Crown of Thorns • 3

Chapter 3

“So, Imogen… there’s someone I want you to meet!”

Alaska beamed at her. Imogen could clearly see the mischievous glint in her eyes. With a pair of squinted eyes, she crossed her arms and looked at Alaska.

“Who?”

She asked, eyeing the girl carefully. Alaska squealed excitedly, before she started to grab her best friend’s wrist, dragging her.

“Hey, chill!”

When they both arrived in front of an abandoned class of the school, Imogen sighed. She knew that this room wasn’t actually ‘abandoned’; it’s the videography club. To be quite frank, nobody’s actually interested in the videography club; just a bunch of kids, videotaping random stuffs.

Alaska knocked at the door thrice, before she opened the door with a huge smile on her face.

“Hey, hey!”

As Imogen expected, there was nobody in the room; maybe she was wrong, after all. The videography club isn’t a bunch of nerdy kids; it’s only one nerdy kid.

“Cade!”

Alaska cheered happily. Imogen’s green orbs squints suspiciously as she looks at the guy sitting behind a mac. He was wearing a pair of thick black glasses with locks of dirty blonde hair on top of his head. He glanced at both the girls before he sighed and stood up, towering over both of them.

Imogen directly frowned and stare up at his 6’2 frame; she hated being the shortest in the room.

“It’s Caiden, not Cade”

He said, boredom clearly lacing his tone.

“I know—but since we’re all friends here, Cade is your new nickname!”

“First, we are not friends. Second, why are you here? If you’re here to discuss about that silly project you talked about—“

“The project!”

Imogen cried out, flinging her hand out exasperatedly.

“Of-freaking-course!”

“Listen first, will you?”

Alaska muttered, glaring at her and the boy. Caiden rolled his eyes and nodded at the door.

“Exit’s that way”

“No! Listen!”

She could feel the frustration slowly eating her alive. She took a deep breath and ran her finger trough her shoulder-length straight hair before she sighed.

“Look. I know you both think that this project is silly. Imogen, you don’t believe in this thing and Cade—“

“—Caiden!”

“—Right…Caiden, the last time I visited, you looked like you’d rather die then help me with this project, but you guys…this isn’t as bollocks as you guys think it is”

“How so?”

Imogen mumbled, looking down at the floor with a sharp glare.

“Adrianna made fun of it already”

“Imogen, since when do you care about what Adrianna thinks?”

Alaska sighed. Imogen bit the corner of her lip nervously; a habit she could never stop doing.

“I don’t—I mean, I don’t know…it’s just—“

“Can you guys continue the drama somewhere else? It’s 3.30 already and I want to go home”

Caiden said with a yawn, shutting down his mac. He crossed his arms and stare at Alaska with a bored, unidentified expression on his face.

“I’m not going to help you two”

“We’ll pay!”

Alaska blurted out, making Imogen slap her forehead. Great. She didn’t even want to do this project, and now she has to pay for it?

“We can talk about this later, but we’ll pay!”

Caiden was silent for a moment. For the first time in his life, someone was actually asking for his help in videography…and he’s got the chance to get paid for it, too.

With a heavy sigh, he fished his phone out of his pocket and handed it to Alaska.

“Number. I’ll text you if I change my mind”

The happy grin crept back on her face as she happily squealed.
“Sweet! We’ll be looking forward for it”

As Alaska typed her number on his phone, Caiden couldn’t help but look at both of them and smirk mockingly. Imogen noticed it right away, making her frown deeper.

“What are you smirking at?”

He shrugged innocently, the smug smirk still plastered across his face.

“Oh nothing. It’s just so funny. She’s so happy and positive and you’re as bitter as coffee powder”

He said teasingly. The smug look on his face just fueled Imogen’s annoyance even more.

“Says the cold, nerdy loner”

She shot back, which made him roll his eyes.

“Bitter and childish. Such a dreadful combination”

“Why you, annoying piece of—“

“Here you go!”

Alaska said happily, oblivious to the bickering. She grabbed Imogen’s wrist and drag her out of the door, afraid that he might change his mind if they stay any longer.

“Keep in touch, won’t you? We’ll be going now! Bye, Caiden!”

He responded merely with a nod, making Imogen roll her eyes at him. Alaska giggled at his expression.
“Maybe I’ll text you later. We’ll see”

As the two girls started to walk away, Alaska sighed dreamily.

“He’s great, isn’t he?”

Imogen snorted mockingly, shaking her head. How could anyone see that jerk as a ‘great person’?

“Absolutely not. He’s a pain in the neck”

“Says the pain in the neck herself”

“Oh shut up”

Crown of Thorns • 2

Chapter 2

“Ooh la la, look who we’ve got here!”

The voice made Imogen and Alaska cringe. They can never describe their hate towards the girl; Adrianna Jensen…the queen bee of Rainsville High and unfortunately, their number one enemy.

“Buzz off, Adrianna”

Imogen said, rolling her eyes as she stabs a piece of chicken from her tray. It was an okay-ish day at school, at least…until Adrianna came and ruin it for them. Imogen could feel her anger rising as she looks at the smug smirk on the queen bee’s lips.

“Imogen, why are you always so rude to me?”

She cried out, putting a hand over her heart. Adrianna giggled at her own performance, before she crosses her arms in front of her chest. The smug smirk was back on her face.  

