"The rankest compound of villainous smell that ever offended nostril."
Great to see you too, Draven.
"I am sick when I look down on thee." I wasn't going to lie, arguing with this dimwit was probably the highlight of my day. Probably because I always won.
"You poor, base, rascally, cheating lack-linen mate!" He shouted, not having a care in the world. That's something I respected about him. He was never afraid of what others thought. Although it was evident he was the type of mystery boy who hid his feelings behind a steely gaze and a permanent smirk, he didn't hold back from having his share of fun. He was bold, open. With his passions, but not his pain.
Or maybe he hid nothing and he was just bored.
The former was more exciting, though.
"Methink'st thou art a general offence and every man should beat thee." My absolute favourite Shakespearean insult of all time.
"All's Well That Ends Well! My personal favourite," he said, and I grinned. Here we were, two hopelessly dramatic souls who shared a love for Shakespearean insults. Who would've thought I'd have met someone like him?
"Away, you starvelling, you elf-skin, you dried neat's tongue, bull's pizzle, you stock-fish!" I continued, ignoring him.
He held up his hands in surrender. "Fine, fine, I'm leaving!" He chuckled, backing away. "But I'll catch you at lunch?"
Charmer. A reckless useless charmer. That's all he was. But who could blame him for trying to get me, right?
"We're not friends, Hall," I shrugged, about to turn away. I expected that to catch him off guard, but instead he looked amused.
"Friends? With you? Yes, thank God we aren't. We've got to practice our lines, you sodden-witted fool!"
And with just one line, he could make me feel so unbearably stupid. Why was it that only around him I could lose the upper hand so easily? Why did there have to be someone so equally stubborn, pretentious and pathetic as I was?
"Lines?" I asked, puzzled.
"Yes, the lines! Did you not see the cast list? You, surprisingly, are the female lead."
He said it as if he was truly surprised by the fact, and not as if he was expecting it all along, although begrudgingly. That disappointed me. I had to make it my goal to put him in his place and never find a chance to underestimate me again.
In my head, I was in Utopia. I couldn't believe that I'd actually landed the part in my first school production.
"Well, obviously. What'd you expect?" Rule number one: never break character.
"Absolutely nothing from you, and that's why I'm surprised," he replied nonchalantly.
"Prepare to be even more surprised when you see me on stage," I smiled coyly.
"We'll see about that," he shrugged. "Meet me in the parking lot at lunch."
Parking lot?
Where were we going?
Just the two of us?
"Fine." Rule number two: never show that you're nervous.
I walked down the hall, my heels clicking on the floor and my bag swinging by my side. There was no doubt that I'd won that conversation.
For some reason, every one of my talks with Draven were battles. We were both hot-headed and stubborn, so everything we said was a mix of snarky comebacks, colourful insults and lines from plays to exhibit how extraordinarily talented we were.
(How extraordinarily talented I was. He tried.)
I was glad I'd finally found a friend in this place. Most of them were far too absorbed in their own problems to sit back and have fun. Another thing was that I bonded better with people who shared my flair for theatre. I liked having discussions about the one thing I was most passionate about. I loved the thrill of being challenged and fighting hard to rest my case.
So yes, essentially, I got along with people who weren't dramatic, but loved drama. The irony.
"Hey, Brynn, you free this evening?" Holly's fiery little Asian friend called from the side of the corridor.
She knew I saw her, but I tried to pretend like I didn't anyway.
The last thing I wanted to do was spend time with Ava. The best part was that Will was beside her and was undoubtedly in on the plan. I knew that I'd formerly planned on getting Will to fall for me and help his Mirror, Mirror crap succeed, but after seeing him kiss Thea, I realized he wasn't the one for Holly. She and I were two sides of the same coin. Although I didn't understand her at all, I couldn't let her get broken by some dumb guy. She deserved better than Will.
"Brynn," she called again, attempting to follow me, but I ignored her and stalked off. I knew she was only trying to make things better for our friendship or whatever odd relationship we were having, but I didn't want it. To her, I was just another conquest. A way to finish this task she'd created in her mind. She wouldn't stop working for it until it was completed. Just like her violin pieces, she wouldn't rest until she'd mastered this quest.
"Please, Brynn, just listen," Will begged.
Maybe it was Holly's voice in my mind pleading with me to give him this chance, or maybe it was the sincerity and love I heard in his tone that was undoubtedly meant for Holly, but I stopped and listened to him. And I hated myself for it.
"You have a minute," I snapped coldly. Will seemed to unleash the devil in me. I was always bitter, rude and uncaring around him. He somehow left me devoid of all feelings. It made me feel powerful around him.
"One date. I beg you, just the one. If it doesn't work out, I'll leave you alone forever."
His voice was trembling, and I noticed how Ava shifted half an inch closer to him. Just that small act of protectiveness and love stirred something in my heart.
You had your shot. One dance, but it wasn't with me.
"Forever?" I echoed. The words weren't coming from me. It's like somewhere, deep down, my heart knew that half of it belonged to Will. It was that half that was feeding the words into my mouth.
"Forever," he promised.
"Today. Six. Ava's restaurant. You playing tonight?" I turned towards her then, and her lips seemed to be forming a small smile.
"Will forced me not to come tonight, if that's alright with you." Will started to look more nervous than ever. I liked that I scared him.
"Just one night," I muttered under my breath, pretty sure that he could hear me. "Just one night."
"This one will see you there," Ava said patting Will's head as if she was his mother and he was being shy in front of a guest.
I was starting to warm up to her.
"Can't wait," I muttered sarcastically, unable to rub the smile off my face.
