So I've had this idea for a while. I'm bored so I decided to write it. Hope you like it!

Keefe craved attention.

It was the result of growing up in the cold, empty tower, and he knew it.

Maybe someday he would be fine being alone. Maybe someday he would be able to go home and not anxiously look at the door, waiting and dreading and hoping that the crystal doorway would be suddenly filled by a blond figure.

Maybe someday he wouldn't care.

But that day was certainly not anytime soon.

Sometimes, Keefe wondered what would happen if he were to run away. Would anyone even notice, or care?

He doubted it.

But he had to stay, because what if the day he left would be the day his parents decided to start caring?

But they didn't, so he had to get their attention.

He pranked everyone he could. He ditched class as often as possible, adopting a snarky persona that covered up the lonely boy beneath. He became best friends with a Vacker, performed well in every class.

Keefe wanted attention because it was something new. It was something that he'd heard of in school, from all the prodigies with loving parents and teasing siblings.

Keefe Sencen craved attention, but he thought that maybe, sometime in the future, he wouldn't have to.

...

Biana needed attention.

She caught the eye of everyone who passed. She wore the fanciest gowns anyone could ever own, far too decorative for her age. She wore makeup, perfecting the art through years of practice, and applied a little too much for where she was. She styled her hair with sparkles and jewels because whatever could make someone notice her, she wanted.

She lived for those appreciative glances, the wistful stares, the passing compliments.

She needed them, because how else would she receive them?

Her brother was far better at school than she (or so she assumed), so why even try? She passed her classes, but it didn't matter if she tried. She was a Vacker, and who would dare expel the daughter of the famous Alden?

She became popular, and each friend (or follower, more like) was an ego boost.

If she could get so many friends, Biana sometimes thought, maybe her father would notice her. Maybe he'd be the one praising her. Maybe he'd like her as much as Fitz.

Soon, insults were welcome too, because they were people noticing her. 

People thought that she was snobby, stuck up, and she let them, because maybe she was. WHat else was there to her?

Biana demanded attention. She required it to make up for the huge, empty house that was only sometimes filled with love (and usually only when company was over). She needed it to make her father notice her (he would eventually, right? If she made herself popular?). She needed it to make it known that she was more than just a face in the crowd. She was more than Fitz's little sister.

She became queen of a plastic world, where compliments that dripped with jealousy were welcome because at least they noticed her. 

Yes, Biana Vacker needed attention. But sometimes, she wished she didn't.

...

Sophie hated attention.

She hated the sparkles and ruffles and makeup that seemed to draw the eyes of strangers. She loathed being put on the spot, and she positively detested special focus.

She was given too much attention, with her special mind and her photographic memory and her advanced skills. She was too smart, too beautiful, too much of a prodigy for her little human town (at least, that was what everyone else seemed to think in their minds).

So she grew to despise the stares of others, wearing grays and blacks and browns, hiding behind her hair because what if someone was watching? She never wore makeup, kept her hair down, and hid in the back of the classroom. But others still hated her, because whatever she did to keep her head down and stay quiet was never enough.

When she moved to the Lost Cities, she thought, now is my chance to be normal. But she was the moonlark, and she still had the photographic memory and the special abilities and the strange brown eyes. And now it was even harder to hide, because everyone knew who Sophie Foster was.

Her friends were the opposite; they seemed to bask in the limelight that always surrounded her when all she wanted to do was go hide under the covers. And soon, she found herself wondering if her method really was the best.

But it was too late, because Sophie Foster already hated attention. She hated it, but sometimes she wished she was brave enough to like it.

...

Linh wanted attention.

She didn't really care about the construct itself. It was rather silly, and she didn't need the stress of maintaining popularity in her life.

But at the same time, she wanted people to notice her. She wanted people to know that she, the uncontrollable "danger to society" had mastered her powers and helped save the world.

She wanted her parents to know, so they could ask to have her back and she could refuse them.

But more than that, Linh wanted to be noticed. Not to be flashy, or over the top, but just not being invisible. She blended into the background at Exillium, just another black hood.

