FEATURED ON THE HEROES & LEGENDS READING LIST OF WATTPAD'S MYTH AND LEGENDS ACCOUNT
Twin sisters Aura and Carolyn Addams lost their chance to grow up "normal" when their parents died in a car accident when they were only a few weeks old. Their whole...
✦＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿✦ "Things Change. And friends leave. Life doesn't stop for anybody." – Stephen Chbosky ✦＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿✦
Bright, golden sunlight streamed into Mr. Hoffman's English classroom. The weather had finally cleared up, yet despite the warming weather outside, a cool, tense draft hung in the air as the thirty students crammed into the small room scribbled page after page of an essay on their most recent mandatory novel.
The shrill bell granted some a sweet release from the torture while some cradled their heads in despair as their teacher called for their papers. A small wire tray on Mr. Hoffman's desk soon piled high with his students' timed essays of varying quality.
"So," Jake started as he and Aura walked down the crowded hallway, "what's are next move?"
Aura looked to him with an eyebrow raised. "Our move?" Jake nodded almost excitedly. "You're crazy if you think I'm letting you come back with us." Aura lowered her voice as they passed a large group of freshmen, "You're lucky Onyx and her men only gave you a few scrapes and bruises."
As they turned the corner, Aura motioned with her hand to Jake's abdominal wound that was covered by his hoodie. "I can't–no, I won't–risk you getting hurt again."
A small pang of guilt stabbed her heart as Jake lowered his eyes in defeat. As much as she would love any opportunity to spend more time with him, pulling him back into a war-torn world in order to do so obviously didn't seem like the right idea.
She sighed as they reached her locker. "Look, Cora and I have already put countless people in danger just by traveling through the kingdoms collecting items to fix the Stories." Aura softly rubbed Jake's arm with the back of her hand. "I've already caused you to be locked up in a dungeon once, I don't think I could possibly forgive myself if anything worse were to happen to you."
Jake grabbed Aura's hand and kissed it, giving her a small smile. "Okay, I understand."
Her eyes widened. "You do?"
Jake leaned against the locker next to Aura's as she switched out her binders. "Of course." He closed her locker door and a serious looked formed on his face. "But the second you deem Fabula as safe, I demand to be given an all-access tour. Understood?" He couldn't keep his cold expression any longer and a cheeky grin cracked through the façade.
As they walked to their next class, he slung an arm around Aura's shoulders, pulling her close.
She looked up at him with a small smile, a faint tint of pink forming on her cheeks. "I wouldn't have it any other way."
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"How am I even supposed to answer this?" Carolyn asked in between bites of a handful of cafeteria French fries. She had been staring at the same question on Mrs. Brown's sheet she had handed out for their ancestry project.
In an attempt to distract herself from worrying about Robin, Carolyn had decided to finally start working on their history project. She was quickly reminded, however, as to why she and her sister had put it off as long as they did.
Aura slid over on the picnic bench's plastic blue seat and looked over her sister's shoulder at the question. "'From which country did the majority of your father's side of the family immigrate from?'" she read aloud.
Carolyn let out a short laugh as she scribbled down the name "Crystia" in the space her teacher had provided on the sheet.
Aura let out a soft giggle as Carolyn flipped her pencil over and erased the word.
"I guess we can just make something up," Aura suggested, toying with her empty bracelet chain. "Even though I'd hate to lie, it's pretty much our only option."
Carolyn sighed before taking a swig from her water bottle. "If only we could bibbidi-bobbidi-boo our project done."
Aura suddenly tensed as she watched Jewel walk over to their table from Casey's, her dark blue lunch tray in hand.
"Hey," Jewel said with her typical bubbly smile as she sat down across from the twins. She immediately whipped out her phone and started to talk about the craziest thing she had seen posted on social media that past weekend.
Aura eyed Carolyn who cleared at her throat, halting Jewel's rambling.
"Why are you over here?" Carolyn asked bluntly, gesturing to their table with a wave of her hand.
Jewel's caramel eyes looked back and forth at the twins, a slightly insulted look forming on her face. "We're still friends, aren't we?"
The twins momentarily glanced at one another, not sure if they were being pranked or if Jewel was being serious.
The Indian beauty rolled her eyes as she pointed to their phones. "Are you guys still mad about what I said in the car last week? I texted both of you that I was sorry."
Carolyn crossed her arms. "I don't think 'sorry' is gonna cut it this time, Jewel. What you said really hurt me."
"Well you've seemed to move on," Jewel countered, gesturing to Carolyn's bare neck where Eli's locket used to rest. "So why can't we move past this?"
Carolyn leaned forward in her seat, agitation seeping into her voice, "Because my real friends would know who I really am, wouldn't call me a cheater, and then act like everything is magically okay."
Jewel stretched out her arms. "Why can't you see that I'm trying to apologize?"
Aura placed a supportive hand on her sister's shoulder. "Because you'll always choose to believe Casey before either of us. It's the sad but harsh truth, Jewel," she said coolly, nodding her head to the girl in the medical boot on the other side of the seating area.
Jewel grew quiet as Carolyn and Aura's words sunk in. Silently, she slid her phone into a pocket on her bookbag and stood up with her lunch tray. "Fine..."
As her former friend since fifth grade walked back toCasey's table, Aura's heart clenched at the realization that her and hersister's friendship with Jewel was truly over. Although she felt horrible forhurting Jewel's feelings, she also realized how their rift was inevitable. Andthrough the opening that rift made, Aura was able to see how close she,Carolyn, Bailey, and Robin had grown as friends, and that was the mostimportant realization of them all.
