Prince and the Pauper

Chapter One

The chilly breeze nipped away at my skin as I hustled my way down the alleyway, heading to the hospital in the center of town. I pulled my jacket tighter around my body in hopes of keeping in the little body heat I had left, but  the exposed skin from my tattered jeans proved it impossible to keep my whole body warm. I pulled out of the alleyway on onto the main road where the hospital lay just at the end of the street. My eyes landed on the small convenience store on the other side of the road, and I felt the familiar sense of anger wash over me from head to two. Every time I remembered the incident that happened there, my blood began to boil.
Two months. Two months have passed since my little brother, Geordie, was attacked and put into a coma. Tears burned in my vision as I recalled the blood-curdling scream Geordie had let out from the first swing of the bat.
"Stop, please! What did  we do?"
The words Geordie had cried out were forever etched into my mind from the awful day. Nothing. He had done absolutely nothing wrong. He had wanted to get a card for his crush, that was all, and Dante Styles had wanted more money. Since that day, I had done plenty of research on the Styles family. Dante had ruined my life, and my brothers. One day, I would return that favor, personally. That was a promise I had made to my brother the day he was rushed to the hospital. I wiped away the stray tears that had leaked from my eyes and continued on to Greyson Hospital. Every day I passed that damned convenience store on my way to my daily visit with Geordie, and every day I felt my anger towards the Styles family grow. Dante had gotten away with it. As all members of the Styles family, he had been born with a 'get out of jail free' card. It had been my word against his, plus he had the best lawyer claiming that since they wore  a balaclava I couldn't "prove" it had been Dante. The police department had failed to give my brother justice, so one day I would make up for the grave error.  I picked up my pace and tried to occupy my mind with other thoughts instead of bitter anger, and at last arrived at the hospital. Greyson Hospital was a very small, and basic hospital. However, considering Ruddington is the slums, the white bricked, two-story building was impressive for the town. As I approached the front desk, Nicki, the receptionist greeted me with a warm smile.
"Devonne, long time, no see." Nicki teased, earning a small laugh from myself. "Has it been 24 hours already?"
"25 actually." I grinned. "How's Geordie doing? Any progress?" There was far too much hope in my voice, and Nicki picked up on it, her smile fading, answering my question.
"Dev, sorr-"
"No, it's okay," I assured her, "I already knew the answer. If he had I know you would have called straight away." Nicki flashed a sympathetic smile and patted my hand. Nicki was always sweet to me about everything and was one of the few who hadn't given up on Geordie. She was in her forties with her own children who had left the nest, and she'd always shown her motherly instincts towards Geordie and myself.
"He'll wake up soon, honey. I'm sure of it." She encouraged, squeezing my hand gently.
"Oh, I know he will. My little bro is a fighter. Sooner or later Geordie will open his eyes and the first thing he'll say will be some sly remark. I keep reading books he hates to him hoping he'll hear and get so annoyed, it will make him wake up." I laughed, Nicki joining in. "I bet he can't wait to slap me for reading 'Sleeping Beauty' over and over again."
"That's a different approach."  Nicki chuckled. "Most people read the patients favorite books, not the most hated. Full points for originality."
"What are siblings for, right? Anyways, my sleeping not-so-beautiful bro awaits." I smiled, excusing myself and turning around, only to bump into somebody, causing them to stagger back slightly.
"Oh, my bad, I'm sorry!" I gushed, putting my hand on their shoulder to steady them. My eyes landed on the person I had bumped into, his green eyes locking with mine.
"No, it's alright. No harm, no foul love." he smiled, which I returned. Brown curls covered his forehead slightly, and a beanie covered the top of his head. He was dressed smartly  which struck me as odd. Nobody from around here could afford warm winter jackets like he was wearing, but what stood out more than his clothes, was his face. He was incredibly handsome, but he also seemed familiar. I was about to ask him if I had met him before when Nicki interrupted.
"You'll have to excuse Dev," Nicki laughed, "she lives in her own little world. Oblivious to the real world, isn't that right honey?" she mocked, causing the cute stranger to laugh softly.
"Ah, yeah, sorry again," I mumbled, looking down at the ground. I could still sense his emerald eyes on me, making me slightly self-conscious. Looking up our eyes locked again, and his smile was still spread across his pink lips. "Um, well, guess I should get to Geordie," I muttered, gesturing to the room straight ahead of us. The stranger's eyes flickered to the small room, and for a split second I thought I saw shock register on his face, but he quickly recovered.
"Oh, right, of course." He smiled, yet it wasn't the same smile he had flashed me before. It was more restrained. Slightly confused, I gave him one last smile, before heading into the room Geordie was in. As I turned to close the door my eyes caught the boy still standing there watching me. When our eyes met he coughed awkwardly, before turning around and leaving.
"Odd," I spoke quietly to myself. Turning around, I walked up to Geordie's bed, sitting down on the chair beside him.
"Hey, little man," I whispered softly, brushing his fringe up from his eyes. "Back again. You must be getting sick of me, huh?" I laughed slightly. "Then again, I'm sure I annoyed you long before you entered this place." The steady beeping of his heart monitor was the only sound in the room now, and I sighed softly to myself. I glanced at the flowers on the night stand, but quickly a card beside them caught my attention. I hadn't brought that card, and I was the only visitor Geordie ever had. Curious, I picked up the card. Purple flowers were printed on the cover and I opened it to see who it was from.