The Prince

Part 39

 Pulling up to the school, Hollard led them to the administration building where Casey and Didi were waiting. Noah noticed their eyes widen when they saw Skye appear in his suit. Casey immediately clutched his hand to his chest as if he was going to pass out. He could imagine that both Skye and Tsukasa dressed to the nines would have all the kids swooning. They were popular and pleasing to the eye after all.

"Hi, are you ready?" Skye asked before anybody could speak. "Right, let's stick to the plan. We're not asking for permission, we're telling them what we're doing, so don't get intimidated," he looked at the four who nodded in agreement.

"Okay, Hollard, shall we?"

At the end of their presentation, Skye was satisfied to see that everybody was on board with their plans. Not that they could say anything since his grandmother had already made her wishes very clear and the school wouldn't dare argue with her.

"I don't mean to blow our horns, but we kicked today's ass, didn't we," Noah looked excitedly at the two sitting in the lounge with him after their meetings.

"Don't go celebrating yet, there's still a lot to do," Skye reminded him.

"We're going to need a base of operations," Tsukasa leaned forward in his seat. "There isn't enough space to meet here and school isn't always convenient. We need a dedicated space."

"Hmm, you're right," Skye agreed after a minute, surprised at how level-headed Tsukasa was.

"But where, though?" Noah asked coming up blank.

"Leave it to me," Skye pulled out his phone. "Hollard, we're going to need a space at Dealer's to work from. Will you arrange it for the end of the week?" He briefly listened before returning his phone to his pocket.

"I think I like the new Skye," Noah chuckled. "Any chance of us getting takeaways for supper?"

"Any chance of you moving up in Class B?"

"Why did you feel the need to go there!" he moaned, knowing that Skye was right that he'd been neglecting his studies, but there were other more exciting things going on in his life.

"It's not our money, anyway, so we are still on a tight budget," he frowned. "Oh, by the way, you two still owe me next month's rent."

"How can you think about paying rent now when we have bigger fish to fry?" Noah asked. He'd hoped that Skye would forget and he could skip a month, but apparently, rich people stayed rich by milking the poor.

"Don't worry, I can cover you for this month," Tsukasa blushed looking at Noah.

"You'd do..." Noah started but was rudely interrupted by Skye.

"No, if you sleep in a bed, you have to pay for it and take responsibility, or am I wrong, Noah?"

"No, you're right," he sighed miserably. Being an adult was hard work when you had to juggle so many things at once, he thought, and although he could happily close his eyes and live in debt, Skye had drilled some things into his head. If it wasn't for Skye's tightfistedness, he would have been on the street with no food within his first month of moving out. 

"See, he's adulting now." Skye grinned at Tsukasa while ruffling Noah's hair. "I think we can squeeze some takeaways in for tonight."

"Oh thank you, Prince. Your wisdom is endless, Young Master," Noah bowed to him while Tsukasa burst out laughing.

"Piss off both of you or you can forget about takeaways." That immediately stopped them, but Skye could see both trying to hold in their laughter.

Friday morning Skye and Noah were waiting for Casey and Didi outside their homeroom. Noah who was pacing and down cast a glance at Skye who was leaning against the wall, hands in his pockets, looking as if he belonged in a glossy magazine. If only his personality would match the perfect picture then he wouldn't have to worry about what will come out of Skye's mouth.

"Skye!" Casey came trotting towards them with Didi following in tow. The rest of the group stopped in their tracks to watch. "What are you doing here?" He fluttered, sounding slightly out of breath.

"We've found a space to work from, are you coming to inspect it?" Skye asked, curiously watching the two in front of him. He'd been aware of their presence around him since he started school., but didn't think much of it. Why a group of teenagers would want to follow him around was beyond him, but their obsession also meant that he was left alone at school. It was a blessing and a curse he thought humourlessly.

"You did, already?" Didi squeaked.

"Yeah, we can take the bus after school," Skye shrugged, wanting to bring this conversation to an end. There was no point in him being there and Noah could have done this himself, but again he was ordered to follow some vague plan.

"The bus?" Casey asked in shock, barely hiding the revulsion on his face.

"What he meant was that normally we'd take the bus, but with you along we'd get a car, right Skye?" He asked pointedly, getting a nod and scowl in response.

"Yeah, that's what I meant, he sighed, knowing what Noah was trying to do. "We'll get you outside school later," he gave them a quick smile and left with Noah running behind him.

"Listen, Skye," he called out grabbing his arm to stop him. "Hey, will it kill you to be a bit nicer to them? If you haven't forgotten, we need them. So climb off your ice horse and talk to them, they'd blindly follow you off a rock for some reason, so please, let up on them," he begged.

"Okay, whatever you say, stepmother," Skye placated him after a moment's thought. He didn't know if this was a good idea or how it would turn out, and if he was honest with himself, he was slightly petrified to be in the same space as Casey and his group. Their intensity scared him.

"You can trust me, I'll always be there for you," he smiled, moving away with a quick wave, disappearing in the sea of red blazers.

Skye watched him leave with a smile, how was it that such a small ball of chaotic energy got past his defences he'd put up against others? He was different from when they first met; no longer clumsy or apologising or looking as if he was in some sort of state of fright. It was so easy being with Noah. There was no pretence, Noah treated him like any other friend but never pushed

Later that afternoon they caught up with Casey and Didi who were anxiously looking around for them. Noah felt like a child walking between Skye and Tsukasa who towered above him, but if his plan worked, then they would stand a better chance of winning.

"Remember, only call Hollard when we're standing next to them. Then go with the flow and act as if you do this every day, okay?"

"You're not going to make us do anything bad are you?" Tsukasa asked, confused by how cryptic Noah was.

"Guys, I'm not asking for a lot here, please play pretend with me and act like this is how you normally live, okay? You've got to help me here, Tsukasa, please?"

"I don't know what you're planning, but if it fails, then I'll eat all the candy my grandma brought in front of you," he threatened.

"It won't fail if you do and say what I want. It's only for one afternoon, but seeing as we're going with a pampered Barbie princess, we need to play the part of Ken really well."