Reina

The bark of the tree scratches against my back as I beg my heart to stop pounding loudly in my chest. Trying to stay quiet is next to impossible when all I want to do is scream in frustration.

My parents are probably on the outskirts of the woods, ready to watch me be dragged to the altar awaiting with pride. For weeks, the selection process has dragged on and at each opportunity I’ve failed to prove myself unworthy of this honor. I manage not to puke at the memory of all those naive girls who looked on in jealousy before the commencement of this tradition began.

Oddly enough, I have no objections to living within The Greenhouse. The outside world would call us a brainwashed cult but they don’t understand. This colony is a community, a safe haven and peaceful escape from normal society.

My parents brought me here when I was a toddler and I don’t remember any other life. I know my Mama’s family immigrated here from Mexico when she was just a baby and my Papa grew up not far from here. I don’t remember who recruited us or why my parents chose this life for us but it has always felt like our home.

However, this ceremony is a little inconvenient to my plans of staying single into adulthood or even retirement.

From what I know of the ceremony, it’s not all that common. It requires two eligible heirs and the desire to lead our people in order for it to even be necessary. It’s been at least two decades since the last occurrence.

I could never have imagined that stomping on a little boy’s foot after hearing him pick on his own twin brother would lead me here.

It’s strange how vivid that day is in my memory. My family and I had only been here for a few weeks when they decided I was ready for schooling. While our system is non-traditional, we do believe in education of everything including the outside world. So just after a lesson in vocabulary, I was wandering the small outdoor play area for a quiet place to hide, scared to be seen alone and friendless.

Just as I spotted a small shaded area of a tree, I heard two small voices arguing, pulling me away from my destination. Peeking around the wall of the school, I spotted two boys. From a distance one may think they were identical but after observing them for a moment, I realized there was a slight height difference. The one who seemed to be just a tad bit bigger than the other pushed the smaller one down.

I’m not sure why but it made me angry. They shouldn’t be fighting, it wasn’t kind. If I had a sister, I would never push her. These two boys were lucky enough to be twins and weren’t even appreciating it.

“You need to apologize.”

The words left my mouth before I could stop them, drawing their attention my way. The boy on the ground stood up and began dusting the dirt off of his bottom.

“Excuse me?”

the mean one practically growled at me.

I knew better than to cower to a bully. The books they read to us in my old school told me so. I was in it now.

“You can’t push him. It’s not nice. And he’s your brother so that makes you extra mean.”

I’m still proud that I was able to finish that sentence, especially since the mean one began turning red.

The smaller one smiled at me. “Sometimes brothers fight. It’s okay, we’ll be okay.”

Meanie gave me a smirk and I really didn’t like that. Marching over, I stood right in front of him. “You need to say you are sorry.”

“No.”

I remember thinking about what my dad would say. I had heard him tell mom something about tasting medicine. That led me to one conclusion.

“Say it or I’ll have to give you medicine.”

“Medicine? You’re a silly little princess. Go away.”

Meanie sneered at me.

That was enough for me. I served him a dose of hurt toes, stomping on his foot with mine, putting all the power I could behind it.

Sadly, my bravery ended right then and fear took place. I ran away. Later that night, I confessed to my parents what had happened, scared that someone from school would tell them first.

My mother told me that they were Leader Gabriel’s twin sons and I needed to apologize. I refused, saying that meanie would have to do so first. It made my father smile though he tried to hide it.

When I learned their names the next day during Erudition, it was clear that my actions had left a lasting impression on them. Meanie was actually Mikeal, but I rarely ever called him that. And though he’s no longer the smaller of the twins, Amos has always been sweeter.

Mikeal never apologized for that particular situation and neither did I. Over the years, I’ve never seen him hurt his brother or anyone else. There’s a darkness in him, though. It’s deep in his eyes. I’ve seen it flare up when one of the young boys says something inappropriate to women, especially me. I’ve seen the way his fists flex when I tell him I’m not his princess, a nickname he’s never stopped using, only for him to smile again so quickly I feel whiplashed.

Amos has stayed by my side just as fiercely. He looks at me like I’m the moon and he’s just a star lucky enough to light up the sky with me. He once told me that he had one goal everyday: to make me laugh. But he’s not fooling me anymore.

The three of us had been inseparable since our small tiff as little kids. Except for the past year.

Mikeal and Amos began their training, preparing to inherit the Leader’s chair for our growing community meaning they had less and less free time. Both of these boys knew about the ceremony and never thought to tell me. Leaving me in the dark until the announcement was made weeks ago.

When they were free, I found a reason not to be. After my parents explained the ceremony, I couldn’t bear to see them. Not only would they have to choose their potential wife, they’d have to claim her in a barbaric fashion. And the worst part? Only one of them could keep her.

I never thought they’d pick me. I’d done everything I could to fail every test. I made a point to look like a fool at gatherings and be the absolute worst candidate for a partner. Leadership exams? Failed. Mental Evaluations? I didn’t even try to hide my displeasure. Not to mention fucking a random guy so I could proclaim loudly in front our elders that I had no virtue.

Yet here I am, letting the bark of the tree scratch up my back because my best friends decided they wanted to hunt me.

Claim me.

And maybe I wouldn’t hate it so much if it didn’t mean I’d have to lose one.

A chill crosses my skin when I think of the way Mikeal and Amos looked at me when I voiced that I was no longer a virgin. It’s the first time I’ve ever been scared of both of them. Those tiny boys I met so long ago had been replaced with rage filled men.

As my breath finally calms down and my lungs no longer feel like bursting, the realization hits that I could potentially hide out here until morning, never being found. Maybe then they’d have to pick someone else. Or a different tradition would come next.

That hope is obliterated with one word.

“Princess.”