Chapter Twenty-Eight — The Impeccable Contest

∆At The Ballroom∆

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"You look great, Jayden."

"Even the Prince of Splendor can't beat you in terms of looks and character."

"You're amazing and awesome too."

"I find you attractive in my sight." Girls were praising Jayden. Jayden strolled portentously to the ballroom in his black spotless tuxedo that he bought for more than three hundred thousand gold coins. His friend, Vince escorted him from behind and he looked great too but no girl saw him or complimented him.

Jayden turned around and saw the fuming Vince, "Do you think I'll win this contest this time around?"

"Why do you say so?" Vince asked. Jayden never lost faith in his self. "There are moderate number of contestants this year so there's very high or low tendency of you winning the contest."

Jayden inhaled and exhaled, "You don't understand. With Jemima here, the tendency is far reduced."

"You can still contest next year, I thought you are wooing her or was I overthinking?"

Jayden: "…"

Jayden did not pay heed to him. A courteous robot waiter passed by with a tray of glasses filled with wine. With one agile move, Jayden got two glasses. One for him and one for Vince.

"I'll go check around to see if I can have fun." Vince excused himself and got lost in the crowd. Holding a glass of wine in his right hand and tucking his left hand in his pocket, he decided to walk around, looking for something to catch his attention.

"Fuck!" Jemima muttered when wine poured on her dress. She looked up to see the frantic Jayden staring at her crossed purple eyes. She was lucky that she didn't wear the costume for her show if not it could have been ruined.

"I'm sorry I ruined your dress." He acted contritely and Jemima just gave him a simple nod and walked away to the direction of the change room. Just now, girls were praising him and now he ruined a girl's dress. The girl simply walked away and didn't look back. He was angry with himself for doing something awkward like that.

He walked to the change room and saw Jemima stuffing her clothes in and out of her bag. She brought out a white bejeweled frock and a silky striped pink gown and began to compare.

"Why don't you take the white frock?" Jayden smiled as he walked leisurely towards her.

"What are you doing here?" Jemima asked as her eyes were plastered with confusion and embarrassment simultaneously.

"Nothing, I just came to apologize officially to you for ruining your outfit, I'm sorry for being so stroppy." Jayden apologized sincerely.

Jemima could only smile. "It's nothing at all."

"So what if I actually ruined your costume? How will you then participate in the contest…?" Jayden asked remorsefully.

"That's why I always bring a spare with me." Jemima smiled convivially. With this one sentence from Jemima, Jayden gave a small smile and left the change room. Walking leisurely and freespiritedly towards the ballroom, he saw Desha. He narrowed his eyes and sized himself up.

"Hey Jayden!" Desha greeted him, flashing that pretentious yet hypnotizing smile that showed off the picture-perfect set of white teeth that many manufacturers of toothpaste and mouthwash would envy.

"Hi." Jayden responded seriously as if the hypnotic smile had no effect on him. "I can see that you're busy. Talk to you later!" He saw Ashe gawking at both of them and he walked away with an aura intoxicated with pomposity, not sparing a glance or smile at them.

Desha pouted her lips in frustration. She stomped back to her corner, Ashe was by her side catching fun too.

"Why are you sullen?" The veiled lady asked her.

Desha leered further. Jayden made her a fool just now. "He rebuffed me. He didn't give me breathing space either. He didn't even allow me to talk to him at all."

"Teens of nowadays!" Ashe muttered under her breath and facepalmed herself. "I can see that guy is in love with another girl." She whispered.

"Of course! Who else if not that Jemima bitch? This is definitely one of the many reasons why I want to eradicate her. She's a killjoy." Desha yelled but that was not loud enough to people's hearing.

Ashe: "…"

"Don't worry, she'll be out of your way very soon. Just stay put." Ashe patted Desha gently.

The contest started and the hands of time ticked very quickly as several students performed. The Impeccable Contest was a sort of contest when students display their talents in front of others; this was to prove their worth. Some students acted dramas, sang heartwarming songs, danced and said inspirational speeches but when it was Jemima's turn, she wore the white frock that was designed with gemstones. She indeed looked like an adorable angel.

"What does she think she's doing?"

"Playing the flute of course…"

"How ridiculous!"

"Or has she finally run out of ideas?"

Students whispered amongst themselves. But Jemima wasn't shaken. Normally, students would cry and run away from stage when faced with such but Jemima remained resolute. They were expecting her to sing, dance, play grand instruments or say a speech. She sat on the colorful mat spread before her on the stage and crossed her knees. Taking a deep breath in and out, she took the flute and began to play it. It was as if her emotions were conveyed with the tune 'cause she played it beautifully and freely. One could feel the positive vibes in it.

The people that were rumoring and whispering about her gave her a grand standing ovation but Jemima didn't stop there, with just one swift but agile turn, she began to dance. Every twist and turn of hers were magical and lithe. The music flowed like an overflowing stream. Jemima was like an angel expressing her emotions thru dancing and playing the flute. One could say that she was a breathtaking and agile celestial being.

Her performance came to an end and she elegantly left the stage. It was a magical and emotional scene because the judges gave her a standing ovation too.

"Is she going to win the contest?" A chubby dude asked the very few persons behind him.

"Didn't you see that the judges gave her a standing ovation?" A cutie girl retorted back.

"Are you sure she's going to win? Of course not when Jayden is still on top of the board." The chubby dude smirked evilly and the girl looked away angrily and flashed her dyed green hair at the dude.

"Let's... let's just watch." a tiny squeak was from a little boy who looked like he was fourteen.

"Things are getting complex and heated up and I can't help but be fretful." Another little girl named Liliana squeaked. It seemed like the little boy was related to Liliana. They were siblings.

"C'mon Liliana, you're next. GO ROCK AND ROLL!" One of the boys cheered Liliana as she went up to the stage.

So many performances took place but there was one that robbed the interest of Jemima. It was actually a group of students who were miming and acting a historical drama. Jemima stood in the crowd and watched them with rapt attention but she still wore her frock. She became lost in watching them 'cause she felt that their performance was all about her unanswered questions.

The drama was all about a powerful queen who ruled a kingdom with firm hand. She got married and gave birth to a cute daughter. The child grew up to the age of fourteen. At that time, a ball was thrown when she was coronated as the crown princess. But an unexpected war began right after the coronation, the best friend of the queen allied with another powerful kingdom to take down the queen and her kingdom.

"Take our child and run away. Far from here, you'll get to a cave. Stay there and take good care of Reese, our child while I deal with the enemies." The queen cried pitifully. The girl acting it didn't say it, she just mouthed the words and acted as if it was real. The words were said by two narrators who were standing by.

The bloke acting as the Queen's husband cried and ran away with Reese. As the boy was running, an evil woman with some underlings could be seen tormenting the queen. Few underlings ran after the bloke and his child till they lost sight of him. It was like he took an unfamiliar route that led to the cave Ximena told him about.

"Ximena!" The boy mimed when he was alone at the cave. He looked tired and angry.

Jemima who was watching attentively turned limp when she heard the name from the bloke's mouth.