She hated that.

It reminded her of being a kid, when she was another one of the fancy elves paraded past, showcased like some kind of rare commodity. She was part of the crowd, and she wanted to be her own self.

So Linh dipped her hair in her registry pendant with her brother, to remind herself of what happens when she loses control. To remind herself that she has something unique about herself. To draw attention to her matching eyes and her strange past.

Linh Song wanted attention; it was an optional desire for her, but it was a longing that consumed her every day- to be seen.

...

Tam disliked attention.

He preferred to hide in the shadows, which concealed his features, his feelings, and every time pain flashed across his face. Words hurt, and he'd become a master at pretending they didn't.

Knowing they hurt only encouraged Quan, who would shout until Mai laid a gentle hand across his arm. 

Tam wanted to forgive and forget. He wanted to be the type of person who didn't hold a grudge, who could trust people completely, easily. But he wasn't Linh; he hid in his blanket of shadows.

When he was younger, he didn't know he was a twin. They never told him, and life was okay, if not good. His parents didn't exactly shower them with attention, but they didn't ignore them, and their conversations were polite and friendly. Maybe they weren't a perfect family, but they were good enough.

But soon came the arguments, and Tam swore that he and Linh would never hide who they were again. Even in Exillium, everyone knew who he was; The Shade, ready to destroy anyone who hurt the hydrokinetic who was always with him. They avoided him, and Tam was perfectly fine with that, because being noticed wasn't always a good thing.

He definitely did not enjoy attention. He withstood it, waiting for it to be over. It made him vaguely uncomfortable, like an itchy sweater that was hot and cold in different places. He wished he could be more like Linh; shining and brave and lit up with a smile.

Tam Song disliked attention. But sometimes, he wished he didn't.

...

Fitz wanted to love attention.

His entire family did. Alden basked in praise, Della lit up whenever someone recognized her, Biana lived for the appreciative stares, even Alvar grinned wildly whenever someone said his name.

But attention made Fitz nervous, even though there was no reason to be.

He was self conscious at all times, and being under a constant spotlight seemed to heighten his insecurities, even if no one else seemed to notice them.

So he perfected every hair, every wrinkle in his clothes. He kept his grades top of the class, and god forbid he get detention, because everyone was always judging him. If he wasn't perfect in every way, then he'd dishonored the Vacker name. If he didn't fix every flaw, then they were picked apart for every mistake.

Even successes.

Standing out from the crowd in any way bothered Fitz. So when he set a new record for getting his nexus off, and manifested young, he was too embarrassed too enjoy his success.

But no one else seemed quite as bothered by it.

The truth was, Fitz wished he didn't care about himself so much. He wished he could focus on being himself, instead of trimming himself down to match the expectations of others.

But that was the way he was.

Being a Vacker meant loving attention; being a Vacker meant needing to love attention, because every member of the family was practically showered in it every day.

He could hardly stand it.

Fitz Vacker wanted to love attention. But he never did.

...

Maruca wished for attention.

Being Biana's best friend was harder than most people probably thought. The chirpy girl was practically perfect in every way, and her beauty made it hard to stand out next to her. Everyone in school was obsessed with her and the rest of the Vackers, and Maruca was sick of being the sidenote in someone else's story.

But she genuinely liked Biana. She dressed flashy, but she really was caring underneath all the glitter and ruffles. She wa funny and sweet, with a mishchevious streak that made her fun to be around.

But Maruca was always standing in her shadow.

Biana summoned attention and kept it, and Maruca wished she could do the same.

She colored her hair, wore brighter clothes, layered on her makeup. She wore sparkly jewelry, adopted a snarky attitude, and wore the latest fashions. Anything to be her own self, and to make something of herself instead of being the friend of Biana, the Vacker daughter.

At home, her parents vaguely noticed her changes, but they were too busy to spare her much time. Being important Emissaries, that was understandable... but it still hurt.

