Hello lovely readers! Yeah, I know, I know. I shouldn't be starting a new story when I haven't even finished Flames of Blue and Green, but this story has been buzzing around in my head for the past week or so and I need to get it started. This doesn't mean that I'm giving up on Flames of Blue and Green, I just figured that since it's almost finished that it wouldn't hurt to start this one a little earlier than scheduled.
So, anyway, this is the long-awaited sequel to Three Kings, One Girl, One Decision. I know that a lot of you were upset about the ending, but fear not, for everything is not as it seems. Cici and company will make an appearance in this story at some point, and that is when you will learn what really happened on that fateful day in Mephisto's mansion. So stay tuned, friends!
CHAPTER 1: NEW BEGINNINGS
I watch out the airplane's window and try with all my might to see through the clouds below us, but at the moment I am only able to see my own reflection. I stare into my own violet eyes and fix my blonde braid, anxious to arrive at our destination. I continue to stare out the window until, at long last, we bank through the clouds and I can see the city that we'll soon be landing in. I bounce in my seat and turn to my two sisters, my excitement brimming.
"Ooh, ooh! Serena! Izumi! Look, look!" I exclaim, desperately trying to wake up my two sisters. "We're here, we're here!"
Serena stretches and lets out a yawn. Her blonde and brown hair is pulled into a ponytail, strands of hair stick out of it here and there. Her blue eyes are tired and glisten as she opens them. I pull her toward the window to force her to look. She lazily looks down at the sight of the city before a wide and excited grin stretches across her face. "Finally! I thought we'd never get here!" she says rather loudly.
"Can you two quiet down? I'm trying to sleep," Izumi complains quietly, glaring at us with her golden eyes. Her long, black hair is sticking up every which way, though that's kind of the usual for her. I smile at her and pull her towards the window. Her eyes widen and she pulls back quickly, covering her mouth with her hands. "Yomi! Why would you do that? You know how I feel about heights!"
"Sorry, sis," I laugh, embarrassed. "Guess my excitement got the best of me."
"As it often does," Serena comments, a small smile playing at her lips.
An excited giggle bubbles from my mouth and I put my arms around my two sisters. "I can't help it!" I laugh. "It's just that we're finally here!" I look back out the window at the city not too far below us, grinning so widely that I feel like my face might split.
"New York."
Getting through the airport is an adventure all in itself. The airport is huge and it takes us at least ten minutes to even find the baggage area. Then it takes us about twenty more minutes to find the exit that our cab is waiting at. The cab driver is grumpy when we get there, aggravated by our lateness. We pack our suitcases into the trunk and enter the car, me and Izumi sit in the back while Serena sits up front with the driver.
"Sorry for being late," Serena apologizes to the driver with a sheepish smile. "That airport is just so huge that we got kinda lost."
"Yeah, whatever," the cab man mutters. "Should charge you extra for makin' me wait."
My eyebrows squish together in a look of distaste. "Hey, jerk. We said sorry, alright?"
The man looks over his shoulder at me with a frown. "Shut it, pipsqueak. If you got a problem with the way I run my cab then you can just get yourself another one."
"I don't think that will be necessary," Izumi speaks up and she looks at me as if to say 'shut up unless you wanna walk!' I cross my arms and jut out my lower lip in a pout.
The driver smirks at me and then turns back to the wheel. "If you're all done complaining, then how about you tell me where I'm supposed to dump your asses?"
"Stop being such an asshole," I snap at him, unable to hold in my irritation. This man is getting on my last nerve...The driver glares at me over his shoulder and I suddenly regret what I just said.
About five minutes later, my sisters and I stand on the curb in front of the airport as the cab drives away. The man gives us a beep as he holds his fiddle finger out of his window. I can hear him cackling as he speeds off and I grind my teeth in anger. "Douchebag!" I yell at him over the sounds of the busy street, sticking my own middle finger up at him.
"Thanks, Yomi," Izumi mumbles coldly, glaring. "Now how are we supposed to get to the apartment building?"
I put my hands on my hips and match her glare evenly. "Hey, it's not my fault that that guy was a total sleazeball," I say.
"Shut it, you two," Serena says loudly, interrupting our fight. "Let's focus on the real issue here, shall we? First off, we need to ask directions to the building."
