Chapter 1
Beep-beep, beep-beep, beep-beep.
Betrys reached over to grab her phone from the bedside table. The text she was sent was from her best friend, and cousin.
You coming to the party?
Betrys furrowed her brow, and texted back:
What party?
She had to wait less than a minute for a reply.
The boy’s dress up homecoming party.
Is limpy gonna be there?
Dyou mean Bennett?
That’s what I said.
You keep insulting him, he’s going to get you back.
I always win. He’s been hanging around his horses too long, and they’ve gotten more intelligent than him. Not that that’s hard.
You’re so mean.
Is he there tho?
Yeah probs
Whose his best friend this week?
Claude
Oh God, Limpy will plague him like a disease! He’s an infection that’s easy to catch but impossible to get rid of. He’ll drive you crazy once you’ve been infected. God help Claude. If he’s caught Limpys disease, he’ll lose all his money before he’s cured.
Waste it all on pills u mean.
I do.
Idk I like Claude. I think he’s gonna be ok.
You still like Claude? I thought you grew out of that.
Please come to the party. I wanna ask him out but I’m nervous!
So you think I’d subject myself to Bennett to help you? Why would I do that?
Because you love me.
Got me there.
Are you coming to the party then?
Do I have a choice?
No.
Then yes.
Good. Parties are more fun with you. Maybe well find you a man there.
If all the men there are like Bennett, I’m ok on my own.
Got a costume picked out?
No
If we dress the same you can pretend to be me and ask Claude out for me.
Come over and we’ll find something to match.
Claude and Bennett were already at Danny’s house before the party started. They were supposed to be helping him set up, but after carrying in the keg, Bennett had headed straight for the snacks. Claude leaned against the doorway, staring at his phone. He was stalking Evera’s instagram page, trying to avoid double tapping from months back. Most of the pictures were selfies.
“What you looking at so intensely?” Bennett asked, humorously.
“Bennett, have you see Evera recently?” Claude asked.
“Yeah. Kind of. I saw her, but I didn’t really pay attention to her. Why?” Bennett asked as he poured himself a drink.
“What’d you think of her?” Claude asked, trying not to sound too enthusiastic.
“Do you want the truth? Do you want me to criticize her like I do all women?” Bennett chuckled.
Claude rolled his eyes, “No, please be serious.”
Bennett took a deep breath and leaned his rear against the drinks table as he thought.
“She’s short,” he said thoughtfully. “Really short. She’s plain, but ok. If she looked different, she would be ugly.”
“You think I’m kidding. Please tell me what you seriously think of her,” Claude half begged.
Bennett shrugged. “I’m still young enough to see without glasses, and I don’t see what you’re talking about.”
Claude looked back down at the gallery of Evera’s pictures. More to himself than to his friend, he muttered, “I think she’s beautiful.”
Bennett wrinkled his nose and looked into his drink as he stirred it with a cocktail mixer. “Not really. Even Betrys is prettier than her, and she’s a dog.”
Claude huffed in response and gave up arguing. Bennett could give a lecture on insults for Betrys and why they were accurate. He often did if you let him. Thankfully Danny entered the room before he could.
“What are you two talking about?” He asked.
He asked it with a small chuckle, because there was a slightly uncomfortable tension between them. Bennett pointed to Claude with his plastic cup, rather than his hand.
“He’s got a crush. On Evera.”
Bennett said it like it was unthinkable. Claude scowled at him Danny shrugged.
“I know that. And Good for you! She’s very pretty, and she’s a nice person two. Unlike some I know!”
“I already told him Betrys was prettier in all but personality!” Bennett said into his cup before taking a sip.
“I meant you. You’re not nice,” Danny stated.
Bennett shrugged. “I never said I was.”
Danny laid a hand on Claude’s shoulder to reassure him.
“Evera would be lucky to have you Claude.”
Claude tried to shrug his hand away. Grumpily he muttered, “I’m not falling for it Danny.”
“I’m not kidding,” Danny stated.
Claude glanced at him in surprise. There was a burst of hope in his heart at the idea that they could be together. Then he looked down at her smiling forget-me-not eyes in the snapchat filter selfie she had posted to instagram. That hope vanished.
“Danny, I don’t think I can ask her out. I can’t even talk to her, she makes me so nervous,” he admitted.