“I heard you two are doing a documentary about the crown of thorns?”

Imogen’s eyes widened at the mention of their English project. Imogen shot Alaska a look, which she replied with a sheepish look on her face. Alaska cleared her throat, before she faced the queen bee.

“Actually, Adrianna…yes we are doing a documentary on the ‘crown of thorns’”

“Such childish beings”

The diva flipped her fake blonde hair, before she chuckled mockingly. She spun around, before she walked away.

“Good luck getting an A on trash material!”

She called over her shoulder, which made Imogen balls her fist in annoyance. Alaska stared at her best friend, and she could feel anger growing inside of her. Adrianna…the girl everyone hates, yet loves at the same time. Well, in her and Imogen’s case, the love isn’t really there.

“We’ll show her”

Alaska said confidently, determination lacing her tone.
“We’ll get an A on this project. Trust me; the crown of thorns is going to make a great documentary”

“Whatever you say, Al”

Imogen sighed, before she stood up.
“Let’s just go. I lost my appetite”

Before another word escape either of their lips, Imogen stormed off…leaving Alaska with a new mission in her head; proving Adrianna wrong.

Crown of Thorns • 1

Chapter 1

“I don’t believe in things like that”

The brunette huffed, rolling her eyes. She always thought that ghosts and ghouls were childish; nothing but a child’s nightmare. Unlike the strawberry blonde sitting across from her, she didn’t care about things like that …especially a made up curse.

“But we have to go! What if the curse is real, huh? This could be a great opportunity for us!”

Hearing her friend saying that made her laugh; curses? Those doesn’t exist…they’re just as fake as Adrianna Jensen’s blonde hair.

“Listen, Alaska…things like that doesn’t exist, alright? Besides…we need something real for this project. Facts. The Crown of Thorns is nothing but a legend”

“Ah, that’s what you think, Mo!”                 

She exclaimed loudly, earning a groan from her brunette friend.

“Imogen Grey, don’t you dare groan at me! This curse is real and we are the ones who’re going to prove that!”

“Al, why can’t we do something easier? It’s only our English project, for heaven’s sake! We can just do a documentary about your bunny or something…. at least that’s more realistic!”

“No, Imogen. We have to do the ‘Crown of Thorns’ documentary! It’s basically the jewel of Hopeshire!”

Alaska said, which made Imogen sigh. She knew that tone; whenever her best friend uses that intonation, she knows that she could never change her mind.

“The crown of thorns…”

Imogen mumbles, spacing off as she stares out the window of her room. Hopeshire is a teeny tiny town near the ocean, and honestly? There’s nothing you can find…except for the legend.

Crown of Thorns; the gem of Hopeshire.

“Once upon a time….”

Alaska trailed off with an excited smile. Ever since she was a little girl, she’s always been fascinated with the legend, and she could never miss out on a chance to re-tell the story. Imogen buried her face on a pillow, bracing herself for another ‘story time’ with her best friend.

“In the royal kingdom of Tempus Vernum, lived a witch who was the controller of the storms…she was not an evil witch; not at all. Everybody knew her, because she was madly in love with the prince; the betrothed prince. The prince and the witch was in love, but then an arranged marriage happened…and the prince was forced to marry the noble lady from the north”

“Alaska, I know this story. Please stop”

Ignoring her best friend’s pleas, she kept on going with the story.

“After she found out about it, the witch’s emotions got the best of her, and she accidentally blasted a shot of lightning to the sky. The new queen saw that as a declaration of war. Her new husband kept on telling her that the witch was good. The prince, who was now the king, defended the witch, and it only made her jealous. She got furious, and with her own army… she started to march towards the witch’s island without the king knowing”

“Alaska, please stop. I’ve heard this story thousands of time before”

“The queen killed the witch while she was crying on her throne made up of thousands of rose thorns. The witch’s blood colors the throne red, which only made the queen happy. She took a seat on the throne and wore the witch’s crown of thorns, thinking that she’d gain the witch’s powers and beauty—“

“—But the crown isn’t her’s; and the universe knew that. Instead of earning the witch’s powers and beauty, the crown consumed her; it rotten her heart and soul and drove her to craziness”

Imogen continued sarcastically, making her best friend grin out of happiness.

“The queen threw herself to the ocean, and ever since then…legends says the evil queen will appear whenever she feels like someone is sitting on her throne”

“That story is pure bollocks!”

Imogen said with a sigh, sitting up on the bed. The legend seemed so silly. She believed that the island near Hopshire is just an island; nothing more, nothing less.

“Why does the witch have a throne?”

“Because she’s the controller of the storms in Hopeshire, duh!”

“Why is her throne made of rose thorns?”

“Because she loved roses”

“Why is the queen so stupid? Why’d she even thought that wearing the witch’s crown would make her beautiful and powerful?”

“Nuh uh…not stupid, mi amigo…just blinded by love! The prince-slash-king was so in love with the witch, and secretly…the queen was in love with him too. She didn’t want to marry him just because of the whole arranged marriage thing; she was actually in love with him! She wanted the king to be in love with her, the way he was in love with the witch!”

“Tsk, you sound silly”

Alaska smacked Imogen’s face with a pillow, her eyebrows knitted into a frown.
“You’re just a sourpuss”

“At least I’m a realistic sourpuss!”