To the Stars

Chapter 1: The Secret Twin

Jacob Henley walked up to the front door feeling downcast, his steps as heavy as his luggage. For a moment, he wished he called William, his twin brother, to fetch him at the airport but the thought left him as soon as it came. He could never ask his brother to do anything for him - the rift between the two of them was already far too wide for that. So he didn't call, not even to tell him that he was coming home.

A part of him still couldn't believe that he had to move in with his dad and he dreaded the thought of seeing him again. He hated his father and everything associated with him. When his mom told him that he had to move to Norburry, a city across the country, he was consumed with dread. But he did what he was told and packed his bags without asking questions.

He stared at the front door noticing that the wood looked worn since the last time he saw it. Was it a year ago? Two years? Three? He couldn't remember anymore. He made it a point to avoid visiting his father and his twin brother as much as he could. But every time that he needed to visit, it never ended on a positive note. His hatred towards his father was one thing; his hostile relationship with William was another and it was just too much for him. After fumbling with the house keys for about a minute, he finally inserted the key into the knob.

The door was unlocked.

That's weird. Jacob thought. His dad was definitely still at work around this time and William had soccer practice after school.

He grudgingly opened the front door and was met with an empty house. Everything was the same. The same old boring furniture...The same old boring brown carpet...The same old boring wallpaper. He could smell a hint of citrus and he gathered that that was from the cleaning agent the housekeeper used. Everything was spotless. His dad always liked to put everything in their place but unfortunately, he also thinks like that with people, especially his family and that was one of reasons why his mom decided to leave him.

With a sigh, he proceeded up the stairs to his bedroom dragging along his heavy luggage behind him.

But then he heard it.

Footsteps on the floor above.

Jacob gulped hard as all sorts of thoughts ran wildly through his head. What if it was a burglar? What would he do then? Can the keys he was holding enough to incapacitate his would-be perpetrator? Was he going to die? Jacob realized that there were only two things he could do. Go hide in his room and call the cops or confront whoever it was. He decided to go with the latter and hoped that the house keys he was holding was sufficient to protect himself if needed.

He left his things at the bottom of the stairs and made his way up to the second floor, trying his best to not make a sound. He followed where the sound came from and realized that it came from William's bedroom. So, he is home. Jacob thought, suddenly feeling nervous. It meant that he had to face his brother at that moment and he wasn't looking forward to that at all. He found himself wishing that he had to tackle a burglar instead.

The door to William's room was ajar and without another thought he pushed the door open and saw her for the first time.

She had her back to him and was going through a pile of clothes on William's bed...wearing nothing but underwear. He was frozen in place, his mouth hung open and she must have felt his eyes on her because she turned around and flashed him a bright smile.

"There you are!" She chirped, her voice full of excitement.

Jacob just stared.

"You're home early. I thought you said soccer practice would finish late." She said, putting her dainty hands on her hips. She was definitely one of the prettiest girls he had ever seen. Glowing skin, gorgeous body and lovely dark eyes. Her light brown hair fell in long waves up to her waist and her lips always seemed to be upturned to a perpetual smile. Her presence completely disarmed him and for a minute, he forgot how to speak.