All three of us look around the street and look for someone to ask directions from. We try to stop someone walking down the street, but they ignore us and keep walking, mumbling a 'get outta the way' under their breath. I search the crowd for anyone that may be willing to help us and my eyes land upon a younger man sitting on a bench nearby, nose in a book. He looks maybe a little older than us and has mint green eyes that scan the pages of the book. He has light blonde hair that covers his right eye and makes a sort of swoopy thing at the top of his head.
"Hey," I say, grabbing the attention of my two sisters. I point at the man on the bench. "What about him? He seems like he would be okay."
We agree on asking him and all three of us approach him. He doesn't seem to notice us as we reach him, too engrossed in his book I suppose. We stand there for a little while longer and, when he continues to ignore us, I reach out and tap his shoulder. "Um, excuse me? Sir?" I ask cautiously. This seems to break him out of his trance as he looks up and gives us a kind smile.
"Oh, hello. I'm afraid I didn't see you there," he says politely. "My sincerest apologies."
I shake my head at him and wave my hands out in front of me. "Oh, no. There's really no need for you to apologize, sir," I say. "We should be the ones to apologize for interrupting your reading."
"It is no problem at all. To be interrupted by three beautiful girls such as yourselves, why, I should be thanking you," he says smoothly, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. "Now, how may I help you?"
Serena steps up, her face tinted with a slight blush. "We just need directions to this address," she states matter-of-factly, hold a scrap of paper out to the man. "We were going to take a cab, but that didn't work out too well..."
"Oh, is this the address for Ringwald Apartments?" he asks with a glance at the three of us. Serena nods and the man gives us a sad smile. "Oh, my. Well, I'm sorry to tell you this, but those apartments have been shut down. The building is scheduled for demolition tomorrow morning."
All three of our jaws drop at the man's words. My mouth is agape as I struggle to find the words to speak, leaving me to look like a fish trying to breath air. Finally, I am able to form words again. "You...You can't be serious," I squeak. "There's no way."
"I'm afraid that I am being serious," he says quietly, pity tinging his words.
Serena's eyes have glazed over as she stares into the distance. Her face is blank of expression and I almost call out to her, but she speaks before I can. "Thank you, sir," she says tersely. "We'll just be on our way now." She turns to leave and me and Izumi stare after her before Izumi speaks.
"Serena? What are we supposed to do now?" she shouts, though her shouts are still pretty quiet. "Serena! Where are you going?"
I turn back to the man and mumble 'sorry' before following my sisters to who knows where. I am stopped, however, when the man on the bench speaks again.
"Wait."
I turn to look at him and see that he is standing and taking a step in my direction. I look over my shoulder for my sisters and see that they have also stopped. "Yes?" I ask the man curiously.
"I have somewhere you can stay," he answers me with a sheepish smile.
Serena walks over to stand in front of him. "You do?" she asks quietly, her voice trembling.
"I own an apartment not too far from here," he states calmly. "I would be more than happy to let you stay there until you can find permanent living arrangements."
"We couldn't-"
"Please, I insist." His eyes are shining with kindness and warmth in his minty eyes. Looking into his eyes seems to put me into some sort of trance, because suddenly I feel like I can trust this stranger. A warmth spreads throughout my body and I give him a smile and a nod.
"Let's do it," I say. I look at my sisters and it seems like they've been caught in the same trance I have, even Izumi is smiling sleepily.
The man smiles at the three of us. "Well, considering we are to be living with one another, we should make proper introductions," he says, eyeing us expectantly.
"I'm Serena. These are my sisters Yomi and Izumi," Serena says, gesturing to each of us. "What's your name?"
The man's eyes go wide for just a second and I see panic flash through them. But just as the expression had appeared it disappeared just as quickly, replaced by his charming smile once more. "My name is Luke. Luke Cifer, at your service," he reveals with a small bow. "Now, shall we be on our way?"
We three nod and smile at him as he turns to lead the way. Without any second thoughts, we follow him through the crowd.
How were we supposed to know that that decision would lead to the turning point of our lives?
Well, how did you like it? Review and let me know! I hope you enjoyed the first chapter of this new story and hope that you will stay tuned for the rest of it. Love you all! Bye!
