Chapitre 20: Alya

Ben stopped what he was doing when he heard the yell. It was penetrating, but it didn't sound like she was in trouble. More like she was angry at the trouble. Ben began to walk towards her, but then stopped. His mother was still looking at him. She wore a new smile now. One that only could have said that he wasn't in control. Everyone watching knew it. Anyone who wasn't still felt the cold touch of her silent voice. One more step, one small mistake, the consequences would be immeasurable. Lucus knew it. Ben knew it. Everyone was scared. She was a monster in human form. It wouldn't be surprising if she decided to eat Ben as punishment. Ben glanced in Lucus's direction, and noticed him. The fear in his eyes grew tenfold. Any fear of his mother was paled in comparison to when he noticed Lucus. His eyes were pleading, still. It's amazing how you could easily tell exactly what a person was thinking, by a pleading look, or one that conveyed a message. His mother's glare and the look in Ben's eyes conveyed such stories. And right now, Ben was pleading for Lucus to leave. To forget what he heard, however much it may be. To go to Allicia. To help when he was too cowardly to do so himself. Guilt, fear, inferiority, anger. However, most of all, there was despair. These were the emotions Lucus could feel wafting around the room. He might not have been able to see the look in Ben's eyes, but he knew what to do.

Lucus turned around immediately and ran over to the sound of Allicia. Her drunken shouts towered above that of any gossip and chatter. He pushed through ladies in designer dresses that showed way too much skin. Ladies covering their mouths viciously yet delicately insulting Allicia, or that girl, as they called her. Lucus pushed through the well dressed crowd of plastic and designer and makeup, when he bumped into a familiar person. She had grown older, but he knew the smell of this person, even covered by makeup and perfume. She was beautiful with hazel eyes and red hair. She wore the fanciest dress and most expensive jewelry. She stood in the most commanding way, as if gathering every ounce of respect in the room. She was nobody you would have known all that well, yet you would want to get on your knees and beg for forgiveness when you did nothing wrong. Purely for standing in her presence for too long. She was someone who you never would have expected, to be Lucus's sister. His own, twin, sister.

When his sister turned around, she didn't notice him at first. Well, she looked straight at him and quickly turned away as if she never saw him. Only when Lucus reached up and tapped her on the shoulder did she acknowledge his presence. She wore a cold demeanor, and in heels, she looked down on him.

"Layla, what are you doing-" She cut him off. Lucus's voice was filled with emotions, so many contradicting feelings, he almost seemed monotone. If not for the knot in his mouth, anyone would have begun to think he hated her in some way.

"Alya." She was deadpan, and held no emotion whatsoever in her voice.

"What? But you used to hate that name." Lucus was surprised. In every memory of her, people had asked to call her Alya. She immediately shut them down. She would wear a confident smile and say 'Layla. I'm not Alya. That's someone somewhere else in the world who won't do nearly as good as me.' The person would always walk away in a somewhat defeated manor, and never call her Alya again. Lucus used to look up to her for that. He was never nearly as strong. Seven minutes older, but she still felt miles ahead. But now, she didn't seem to be moving. It felt as though she had tried to push forward, yet she wasn't quite so far anymore.

"Well people change." Alya snapped angrily. She immediately covered her mouth with a delicate hand and stepped back. She looked around. She seemed… scared. "My parents changed it. It's my legal name now. I…" she paused and looked down. Her words wavered slightly, but Alya still talked like she was sitting upon a throne taller than Lucus himself. "I like it now. It's more fitting of me." She cleared her throat and straightened her posture. Once again, she looked around. She held only a glass of water in her right hand. It seemed weak in it, even though the glass was light and the water was almost drained. It looked unnatural. She placed a smirk on her pale face and cocked her head to the side. "What are you doing here? I heard something about a little speech." Lucus looked embarrassed. He didn't trust her words, no matter how much he wanted to. This wasn't the Layla he remembered. It was definitely his sister, but how could she have changed so much? Cold. Scared. Nothing like she was back at the orphanage. Standing up to bullies and tending to his scraped knees when he fell. Where had his sister gone? Still, he entertained her question, not wanting to come off as rude.

"It's because I saved a boy from a fire. They wanted me to talk about it." Of course they wanted him to talk about it. Why else would he be making a speech? Lucus pinched himself for his minced words. Alya picked up on it.

"Well of course you should talk about it. It is a speech after all." She smiled like a princess and placed her finger to her face, being careful not to smudge her makeup. She spoke in a pitched up voice like she was talking to a toddler. "So you saved someone from a fire, huh. Maybe you should be a firefighter. I could get them to let you intern there. We do give them a lot of money." Alya paused, letting her wealth sink in. She continued. "Although they might still not let you in. You are blind. They can't just let you wander around looking for people. You really should go looking into jobs. It's not like you have one ready for you like me." Once again, a flash of wealth disguised as a helpful comment. "I heard it was at school. Oh no!" She feigned a gasp and placed her hand delicarly on her chest. It did sound convincing. If only for the smile she failed to hide.

"I go to a real school now." Lucus looked down and regained his resolve. He looked back up in a show. "Best one in the country. Full scholarship." He smiled fakely. If only Alya had known anything about him anymore. Maybe she could have won. But she never could have anticipated who Lucus was anymore. She was distant, and it might have been the worst decision she ever could have made.