Taylor

For all the good it’s going to do, I could keep talking until the cows come home.

Well, at least until the bell goes.

“…I cannot believe you’d let that guy get to you! You always do this Hay, somehow, you go downhill and I'm dragged with you! Now, we’ll get kicked out, you'll get the Big Speech from dad and we’ll go and find another school…I hope you're happy.”

I looked at him, scowling at the grass at his feet.

“Hayden, are you even listening to me?”

He glared at me. “Does it look like I am?” he got up and walked away, hand shoved in his pockets, head down. I groan in frustration and sat on the bench that seated Hayden only a second ago.

“Are you alright?”

It was Chloe, sitting down next to me.

I nodded. “I'm fine.” I sighed. “Little brothers hey?’

Chloe looked confused for a moment. “But he's you're twin.”

“I know.” I told her. “But I'm older.”

She furrowed her brows. “Where did he go?”

I shrugged, “I don’t really care right now.”

“You know, it was kind of Damien’s fault. He can hold a grudge for ages.” Now it was my turn to look confused. “My cousin.”

Oh…that makes sense.

“You know, you and your brother are very close.”

I shrugged again. “He's got nobody else.”

After the bell goes, Chloe and I start for our next class, English.

When we entered the class, Chloe sits next to Damien who has all his books out neatly on his desk. I'm left sitting at the table opposite theirs.

Then Hayden arrived, spotted me, grimaced at Damien's presence and sat down next to me, opposite him. I know that the present seating arrangements will cause a lot of trouble further down the line but I'm too tired of it all to care.

Chloe looked at Hayden, then me, then Damien and back to Hayden. I ignored Hayden and stared at Damien. He’s glaring at Hayden, bits of dried blood stuck to his shirt.

“Taylor.” Hayden hovered near my ear. I stared at Chloe who’s staring back at me with her eyes wide open. Hayden pokes my arm. “Taylor.”

He was still poking when Chloe says to him, “She’s not talking to you.”

I heard him ask him back. “Why not?”

She shrugged. I turned and glared at him. “You know perfectly well why I'm not talking to you. Now stop annoying me and my friend and do your work.”

“Like he’s capable of doing it.” Damien muttered under his breath.

Chloe elbowed him in the side.

Hayden shot him with a glare and gave him the finger.

“Hayden, if you get into anther fight ever again, I swear to God I’ll never talk to you ever again.”

He slumped back into his chair and continued glaring at Damien.

I looked at Chloe and sighed.

After English, I'm walking away with Chloe when I saw Mitchell the hot guy in Ancient History talking to Hayden. I saw Hayden smirk Mitchell laugh.

A sense of anxiety washed through me; a desperate need to know everything they are saying to each other.

If I find out he’s been telling embarrassing stories about me again…

Hayden grinned again and, with a slight wave, walked in the opposite direction to Mitchell.

I marched up to him. “Okay, you will tell me everything you just said to each other.”

Hayden smirked. “I thought you weren’t talking to me.”

I glared at him. “Get over yourself Hayden.” I grabbed onto his right ear, like I used to do as a kid, and twisted. He groaned and flailed his arms around, trying to get me to let go. “You tell me right now.”

“Oww…Tay, let go, that really hurts…”

I let go to see everyone in the hallway staring at us.

He stood back upright and glared at everyone who was staring. They immediately stopped looking and continued on their way, pretending nothing happened. That was how scary one of his glares was.

“So what did he say?”

He grinned. “He asked me about you.”

Fear runs through my body. I'm almost too afraid to ask. “And what did you say?”

Hayden’s grin spread. “I told him about the time we were five and you ran around naked with your underpants on your head.”

The look on my face must’ve said something to him as he stepped backwards a little and poked my arm. “Whoa, joke man. Joke.”

I narrowed my eyes. “It better have been.”

Hayden shook his head. “Honestly, the whole world does not revolve around you.”

I scoffed. “Yeah, it’s all about you now isn’t it?”

He shrugged. “Obviously he just likes me better than-“

“Don’t even finish that sentence.” I crossed my arms.

This isn’t even about Mitchell and what he said anymore; it’s about control over each other. I'd like to think I have the upper hand.

Hayden has other plans. He crossed his arms too. “Or what?”

“Or I’ll tell everyone about the time that you got into the car, thinking it was ours, and yelled at the little old lady to hurry the hell up.”

Hayden smirked, “Whatever Tay. You can't keep using that one; I've got more on you than you do on me. I’ll catch you later.” He walked off. I noticed a few girls eyed him with interest. “Yeah, whatever.” I said, more to myself that him and walk in the opposite direction.

After I fight my way over the Asian girls taking pictures of themselves, I rejoined Chloe and Damien, who are staring at me with innocence (Chloe) and confusion (Damien).

“I don’t get it. You’re his sister?” He glared down the hallway, at Hayden’s retreating back.

“Yes.” I say shortly.

“But you’re…” he trailed off.

“What?” I waited for his answer.

“…normal?”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” I said, voice dripping with danger and fake politeness.

He must’ve picked on that as he muttered “Nothing” and walked away.