Maybe Maruca was hidden in the shadow of Biana's sun.

Maybe she hated the way everyone seemed to forget about her next to the brunette beauty (but I'm also a brunette beauty, she thought)

Maybe she was a little bitter, and that was the real reason she was so quick so sell her friend out to Stina, for the promise of real popularity and friendship.

Maruca Chebota wished for attention. But she never seemed to be able to receive it.

...

Marella relied on attention.

It made up her personality; she was the gossip. People would seek her out to hear the latest news, and she would happily provide it, not giving away the rush it gave her to see people paying attention to her.

After all, attention wasn't exactly something she received often.

Marella loved her mother, and she tried so hard to manifest as an empath so she would be able to help her through her mood swings. But she didn't want to manifest just for her mother.

During the worst of Caprise's moods, she would be angry.

There was depression, intense sadness that encompassed Caprise's entire being.

There was happiness, exhileration that caused hysterical giggles and wild eyes.

There was fear, when Capris would tremble and shake, crouched in her bed in a ball.

There was worry, and jealousy, and more emotions to count, but the worst was anger.

Caprise wasn't herself during her mood swings, and Marella knew it. But it still hurt when her mother shout and scream, and Marella would have to hide the hidden scars under a mask of frivolity. Caprise didn't remember the incidents afterwards, and Marella wanted to keep it that way. Her mother felt guilt more strongly than most, and the slightest amount could shatter her mind.

Her dad was always focused on Caprise or his working class job, and he didn't have time for his silly daughter with her head full of boys and cobwebs. He tried, but he never understood that while he thought her blood was filled with fluff, it actually burned with fire.

So she went to school, and tried to make friends. But the girls were ridiculous, and none of the boys wanted to be friends with her, preferring the Vacker Princess and her loyal sidekick. She didn't like them anyway, so she sat alone.

But she always stood up to Stina whenever she could, because even though the girl never mocked her about Caprise's condition to her face, Marella could hear the hidden glances and see the masked sneers.

Marella Redek relied on attention. After all, without it, who was she?

...

Dex hoped too hard for attention.

First from his overworked, exhausted parents.

Then from his dismissive, prejudiced mentors.

Then from his oblivious crush, Sophie.

He didn't ask for attention; no, he would never burden them like that, not with all the stress they were put through. But he still hoped, and the times they noticed him were rare and in between.

The triplets took up his parents' time. Juline was constantly occupied with controlling the raging demons that were his little siblings, and she hardly ever had free time to focus on Dex, who was okay in school and mostly well behaved. 

Kesler was usually busy with the store when he wasn't with the triplets; hand-making every single elixir was time consuming, and although Dex helped whenever he could, his homework stopped him from spending time with his father.

At school, he was invisible. The son of a bad match was only scorned, and the sneers followed him around the school. People spent more time hating his family than they did actually thinking, Dex sometimes thought.

So he ate lunch in his alchemy session, and he hid in the library during free hours. He focused on alchemy and his gadgets (he knew he was an technopath at a young age; he just didn't want to admit it) and tried to ignore every person around him the way they ignored him.

Dex Dizznee hoped a little too hard for attention. Maybe sometime in the future he finally could be the hero in his own story instead of the side character in someone else's. But that day was a long way off.

...

Keefe craved attention.

Biana needed attention.

Sophie hated attention.

Linh wanted attention.

Tam disliked attention.

Fitz wanted to love attention.

Maruca wished for attention.

Marella relied on attention.

Dex hoped too hard for attention.

But none of them really loved it.

Um, so I got carried away.

....Again.

This is half oneshot, half character analysis at this point.

Um, so parts of all of these are pretty relatable to me, like Fitz and Maruca and stuff. Fitz was based on a few of my own feelings and stuff-

Maruca's last name was in Unlocked, so that's her actual last name by the way.

It's probably a little confusing, sorry about that. I was randomly inspired to make this, and it did take me a bit to figure out all this. So yeah.

Hope you liked it? It wasn't the best, maybe I'll redo it sometime.