Chapter One

First day. Of school. Boarding school. As in college.

It’s a daunting little thought that keeps niggling the back of my mind. Shoo, thought, shoo. No matter how fiercely I try to tell it to just shove off already, it refuses to leave! So here I am, having to bear with it, which just isn’t fair.

Certainly not fair at all! Not when I have, like, two gorgeous elder sisters going back to school with me! You’re not the one who’s gotta put up with their “oh, we’re so popular, everyone wants to be just like us!” boasts, you know. I have to live up to their image! Which I so don’t wonna do.

Everyone’s expecting another Natalie-and-Natasha lookalike. Natalie Dianne Rivera and Natasha Jillian Rivera, resident “hot chicks” of Castle Hill College. Fancy name, that, for a boarding school/college. I’m hardly their lookalike-wannabe, I’d like to think so. Can anyone say “Ew, carbon copies” with me?

Hmmm.

Can I forge another birth certificate for myself? I’d like to deny that I’m related to them in the slightest way. I didn’t ask to be born their sister, much less “the younger one”. They think they can push me around. Just this morning, before we left the house, they actually pulled me aside and threatened me. Yes, you heard me right. They actually threatened me! Their lovely little sister!

Let me at least, try to quote their words accurately.

Oh yes.

Natasha said, “Mischa, everyone’s expecting you to be like us. So you’d better watch yourself. Put on a good show. Because, if you so much as dare to ruin our reputation, God forbid, we’ll personally hunt you down and make your life miserable!”

Added Natalie, The Clone, “Yeah. We know you can’t be as beautiful and popular as us, but please. Everyone knows we’re bringing along our little sister along this year. You’ll be the center of attention temporarily, while everyone’s trying to suck up to you so they can get close to us. You got that? They’ll be using you to get to us. So don’t screw it up and let it all go to your head. It’ll be so obvious that they want us.”

Oh, please. Gag me now!

Like I could care less about that. I’m not the one who wants to be accepted and adored universally by the entire student body of Castle Hill!

Can you just see how obnoxious they are? Can you even begin to see it? At least you’ve just met them. I’ve had to cope with them my whole life! How have I survived and lived all these years? How can I be related to such monsters? Ugh, I feel like Cinderella!

Thank God for day high schools.

So, back to the topic. Do any of you, by any chance, happen to know the President? Or his son, perhaps? Or anyone, just anyone, in the White House? Or maybe even the Secret Service. I think they’ll be enough to get the job done. You know, the works. New identity, passport, birth records, everything.

I didn’t think so. None of you know any of these sort of people right? Well, poor me. I’ve gotta go on putting up with all their nonsense. Bully for me! Yay!

Yeah right.

But I suppose you deserve an explanation, what with all my ramblings and nonsense. This is gonna be my first year in college. My sisters have been going to boarding school since first year in middle school. I think they just like being away from the parents.

Now, why are they in “boarding school”, do I hear you asking?

Well, it’s like this.

My parents move around a lot. I’m a year younger than the twins, so when they were in sixth grade, I was still a kiddo, living with mummy and daddy in England. So they were shipped off to boarding school in America, all because they wanted to study in the United States. Lucky me!

When I got to my first year of high school, we moved to America anyway because dad was posted to Florida. So mom put me in a day high school, thank goodness for small mercies! We stayed put all throughout my second year and junior year, then they had to move away again, this time to Australia. But as I only had one more year to go, they let me stay with my best friend, Shawana Brooks. I got to stay with her family throughout the entire summer after my senior year too! Cool, right?

Unfortunately, I don’t have the same good luck right now. You see, dearest mum and dad are still in Australia, so I’ve been sent to my beloved sisters’ college as well. The ‘rents decided that they didn’t want me to “bother” the Brooks’ anymore, so soB here I am! On the brink of insanity!

The evil sisters don’t have to pretend to be good and innocent, the way they always do in front of the ‘rents. I doubt they felt any remorse after threatening me so…so…so blatantly to my face!

So, well, here I am. Whoop-de-doo!

Oops.

Right.

Sorry, I forgot you don’t know me.

Name? Mischa Ashlee Rivera. Age? Just turned eighteen. I am part Italian, part English. I am a cross between a hip hop queen and a punk rocker chick. I love basketball, and skateboarding. I love rollerblading too! Beach volleyball’s good with me. But music! Oh man, music is my whole life! I love the piano, and the guitar. I’m trying to pick up drums, but what with me getting booted off to college, it might be four years, give or take, before I can get on with it! Coz after college comes the university! I sing okay, I think.

