Lavinia

Chapter 1: The Prince

I stood on the balcony, in a balmy summer breeze, overlooking the magical beauty of the garden of roses, ceramic statues and fountains, twinkling with fairy lights. The distant classical music swelled with violins and flutes from the party downstairs. I closed my eyes and inhaled the fragrant air, enjoying the peace. I felt like I was the only one alive as I glided through the soft white cotton curtains bordering the doorway, my long gown of golden silk adorned with velvet ribbons and embroidered glittery patterns sweeping the floor.

As I left my bedroom, I caught a glimpse of my reflection in the long oval mirror. Butter-gold ringlets scraped up into a bun by shiny ribbons and dazzling crystals dangled from my earlobes, wide green eyes staring back at me.

Fingering the pendant on my collarbone, I took a deep breath and slowly descended the curving marble staircase, my hand sliding on the smooth mahogany banister, my eyes focusing on my slippers.

The music continued to play, but there was a sudden hush in the crowd as I reached the bottom. I snuck a glance up and noticed all heads gazing in my direction. The dancers at the centre of the room seemed lost in a trance and forgot where they were, also staring at me.

I glanced over my shoulder and gasped. A young and dashingly handsome prince approached me with a warm smile, his ocean-blue eyes stroking my soul and puncturing my heart. He offered me an arm, which I tentatively took, and he led me through the audience, automatically parting to create a path for us to walk through. A blur of faces passed by and all I could hear was the soft, husky whisper in my ear...

Oh, no! Not again! But it was too late. I was wide awake, and I was never going to find out what the prince was saying. My dark room swirled around me and my heart throbbed with frustration. Curse my fantasy world of dreams. I always wake at the best parts.

But it was time to get back to reality. I was no princess. I didn't live in the century of royalty and magic and innocent love stories. I lived in a time of drugs, sex and violence, the age of technology and filth. So, welcome to my life.

I crawled out of bed and trudged down the hallway to pamper myself up in the bathroom and get ready for another day of miserable torture. It was too early to get up, but I might as well get out of the house before the Addams family did, so I could escape a morning of calamity.

After throwing on my wretched school uniform consisting of a plaid navy skirt and a white shirt, shovelling some toast into my mouth and glugging down a glass of orange juice, I flew out the door with my bag slung over one shoulder, the icy morning air stinging my cheeks as I began the long walk to daily jail, a.k.a, high school.

The sun had barely risen properly so the sky was a mixture of pastel pink and mauve, streaked with peachy cirrus clouds. My scuffed T-bar shoes splashed into puddles and stepped on cracks so I could break not only my mother's back but my whole family's and maybe even all the teachers at my school.

I realised I had a whole hour before school started so I cut through the ghostly park, which was all misty, so I felt like I was walking on the land of clouds, or even heaven, but that was impossible because my heaven would be filled with handsome princes and ball gowns and fairy gardens.

I collapsed onto a swing that creaked in the wind and threw my bag onto the tan bark. I swung myself into infinity for a couple of minutes before giving up and just sitting there staring at the ground.

Then I heard the soft clackety-clack of a skateboard on the pavement and I looked up, searching the swirling white fog for the source of the noise.

The mist cleared a bit, just enough for me to make out a boy with a mop of dark curls and tattered jeans approach me with his skateboard tucked under his arm. Something about him seemed vaguely familiar, like I'd seen him before, but I swear I had never seen him in real life before. However, I was pretty sure I had seen him in a dream.

The boy flashed me a warm smile, his ocean blue eyes stroking my soul and puncturing my heart, a feeling I instantly recognised. Could it be?

The boy flopped down onto the other swing, his skateboard on his lap, his grubby fingers spinning the wheels, but his clear blue eyes still on me.

"Hello," he said in a husky voice.

"Hi," I replied, my breath caught in my throat.

He jutted his chin towards my school bag, lying there abandoned and sprinkled with tan-bark. "Is that yours?"

I nodded sheepishly. "Yep."

His eyes twinkled with...mischief? "Are you going to school?" he asked.

I thought about it for a second, before answering, "Probably not."

The boy raised his eyebrows, and I noticed his sculpted cheekbones and sun-kissed complexion. "I'm Keith," he told me.

"Lavinia."

Our names lingered in the air like a spell cast upon us, and I swear I felt the magical connection between us. I looped a stray lock of blonde hair around my ear and leaned back on the swing, slowly rocking back and forth.

"Here, let me push you," Keith offered.

"OK," I obliged, my heart leaping for joy as he came behind me and placed his palms on my shoulders, his touch burning through my sweater, and pulled back until I soared into the air, a smile tugging at my lips.

Laughter bubbled out of my mouth and escaped into the pale sky as the sun finally rose gloriously and marked the beginning of a perfect day.