PLAYLIST
Lucas’
Placing the Blame- SELF
Mama boy -Dominic Fike
Wiseman -Frank Ocean
Champagne Coast- Blood Orange
Beanie (Slowed) - Chezile
Dark red- Steve Lacy
Slow Dance- Clairo
Back To Me- The Marias
It’s snowing like It’s the end of the world- Krobak
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Nicholas’
Sparks- Coldplay
Pool(Stripped)- Samia
No one noticed- The Marias
Innocence- Daniel Caesar
Coffee- Chappelle Roan
I’ll believe in anything- Wolf Paradise 
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PROLOGUE
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The new term arrived with its usual choreography, convoys at the gate, crests on luggage, secrets packed tighter than uniforms.
Lucas Edvin Hale, son of the Viscount of Finland. Better known as Norway’s representative, had planted himself everywhere: countries, households, alliances. Everywhere except where he wanted most, the royal palace, that of Finland to be exact.
He wanted to know the ins and outs, but that was the one place that proved to be a problem. The academy was his main bargaining chip, a housing ground for miniature versions of the world. Coaching, as the mentors would call it.
“There aren’t any other ways?” Romeo asked. Romeo—Norway’s second prince. Lucas had plans, big plans and his friend, who just happened to be a prince, was going to help.
“Just ask him,” Lucas said, his voice stern. Romeo looked at him with his infamous eyes, his puppy eyes, the kind that said I don’t want to without ever saying it. Lucas didn’t budge.
“Alright, fine. But I don’t know why you have to be so Eddie on me right now.” Eddie. Edvin. His second name. Romeo called him that when Lucas slipped into one of his moods, the obsessive one.
Only Romeo called him that. His mother used to, once upon a time.
“Not in school, Romie boy.”
“I’ll say whatever I want whenever, Eddie boo.”
“Just do what I asked you to.” “
I will,” Romeo said quickly. “I will.”
Lucas was hosting a party, celebrating the start of the new term. Well, Lucas and Romeo. More accurately, Lucas using Romeo’s name.
What Lucas asked Romeo to do was simple: get Nicholas, the prince of Finland, to attend. Nicholas didn’t really give anyone the time of day. But he talked to the goofy as hell Romeo. Romeo went straight to him. “Hello there, Nic-HOE-las.”
“What do you want?” Nicholas didn’t bother looking at him. “Mind coming to a party I’m hosting?” Romeo asked, choosing the most semi-public place he could. The most alone Nicholas ever got.
“You’re hosting?” Nicholas raised a brow. “We both know you can’t pull that off.”
“Well… Lucas and I—”
Nicholas’ eyes flickered to Lucas at that moment.
“Yeah,” he said. “I’ll be there.”
And then he walked away.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyld9qGMPIg
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CHAPTER 1
Lucas' POV
Why did I trust Romeo with that again?
Because he's the only door the prince opens for you.
"I honestly thought it'd take more for him to come," I said to Romeo, more to myself as we walked through the hallway.
"Don't think about it too much, party's gonna be awesome. Having you and I was more than enough. But now we've got the golden boy, prince charming."
"Talking like you're not a prince yourself." I stopped to lean on a wall. "I'm not the prince."
Romeo folded his arms. "But still a prince." My eyes stuck to the white wall opposite me. Freshly repainted, the academy had always been that way, nothing more important than the looks of it.
"Romeo Lorus Juvelo, second son of the Norwegian royal family. Ring a bell?" I smiled, faintly. He opened his mouth like he wanted to name a version of me. "Let's not with the titles today."
Romeo setting boundaries, that was a first.
"Just saying, you'd normally be on about the princesses like Sofia or May." I tilted my head towards his. His scent didn't escape me, different but familiar.
"But now you're singing the prince praises."
"I was telling you not to worry. Everything'll be fine. Nicholas is actually cool."
"Still feels a bit off." That came out whisper-like. My fingers hovered near my nose as I pondered. His scent kept bringing me back to where I stood.
