In The Spotlight

Firey- Pocket Pebble & The Princess

Normally, they do these things on couches. There are too many of us, though, I guess. So we stood. Behind us was a large screen, displaying the title of the segment. In front, nothing but some producers and equipment- the cheering sounds were recorded.

On both sides, I had members of my team. Leafy to the left, Snowball to the right. And on the other side of the room, sitting at a table (and looking relatively small compared to the crowd of us contestants) were the two talk show hosts, Woody and Blocky.

"Our first question is for The Fireworks and Marketing Team," Blocky announced. A few members of those teams nodded.

"How does being the first two teams down a player feel?" Asked Woody. He cocked his head to the side curiously.

"May I speak first?" Asked Pen, the Fireworks manager. When no one objected, he said, "It's been weird. Wednesday, competing without Ruby was strange. Luckily, her role hasn't done much yet, so I didn't struggle with taking it over." His answer was very rehearsed, but I couldn't blame him. If my team had lost first I would prepare to be asked about it.

"Thanks. And, Coiny, what is it like on your team right now after the loss of Eggy?" This time Blocky did the asking.

"Oh, well, we're doing okay. It's not ideal, but we have faith in Flower to cover for her." He smiled at her.

"Would you like to speak on that Flower?"

"Sure! I like this move for me. Everyone's got some duality. I'm no exception. I can be mean when I'm distracting people, but I can also be in tune with people." She looked frustrated, which was weird.

"Those were great answers. Now, the first individual question, from our viewers, is for Firey!" The clapping audio played. "They'd like to know: 'How do you keep your cool attitude?' A burning question there." Woody looked me dead in the eyes. I think he really did want to know.

I adjusted my shirt collar. I thought it was funny that anyone would describe me as having a 'cool attitude.' I tapped my foot, thinking of a response. Then it came to me.

"Well, other than obviously my friends, I found this rock, right before the first day of filming, and I liked it. I stuck it in my pocket, and it just helps." I shrugged.

It really does.

"Do you want me to walk with you?" I'd asked Leafy that Wednesday night.

"I'd love that." She smiled, but I could still see the tear stains shimmering in the moonlight.

I grabbed my phone and shot Coiny a quick text telling him what happened, that I'd found her and all, then stuffed it in my pocket.

We were quiet for a moment, which can make me uncomfortable. I was about to break the silence, but Leafy did it for me. "I'm sorry," she said. It wasn't how she had been apologizing though. Earlier she was sobbing and spitting out 'sorry' repeatedly between gulps of air. But now she was collected. Her tone was bittersweet, somewhere between a laugh and a cry.

"I already told you, you don't need to apologize for having feelings, Leafy."

She looked at me and snickered. "No, not that." She wiped her forehead of sweat that wasn't there. "It's just that I hate that you keep having to be like, my hero!"

"What are you talking about?" That was bogus. She was so put together. Legions above me in every way. And she thought I was a hero somehow. If she wasn't so smart I'd think her crazy.

She rolled her eyes. "Don't pretend you haven't noticed." Before I could protest she tripped and nearly lost her balance. "Like that! Just then. I'm not a Disney villain. I'm a friggin' princess. In the worst way! I'm a damsel in distress." She scoffed.