by Sarah Dalton
There was a round of applause and Chuck Summers bounded onto the stage. The music continued as Chuck did his introductory dance. Then, in dramatic style, the curtain opened and the girls stepped down a long stair case in their heels, smiling, playing up to the cameras and swishing their hips to the music. Elena spotted a camera man zooming in on her and she clapped her hands in time to the music and winked into the camera lens. This was going live and people could phone and vote in. She had to play all areas.
As she got closer to the edge of the stage she saw the crowd. They held up banners of their favourite contestants, and death threats for the most hated. She spotted one saying “Elena is a cow. She should moo when we slaughter her” which was a good thing. Every winner had at least one death sign in the audience.
Lining the walls of the auditorium were LED screen displays that showed up more messages from people’s Plan-Its in the crowd and from the people at home watching their televisions. Someone posted “work it, Elena” so she did, pushing out her bum as she danced around Chuck Summers. They each put a hand on Chuck’s shoulder and moved around him as though he was more of an Adonis and less of a washed up ex-soap star. He shrugged and winked into the camera as though to say “what are you gonna do? The ladies love me” and then the music stopped and each of the girls struck a pose.
“Well, how about that?” Chuck shouted through the microphone over the applause. The girls moved away winking at their host and then turning to the crowd, smiling down on them like they were angels sent to save them. “How about that for an opening?” He laughed and bowed at the crowd. “Welcome, welcome to Miss Area 14, sponsored by Blingin’ Botox – inject some sparkle into your brows. Now you all know that Miss Area 14 is the hottest competition in the country. Why? Because the winner gets an exclusive contract and access to the city of London!” Wild cheers erupted from the crowd. Everyone wanted to go to London and get out of Area 14. “One more round of applause for our contestants. Before we have to let them go.” The crowd cheered again and Elena made sure to meet a few of the judge’s eyes and blow kisses. They sat right at the front of the crowd in large chairs.
There was an incident behind Elena, some pushing and shoving between a tall black haired girl and a shorter olive-skinned girl. They were both fighting for the camera. The two fighting girls began to heat up and Elena elegantly stepped out of the way of them. The black-haired girl had her high-heel off and was hitting the other over the head. There were chants in the crowd. Two huge Enforcers stepped out from the wings of the stage and pulled them away whilst the crowd booed. Measurement guy shook his head and then stepped back into the shadows.
“Well, it looks like our girls are in high-spirits already,” Chuck said, trying to make light of the fight. “Buh-bye now girls. See you soon.”
Elena and the other contests filed off the stage. First round done. Two down.
*
Thirty minutes later Elena stood at the edge of the stage watching Clarissa introduce herself to the crowd. She had her blonde hair cascading over one shoulder in sunshine waves. The bright spotlights highlighted those waves beautifully. She had to admire someone who knew how to get results, and Clarissa was one of them. The gown she wore was a sparkling silver floor-length dress with a tight sweetheart neckline which showed just enough of her ample bosoms to attract the attention of the male judges, whilst not showing off too much to make herself look tacky.
There was a “huff” sound from someone behind her. Elena turned around to see him there again.
“Are you following me around?” she snapped.
“Yes,” he said, still monotone. “It’s my job.”
“Shame.” Elena narrowed her eyes at him.
He glared back. “You don’t want me around?”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
There was a flash of fear in his eyes. “Nothing. Nothing.” Elena heard his Plan-It beep and someone started to yell in his headset. She caught his name – Jake – and some orders to get the next contestant ready. So, now at least she knew his name.
He turned around without so much as a goodbye. He really was rude. Pretty – but damn rude. And now, he’d put her off her game. She had to compose herself and get ready. Clarissa had worked a number on the crowd and she had to better her.
Somehow Elena had ended up after Clarissa in every single round. That couldn’t be a coincidence. Clarissa was going to try something. She knew it. As she waited in the wings – cast in shadow – she narrowed her eyes. Clarissa finished her speech to the sound of rapturous applause and after a humble little bow turned back towards Elena. The two girls’ eyes met and Clarissa’s expression hardened.