The thing I loved the most about Ava's restaurant was its name, Pita Pan. Perhaps I got my love for puns from my dad. I'm sure ten years down the line he'd own a bar called Tequila Mockingbird. Elody may or may not have passed that idea through him and he may or may not have already begun his research on new shop spaces for rent in town. Who could resist a shop with a clever name?
• • •
Before I knew it, the bell for lunch had rung and I was anxiously making my way towards the parking lot. I didn't even know why I was so nervous. Draven was a loser. If anything, he had to be nervous about spending time with me.
I guess it was the thought of being alone that made me feel skittish. It was one thing to spend time alone in school where there were people everywhere, but driving off somewhere with Mysterious Guy who looked like he'd murdered people before? Not so sure about that.
"Where are we going?" I asked him casually, trying not to let him catch on to my apprehension.
"A place," he replied, opening the door for me. I'd never seen Draven act gentlemanly before, so the open-mouthed expression was unavoidable.
"What? I can be nice sometimes," he chuckled.
"Are you trying to make up for the fact that you killed someone?" I whispered. "Who was it? Will?"
"If it was Will I wouldn't be covering up my tracks. You'd be the first person I told and then we'd throw a huge party," he said, as he slid into the driver's seat and closed his door.
"A huge party that you wouldn't even attend. You'd just be sulking in some girl's bedroom," I laughed.
"And then you'd come crying to me because your boyfriend cheated on you."
That struck a nerve. "First of all, not my boyfriend. Second of all, he didn't cheat on me. Third of all, why would I come crying to you? Why would I cry at all? It was Will. I can do so much better!" Rule number three: never break rule number two.
I'd already lost.
"Keep telling yourself that, sweetheart," he smirked, started the car.
We pulled out of the school parking lot, and hell yes I was breaking rule number two by scartching my nail polish off, messing with loose strands of my hair, tapping my foot repeatedly and asking him where we were going every five minutes.
I was doing a darn great job.
"Where are we going?" I asked, for around the hundredth time.
"You know, I'm starting to think that you're not curious about where we're going at all and you're just trying to find excuses to talk to me," Draven said, peering at me from the corner of his eye.
"Boy, aren't you a charmer?" I muttered drily.
We were driving past the general town area, past the buildings and the houses. I was starting to see more green than I had in a long, long time. Vast, endless fields surrounded us. The nervousness was replaced by a new fluttery feeling in my chest.
"What place is this?" I asked, my eyes filling with wonder.
"Just somewhere I come to practice before my shows," he replied, not bothering to open my door this time. Normal Draven was back.
"Thanks for bringing me here," I said, smiling.
"Woah! What's that you're doing with your mouth?" He asked, and I chuckled. "You're not supposed to smile, you're evil!" He cried.
"But I wasn't the one who killed Will!" I cried back.
"But you wanted him dead just as much as I did, Fair Maiden," he said.
"And why did you want him dead?" I asked, playing along.
"So that he wouldn't be able to break your heart any longer."
I knew we were only playing around and that he wasn't being serious, but the words touched me. Although Draven would never admit to it, there was a touch of sincerity in his words. He kinda sorta maybe meant them.
That was enough for me.
"I have something to admit...." I started seriously, and a shadow passed over his face.
"What is it?" He asked in a low voice.
"I killed Cassandra," I stage whispered, and he gasped.
"But why?! Oh my, how could you do such a thing?" He asked, clutching at his heart.
"I thought you'd be happy!" I exclaimed, feeling slightly befuddled. Were we drawing parallels to real life or was this completely just a game?
Did he still have feelings for Cassandra?
Did it matter if he did?
"Oh, but I am! Just not for her new lad," he said, lowering his head.
"She moved on? Already? Oh my!" I gasped, hating the happiness flooding through me. What was happening?
"Yes, she's been informing me in excruciating detail of how incredibly happy she is," he said, scrunching up his nose.
"Well, they're both dead," I sighed dramatically.
"I believe so," he said, moving closer towards me.
We were standing in the empty field, my hair was blowing in the wind and his gaze was fixed on me. The moment felt all too perfect.
"That means we have no more excuses to kiss," I said playfully, remembering the first time we'd met.
"Do we really need any?" He asked rhetorically, swiftly placing his lips on mine.
The moment was too perfect to be real, so it came to an end before I had a chance to pretend that it was.
The whole time, Will's brown eyes and Holly's voice in my mind were all I could think about.
"Take me back," I said, pointing at the car.
He looked like he'd been slapped.
"I'm so sorry," he said genuinely. It was my turn to look hurt.
"I didn't mean to-"
"No, it's okay," he said, brushing me off. "I shouldn't have done that."
"No, it's on me. I'm just not ready," I whispered. He clambered into the car, and I followed suit.
The rest of the ride didn't pass in uncomfortable silence, as one would've thought. We began to insult each other all over again, we made jokes about what'd just happened and put the show back on.
One mistake wasn't going to bring the curtains down on our friendship.
Draven dropped me off at the restaurant, where I was to meet Will. We were an hour late, but I was sure Will would understand.
I peered into the window of the restaurant and Holly's voice in my mind disappeared forever. The brown eyes were gone, and they were replaced by a dark, steely grey.
I let the curtains fall down on that old chapter and let the new show begin.
We were both actors playing two roles that were meant to fit together.
Finally, we weren't acting anymore.
• • •
A/N This chapter was much longer than my usual ones and I really really hope you liked it!
I worked super hard to get over my writer's block and I'm not sure if the efforts paid off, but this is definitely better than my first draft!
What changed after Brynn peered in through the window?
Do you like the Brynn-Draven dynamic?
Let me know, and thank you for reading Mirror, Mirror ❤