I’ve got a lovely ma, and the best pa in the world. I don’t really hate my sisters (although I may have give you that impression with my previous crazy rantings). I love them, I really do, but they can get really unbearable at times. And when I say unbearable, I really mean it too. They can be nice when they want to, but they can be really self-absorbed when they jolly well feel like it! That’s the part that frustrates me to no end! I like them fine when they’re nice, but when they start thinking along the lines of “me, myself and I”, I can’t stand them! Like the time when they threatened me. I still can’t get over that!

Hmmmmmm.

I think they’re schizophrenic. Or maybe they’re PMS-ing. That should just about explain their really scary mood swings.

I’ve got no brothers, although I really wish I had one. Because, you know, twins being twins, they’re always together, they share their secrets together and basically, just do everything together. I’ve always been the third wheel. Sad, innit?

Other fellow humans of the female gender hate me because of my beautiful sisters. Guys crowd to me so they’ll have an excuse to talk to them. So, yeah, everything revolves around them. They are the sun, and everything else moves in orbit around them.

My life isn’t all that interesting. So basically, this is it. This is me.

Right.

Glad to meet you too.

So where am I now? Good question. I have no idea. Come on, bear with me! This is the first time I’m taking this road, on the train, no less. Wait, lemme go ask the twins.

I scramble over.

“What now Misch?” Natasha asks, cocking one perfectly plucked eyebrow up.

“Where are we?”

Natalie rolls her eyes good-naturedly. “We’re about another half-hour away to good old Castle Hill. I’ll bet you can’t wait to get there.”

I just smiled noncommittally and left them to themselves.

Hah. Can’t wait to get there? More like don’t wanna get there!

But I kept that little evil thought to myself. I’d get myself well-trounced if I dared badmouth their beloved school.

We’re sitting in the Castle Hill train. Old-fashioned way of traveling, I know. But it’s kinda cool that the school has a whole train station built and named after it for us students who can’t get there by car.

The train’s pretty crowded, but the twins made sure we got to the departure station early so we could bag the best seats. So here we are, seated by the window, watching the rest of the world pass by in a blur.

They’ve been chattering away and giggling to themselves since we’ve parked ourselves on these seats. I guess I know where I’m not wanted, because they’re speaking in hushed tones, occasionally dropping their voices even lower to whispers. Prolly planning their next ploy to rope in their newest male victim.

I suppose that’s another part of them I really don’t favour. They reel in guys and dump them whenever they feel like it. It’s become some form of entertainment for them. And one in which we don’t see eye to eye. I don’t see how I can voice that out though, seeing how I’m the younger sister.

According to them, I’ve got no right to criticize what they do. They sure don’t show me that same level of courtesy though. I think their motto of the years goes along the lines of “Don’t Butt into Our Business, We’ll Butt into Yours”.

Urgh again.

So I’ve been passing the time by staring out the window.

Ooo, I’ve seen so much interesting things!

Hardy har har.

Who am I kidding? There’s nothing to see but grass, flowers, bushes, trees, the occasional bird and rabbit, then I’m back to grass, flowers, bushes, trees, the occasional bird and rabbit. An urban girl can only tolerate so much and I’m wearing thin, close to my snapping point.

Thank goodness I’ve only to sit here for another half-hour!

Another blessing in disguise.

Hopefully I can grab my stuff faster than the twins, and then “blend in” with the crowd, since they seem to think I’ll do that like a pro. I don’t wonna hang around them and be gawked at and compared to the twins. Nuh-uh, not me! Not anyone in their right mind would want that!

Silence.

Silence.

Wow, they actually have nothing to say to each other for once! What happened to whispering behind my back? It’s a miracle that they don’t have anything to giggle about. When did they stop talking? Why didn’t I realize it?

Not good Mischa. You’re getting slow.

I turned to face them.

They were crowded at the door of our compartment.

All I could see was their long light hair, pretty butts and long legs. From behind.

What the hell?

I wonder what’s so interesting. If anything is good enough to distract them from their little chats, then it’s got to be something really good.

Seeing how the both of them have squished themselves in the opening, I don’t see how I can go and check out what they’re drooling at. Though I’m dying to. I’ve never been one for suspense of the unknown.