Chuck, in his shiny grey suit with slick silver hair parted at the side, walked towards the microphone, still clapping Clarissa.
“Wow, what an introduction. Let’s hear it one more time for Clarissa!” He backed away from the microphone and gave her a round of applause.
Elena saw the LED signs at the back of the room display messages to Clarissa, words of support and gushing praise from fans. Clarissa turned back to the crowd once more and clutched her heart with her right hand, giving a little bow. She then blew a kiss. Elena rolled her eyes and put her hand on her hip. She took three deep breaths and imagined all of her troubles slipping away. She imagined herself as the smartest woman in the world, someone that no one could trick. She imagined herself as the most caring and sweet person in the world and let herself smile like it. She was elegant and nothing could stop her. She stood up straight, like she had an invisible book on her head to balance. She arranged her hands in an elegant manner. Clarissa had stopped milking the crowd and was now walking towards her with a murderous look on her face.
“And now, for our next contestant. Some say she’s even more gorgeous than the dead film star they took her genes from! Give a warm welcome to Miss Elena Darcey!”
Elena stepped forward, walking on the balls of her feet so as to balance in the huge platform heels. Clarissa veered towards her, almost in Elena’s path, but Elena ignored her and carried on in the straight line, lifting the skirt of her dress just a notch, to stop herself tripping over it. When the two girls were shoulder to shoulder Clarissa stuck out a foot, right in the path of Elena. But Elena knew Clarissa too well. She knew her style because it was the same move she’d pulled on her at school about a dozen times in the last month. She hopped over her foot, not even breaking her stride, and then continued over to the microphone, leaving Clarissa to quietly seethe behind her.
“Well hello there, Area 14. My name is Elena Darcey!” she shouted her name and then pretended to tear up when the crowd clapped. “Hearing that applause just warms my heart. I’m so proud to be on stage in front of the beautiful people of Area 14, especially after we’ve all been through so much.” She paused for dramatic effect, watching as people nodded along. “We almost let our Area get taken by the scum of this town when the Blemished tried to fight back. Well, I say we don’t let them. I say people like that deserve to be executed.” There were “here-heres” and more nods. “It’s time to take the control back. And I promise that if you vote for me, I will spread the word around our country. I won’t forget about Area 14 if I am lucky enough to make it to London. I will spread the word about our plight. I’ll take it to the GEM, because no one makes our town scared.” Elena raised her voice throughout her speech. There were more cheers and applause. Messages of support run across the LED screens, as well as doctored images of Elena wrapped in the GEM flag – a Union flag with an extra yellow cross in the centre of the red cross. “We will take back our town because we are Area 14, and we are proud. That is what I believe in. And that is what I will deliver if you vote for me.”
The crowd exploded with cheers. Elena wiped a tear from her eye and smiled at the crowd, pretending to be overwhelmed. She didn’t believe a single word of that speech but she knew it was what they wanted to hear and the only speech that could knock Clarissa off the top spot. Good luck for the girl fo
llowing that. As Chuck signed her off and she bowed and left, the red haired girl followed onto the stage. Her face was very pale and glistening with sweat. Elena hung back and watched in the wings, curious about her competition. Jake was there again, with his arms crossed over his chest. He looked out at the stage in utter disgust. The girl stepped forward towards the microphone, stumbling over her dress. Elena noticed how her eyes were drooping and her arms shook. She opened her mouth to speak, but instead of words coming out, she puked all over her shoes. The girl doubled over and collapsed on the floor. Poor girl, thought Elena, she must have eaten the buffet. Rookie mistake. Round two done. Three down.
Chapter Five
“Clare, check the lipstick before you put it on,” Elena said. She was wearing her bikini ready for the swimwear round. So far five girls had been eliminated, leaving ten left in the competition. Out of those five two had been disqualified for fighting, one had been diagnosed with “food poisoning” and two had been eliminated during the introductory round by the judges, who had buzzers for when they got bored.
Clare sniffed the suspicious lipstick. “It does smell funny.” She smeared a small amount on the back of her hand.
