Amira walked into the school cafeteria, holding her tray of food. She scanned the room, looking for her best friend, Sabina. She spotted her at their usual table, and made her way towards her.133Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6xeEhfK0CV
“Hey, Sabi. Sorry I’m late. I had to see the nurse,” she said, as she sat down next to her.
Sabina smiled, and high-fived her. “It’s okay, Amira. How are you feeling? How’s your arm?” she asked, concerned.
Amira looked at her cast, and shrugged. “It’s fine, I guess. It still hurts a bit, but it’s healing. The nurse said I can take it off in a week,” she said, casually.
Sabina nodded, and squeezed her hand. “That’s good to hear. I’m so glad you’re back, girl. I missed you so much,” she said, sincerely.
Amira smiled, and squeezed her hand back. “I missed you too. You’re the best friend ever,” she said, gratefully.
They chatted for a while, catching up on everything that had happened while she was away, living with another friend.
"By the way, you won't believe it. You remember that new kid, Draco Winters, right?"
"Yeah, what about him?"
"I read somewhere, there's this news that he has a long-lost twin sister. The media didn't reveal her name or anything. Which reminds me... no offense, but some of the girls and I were talking about how similar you two look. Though... you two hate each other. There is no way you two are twins..."
- Amira chuckled. She and Draco being twins… what a joke. It wasn't like they had identical looks, a shared birthday, and common parents, and both lost a parent at the same age or anything. And the fact that they were both dropped in the same limo that morning was just an ordinary carpool.
"Yeah... ever since I broke his phone that day, he's been mad at me. I hate him back since he's just plain annoying." she replied.
"And yet, he was the one who called the ambulance. The teacher asked him to narrate the story to the class, so I know."
"Ahh, makes sense. I kind of owe him for doing that for me."
"Looking out for your fellow humans is a basic responsibility, " Sabina explained. "Not a favor or part of a deal."
They were about to eat their food, when they heard a loud voice behind them.133Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4qdGuhUQ8o
“Hey, ladies. Mind if I join you?”
They turned around, and saw Draco standing there, holding his tray of food. He looked just like Amira, but a few centimeters taller.
He was Amira’s twin brother, and he had come to ruin her day. Speak of the devil.
Amira felt a surge of anger, and disgust. She glared at him, and clenched her teeth. She hated him more than pretty much anything in the world. She would have rather anyone else had called the ambulance that day. She didn't want the last person she saw before going unconscious to have been him anyway. But he was... sadly.
She wanted him to go away, and leave her alone.
But he didn’t.
He smiled, and winked. “Hey, what's up? How are you doing?” he asked, mockingly.
Amira ignored him, and turned away. She didn’t want to talk to him, or listen to him, or look at him.
But he didn’t.
He sat down across from her, and put his tray on the table. He looked at Sabina, and grinned. “Hey, Sabi. You’re looking good. How are you doing?” he asked, casually.
She looked at him, and felt a mix of confusion, and curiosity. She didn’t know who he was, or what he wanted. She didn’t know how to react, or what to say.
She looked at Amira, and saw her expression become dull. Amira asked, "What do you want? Also, we saw each other yesterday."
"Irrelevant. Where's Ashlyn?"
"Why are you being so lazy?" she hissed.
"Why are you being so stubborn?" he snapped back.
"Why does it matter to you? I had to play nice for everyone else's sake. But I'm not keeping the act up at school."
"Look, I'm over the phone thing, okay?"
"Lies." she snapped, raising an eyebrow.
"Why am I even wasting my time like this?" he grumbled. He turned to Sabina for a minute. "By the way, Sabina, since I was absent yesterday, could you tell me who I am supposed to be paired with for the assignment? Mrs. C told me to ask you."
"She paired everyone according to their deskmates, and then the class teacher switched everyone's seats. So... whomever you were sitting next to before, that's the one you have to work with."
"Work with someone I barely know? That's ridiculous!"
"True that..." Amira added, mouth stuffed with food.
"Don't talk with your mouth full, Amira." Sabina scolded her, before turning to her twin. "Also, couldn't you have just checked on the site, dude? I know about the broken phone, but being the kid of a rich CEO, don't you have like, ten laptops?"
"Ten laptops, and ten IQ." Amira muttered, a smug grin on her face.
"Whatever... at least I have that much IQ. You don't even have half that much. Anyway, I have better things to do than to sit around and chat." he replied, rolling his eyes. He got up, took his tray and left them be, as they wished he had done the second he arrived. "Later," he mouthed, as he walked backwards, away from the girls.
"Don't come back!" Amira called out cheerfully, waving energetically at him, while Sabina just chuckled and said a quick bye.
|•|•|•|
Draco left the cafeteria, feeling annoyed and frustrated. He hated his sister, and he hated his situation. He wished he could just go back to his old life, where he didn't have to deal with any of this drama.
He decided to go to his dad's office immesiately after school, and see if he could talk to him. Maybe he could convince him to let him move back to their old city, or at least to a different school. He didn't want to stay there any longer than he had to.