I look at Chloe and sighed for the billionth time that day. “I'm sorry. It’s your classic case of ‘I can do whatever the hell I want to my little brother but no one else can’. I have to make sure he doesn’t get into fight because of other people saying shit about him.”

“Does he get into a lot of fights?”

“Yeah. Almost always resulting in broken bones, large amounts of lost blood and the like.”

Chloe’s eyes grew wider. “Really?”

“Yeah.” I stared at the lockers and graffiti lining the walls. “And the funny thing is, I'm always dragged into it with him and I don’t even know who he had the argument with.”

Chloe smiled then. “But you don’t hate him.”

I shrugged. “I don’t. How can I? I’ve grown up with him. He’s my little brother. I know how many goldfish he’s had and killed. I've seen him extremely early in the morning. He knows the name and date of birth of all my ex-boyfriends.”

I stared at the spot that had been graffitied over and over again on the wall.

“He’s my little brother.”

Hayden

Sisters! Pfft, who needed them? I mean, making a scene like that? What the? I make commotions all the time but that was just embarrassing. Now everyone thinks I'm controlled by my sister, that she’s my kryptonite, God forbid.

I headed the way I saw Mitchell go. It was kind of random; he came up to me, stated something absentmindedly, I replied sarcastically, he laughed, introduced himself and that was that. But Taylor’s reaction was classic. So I say a little white lie and she completely blows her top, making her figuratively pointless as well as literally.

I just don’t get her, I never made friends at all the other school that we went to and then a breakthrough (sort of) and she doesn't like it!

I mean, honestly, she works endless hours for very little pay when we’re rich! Sure, I spend a lot but why does she feel she should make up for that? And so what if the last ‘friend’ I made, I hospitalised? Dad fixed that right up, does she still feel the need to think I’ll do it again.

Man, look what she made me do, sent my thoughts flying all over the place.

I saw the black haired boy sitting on a bench.

“Hey.” I mumbled.

“Oh, hi.” He smiled slightly, hiding a book under his bag. “Do you have a free too?”

“That or biology, don’t know, don’t care.” I slumped into the bench across from him. He laughs lightly. Straight away, I can tell his personality. He’s the nice guy which bad things happen to. He’s the guy who tires to do right by everyone but it just blows up in his face. He’s the guy who makes an untouchable façade to defend himself.

“So…? What’s it like being a twin?” Mitchell asked me.

“Horrid, she's my twin so to an extent she looks kinda like a guy. So there was a guy, Bobby, and he said she was hot and I called him gay and we got into a fight and…we had to leave that school. And I stick by it, it was Taylor’s fault, I can't be blamed for her looking like a guy.” I babbled it all in one breath. I usually didn’t this much but there’s something about the raven haired boy that just made me want to tell him anything.

He started laughing.

“I think you’ve got it all wrong. If anything, you look more like a girl.” He laughed more at my aghast face. “Might be why you’re so aggressive; to make up for it.” He smiled.

“No way do I look like a girl.” I snapped back half-heartedly.

“Just keep on telling yourself that.” He grinned cockily; I rolled my eyes and smiled back.

“And here I thought you were untouchable and scary, with everyone jumping out of your way.” I commented.

“Yeah, usually if someone sat down like you just did, I’d give them the well practiced Blake glare and they'd be running, but you’re okay.”

“That means so much coming from you.” I raised an eyebrow mockingly.

The awkward silence returns, though a tad more comfortable than before.

“How are you finding the new school?” Mitchell asked, leaning on his bag.

I shrugged. “It’s alright. Ugly arse building though.” I glanced around proving my point as I take in the rectangular building and lifeless grounds. “And there’s this dickhead in half my classes.” I commented.

“Who?”

“Damien something or another.”

“Spencer.”

“Huh?”

“Damien Spencer, the school’s biggest teachers pet, arsehole extraordinaire and all in all, total prat.”

“Yeah, that’s him.” I smirked.

“You got on the wrong side of him?” Mitchell raised an eyebrow.

“Actually, he got on the wrong side of me.” An evil grin spread over my face.

I would get the git back hard. Mitchell shakes his head, a slow smile growing on his face.

“Can't wait to see how that turns out.”

“Oh, you will.” We went silent. Then, “So what’s the book?”

He looked startled. “What book?”

“The one you hid under your bag.” I stated innocently.

“Nothing important.”

“Then let me read.”

“No.”

“Why?”

“It’s private.”

“So it is important.” I grinned cockily. “Let me see.”

“Don’t you know the meaning of private?”

I scoffed. “I'm a twin; of course I don’t.”

“We’ve only known each other for a quarter of an hour, you’re not reading it.”

“That special huh?” I frowned. “Meh, let’s go and get some food.” We rose from our seats, slung our bags over our shoulders and began to walk towards the canteen. The unknown book sticks out of his backpack; taunting me. I could easily take it but I won’t. I’d prefer for him to let me know what the infernal book is. Man, I sound like Taylor. We walk in a compatible silence; I do so like quiet.

Mitchell gave me a cheeky grin. “Your sister is hot.”

We laughed and I punched him in the arm lightly.