, both of them shirtless.
Lacey stared at them with undisguised awe, and Holly swatted her. "Are you going to go talk to them, or just watch them?"
"Just watch," she responded breathlessly. "They're so hot!"
They both didn't notice the girls right away, too busy trying not to be brought to the ground. Alex definitely seemed to have the upper edge for the moment, a confident and cocky grin plastered on his face as he jumped out of the way of a punch and swept a leg out. He successfully kicked the prince's legs out from underneath him and let out a triumphant whoop as Sam landed on his butt.
He wasn't totally prepared for Sam to spring forward and dive for his legs, falling backward on his butt as well with a now surprised look. "Nice job Sammy, but I won that round." He said, laughing and getting to his feet before helping his friend to his feet as well.
"Break before the next one? Or do you want to lose right away?" Sam asked, rolling his shoulders. His back was to the girls, but Alex was looking right at them.
He grinned and winked to the girls before getting back into a fighting position. "We have some company, Holly and her gorgeous mystery friend." He said, "Don't let it get to your head." Both of them knew the girls would most likely be more of a distraction to Alex than to Sam.
They were too far away to hear what the boys were saying, but they were pretty sure it was about them, after Alex glanced at them and grinned.
Lacey winked at him, and Holly poked her in the arm.
"What?" Lacey asked, sounding offended.
"Be careful," Holly said to her, looking up at her friend with a serious face. "We're not allowed to be in a relationship with anyone else while the Selection is going on. I can't let you be punished and kicked out. So please, be careful."
"I'll be fine," her friend said, waving her hand dismissively. "It's just flirting. I'm not going to fall in love with him."
"If you're sure." Holly turned her attention back to the two men before them, biting her lip in worry. She didn't want her friend to get kicked out, and wanted her to be okay, to be safe. But there was nothing she could say to make Lacey stop, so she would just have to watch and keep her friend from doing something rash.
"They're off-limits Alex, remember that," Sam said, copying the fighting stance and wasting no time this time as they both attacked within moments. Again it didn't follow a set fighting technique, the two seemed to know exactly what the other was going to do before it even happened, leading the sparing to look more like a perfectly executed dance than anything.
Alex just grinned, replying to the prince between attacks, "I know, I'm not going to do anything until you've had your choice and she's back on the market." He danced away from a kick and laughed, though he slowly seemed to become more serious as Sam didn't back down. The two couldn't seem to get an edge over the other this time, seeming equal in everything from how many hits they threw to how many times each of them landed a hit.
"They're amazing," Lacey breathed, and Holly had to agree. They moved together like it was a planned, dangerous dance, striking and darting around each other in a deadly move. It was really cool, and made her heart race. The two hot, sweaty guys doing it helped, too.
Wait, what was she thinking? She wasn't boy crazy, not at all!
Holly shook her head. When Alex glanced back at Lacey, seeming to feel the same way her friend did, she frowned. Oh no. She wasn't excited to see what would happen between the two. She wanted her friend to be happy, but this was dangerous.
"They're going to be off-limits for a while, Alex, it's only a few days into the Selection," Sam replied, gritting his teeth after a good hit to his side from Al, "And maybe she won't be back on the market, keep that option in mind."
His friend just nodded, jumping over Sam's leg as he tried the same move he had lost to last round, "I'm aware. I have a feeling you already have your eyes set on someone though, am I right?" Sam glared at him and Alex grinned, laughing as he had to dodge more hits, "I was right. Let me guess…Is it that brunett that was eyeing you up at lunch?"
Sam rolled his eyes, "As right as you were with your original guess, that's not the one I have my eyes set on. You're not going to find out either, not until much later into this whole thing." He landed a kick to Alex's chest and his friend stumbled back, though didn't fall. Instead, Alex finally put on his game face and the pace of their fighting picked up.
