Th_omas

" How about we help each other?" He says and I look up at him, eyes still wet from the tears streaming down my cheeks, heart freshly broken from the public humiliation and betrayal that was Lucas's breakup. I can faintly make out the first droppings of snow floating magically under the light of the street lamps. It's that time of the year, a time for wool coats, a time for relaxing, none of which I'll be doing. "I'm an orphan with a wicked aunt and a boyfriend who left her because she has nothing to her name, how could I possibly help you?" I say another sob escaping my lips. "Marry me" he replies and my eyes widen in anger. Is he mocking me?. I look into the eyes of this stranger and see he's dead serious. "I need a wife, you need a home, marry me and you'll have all you want". I nod.

A Snowy Marriage (A Christmas agreement)

"You don't have to be scared" Adrian says trying to calm me, and I can see the honesty in his words. He wants me to feel included in whatever is going on here, and I can't say I don't appreciate the thought that goes into his actions.

He always seems to have the urge to make me feel better at each and every turn, and I don't think it's hard to fall in love with someone like that. The feeling in my chest it's tight and constricting as I lay my plan out before then.

"I know of each and every manipulation that has gone on in this hall for the past two hours" I say, and I can see both their eyebrows rise up in disbelief or is it fascination.

I lay each and every subtle glance that I have seen one person pass to the other, as i gesture softly with my hands at exactly who I'm talking about. Adrian seems to be fascinated by this and Arden just keeps on grinning like a maniac.

I continue with my explanations and I can see the fascination in both their faces, the smile has Arden looking like she's going to grin until the corners of her mouth touch her eyes.

She stands up and gives an excited whoop, and I can see the attention of everyone in the whole snap to us. Adrian still holds fascination in his gaze, as he doesn't seem to notice how everyone's attention is trained on us right now.

He just seems to look at me with a sort of marvel in his eyes, and I glare at Arden. She's causing unnecessary attention to us, and I feel all the confidence I had a few minutes ago leave me.

I can feel the intensity of a lot of people's gaze trained on me. "There is a way we can exploit this", I say and I hope the words don't make me feel like some evil manipulative person. I hope it doesn't pass the wrong message to Adrian and Arden, so they don't start to see me as a bad person.

I have considered this course of action for a long time now, as they seemed to pass barely constructed plans under the table. Would it be all right for me to manipulate others in the way my head has so clearly suggested?. Would it be right to use others to your advantage while you leave them with nothing?.

Would it be the right thing to make others be on the losing side while you snatched all the benefits and basically all that they had from them?.

The realisation struck me that these Winter games isn't a game at all. It is a battle for survival, and only the strongest will survive. Only those who have the ability to take decisions at impossible times will survive.

Not surviving means being trampled upon, and being used for the profits of someone else, while you are basically left with next to nothing. It would leave you at the disposal of someone untrustworthy, as they forced you to give up everything you had just so they could better their own interests.

The plan in my head didn't strike me as right, and I knew immediately that was not the part I wanted to take.

I have another plan, a plan that deviates from what everyone here seems to consider the natural status quo.

Chapter 56