His hands slipped into his pockets, then I asked, "Are you seeing someone?"
"No, why?"
"You smell different."
"I do?"
"Yes, you do. Soft, like a girl."
"Maybe it's my new soap."
"I don't like it,” I said. “Change it."
"You don't like me smelling soft?"
"I don't like you smelling like a girl I'm not aware of."
"You'd rather I smelt like you?"
"Smell however you want. But not like this."
"At your service master Lucas. I'll make sure I start smelling like sweat and dirty socks."
"Funny."
"Who else could possibly get a laugh out of you?" I clicked my tongue. With an eye roll I was able to tune him out. Anything he said after became background noise.
Romeo kept talking, about different things, random things.
"We're finally free from being first years."
...
"What do you think eating an egg with the shell would taste like?"
...
"The new years are actually pretty cool, they laughed at my bathroom jokes."
…
Things I began to not pay attention to. All I did was nod to his endless mouth movements.
I finally got into my thinking bubble. The bubble that popped too early.
"...and Phi told me to..." was the only thing that came through. Piqued my attention.
"Who's Phi?" I cut in.
Who was this entirely different person telling him what to do? I was the only one allowed to do that.
"Phillip?" I asked first. His older brother was my best guess, but we'd already had the ‘brother’ talk.
Instead of letting him confirm I asked what was more important. "What'd Phi tell you to do?"
"To get the bag."
"What bag?"
Silence.
“That’s not important,” he said after a long beat of nothing. You can't seriously be hiding things from me, Romeo.
I looked at him, staring into what I would call his soul. Analysing him. Checking for whatever made him act strange. Whatever the tuned out Lucas could have missed.
“Are you okay?” His hazel eyes shifted from the wall to beneath me. From beneath me to behind me. Anywhere but my eyes.
"Why wouldn't I be?"
"You're sweating," and fidgeting.
"Is something wrong?"
"It's nothing." He drew his hand out of his pockets again.
Then I said, "You know you can tell me anything, right?"
"Yeah." He took a few seconds to continue, "I think I'll go talk to August about what we need for the party." Runaway 101?
"I'll do that myself. We have a lecture soon. You should attend that."
He made no effort to say anything else. He turned and walked away.
On one hand I was glad he did exactly what I told him to do. It gave me the satisfaction of knowing he was mine. But on the other, he was acting so unlike himself.
What was the bag about? Drugs? Money? A dead body? I was okay with whatever. What I was not okay with was him lying, saying it was nothing.
Not Important.
My fingers wouldn't stop drumming my arms. I stayed with Romeo to get my mind off Nicholas and what his eyes meant. Now I was stuck with Romeo's strange silence too.
I started walking the other way before noticing my shoe laces were undone. I imagined tripping on them. Falling to hit my head, hard.
What I needed was a concussion. Well enough to work, ill enough to focus on what's relevant.
I went to the library after. To find August like I'd planned to. It was one of the places we'd been meeting since we were first years.
August stayed in his usual corner with his head ducked in a book, as serious as ever. I walked towards him, he felt my presence, like an assassin would his target.
He looked over me with his thick frames. ‘Defeat and Deceit’ was written boldly on one of the books among the others he had on the table. "No bodyguard today?" I asked first.
"He's got business with the earl. Take a seat.” I did, then asked what always came next with us, “Up for a trade next week?"
Then he said, "I'm always up for a trade but on one more condition this time."
"What is it?"
"The prince, I heard he’s attending. Whatever you get out of him, you'll tell me."
"And if I don't get anything?"
"Then tell me that."
"Alright then, we have a deal."
"As always."
He closed the book he had then turned to look at me. "How's Fiona?" he asked.
‘Who’s Fiona?’ I almost asked back. Then I remembered. She was my girlfriend. Her name sounded foreign. How long had it been since I even saw her?
"She's meant to be fine."
"I think you should check up on your girlfriend."
"Why?"
"Bad time for a break up don't you think?"
