Chapter 2

Renee sat, dumbstruck, as she waited in her visitor room. She struggled to breathe. So much had happened in less than an hour. She'd been forced off a stage, thrown into a room, and left there while celebratory music played outside the window.

As she sat alone in the empty room, her mind kept replaying the moment Nathalie had joined her on the stage. The two girls had stood next to Bob as he had raised their hands in the air, declaring that they were going to be the ones to win the games.

The clammy feeling from her hands still hadn't left. She wrung them together before rubbing them down her thighs.

She wasn't ready. There was no way she could do this. She was in her freshman year of college, for heaven's sake! Business wasn't exactly the most extravagant of degrees, and she maybe knew how to debate with someone, but nothing like fighting hand-to-hand. It wasn't like she could leave either. She was stuck there, facing the future with terrified eyes.

A knock sounded at the door. The abrupt noise pulled Renee out of her thoughts and she got to her feet as the door opened.

"RENEE!"

There was a blur before Renee was grappled in a hug. She lost her balance and toppled to the ground.

Judging by the screaming, hugging, and the distinct smell of high-end perfume, Renee knew the person who'd tackled her had to be her twin sister, Amelie. They looked exactly identical, but Amelie always seemed to be the pretty one out of the two. Even with tears streaming down her face and her hair falling out of a braid, Amelie looked more put together than Renee felt.

Softly, Renee pulled Amelie away from her chest and gave her sister a smile.

"Hi, Amelie. I'm glad you found me okay."

"Renee, I can't believe you were chosen!" her sister exclaimed. "Do you know what this means?!"

Renee blinked. "That I have to fight for my life?"

"You could marry Gabriel Agreste!"

Of course. Nothing but boys with you, Renee thought.

After taking a second to get Amelie off of her, Renee got to her feet and brushed off her dress. "I really don't think that's what I should be worried about right now." She glanced around, her gaze stopping at the door. "Where's mother and father?"

Amelie gave a half-hearted shrug. "I'm pretty sure they're busy. With everything closed down, I wouldn't be surprised if they decided to have a spa day or something."

"I wish I could have a spa day," Renee muttered.

Amelie laughed. "You probably will, since they're sending you to the Capital and all!"

The Capital - the main city that controlled everything in the country. It wasn't far from Renee's district, but now that she was leaving, it felt like it was an eternity away from her current life. No more was she going to have to live in fear of not affording groceries or rent. Instead, it was seeing if she could live to see the next day or not. And that thought wasn't comforting in the slightest.

"Hey," Amelie said, getting to her feet, "I bet if mother and father were here, they'd be super proud."

Renee gave her sister a small smile. "I would hope so. They were always trying to get me to be something better. Hopefully, this exceeds their expectations."

The two girls shared a laugh. The moment was bittersweet for Renee. She hadn't seen Amelie in some time since she'd moved out before Renee had, but it was like nothing had changed. That sense of unity gave Renee new hope.

Maybe she could do this. It wouldn't be easy, but she was more determined than ever to survive and return home. Amelie, and hopefully her parents, would be rooting for her, after all.

The door opened once more. A stiff guard leaned inside, giving the two sisters a stern glare. "If you're done here, we need to join the other Charms at the station, Miss Graham de Vanily."

A pang of fear shot through Renee, pushing out the hope she'd just barely grabbed hold of. Amelie wrapped an arm around hers and gave the guard a dazzling smile.

"Can you grant us one more minute? I have a couple of things I want to say before I don't see my sister for a long time."

The guard seemed hesitant, but he grunted and closed the door.

As soon as he was gone, Amelie unwove her arm from Renee's and gripped her sister's shoulders tightly. The sudden severity that was in her face threw Renee for a loop. It wasn't often she saw that sort of determination in her sister's eyes.

"Renee, listen to me. I know there's a lot at stake, including your life, and I want you to know that if you need anything, please contact me. I'm serious, anything at all. Mother and father have connections that I can get in touch with if you're in need of something."

Renee's vision had gone blurry from the tears that were threatening to spill over her cheeks. She gently removed her sister's hands from her shoulders and squeezed them tightly.

"Thank you, Amelie. I'll remember that, I promise."

The girls shared a heartbreaking smile. Amelie's eyes started to water again, tears trailing down her cheeks. She sniffled and laughed as she rubbed her sleeve under her nose.

"Gosh, I'm going to miss seeing your dumb face."

Renee pulled her sister into a hug. "Me too, Amelie. Me too."

The door opened and two guards came in this time. Instead of asking if they were ready, they simply pulled the girls apart.

"Wai-wait!" Renee stuttered. "I'm not ready!"

"We're late," one of the guards snapped. They pulled Renee toward the door, and though she dug in her heels, it did no good. Fear climbed up her throat, her eyes flashing and darting around.

She didn't want to go!

"You've got this, Ray!" Amelie called, and though she wasn't being held back by a guard, Renee could tell that she was fighting the urge to run after her sister. The last thing Renee saw of her sister was a supportive smile, her eyes full of tears.

As soon as she lost sight of her sister, Renee's legs became weak and her arms felt like noodles. By the time they'd made it to the end of the hallway, the guards were practically dragging a lifeless body.

