Writing Royalty

Chapter One (Continued)

"Hey, brother," a voice cuts in. "What's going on here?"

I'm still caught in Roan's gaze, unable to pull mine away. He stands rigid and his jaw clicks.

"Not now, Noah," he growls. "I'm busy." A shadow steps into my peripheral. Noah, the other Cain brother, hovers over his twin's shoulder. They're identical, but it doesn't take much to tell them apart.

Noah is the one who smiles.

Not to mention, he wears thick black glasses. The girls don't mind that about him though. Not one bit.

"Look," I say, ducking away from the brothers, "Can we talk about this later? I'm late for class."

"We're all late for class," Roan says. I don't have an response for that.

"Is this about that stupid online book thing?" Noah laughs. "Chill. It's not that big a deal."

I nod and take a tentative step away. I really do have to get to class.

"You need to take it down," Roan continues, unfazed.

"Why?" Noah and I both say, voices mirroring.

Roan pauses, running a calloused hand through his ebony hair. It falls back around his face and my stomach flips. "It's not cool to write about people by name like that."

"Oh," Noah grins. "I know what this is about. Man, you are whipped."

Roan's eyes narrow on mine. "Just take it down," he snaps before turning and storming away. I track him as he rounds the corner, a burn of anger beginning to rise within me, low in my belly. Who is he to tell me what to do?

"You must have really pissed off Char." Noah stands next to me, his hands deep in his pockets. He bumps me with his shoulder, arm resting against mine. I'm struck by how warm his skin feels. I bite my lip and shake my head.

"Yeah, I bet I did."

Okay, so I guess he has a point. Charlotte Kerrigan, aka Char, is not only queen bee of Silver Lake, but she secured her spot as Roan's girlfriend years earlier. The two are inseparable.

"Did you really have to write her like that?"

I turn to him and his smile quirks. I shrug. We both know to what he is referring. In my story I had not only made Roan into a villain, but I'd made Char into the mastermind behind his corruption. A bit of a McBeth situation, if I had to be honest. But it wasn't like the two didn't deserve it. Char has always been a mean girl and Roan seems enjoy on that side of her personality. The two are a match made in heaven or hell, depending on who you ask.

"It's only fitting," I roll my eyes and walk away. I refuse to be intimidated, even if Noah isn't trying to get in my way like Roan had. Still, I grip my notebook and book to my chest like a life-preserver. Noah walks beside me, not missing a beat. The way he talks to me so casually, walks next to me, it's like we're friends.

We're not friends.

"I mean, personally, I don't get what the big deal is," he continues. "It's just a dumb story. No offense."

I hold my breath for a nanosecond and shake my head. "None taken."

The fact that he's never said a word to me before this conversation isn't lost on me. I'm the creative writing, book loving, journalism club type of girl. He's more into the cheerleading variety, considering he's dated his way through the entire squad.

"So, you like me, huh?" he says. I stop dead in my tracks, embarrassment snaking its way up my spine. I turn on him, my jaw practically on the floor. He only stares back, his eyebrow arched and eyes curious.

"What are you talking about?"

He cocks his head. "The way I see it, you wrote me as not only the most handsome guy, but the knight in shining armor. That must mean something." He winks. Then he smiles and dimples appear. My heart lifts like a helium ballon. Ignore it...

"Um, no," I stammer. "It was never–"

He busts up laughing. The kind that starts in the gut and turns into tears. Everything about him lights up. Then he waves and takes off down the hall. "I'm teasing, Bailey. Don't worry. I know I'm not your type."

I don't even know how to respond to that. Not my type? Okay, the boy is everyone's type. Just watching smile like that, his blue eyes sparking behind those glasses...maybe he has a point. I'm about to question him further when a teacher rounds the corner, nearly running Noah over.

"Mr. Cain," he says, "Where are you supposed to be?"

"Heading to Spanish right now." Noah salutes and then he's gone.

The teacher continues down the hall toward me, his lips set in a grim line. "And you are?"

The man raises a bushy eyebrow. I don't know him personally, but I know he's the senior Government teacher. I'll have him next year. The last thing I need is to get on his bad side, to get on any teachers bad side. If I'm going to make it into Yale's creative writing program, I have to be valedictorian. I know it's a long shot, like a "snowball's chance in hell" shot, but it's my dream.

"Bailey Abbot, sir," I say. "I'm so sorry. I was just going."

His gaze hardens like he's about to send me to the office, but then something lifts and he sighs. "You do that."

He doesn't have to tell me twice. I practically sprint down the hall and make my way to my classroom. All the while, I'm rehashing what just happened. How can two brothers, twins, be so wildly different? Noah is all light, and Roan is the walking definition of brooding.
I let out a careful exhalation. They are too gorgeous for their own good. I needed to stay far away from them both.

When I walk in the door to English Literature, I'm met by silence. Thirty pairs of eyeballs turn my way and I feel my ears turn hot. A flurry of whispers follow. I duck my head down and slide into the desk in the front row. I always sit in the front row. Less distractions. But today that doesn't help. The stares on the back of my head feel like laser beams.

Of course as fate would have it, two of my "characters" are sitting in this very room. If my run in with the Cain brothers is anything to go by, then the rest of Silver Lake's Royalty isn't going to let this thing go either.

I'm going to have to put up a fight.

*****Author's Note*****

So which brother is more appealing and why? They're identical twins, but obviously have very different personalities. Noah is the fun loving guy who can't be tied down. Roan is the brooding type who is totally tied down to one girl. The brothers are very loyal to each other!

We've got one more part to this chapter, then we're going to get to read some of this fan fiction story that has everyone so riled up. Things should get interesting! Curious, I'm having trouble naming Bailey's story. The high school is called Silver Lake, set in a wealthy mountain town (Park City, Utah - fictional school, real place). And the story is going to be in third person, mid-evil times kind of a thing. Any ideas? 

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