Elena reached down and fiddled with the clasp on her shoes. She was wearing towering high heels. She felt all along the shoes, checking for any foul play.
“There’s something in this lipstick,” Clare said. “My hand’s burning up.”
“Clarissa. Ugh. You’d better wash it off, Clare. I don’t want you to get ill.” Elena looked down at Clare’s hand which was developing an angry red rash. She wondered what else had been tampered with.
As Clare shuffled off towards the bathroom Elena checked her make-up items, the straps of her bikini and the heels of her shoes. There she noticed a tiny nick in the corner of her stiletto. It was just enough to make the heel come loose.
“Nice try,” she said to herself. Elena reached into her bag and took out a tube of superglue. She glued the heel back in place and then checked the platform sole of the shoe. All of the girls had to wear the same shoes given to the competition by London Lady, another official sponsor of the contest. It would have been easy to tamper with them.
Clare came back as Elena double knotted her bikini and checked for anything that might have been worked loose. The swimsuits were provided as well.
“How’s your hand?”
“It’s okay,” Clare said. “I saw Clarissa and she looked worried.”
“Probably thought I’d fall for the lipstick.” Elena sank onto the seat in their booth, feeling tired and weary.
Clare placed a hand on her bare shoulder. “Just three more rounds to go, honey. You’re nearly there.”
“This whole thing is exhausting.”
Jake strode over to them with a weird look on his face. His cheeks were flushed bright red and his eyes roamed all around Elena’s booth without looking at her, but at the same time trailing all around her. “Two minutes,” he said in a strained voice. “You need to head to the stage. Do you know your placing?”
“Yes,” Elena said. She stood and tested her heel. The super-glue was quick dry and it seemed to have worked. She picked up the satin beach cover up that went with the outfit. Jake walked away.
“That guy is weird,” she said.
“That guy has a crush on you,” Clare said with a smile.
Elena made a puke noise. “As if.”
Clare laughed. “Come here.” She pulled her into a hug. “You can do it, Elena. I believe in you.” Then she whispered in her ear. “Do it for freedom.”
Elena pulled away and nodded. She would do it for freedom. She cast a look over towards Clarissa, who was applying an extra coat of mascara. If only Elena could play dirty like Clarissa. Perhaps she could have six months ago, but now she couldn’t face being that person. If she couldn’t get out of Area 14 on her own merit, she would stay and face the consequences.
Jake appeared again. “Come on!”
Elena made a face and then followed him. When she reached the stage she ended up stood three girls away from Clarissa. There was a dance number before the girls had to do their walk. Some pop group from London had come up to perform and she could hear the girls in the audience squealing in anticipation. She went through her pre-stage ritual, rolling her shoulders and taking deep breaths. There was a drum roll and the voice-over guy introduced the “special guest stars – boy band Teen Sensation”. The crowd went wild and the boys hopped down the long glitzy stair case singing along to the catchy, up-beat song “You Ma Babez”. The guy with the headset counted the girls in and then they moved out to the top of the stair case.
The contestants had to move their arms to the music whilst posing elegantly with their legs. Then they had to swish the satin beach cover-up like a flag, dragging it up their bodies, before walking down the steps and skipping around the boy bands like laughing nymphs. It wasn’t exactly Elena’s cup of tea but she could fake it for three minutes. She just had to keep out of Clarissa’s way.
The song rose and there was a swish-swish of material before the girls started moving down the stairs. Elena kept herself to the left, moving a fraction too fast for fear that Clarissa would try to catch her up and trip her. Behind her there was a scream and a tumble. Elena had to hop out of the way of a girl tumbling down the stairs. Once again the Enforcers came out and picked up the fallen girl, dragging her away. Elena glanced at Clarissa who for the briefest of moments scowled, before getting back her pageant smile. The girl was meant to knock Elena over. Well, nice try Clarissa, but no cigar.
She made it to the flat area of the stage where she picked a member of the boy band and swished her hair towards him. He was short and boyish with a mop of curly hair. He began to sing to Elena whilst she pretended to be shy, despite being stood there in a tiny bikini. The camera panned in and Elena moved towards the singer, dancing towards him but not gyrating like an idiot.
