My name is Lucifer, or Lu, Beckett.

My parents must have been psychic in giving me this name because I’m about as manipulative as they can get.

I’m blonde with deep blue eyes and pale, as my little sister’s friends like to call it pigmentally challenged skin.

I’m a Harvard graduate and I own a club which doubles as an eatery during the day.

It’s called the Falling Star. Sometimes my sister plays the piano for it; sometimes my brother helps me with the food services.

My sister is Jane Beckett. She’s a junior in high school, aims for Julliard, and loves manga that little geek. She also has some serious self-esteem issues. For some reason she can’t see herself clearly. She has our mom’s brown hair and hazel eyes.

My little brother Jules Beckett is older than her by a year, he has the same blonde hair I have but he has our mom’s hazel eyes. He’s captain of the football and track teams, a total jock, and the center of our parent’s lives.

Not that Jane or I mind very much.

The more attention they spend on him the more I can do without their noticing, in other words, the more trouble I can cause without their interference.

You may be wondering where I’m headed with all this.

Shut the fuck up and let me finish my God damned (no pun intended) background info, I’m getting to my point in a roundabout way.

Jules is the second most popular kid in school, according to Jules himself. The first being Bradley Parks, Jules’ best friend and the thorn in Jane’s side since kindergarten.

Like I said, my name is Lucifer Beckett and I’m as manipulative as they can get.

So it goes against the grain to say that Jane went totally off tangent and ruined my plans to get her and Bradley Parks together as an item.

I may be filthy rich with half the entire population of women (and quite a few men) eating out of my hands but I still live at home. Mom and dad are usually out, and when they’re home their attention is focused on Jules, giving me plenty of room to plot my younger siblings lives.

Ever since Jules told me that Brad has been crushing on Jane since sixth grade I’ve been plotting to get them together. I mean it’s just obvious she likes him back, I mean mention the guy’s name and she flushes like a friggin beet.

Brad works for me at the Falling Star, four days a week (of his choice) for at least two hours (time of day his choice as long as it isn’t to ditch school) and either waits on tables or cleans. I’m usually mixing drinks so that job only takes up evenings, and since I own the place I don’t usually show up.

Brad has been working for me for three years, starting in his sophomore year, he’s caused me trouble and he never hesitates to stop it whenever some drunken ass decides to physically take out his emotional problems. I’ve never had any problems with him either, when he first came to me for a job he asked me for all the money in advance, like right then and there.

I seriously thought he was insane, he asked me for three thousand friggin dollars. You know why I hired him?

Because he said “It’s for Janie” and the look he gave me was so serious that I gave him the money in cash and told him “you sure as hell better make it good”

The next day he came in and showed me two velvet boxes. I was behind the bar at the time wiping some glasses and he sat on a barstool, and placed them in front of me. He opened the first one, inside nestled on a black velvet cushion was a lace choker with large onyx teardrops. He said that he’d give this one to Jane first; he told me that it represented a promise to himself.

When he gave it to her, whether she wore it or not, whether she kept it or not, it meant he couldn’t turn back.

He opened the second one and I nearly dropped the glass I was cleaning.

A silver ring with a large onyx sat in the middle of the velvet. The silver winking up at me, the onyx deep and beautiful.

He said it was a promise from her to him. If she accepted it, then someday she’d be his. A promise ring, engaged to be engaged he put it.

So for four days a week for at least two hours he works here to pay the debt off. You do the math; I’m a friggin cheapskate.

I had the bar closed on the day of homecoming. Jules told me that Brad finally got the balls to ask Jane out. I’ve been working my ass off for the last two months to get those two together for this one day.

Why?

Because I’m a good brother damn it, that and I have fifty dollars riding on her going with him.

Jules bet she would refuse him, realize her feelings, but be too embarrassed to show her face.

I bet refuse at first, realize her feelings, then go running for him.

I had her best friend Alice take her out to get a dress, I showed her a picture of the dress and shoes I wanted her to wear, they’d go with the onyx choker so well and handed her the money. Alice’d make sure she got it.

I had Alice prompt her at every chance she got; I had the other jocks (Jules may be their captain, but I’m the one supplying the liquor for their parties) get those two alone as much as possible.

So you could pretty much bet that I was fucking pissed when I walked into the Falling Star and hour and a half before homecoming and saw Brad behind the counter wiping shot glasses with the towel glove.

“What the hell are you doing here?” I snarled. He looked up at me and his eyes were pathetically flat looking. He looked back at the glass and started wiping it. I snatch it from his grip and slammed it onto the bar top. I glare at him.

“I’m cleaning” his tone is flat.

“Why aren’t you getting ready to take Jane out?” He recoiled a bit, whether it was from the fury in my voice or the memory of Jane’s refusal (which I was sure of) I’m not sure.

“I’m not going with Jane”

“Whom are you going with?” He takes a nervous step backwards as I narrow my eyes.

“I’m not going.”

“Yes you are.” I climb over the bar with little difficulty and grab him by the shoulder shoving him towards the exit. He protests and tries to escape, I’m not named after the Devil for nothing, once you’re trapped in my clutches there’s no way in hell (pardon the pun again) you’re getting back out.

“She said no.” I pull out my keys as I shove him out the door.