"For heaven's sake, will you walk faster?" the guard on her left grumbled. Numbly, Renee put one foot in front of the other. She wasn't the type to sulk, but with such an insane future ahead of her, she didn't think she could do much else.

As they turned the corner, she spotted Nathalie standing with a guard of her own. She didn't seem happy, not like Renee was expecting her to be. Pieces of her dark hair had been pulled out of her low bun and were framing her face. Well, more like hiding her face. Her hands were gripped tightly in front of her like she was trying to hold herself back.

"Nathalie," Renee said.

Her roommate looked up. Just like Emile had expected, they were red from crying.

"Renee," Nathalie responded.

"Are you okay?" Renee asked, coming up next to her friend. Before she could respond, the guards nudged the two of them.

"Get moving. The train is about to leave."

The two girls kept walking. Renee didn't know what to say. It wasn't like she could apologize for what'd happened. For all she knew, they were both walking toward their deaths.

Sounds better than marrying a dry man like Gabriel, Renee thought.

She glanced out of the corner of her eye to see Nathalie taking a deep breath. She tilted her head up, wiped her tears, and began to fix her hair. Renee watched as she took out her bun, run her fingers through her black hair, and put it back up.

"Why don't you leave it down?" Renee asked.

Nathalie looked over at her friend, giving her a smile and a shrug. "It doesn't look good down, so I put it up. Besides, it's easier that way."

As they walked, Renee came up behind her and pulled out the bun. "Here, I can braid it real fast before we get to the station."

"Oh, you don't have to do that!"

"But I want to." Renee smiled, slightly pleading. "Please?"

Nathalie looked uncertain, but she eventually nodded her head. The girls continued to make their way toward the station, and though the guards exchanged a look between each other, they didn't stop Renee from braiding Nathalie's hair. The two girls didn't talk much, either. They walked quietly and obediently until they got to the front door of the government's main building. Renee finished Nathalie's braid and was tying it up at the bottom just as the front doors opened.

Screaming and cheering erupted around them. Nathalie took a step back, the flashes of the cameras blinding her. She bumped into Renee, but Renee caught her before she could lose her balance. It took a minute to adjust, but once the flashing dulled down, the girls were taken aback by what they saw.

The streets were lined with people. Signs with both Nathalie's and Renee's names were bouncing up and down in the air, the sign holders calling out their names. It hadn't even been two hours and yet people from their district had begun to rally around them.

Renee spotted the cameras at the end of the roped-off walkway that led to the car. Their lenses zoomed in on the two girls. They felt like eyes peering into Renee's soul.

And she hated every second of it.

With a firm grasp, Nathalie grabbed Renee's hand and raised it above her head. Renee, shocked and confused, shot her a look, wondering if she was crazy. Nathalie didn't have time to explain herself. She merely plastered a smile onto her face - a big one - and waved at the crowd.

The crowd ate it up. They screamed and cheered louder. The cameras zoomed in even closer.

Renee could feel the hair on her arms bristle. The butterflies in her stomach fluttered and she let out a ragged breath. Her legs wobbled underneath her and her knees buckled.

Nathalie squeezed Renee's hand. She looked over at her friend, only to see that Nathalie was smiling at her. Except, it wasn't just a happy smile. The message was in her eyes.

Play along and smile!

Renee closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and forced the biggest smile across her face. Nathalie led the way, their hands still raised above their heads, as they made their way toward the car. Renee was following her friend's example of waving and smiling to the crowd. The supporters seemed to fall over themselves as they clambered for attention like she and Nathalie were superstars.

A guard opened the back door to the car and Renee climbed in first. She slid all the way over to the opposite side of the car before Nathalie climbed in. The guard closed the door, leaving the two girls alone.

Renee let out a long sigh and relaxed back against her seat.

"Are you okay?" Nathalie asked.

After a moment, she nodded. "Yeah, I'm okay. That was just... that was terrifying."

Nathalie nodded, smoothing out her skirt. "I understand. Sometimes you just have to force a smile when everyone's looking."

Renee shook her head, looking at Nathalie in disbelief. "How did you know to do that? The crowd was practically falling over themselves."

"We want to make a good impression, don't we?" 

Nathalie met Renee's gaze, her eyes glittering. It was something Renee had only seen once or twice since knowing her. Her determination practically radiated from her eyes.

"We are fighting for Gabriel Agreste, after all. If we can't handle a small crowd like that, how are we supposed to run a country?" 

---

Woohoo! Chapter 2 up and posted!

I hope you guys are liking what I've got so far. It's been such an adventure trying to figure out how I want this story to play out. I have so many things planned, and I hope you guys are as excited as I am!

As a quick update, I am in the process of moving. With COVID-19 blowing up across the US, my college has transferred completely to online. And, with my lease ending at the end of March, the smartest choice was to move home. I mention this because my update for next week might be late! I not only have to finish the next chapter but also move all of my furniture and clean the apartment before the 31st. 

Overall, patience would be appreciated!

Anyway, let's get to the favorite comment!

Favorite Comment: 

by: @K_Krystal

This actually makes me so excited thooo :)))))))Thanks for writing the thing I'm probably going to be obsessed with for the next few months.

Dude, me too. I'm gonna be obsessed with this for a while, too, haha. 

Thank you all for the support! I can't wait to continue this journey with you guys! 

And, as always, have a Miraculous day!