He took the bus to his dad's office, which was not far from the school. He entered the building, and showed his ID to the receptionist. She smiled, and recognized him.
"Hello, Draco. Are you here to see your dad?" she asked.
"Yes, I am. Is he busy?" he asked.
"He's in a meeting right now, but it should be over soon. You can wait in his office, if you like. He said you have the access code," she said.
"Okay, thank you," he said.
He took the elevator to the top floor, where his dad's office was. He entered the code, and opened the door. He walked in, and saw a spacious and elegant room, with a large desk, a leather couch, a bookshelf, and a window overlooking the city.
He put his backpack on the couch, and sat down. He looked around, and saw some photos on the desk. He picked one up, and saw his dad, his mom, his siblings, and himself. They were all smiling, and looked happy. It was taken many years ago, before the divorce.
He felt a pang of sadness, and anger. He wondered why his parents had to split up, and why they had to drag him and his siblings into their mess. He wished things could go back to the way they were, when they were a family.
He put the photo back, and sighed. He looked at his watch, and saw that it was almost 4 pm. He wondered how long his dad's meeting would last. He hoped it would be over soon, so he could talk to him, and get out of here.
He decided to check his phone, and see if he had any messages. He took out his phone, and turned it on. He saw that he had a few texts from his friends, and one from his elder sister.
He ignored the one from his sister, and opened the ones from his friends. They were mostly about school, sports, and video games. He replied to some of them, and then closed his phone.
He was about to put it back in his pocket, when he heard a knock on the door.
He looked up, and saw a girl standing there. She had short black hair, purple eyes, and fair skin. She was wearing black jeans, a white T-shirt, and a blue hoodie over it. She looked about his age, maybe a year older. She was holding a clipboard, and a pen. Perhaps she was doodling something, he thought?
She smiled, and opened the door.
"Hi, I'm sorry to interrupt. I'm looking for Mr. Winters. Is he here?" she asked, in a French accent.
Draco felt a surge of curiosity, and attraction. He had never seen her before, and he wondered who she was. He also wondered why she had a French accent, and why she was looking for his dad.
He shook his head, and said, "No, he's not here. He's in a meeting. Who are you?"
She walked in, and closed the door behind her. She looked around, and saw the photos on the desk. She pointed at one of them, and said, "Is that him? Is that your dad?"
Draco nodded, and said, "Yeah, that's him. Why?"
She smiled, and said, "Oh, I see. Well, my name is Lila. I'm here because I'm fascinated by the technology around here."
Draco raised his eyebrows, and said, "Really? How did you get access?"
She shrugged, and said, "Well, my dad works here too, but in the Paris branch. He's one of the managers. He knows your dad, and he called in a favor. He said it would be a good opportunity for me, and a good way to improve my English. I'm from Paris, by the way."
Draco nodded, and said, "I see. Well, that's cool. I'm Draco. Draco Winters."
She smiled, and said, "Nice to meet you, Draco. You have a cool name. It means dragon, right?"
Draco smiled back, and said, "Yeah, it does. You have a cool name too. It means lily, right?"
She nodded, and said, "Yeah, it does. It's a pretty flower. Do you like flowers?"
Draco shrugged, and said, "I guess. I don't know much about them. Do you?"
She nodded, and said, "Yeah, I do. I like gardening, and painting. I also like reading, and music. What about you? What do you like to do?"
Draco thought for a moment, and said, "The usual... I like sports, video games, movies, and comics. Pretty boring, I'm not very artistic, or creative." The last part was a complete lie and he knew it. He didn't want anyone to know about his love of creative writing, inherited from his mother.
She tilted her head, and said, "Really? I think you are. You have a very expressive face, and a nice voice. You could be an actor, or a singer."
Draco blushed, and said, "No, I couldn't. I'm not good at those things. I'm not good at anything, really."
She frowned, and said, "That's not true. You're good at many things, I'm sure. You just have to find them, and work on them. Don't be so hard on yourself. You have a lot of potential. You just have to believe in yourself."
Draco felt a warm feeling in his chest, and a flutter in his stomach. He liked the way she talked to him, and the way she looked at him. She was different from the other girls he knew - especially since the last girl he almost became friends with broke his phone.
He couldn't believe it. He wanted to think he was immune to it... and yet, he wanted to make her laugh, and smile, and blush.
He wanted to be with her.
But he didn't know how to say it, or show it.
He was too shy, and too scared.
He was too much like his dad.
"Son, what are you doing here?" A third voice asked. "I was just heading here to get my phone and call you when Ashlyn said she couldn't find you after school."
"Now you don't have to worry at all."
"I see you've met Lila. She reminds me of your twin, not gonna lie." Ashlyn, who was standing next to her father, said.
"Since both you and Ashlyn are here, I have to tell you something. We're... moving to France in a month. Another branch office thing... you know how it is."
"WHAT?!"
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