“You are going, go with the rest of the team, Jules said some were going single and were gonna pick up girls there. You are going to go, you will go and have fun. Jane will be there and you will show her a nice time.” Without relinquishing my grip I turn around and lock the door. “You will give her that ring, she will be wearing the choker.” I put the keys back in my pocket and I proceed to drag him to his car, he still mumbling protests along the way. “You, however, will not allow your hands below her waist or above it. You will not take my little baby’s chastity” at this point he begins to stutter and turn a peculiar shade of purple, but being the tormentor of man I continue “Your eyes will not drift below her face, your attention will be solely focused on what she says, you will not be inappropriate, and you will not, not listen to me!” I shove him at his car and stand glaring at him until he slowly climbs in and drives off, head still nodding in semi-shock along the way.

Jane wasn’t home from wherever she goes after school yet so I went into her room and dug out the choker placing it on her dresser. She’d never notice the change, but she will notice that it was there. I hear her Toyota in the driveway and I dash out to the back porch. I take the time to smoke a few cigarettes. I began to start worrying about twenty minutes later. Thirty minutes later I was panicking. I was downright paranoid forty minutes later.

I guess I’ll have to play the Fairy Godmother for this one.

I go up to her room and I stare at her dumbfounded. She was lying on her queen-sized bed in red flannel pants and Jules’ old yellow jersey.

“What the hell are you doing?” Her head lifts up and I can’t help but notice that her eyes look a lot like Brad’s, flat and empty.

“Nothing?” her head flops back down. I wait a few seconds, when she makes no move to get up I sit on her bed.

“Jules told me Brad asked you out.” She rolls onto her stomach and looks at me through a curtain of brown hair. I raise an eyebrow at her.

“What’s it matter to you?” she asks. Jeez, for a genius kid who’s aiming for Julliard she sure is stupid. I clutch at my chest like I’m hurt, which I am. The way she said it was like saying alcohol is illegal for kids under sixteen! Blasphemy I say!

“I’m your brother, of course it matters to me that the successor to my title as King asked my little baby sister out. It also concerns me that you aren’t ready yet.” I glare at the pants and jersey, I’m gonna kill Jules for ever giving her those things, ratty garments that do not help her self-image of herself. Jesus Christ, why couldn’t she just wear a lingerie for once? Realize she has curves? I may be her brother but I’m not blind. I can’t help but notice how much…more, how do I put this? Attractive she is compared to other females of her age group. Don’t get me wrong; I’m looking at this from a strictly platonic point of view, so imagine how it would be from a typical male teenager who doesn’t see her as a sister?

“I said no” she attempts to roll over but I pull her back time to play my part.

“You said what?” I let my blue eyes flash, I know she hates it. For some reason she thinks that blue is better than brown.

“I said no” she repeats, frowning.

“Why?” Dense little…

“He was obviously joking.” Did I say dense? I meant empty headed.

“How do you know that?” I snap, seriously, she was really stupid when it came to things like this.

“He said he loves me” Her eyes look disappointed.

“And you love him back” Her eyes widen and she sits up so fast that her eyes unfocused for a moment before she screams.

“EXCUSE ME?” I ignore the ringing in my ears; I wonder if she knows how much like those cheerleaders she sounds like?

“You love him back, you being the stupid little thing you are, don’t realize it. Don’t worry, I think it adds to your Beckett charm.” I cross my legs, I am so gonna win this one. I pat her head.

“Where do you get that asinine idea??” She screams hysterical. I swear, she needs things pointed out to her and set up. I wonder how the fairy godmothers in the fairy tales do it, I mean if I was stuck with someone as stupid as Cinderella, who didn’t even have the things hanging around, as my ward I’d say ‘screw it’ and take off.

“It’s obvious Jane.” She looks incredulous.

“They way you smile whenever he’s mentioned, the way you blush whenever he calls you ‘Janie’, the way you practically glare at whoever he goes out with or whatever girl you see near him.”

I let that sink in for a few seconds. Her eyes widen and her mouth drops down a little bit, it looks kind of cute. I grunt, smug and head over to her closet, throwing the dress and shoes at her still form.

“If I were you I’d hurry, there are only ten minutes till homecoming starts, and I know that Brad’s going whether you are or not, he’s going with the guys.” I smirk, I am so gonna win this bet. She pushes me out the room and I walk downstairs, I wish I could see Jules’ face when she shows up. I hear her thudding down the stairs and throw her keys at her.

A few seconds later I hear her car pulling out of the driveway, I wince as the tires screech, I hope it didn’t mark the driveway.

I bask in the silence for a few seconds.

I flip open my phone and hit the speed dial for Azure’s number, my best friend, who happens to be a girl. No we aren’t an item. I don’t’ feel that way for her.

“Yo” No need for introductions or small talk, we’ve known each other all our lives, she knows me.

“’Sup” Her voice is cool and somewhat distracted.

“Party at my place?”

“Now?”

“Yea” The line goes dead and I know she’ll be here in ten minutes or less.

The kids are away, mom and dad are across the ocean on business, Azure was coming over, I had no work tonight and I had a shit load of liquor at my fingertips.

Yea, it’s good to be a scheming manipulative devil.