1

"Bailey's homeeee!" Lisa announced cheerily the moment I stepped into the house. Tiny feet scuffled in the floor board and I left out a small Yelp as her arms snakes around my legs. " You're home!"

"Yes, yes." I beamed, the initial annoyance of the overhyped ritual long forgotten. " How are you…"

" So nice of you to join us." I could recognize that voice anywhere. If my life were to be a high school movie, I'd have said it was my rival wannabe queen B. But seeing my life was far from a high school setting, my gaze landed on the slightly above thirty something year old woman stood at the dining, a red ladle in her grip. I'm sure if she had her way, that ladle would be tangled up in my blonde locs. " Did you get into any trouble on your way home?"

"Good evening to you too, mum." I stressed the endearment at the end of my statement, making sure my sarcasm was sharp on my tongue. " I had some business to attend to."

"Was that business so important you had to skip making dinner?" Her eyes raked over my figure as I walked to the dinning, that disgusting look not leaving her face.

" And what is that you're wearing?" Her lips tugged downward in a frown forming a thin line. She was no doubt accessing my choice in clothing which both of us had our differences about.

I was in a pair of dark blue denim jeans, the material hugging my curves so well. My mum had expressed her obvious distaste for it in the morning but I further annoyed her by topping it off with a baggy polo.

"Clothes mum." I replied nonchalantly." My clothes."

"Bailey Patricia Gayle!" Her voice was cool, calm and icy. Anytime she called me by my full name it usually spelled trouble . Her brown eyes pierced mine but I slightly avoided contact, my gaze resting on the scene behind her. The kitchen was sparkling, kitchen utensils showing my reflection. A pot of porridge stood atop the burner, a dare I say delicious aroma wafting out. The kitchen had always been a weird place to me because I hardly went in there. Even Lisa, who was barely six years old, had more memories about that place than me.

The kitchen is a woman's pride, my mum always said. Her wits made a more plausible answer.

"Um, honey." My dad called from his seat at the dinning. " Why don't you just serve dinner? It's getting cold."

That was his way of trying to diffuse the tension. The ambience was thick with it and you could use a pie knife to cut out slices that would feed us and our neighbors too. He shot me a small smile and I nodded in gratitude. My parents were polar opposites when it came to me.  Where my mum was blazing hot, my dad was as cool as a cucumber. When it came to looks, I took after my mum a great deal. I had her exact figure and my dad's blue eyes. Same hair color too, but no one knew where my hotheadedness came from.

Not that I was complaining though.

"Honey." Dad called out again but mum wasn't having it.

"Not now." Mum spoke up. " You always let her get away with it, but not this time."

"Look mum…" whatever sentence I wanted to make was interrupted by the back door swinging open. All heads turned just to rest on Nita, my cousin. I beamed. "Nita!"

"Oh my gosh, Bailey!" She squealed before running to embrace me in a warm hug. One that I returned enthusiastically. "When did you get here? When did you arrive?"

"Not long ago." I replied as we both took out seats at the dining, chairs next to each other. The black dining table was lined with a blue table cloth. I recognized it because mum wouldn't shut up about the fact that Nita crocheted it.

Don't get me wrong. I loved Nita, to the moon and back. In fact, she was one of the few family members I could tolerate. What I didn't like was the constant comparism and not so subtle reminder to be like her.

"Nita. Welcome." Mum finally took her seat, not without casting me one last glare. " I hope you're ready for tonight?"

"God no." I groaned, my fork halfway into the porridge. " No,no,no."

"Why? It's an honour that Nita was picked to be Beta Eric's future mate." The pride in mum's voice was almost sickening. " At least she'll help us get into the royal family somehow, unlike some people."

"Auntie." Nita came to my rescue immediately. "Don't say that."

"Let her." I found myself saying. "I honestly don't get what y'all are all hyped up about. To me this ritual only portrays women as some sort of commodity that any man can just choose from just because he's deemed royalty. The whole ritual is just messed up."

"Sounds like someone's jealous." She didn't even try to be subtle.

"Wow mum." The sound of my chair screeching backwards filled the room. The room was charged. "Just wow."

"Come on Bailey." My dad stretched to reach my hand from across the table. " I'm sure she didn't mean it like that."

"Yeah." Nita added. " She only meant she wanted you to be more, um, feminine.."

"And keep her temper in check too." Mum quipped, not giving a care about what she was doing. " She's never going to find a mate if she keeps this up."

"I don't want a mate!" Plates and cutlery alike banged as I slammed my hand on the table.

"Bailey!" Dad yelled. " What is the meaning of this?"

"Mum started it!" I stood my ground. " She's been coming at me,since I came home!"

"The truth hurts my dear." Was all mum said. " The earlier you accept it, the better for all of us."

"If you need me, I'll be in my room." Without looking back and turning a dead ear to Nita's calls behind me, I stormed upstairs and slammed the door so hard the hinges rattles reverberated

I hated everyone, i hated the royal mate ceremony. But still; something told me this time; things were going to be different. I could feel it in my throats. The mating ceremony this year, was going to be different.