Page 24 of The Final Rose

An unwelcome tremor goes up my spine when I glance up at him. We are all about the banter, but sometimes Sebastian can rotate my world on its axis so quickly, I’m left catching my breath.

Sebastian has a presence about him. His voice can command, and he’s doing it right now. His eyes trace my features for a moment too long and take my hands off him as if they are burning. I step back and crane my head, chin up.

I won’t ever answer him.

“I think you’re ready to go,” I say, clearing my throat. “I’ll tell them we can start.”

And before he has a chance to respond, I’m turning around and jogging away.

“She’s scared of her own voice!”

I hear Vera’s voice through a point in my ear. Her laugh is melodic and, when mixed with Sebastian’s, is pure harmony. I never knew laughs can mix and form goddamn music, but I guess I stand corrected.

The date goes well, but my mood sours. Suddenly, everything irritates me. The weather, my co-workers, the contestants, and the blue sky itself.

Abby is the worst golfer of them all. Once she finishes up her shot, Vera turns to her with a good-natured smile, “Is the screeching helping with your game?”

Abby throws her head back and laughs, “Of course it’s helping! I’m your regular Tiger Woods.”

I have to admit; the girls are fantastic. They smile, joke, and enjoy themselves. Vera and Abby are definitely the nicest. I can’t imagine them turning nasty just for the game’s sake.

Vivian and Maya aren’t as talkative, preferring to stay on the sidelines and observe. I understand the instinct, but that will hurt them long-term. It’s halfway through the date and we barely have footage of them interacting with Sebastian. Soon, their faces will blend into the background, and folks at home will never remember.

The only salvation for Vivian and Maya is Mackenzie and Emily. They are… difficult. I try to stay positive and not to judge much, but man, they are horrible people.

Emily is a whiner. I’m still waiting to hear her voice without the drag of every final syllable that is accompanied by a pout.

And Mackenzie is just plain mean. Her comments are hard to ignore. She talks at the back of each one of the other girls.

“I can’t believe she thinksthatskirt looks good.” She says to Emily, who snickers and slaps her on the arm.

“This girl has a one-way ticket to the season’s villain,” Nessa whispers from behind, with a little frown on her forehead, like it pains her to hear the comments.

“We won’t air all that at once. It needs to be built up.” I sigh.

The fundamental difference between reality TV and reality is that people in real life reveal themselves at the first opportunity they have.

Armed with misguided beliefs, no one sees themselves as the bad guy. Villains don’t exist in real life. They are just regular people who think they have the right to suck.

In reality TV, we need to build a little thing called narrative. It doesn’t serve any of us to lay all the cards in the first episode. Even though I know Mackenzie isn’t a nice person, I know they will keep her for a long time and unravel her personality one comment at a time.

I breathe an impatient breath. The words rolling off Mackenzie’s tongue are enough to set women back one hundred years. She says awful things about Abby’s thighs, is disgusted by Vera’s outfit, rolls her eyes every time Vivian talks, and her nasty comments about Maya’s hair are downright racist.

If we deliver the actual footage, the internet will eat her alive. I hate that we’ll have to sit on this.

I watch the rest of the date when it’s the last thing I want to do. Sebastian is back to his royal self. Charming, with a velvet accent and a cute little dimple, making the girls fall over themselves for a sliver of his attention.

I bite my cheek as he gives Maya pointers on her pitch. The whole scene is straight out of a romantic comedy, and Nessa squeaks by my side.

“Tell me I’m not a genius for getting Sebastian Riggs?” She elbows me in the gut, and I’m forced to look away from Sebastian to focus on my friend. “England’s most eligible bachelor. And look at them? The girls can’t believe their luck.”

I look away from Nessa again. Maya takes her shot and laughs with Sebastian when it goes as bad as previously.

“He’s good.” I accept.

“Good?” I hear the scoff in my friend’s voice. “He’s Prince Charming.”

Yes, I get that. He sure looks like Prince Charming and Barbie’s Ken all rolled up in one. But he’s also sarcastic, witty, and plain annoying when he wants to. He says incomprehensible words, all laced with unexpected humor.

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