When my sisters can turn their attention to something else and forget about their self-absorbed selves, then it’s suspense enough for me.

They soon reenter and take their seats once again, eyes bright, mouths working furiously.

I caught bits and parts of their conversation.

Something about “JD”, which I assumed had to be a guy’s name, since there was nothing else on earth which could possibly command so much of their attention. I gathered he had to be some other hot shot, of the same league my sisters belonged to. I knew my sisters. They’d never consider anyone they thought beneath them.

Sounds shallow, I know, but that’s just how they are.

This sounds like a good story.

It’s amazing what one is willing to do when faced with endless boredom.

From eavesdropping, I gathered quite a number of juicy tidbits, and better still, they came from the mouths of the Grapevine Queens themselves. My sisters knew all the gossip and hot news there was to know, and rarely ever relayed fake news. You could say they’re “paparazzi: beholders of the truth”, which is unheard of. Don’t believe me, but it’s true!

They knew everything that was worth telling. And that’s exactly what they did. Tell!

I felt tiny prickles crawling down my back and that’s when I knew my sisters were watching me. I broke out of my reverie abruptly and turned to face them.

“What’s so interesting about me?”

Natalie sighed. “Mischa, you don’t have to get all defensive. We were just wondering why you’ve sat there quietly since you got into the train.”

Right.

I knew what they were thinking. They were the most obvious people I knew. Slotted between the pretty, caring lines Natalie had just rattled off was anticipation. I’ll bet anything that they’re dying for me to ask about JD. Whoever he is. Has to be a he. I’ve never made it a secret that I listened in to their talks. They knew I’d heard.

So I obliged.

This once.

“Who’s JD?”

Almost immediately, I regretted asking.

Natasha’s face turned dreamy. Natalie’s eyes developed blindingly-bright stars. Both of them clasped their hands together prayerfully.

I sweat-dropped, groaning inwardly.

I was so never gonna get out of this!

“JD Moreau is the eldest son of Jean-Jacques Moreau.”

Who?

“He’s like the most gorgeous guy I’ve ever seen…scratch that, we’ve ever seen. And to think we’ve been going to the same school with this guy for almost, what, seven years? Oh gosh, even back then he was so the hottie! We were so afraid that he wasn’t going to be returning to Castle Hill for his college education.”

That was Natalie.

Now came Natasha’s turn to gush.

“Yeah! There were rumours going around last year that JD’s parents wanted him to continue studying close to home, so they’d get to see him more often. So we were kinda afraid that he wasn’t going to be back this year, and then we wouldn’t have anyone to admire!”

Okay, I have really airheaded sisters.

Then a second thought hit me.

Is the school so pathetic that there’s only one hot guy?

Wait. Let me rephrase that.

Is the school so pathetic that there’s only one hot guy good enough for them?!?

I tuned back into their explanations.

Natalie. “We didn’t realize he’d gotten into this train, so when we heard the little commotion down back, we had to get up and see.”

“And guess what?” Natasha squealed.

Ow my poor ears!

“What?” I asked, playing dumb, since that was so obviously what they wanted me to do.

“We saw him sitting there with the guys!”

I knew that.

“He’s right at the back, with his usual guy friends. They’re all basketball players, so good that Castle Hill has been unbeatable for the past five years! He was made captain of the team last year.”

“Oh.”

They took that as an invitation to tell me more about the Hottie.

By the time the train rolled into the Castle Hill station, I had my head and ears full of information about a guy I hadn’t even met, much less seen.

When we walked out, we heard the screams and loud excited chatter coming from the crowd exiting the back of the train.

I concluded that the noise had to be coming from the JD Moreau Fan Club.

Going to Natalie, I asked a question that had been bothering me. “Nat, who is Jean-Jacques Moreau?”

She stared at me, jaw dropping wide open.

“He’s one of the most powerful men in all of America, maybe one of the richest too! He’s the owner of Moreau Corporations. One of the few families of old and new money! I can’t believe you don’t know Mr. Moreau!”

Wow. Mr. Moreau? He was that wealthy?

Well, this sounded plenty interesting. It’s about time I checked out the guy. He had to be something, well something besides the money, that is, if my sisters could demean themselves to gawk over him. If this was just about his millions, probably billions, they wouldn’t be that hyped up.

Hmmmmmmm.

Life just turned around a very interesting turn.

I am going to enjoy myself!