Just as the song ended the girls moved from the stage back into the wings. It was time for the catwalk. They had to begin with a pose half way down the staircase and then walk down the remaining stairs, across the stage and up a long catwalk which merged into the crowd. She was following Clarissa again, who was just dying to trip her up.
The first girl went. She didn’t seem to have a lot of fans. The audience seemed disinterested and she didn’t look very attractive in her swimsuit. In fact, she was too nervous and acted like she didn’t want to be there, taking tentative steps instead of working the stage. A bored judge buzzed and her catwalk ended early.
Elena had to watch four more girls before Clarissa went out to strut her stuff. She was great. You could see the hunger in her eyes. She walked as though she didn’t just own the stage – she owned everything in the world. She was formidable. The judges scored her just over nine points for her body and her walk. Elena went to pose, ready for her moment, as Clarissa walked back. The announcer said her name and Elena started off with a winning smile, draping the satin cover-up over her shoulder. She strutted down the steps, passing Clarissa, and stalked down the stage.
With one hand on her hip she found the camera with her eyes and gave it a confident nod. Then she picked out the oldest male judge and winked at him. Then she walked up the catwalk, chose a confident yet demure post at the end, using the tried and test chin-nod-then-smile technique, before turning and walking back with a wiggle in her stride. It was the best she could do. When in the wings she waited for her score. It was exactly the same as Clarissa’s. Round three done. Seven down. Eight left.
*
Elena had just two rounds to go: talent and the final question. Talent wasn’t her best round but she was still good. Years of attending every kind of dance lesson you could think of would finally pay off. At least she had something to thank her mother for – she just never imagined it would be for forcing her to ballet-tap and hip-hop crunk. Now, she was going to perform a dance medley of different styles, blending the different genres of dance.
“Your costu
me has a tear in it,” Clare said. “I’ll sew it for you.”
“Thank you. I’d better check my shoes again.” She sighed. “Just two more rounds.”
“You can get through this, Elena,” Clare replied. They were sat on the two plastic chairs in their section, a tiny island of calm amidst the chaos of backstage. Clare had Elena’s dance costume on her lap. Elena had changed into jeans and a t-shirt for the intermission before talent. She was inspecting every tube of make-up again. “You’re stronger than the other girls here.”
Elena didn’t feel it anymore. Not when she found sand in her foundation.
*
“How about that ladies and gentlemen? Wow. Absolutely beautiful. Brought a tear to my eye,” Chuck said in his deepest and most serious voice.
He was talking about Clarissa’s opera singing. She’d performed an Aria from Madame Butterfly dressed in a beautiful Geisha costume. It was a lot to compete with. For the first time Elena felt so nervous her stomach churned. Her palms glistened with sweat. After finishing her performance, Clarissa walked towards Elena with a self-satisfied look on her face.
“And now, for our next contestant – Elena Darcey!”
The crowd applauded but it was nothing like the rapturous reception Clarissa had achieved. She was falling behind with the votes. The messages of support weren’t quite so frequent and there were fewer death signs. Things weren’t going well. She walked onto the stage, looking for her spot on the stairs where her routine began. She was dressed in a black tutu with nude tights and ballet pumps. Clare had fixed her hair into an intricate plait around her head with neon flowers woven through it. Her top was tie dyed with neon colours to represent the fusion of dances. Clare had made it by hand and she loved it.
“You’re going down, bitch,” Clarissa whispered in Elena’s ear as the two girls passed each other.
Elena ignored her, waved to the crowd and then sat down on the stairs. Just before she struck her pose she looked into the wings, she didn’t know why, and saw Jake stood watching. He caught her eye and for a moment there was something a little bit softer in his expression. But as soon as it happened he looked away. She put her head on her knees as though sleeping, the pose at the beginning of her dance. The routine started with the Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy from the Nutcracker Suite. She would pretend to be a doll coming to life and then discovering the different dances of the country. It was supposed to be heart-warming and amusing – a crowd pleaser.