The Addiction
What is faith but a conglomeration of dreams and hopes riding upon the wings of a fluttering fairy? Forever present yet never captured. A constantly annoying presence. The fate of Tantalus was personified by life.
They came from the same background. Power, wealth and prestige at their fingertips. They were both handsome and charismatic. Each a golden Adonis that drew people to him like bees to honey. They were both cunning and intelligent. Mastering the subtle art of manipulation at an early age. Yet they were raised differently.
One was constantly monitored while the other completely ignored. Two similar families that chose to raise their heirs with different yet equally dysfunctional methods. Yet the product was the same. A boy grown into a man masking his emotional handicap with a debonair charm.
So it was a surprise when Logan Huntzberger and Tristan DuGray met they did not become instant friends. They became bitter enemies instead. They were a distorted reflection of each other. The same yet very different. Each man did not want to be reminded of who he was. They loathed their set identities. They wanted to wallow in the sweet state of denial for the rest of their lives.
They had the same fate. Take over the massive empires left by their fathers. Live up to the family legacy. Continue their way of life through the next generation. It was all very simple and predetermined. No action was left to chance. Both knew it. Both accepted it. It was inevitable. They were bored with life.
Until she came along.
Lorelei Leigh Gilmore was something quite different. She was the unicorn in the mass of well-bred mares. She symbolized a way to end the cycle. She presented a way to get rid of the monotony of life. And both seized the lifeline with desperation.
Because she represented love.
It was an emotion completely alien to both. Lust, greed and triumph, they can understand. But love? Never. Yet it was like a drug that had deeply sunk its claws into their hearts. It was an addiction.
And thus a war was waged between the two golden kings for the possession of love. For the heart of Rory Gilmore. The world was their battlefield and the peers were their pawns. Two kings stood face to face on a massive chessboard battling for the same queen. Fate had struck once again.
Eventually, they came to a draw. She kept them at equidistance. She was at a crossroad. They were three figures standing at the corners of a triangle, waiting for the structure to crumble. But the timing was not right.
And so the dangerous war for love continued, each fighting desperately for victory. Each man hoping that the drug would consume and change him into something he did not hate. Each wanting to escape their prearranged role in life.
But unbeknown to any of them, in a war for love, there are no victors. Only heartbroken victims. Fortune was a strumpet always ready to laugh at the expense of others. C'est la vie.
This is a one-shot written to summarize my longer story, "Distorted Image." I wanted to juxtapose the characters of Logan and Tristan because they are so similar, yet it is odd that Rory fell for one but not the other. Perhaps Tristan's timing wasn't right? Perhaps at that stage in her life, Rory wasn't ready to accept a charming playboy to sweep her off her feet? Who knows what would have happened if Logan and Tristan met. If both were present when Rory was ready to accept them. It proves for an interesting scenario that I wanted to explore in my writing. The story is filled with parallels to show possible outcomes to different decisions. The concept of choice is a major theme within "Distorted Image." It is a purely alternate universe story.