Page 12 of The Love Raffle

Amber wanted to shrink into herself but fought it. “Not everyone can afford it, but hey. We can call mine an abstract piece, right, Levi?” She smiled at him.

“Ooo,” said the audience.

Patricia frowned at her, probably confused that she had responded.

Levi blinked at the smiling Amber. She made her painting dance. It was basically a stick man with his hair but… “Yeah, I guess. Abstract. Why not?” He grinned at the crowd.

“Why not?” Jeff opened his arms as the crowd cheered. “He says why not?” Laughter bubbled from the audience.

Amber looked at her painting as Patricia explained her process to Levi and Jeff. Levi rated Patricia a nine out of ten and ninety points were added to her total score. As they came towards Amber, she put on a hopeful smile again.

“Now for the abstract over here,” Jeff Sullivan joked.

Amber heard giggles from Diane and Kate. She held up her painting proudly. “I’m going to go ahead and say that this one is a portrayal of Levi in his element.”

Levi touched his chest, surprised that this girl had gone from mute in the first round to chatty in this one.The rent must be due.He looked into her eyes and saw something that the other girls didn’t have.Kinda like she’s a little sad.He shook it off to listen to the inspiration behind her portrait.

“…and I think that my little take on Levi Marks as a stickman speaks volumes to his good looks because even as a stickfigurine…” Amber made eye contact with some smiling faces in the crowd. “He still looks good.”

That got them laughing again. Even Jeff cracked up. Levi himself smiled at her and shook his head. Amber felt rather accomplished, so she did a twirl and gave a “woo,” summoning applause.

Levi snapped his fingers and pointed at Amber’s work. “I’m going to say right off that the painting itself is not all that impressive but…” He stroked his chin playfully. “Your words have moved me.” He held his chest. “Eight out of ten.”

Amber’s mouth dropped open at the same time Patricia’s did. “Yes!” She raised her trembling hand to high-five the movie star.Am I crazy right now or what?This had to be adrenaline. She wasn’t usually like this.

Levi laughed and like a good sport slapped her hand. “Awesome work,” he said through the audience’s applause. “Now let’s keep going.”

Amber’s eyes followed him and Jeff. She posed with her picture for the crowd and giggled.I think I’m going to pass out.

Her score went from ten to ninety. It wasn’t much and it paled in comparison to the scores of her competitors, but it helped boost her morale.

For the next round, Jeff called them up to the couch and told Levi to sit at his desk. He stood with a card in hand as the crowd went quiet.

“Alrighty then,” said Jeff. “Welcome back toThe Love Raffleand thank you for staying tuned.” He spoke to a camera. “Right now, we’re onto our final roundwhichhas been crafted by our clever producers to provide maximum entertainment.”

Amber’s hands shook on her lap as she kept up her smile. She sat between Diane and Kate with Patricia at the end. They were all grinning and sometimes looking at each other. The whole thing was awkward, but they had to maintain this to get through.Once this round was over, she could either leave this stage and get back to working two jobs and landing bottom-feeder roles or her performance here would shake things up forever.I don’t know how much this will help but I can’t let this be the last time people see my face.She gulped.

“So, without further ado. We shall begin…” Jeff stretched his arm to the table and couch. “The interview round!”

Amber’s mouth fell open as the claps rolled in.Huh? Interview round?She’d been in her head while Jeff spoke. What did that mean? How would they score points?

Levi pulled some cards out of the desk and stacked them on the table. “Alrighty. Let’s do this.” They were almost done with the show. He guessed this had been fun overall.And then I have to take the winner out.He cringed internally at Patricia, who was in the lead. Of course, she waved with her fingers and winked at him. That Kate girl kept giggling while Diane seemed to want this to end given she was second to last.You and me both.He planted his eyes on Amber and noticed her confusion. She’d seemed reflective while Jeff gave instructions. What was on her mind anyway?

“So, I’m going to ask you guys questions about yourselves and based on my preference towards your answers, I will rate your responses out of ten.” Levi said this for Amber’s sake.

Amber met his eyes and blushed.

“I kind of think that this round is a bit unfair, but I get it. Hewillbe dating us after all.” Diane crossed her legs on the black sofa.

Levi smiled. “Yeah, I agree, but what can we do, right? This is what the producers and the people want.” He tilted his head at the excited crowd. “Okay, let’s start with Patricia.” He looked at the first question on his card. “What’s your favorite food?”

Amber laughed internally at the nature of this one. “Easy, right?” she said to Patricia.

Patricia smiled tightly before responding. “I like waffles with chocolate chips.” She held her chin up, her hands on her bare knees. While Amber wore a simple top and jeans, Patricia was wearing a lovely red dress that stopped at her thighs with some heels.

Levi’s brows went up and he nodded. “Wow. So do I. That’s a ten out of ten answer for me. A hundred points.”

Kate gasped. “Hey, wait. If we—” She sat back and tapped her lips in frustration. Everyone was cheering.

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