"We're not breaking up."
"When I told you that last year you laughed and said you knew."
"What does that have to do with anything?"
"I should tell you but I can't."
"Why start if you won't go all the way?"
August and half telling things. Helpful sometimes, annoying most. "Hinting it is more than enough."
"Don't piss me off August."
"Fine. I was just messing with you. You sound like you want to skin me alive."
I stood, willing myself to leave. I didn’t need another one of his prophecies coming true.
I stepped into the crowded hallway, and just because of his warning, I went to find the girl I hadn’t heard from in months. Fiona.
She was never hard to find. Her red hair always made her shine the most wherever she was, except when I was there too. I didn’t indulge with her much. A simple 'hi,' 'hey,' 'how you doing?' and I realised we were good.
August was calling a bluff.
Everything was sorted, so I went for what called for my attention the hardest. Politics.
The day went by achingly slowly. So did the week after. Till it was time for the party. Romeo was meant to help, but he wasn’t anywhere to be found.
He was always bustling around, trying to make himself noticed. But he’d been the exact opposite of that since the talk in the hallways.
The party wasn't meant to be big, minimal but influential invites. It was being held on an island.
The island between Finland and Norway. On the day of, the people invited—Princes, Princesses and a select few went by talking, dancing, just flowing.
A lot of things were traded from secrets to narcotics, August being reliable. But that wasn’t what the day was about. It specifically was about something else, someone else.
The Prince of Finland, who I'd have sent Romeo to but Romeo was missing. I knew when Nicholas came into the party but I didn’t know where he was then. I searched the house for minutes before I spotted him outside.
He stood under the moonlight, feet in sand, a breeze blowing his blonde hair, like a scene from a movie, except there was a girl vomiting in the back, held by a friend. I went out, closer to where he stood.
I was behind him for a few seconds thinking up what I’d say. I never practiced my lines before, not for anyone. But this time, I had to physically push myself to his side.
"Enjoying the party?" I asked. He tilted his head. "It's been nice." His voice was deeper than I remembered it. "Lucas, right?" He asked as if he didn’t fully know who I was.
"Yeah, that would be me.”
"Luca," he said, you'd think it was a mistake but it wasn’t.
Everything that came out his mouth sounded... calculated. "I'll call you Luca."
"Sure thing." I gave my signature smile. The one I gave people I wanted to get under, over and maybe into.
"Hope you enjoy the rest of your night, Nicholas." I tasted his name on my tongue, it lingered almost too long.
"Nico."
"What?"
"Call me Nico."
"Sure thing, Nico."
And that was the end of the beginning. I went back in, to check on things, didn't want anything going wrong under my watch.
The building on the island was duplex-like. Only half the space in it was in use. The other half was meant to be empty, lifeless. It was not.
I could feel the difference. The change in the atmosphere. And I wanted to know who had the gall to go where was out of bounds.
I walked the pathway, seeing no one. But the deeper I went, the more I was sure the space was no longer lifeless.
I tried opening multiple doors, one after another. They were all locked, till the last. I was ready to find whoever had dared to mess with me. I had rules. Everyone knew that. And they knew what happened to people who crossed them.
I opened the door to two people, a man and a woman on the bed, she was on top of him. Nothing unsightly. Nothing out of the ordinary.
But I paused to catch a beat, to make sense of it.
One.
door that shouldn't be unlocked. Lights that shouldn't be on. Scents I shouldn't be familiar with.
Two.
Red hair, wrong room, wrong laugh. I blinked to check if the scene would change. Maybe I was just high even though I didn't take anything.
Three.
Her head turns first; his hand leaves her waist like it's been burned.
Four.
Fiona's mouth forms my name. Romeo can't meet my eyes. My grip on the door handle ached.
Five.
I closed the door before the scene could ask me to stay. My throat got tight but I swallowed it down.
Yeah, Romeo.
Not important.
I walked out of my own party.
It wasn't mine anymore.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUzIWDDT4ze
and then Add to home screen.