So, the Bright assholes were behind this.

“weird of them to interfere against me, don’t you think? I mean, what would a ‘plain’ girl like me possibly bring to the table to guarantee sabotage?”

“I... I...”

“Don’t be shy, speak your mind, I’m not sensitive.”

A scoff sounds and I turn to find Ryder there holding up his phone.

The murmur in the crowd grows as they get impatient, waiting for me to get to the stage.

I look in the general direction of the princes accusingly, only to find smug expressions sitting on each of the pretty faces.

Beats me why they would try to sabotage their kingdom’s event, they must know I don’t really care to win.

“if she has no talent throw her out!”

“Yeah, she’s wasting our time.”

Boy, ya’ll brought yourselves here, and I’m not keeping you.

More yells and boos filter through and the MC turns to us for help.

I look back towards the princes just in time to see them signal something to the DJ and the man sits back at his booth.

“Oh, silly me, here it is, I must have overlooked it earlier.”

So that’s what’s happening, they were out to embarrass me and set me up for failure, I may not want to be the freaking queen but I sure as hell had talent, and I was going to show them.

I walk onto the stage going through the routine in my head, I’ve never performed it in full, I was still working on it but it would have to do.

“Rock their world Mahi.” Comes from behind me and I smile before I remember I was supposed to be mad at Ryder.

The crowd has now simmered down with just a few people trying to start booing chants, but they are quickly cut off when the first notes of ′Filter’ by Park Jimin come through the huge speakers in the auditorium.

Dead silence breaks out, or maybe I just shut them out focusing entirely on the beats seeping through the stage floor and the notes in the air.

When Jimin’s voice filters through I’m well within my zone and I dance my ass off, literally. This routine had been part of the one they had shut down back home, for being too uncultured, I don’t know how they came up with that.

I had combined hip-hop, contemporary and dancehall moves, adding in the already amazing masterpiece had blended perfectly, at least according to mama, I had thought so too.

Imagine my surprise when Angeline comes in the next week with the perfect routine in mind and half the moves are from my rejected routine, and of course, she gets the credit for it.

The ire fuels me, I feel the sweat dripping down my back and my face with a few strands of my hair stuck to my face. Sorry, Eis, your hairdo was a goner.

As the song winds up I finally open my eyes and slowly lower myself to my knees back arched and lean back on my feet reaching up to yank my hair free eyes on the king just as the speakers go silent.

Panting, and fighting to catch my breath, I keep my eyes on the king until he looks away. Smirk forming, I turn to the princes and a deeply feminine part of me is awed and flattered by the expressions on their faces while the dancer in me gloats.

As if they were waiting for a signal, the crowd erupts with some even chanting my name and a flicker of doubt filters through me, what did I just get myself into?

I stand and walk back to my seat whilst using the end of my shirt to wipe my face.

“that is so freaking gross,” comes from one of the girls as I sit.

Before I can answer, Eislyn blurts out, “that was so freaking hot, if I was into chicks, I would totally jump your bones.”

“scratch that, after that performance, I think I’m into chicks, damn girl.”

We both turn to stare at my neighbour, ′the pied piper’ as I had resorted to calling her in my head.

“oh, my fates you should see your faces,”

“What is happening right now.”

“but seriously girl that was amazing, cool ploy with the delayed entrance too, got everyone worked up.”

“I didn’t do that.”

“Uh-huh.”

“no seriously,” I tried to say but she had already turned back to the front.

“don’t bother, it doesn’t matter anyway,” Eis says.

“But I don’t need her thinking that I’m actively trying to win, I don’t need more enemies.”

“you call that not trying? “she asks not turning back to us.

“that was sorely a fuck you to the bastards who screamed I had no talent; my pride was hurt.”

“riiighttt.”

“I’ve never heard that version before, where did you get it?”

“I made a remix for the choreography before it was turned down, it’s posted on the internet.”

“Spotify?”

“I don’t know Ryder did it.”