Danny thought for a moment. Admittedly he didn’t think his plan through before putting it into action.
“She’s going to the costume party tonight right?” He said, more as a statement than a question.
“I think so,” Claude shrugged.
“Well I’ll dress up in some masked thing, pretend to be you, and ask her out for you. Yeah?” Danny offered.
Claude looked up at Danny hopefully. “You think that’d work?”
“Not if she’s smart,” Bennett muttered under his breath.
“Who knows, but it’s worth a try right?” Danny said in a tone that scolded Bennett.
Claude frowned uncertainly. “I don’t know.”
“Look, you want to date her, you’ve got to ask her out. If you can’t, I’ll try. This is the perfect opportunity. It won’t be till Halloween that we can try again!” Danny insisted.
Claude frowned in distress. “That’s ages away!”
“Yeah. So we do it tonight, yeah?” Danny said.
Claude sighed, defeated. “Fine.”
“This is a terrible idea,” Bennett said, shaking his head.
Danny tutted at him. “You never did believe in love.”
“Look, I love my mum, and I’m grateful to her for giving me life, but that doesn’t mean I’m gonna let any other woman play me for a fool! That’s all love is. Being made a fool of,” Bennett scoffed.
Danny chuckled and shook his head. “I swear, before I die I’m going to see you sick with love.”
“With anger, with fever, or hungover, sure bro, but never sick with love,” Bennett stated.
“I’d better find a new costume before the guests arrive,” Danny said.
He left the room and headed for his bedroom upstairs. Bennett grabbed his costume that wad hidden in a blue carrier bag.
“Mark my words, this won’t end well,” he warned.
Then he headed to the bathroom to get changed there.
Danny’s baby brother DJ went to meet up with his friend Brent. They ended up having a similar conversation. Only while they were sitting across from each other at a table in a small café.
It was a very small coffee house. A small business. Been there for half a century now. The entire place smell of freshly roasted coffee, and still baking bread. The original wooden walls were hidden behind coffee coloured sealant. They held up photos of art in coffee foam, certificates of awards they had won, and neatly printed menus with clear, but low prices. Dozens of silver legged wood top tables matched the chairs behind them. Against the wall, under a menu, there were two low black leather couches separated by a low coffee table. A green, leafy house plant in a blue vase sat in the centre of the table. This is where DJ and Brent chose to sit.
DJ took a long slurp on his frothy, whip cream covered coffee. Then he gave a satisfied sigh and folded his arms.
“I feel like mischief,” he declared.
A smirk crossed Brent’s face. “Me too. What trouble can we get in today?”
They learned in close, blatantly plotting.
“Tonight’s party could give a good opportunity. I heard Danny agree to dress up and pretend to be Claude to ask Evera on a date tonight. It would funny if he couldn’t,” DJ grinned.
Brent didn’t look so sure. “I’ve seen the way Claude and Evera look at each other. Its painfully obvious they’re in love. I don’t think they’ll fall for it.”
DJ had a nasty glint in his eye. “We can shake them about a bit. Really twist them up. It’ll be hilarious, and it’ll be even funnier to see my brother fail at something.”
“You aren’t listening to me. It won’t work. What do we do when we fail?” Brent asked.
DJ scowled. “We won’t fail. Danny has to fail. We can’t get them together.”
“Why don’t we just sow some seeds of doubt, and then break them up before they have their first date together? If we can.”
Brent shrugged before turning his attention to the muffin he had brought. DJ leaned back in his chair, looking off into the corner of the room. His mind was forming a plan without him trying. The mischievous smirk returned as the final details fell into place.
“Five quid says we can,” he declared.
Brent cocked an eyebrow, intrigued at the prospect of money. “You’ve got a plan, don’t you?”
Instead of giving away any details, DJ sneered.
“Find out what he’s going to dress as. We may need to go shopping.”
“Why don’t you just ask Danny?” Brent asked.
Once again DJ’s face fell. Spitefully, he said, “Because that will give him a clue of what were up to. We can’t risk that. We must knock him off his pedestal. I’m sick of being in his shadow.”
Brent didn’t want to admit to pitying his friend. No one wants to feel pitied. Especially someone who feels pitied for having to live in his brother’s shadow.
Brent sat up straight. Full of determination. “So what do I do to help?”
