The Vampire Prince goes to High School (Book 1)

To My Displeasure

Alexander stayed with me that night. He transformed himself into a kitten and managed to  doze off before I could. My brain wouldn't shut off. Someone was obviously trying to defame Alexander but why? 

Why now? What made them do all of this now? They had so many other opportunities. What had changed? Plus, I still couldn't accept why Alexander hadn't explain his whereabouts. He was the Vampire Prince. People were bound to notice him so why hadn't anyone stepped up? 

But what if he was alone during that time? There were no witnesses because he was alone. Or he killed all the witness, a nasty voice in the back of my head said. I shook my head. No, I couldn't think like that. But, why couldn't he give anyone a straight answer?

Sighing, I rolled over on my back. This was getting too much. I glanced down at 'Arthur' who was curled up on the pillow beside me. Would he answer me if I asked him? Would I answer him if he asked about the note again? My stomach twisted just by thinking about it. It was better not to risk it.

My phone buzzed somewhere behind me. Wincing, I searched around before I found it. There was a message from Sonia. Squinting at the sudden bright light, I read the message. 

'Is it true?' her message read. 

She was probably talking about the news. Trying not to disturb Alexander, I turned around and hid my cell phone underneath the covers.

'I don't know what to believe,' I typed. 'No one can say for certain if the videos are fake.' 

My mind went back to Pat at the movie theater. She had planned that one - of that I was certain but this video was completely different. The video wasn't shot in a public place.

'You haven't asked him?' Sonia replied.

I bit my lip. It wasn't like I hadn't. Even Alexander said a pro was behind this but could I really tell Sonia this? She would want to know why I was still in contact with Alexander.

'He doesn't talk to me,' I told her. 'If I asked him anything he'll ignore me.'

'True.'

'Hey,' I typed. 'How is Carlos?'

Her reply came instantly. 'So, what? Now you're interested in him?'

'No,' I replied quickly. 'It's just that I know something about his new friends.'

I quickly pushed 'send' before I could change my mind. Sonia and his family had a right to know who he was hanging out. It wasn't like I hated Carlos or anything. Sure, we were friends either but he just happened to be caught up in something too big for him. 

'What about them?' Sonia asked.

"I met them awhile back,' I typed. 'They had this secret hang out away from everything. I saw one of Carlos's friend at the movie theater one night when the imposter showed up. His friend had a camera.'

I hit send before I could change my mind. It was time that Carlos's family knew what he was getting into. With the royal family looking for blood, well, I hoped Carlos wouldn't be in the cross-fire.

Even as I waited, Sonia didn't text back. She was probably angry right now but it wasn't really my fault. We weren't talking at the time. As my eyelids grew heavier, I felt my phone buzz. Stiffing a yawn, I glanced at it.

'Alright' was all she read. 

Well, that was anti-climatic. Sighing, I put my phone down and turned on my side. 'Arthur' was still curled in a ball on the pillow beside me. Careful not to wake him, I tenderly stroke his fur. Everything seemed so surreal. Was this really happening? It felt like some sort of television drama.

Hopefully, Sonia could talk some sense into Carlos. Honestly, I still didn't mind if Alexander suffered the consequences of all his actions. That was fine. I just couldn't take the fact that someone was trying to frame him. I knew that Alexander wasn't a saint. But if someone got away with framing him and then it was discovered that he was innocent (because the truth somehow always came out) then, it would have all been for nothing. 

I turned on my back again. A sudden weight settled on my chest. I couldn't help but feel like framing Alexander was part of a bigger plot. He was royalty after all.

#

'I'm heading out before you,' Alexander said. 

Groaning, I pulled the covers over my head and curled up in fetal position. A headache started to pound against my temple. 

'Rin.'

Again, I groaned. A small weight stepped on me and somehow managed to wiggle underneath the covers. 

"What?" I whined out.

'I'm leaving,' Alexander repeated. 

Something soft touched my arm. 

'You have to get up,' he continued. 'It's almost time for school.'

I curled up. "But I want to sleep."

'Next time, go to sleep faster.'

"I couldn't sleep," I grumbled. "Why can't you just have people believe that I'm at school? You're good at that."

'I can if you want me to.'

For a moment, neither one of us said anything. I sighed and sat up. I kept my eyes closed and the covers over my head. It wouldn't be right for me to have him do something like that. 

"I'll go to school."

"And yet you're still in bed."

Frowning, I yanked the covers off my head. With difficulty, I pried open my eyes. Alexander stood beside my bed. He still wore the same clothes as yesterday. 

"Happy?" I grumbled.

Alexander smirked. Before I could react, he scooped me up. 

"If I throw you into a bath, would that wake you up?"

"Don't you dare."

Again, he smirked and put me down. His hand tapped the top of my head. 

"I'll see you in school," he said. "Don't go back to sleep."

He gave a small wave and was gone. Yawning, I glanced at my alarm clock. It was seven am. I had at least fifteen more minutes of sleep. How dare he wake me up early?

I looked at my bed longingly. It was better if I didn't go back to bed. I might not wake up. 

"I might as well take a shower," I said to myself. 

The warm water did little to wake me up. I stared myself in the mirror and winced. My eyes were bloodshot and there were bags underneath my eyes. Maybe people wouldn't notice. 

Even if I tried to get dressed as quickly as possible, I couldn't. I didn't have enough energy or motivation to even do that. Finishing, I went back to my room. As soon as I entered, a strange feeling came over me. 

My room looked exactly as I left it before. Nothing had changed and yet, there was that feeling again. Slowly, I walked around the room. It was then that I noticed it. Something was poking out from underneath the comforter. As I walked closer to my bed, the weight on my chest increased. I swallowed thickly before yanking the comforter off the bed. 

A paper fluttered down. My heart jammed against my chest it was painful. I picked up the piece of paper. 'Elizabeth' was written on the front in cursive. I felt sick but I forced myself to open the paper. 

'To my disappointment, it would seem you are adamant about disobeying me. 

I have tolerated enough. 

To my great displeasure, I must take matters into my own hands. You should have been better.

Don't blame me for what you have caused.

M.'