Welcome to Westwood

Chapter One Kingdom of Truston It was the battle no one expected. In a story like this, the heroes usually emerge. Goodness weighs more than evil, no matter how powerful it gets because that’s what was taught in our younger years. But that night, the result was something no one thought would happen. The sorceress fought the Prince to protect his princess’ castle on the night of their wedding. Martin Fitzpatrick, the only son and heir of the Kingdom, covered in blood in his wedding suit as he tried to guard the door where his new wife was hiding. Until his last breath, he tried to fight with all his might and his magic sword but no amount of strength is guaranteed victory to a man on his knees. “This kingdom is mine.” The sorceress in black sheet spoke, her face covered in darkness but Martin could still see her figure. She may be powerful but she must still be human. “The kingdom is yours. Just…spare my family.” He begged with his dying breath but the sorceress just moved closer. “The kingdom is just the beginning. I will take every bit of you, even after you die. And you…you will live beyond this world, with the suffering and guilt that you have failed your kingdom…and your family.” The sorceress warned before ramming her flaming sword through Martin’s heart, leaving the kingdom without a Prince and full of doom. Westwood, Massachusetts “Seriously? That’s it?” Rebecca spoke to herself out loud, still in shock of how the story ended. It’s been 23 chapters and the online novel she’s been reading has finally finished the first book. It wasn’t exactly how she was expecting, considering how the main character got his happy ending, marrying the princess and earning his place in the kingdom. “Becks! You’re gonna be late for school. What’s the hold up?” Her mother, Maureen, was heard knocking on her door. It’s 7:30 in the morning and she needs to be in school before 8. “Yeah, I’m…I’m on my way out.” She said as her mood for the day was completely affected by what she had just read. She knew she should’ve just waited until after school. Getting her bag, she closed her laptop and opened the door, seeing her mother about to knock again. “Tom called. He said you weren’t answering your phone.” Beck pouted at her mom before rolling her eyes as she closed the door. “Mom, I told you. Tom and I broke up last week and I’m not really in the mood to be in touch with him.” Beck insisted as she kept walking down the stairs. Maureen followed, trying to catch up with her daughter. “I know but you said…it was a mutual decision. He’s busy with basketball and you’re busy with…fanfiction.” Beck groaned again, already feeling grumpy about her morning and yet, her mom isn’t exactly helping the situation. “It’s not fanfiction, mom. I’m….I’m trying to be a writer, okay?” “I hear you, sweetheart. I do. But…would that really help with your college application?” The mother asked and Beck bit her lip, feeling like she’ll never really be understood with what she hopes for in life. “I’m not concerned about college applications, mom. I’m…leaning more into getting a writing job. It’s an easier step than going through all the college drama.” Maureen cupped her face, still trying to find hope in her daughter's eyes to go through college the way her father wanted. “Just give it a try, sweetheart. We’re not stopping you from getting a writing stint in New York but…try to have some options. Your dad would really appreciate it if you get into Harvard.” Beck pressed her lips together, unsure about how to respond to that. Sure, she wanted to make her parents proud but she also wanted to make herself happy. She wants to be somewhere one day where she can say she’s satisfied and happy, not just because it would give her parents a reason to have her diplomas plastered around the house. But she couldn’t break her mother’s heart. “Okay, mom. I’ll try but if I get a call about a writing job, that’s where I’ll go. I have a feeling I’ll be…more successful in a field I’m passionate about.” It was a good enough answer for Maureen, kissing her daughter’s head before giving her a tight hug. “Deal. Come on. You’re gonna be late for school.” She said, giving her daughter the keys to the car and letting her go. Her mood was affected all day, and it didn’t help that Tom was waiting for her by the parking lot. There he was in his varsity jacket, standing beside his car, parked beside Beck’s usual parking spot. Turning the engine off, she got out and her face was visibly upset. “You’re late. That’s unlike you.” Tom said, his eyes looked like they were pleading for attention. Beck let out a sigh and shook her head. “You’re here, which means you’re late too. And that shouldn’t be you if you’re trying to stay on the team.” Beck reminded him, continuing to walk as if she didn’t have a puppy following her. Tom tried to catch her up, still needing his ex’s attention. “Beck, you haven’t been answering my calls. I tried calling your mom and she said—.” “Look, whatever my mom told you, just ignore her.” “I don’t want to. She thinks…well, she thinks you and I should get back together.” His words stopped Beck in her tracks as she gave Tom a very confused but upset look. “Seriously, Tom? You’re the one who broke up with me last week about…wanting to focus on your basketball career and what not.” “And you agreed with it.” Tom reminded her, which just pissed Beck off even more. “I agreed with it because I understood you. Doesn’t mean I liked it. And now, you want to get back together? Are you seriously playing with my feelings right now?” Tom was silenced, biting his lip as he just ran out of things to say. Or excuses, rather. Beck stared at him but the guy couldn’t even look him in the eyes. She waited a few more seconds before scoffing, seeing as he doesn’t even have the guts to make up his own mind. “I’ve had a rough morning, okay? I don’t…want to deal with any more s**t right now. I’m just trying to get through today.” She admitted, sighing as they both heard the bell. “Get to class, Tom.” She added as a reminder before walking inside the school to get to homeroom. It wasn’t until lunch time that she saw her best friends, Gus and Penny, as they usually eat at the same table. Plopping her tray down, Beck sat with the biggest sigh she could. Both Gus and Penny gave her a look, seeing their friend a bit distraught. "Grumpy? What happened?" Penny asked, giggling lightly. "Was it Tom? I gave him a warning already, you know? I told him to just back off first." Gus said, hoping that made his friend feel a little better. "It wasn't a great morning to start off, to be honest. My mom about Harvard, Tom and...you know, the yoosh." Shaking her head, Beck took a bite of her apple as she brought up one problem she feels she could figure out more easily. "But this morning, the author of Magic Beyond Worlds updated the final chapter of the story. And...something felt off. They killed the main character, unnecessarily. It just seemed...wrong." she shared, needing to get this opinion out of her chest. "As a reader and...well, avid fan of the story, I just felt like the author... disappointed the fans." "You mean...you and six other fans?" Penny asked teasingly as they all chuckled. "Hey, hey. Just because it's not a story you enjoyed doesn't mean it's bad." Beck said, playfully glaring at her best friend. "Well then, what are you saying, Becks? Is it good or is it bad?" Gus asked. Beck was quiet, trying to gather her thoughts as she stared at nowhere. How does she really feel about this and why does she feel so much more affected by it than the usual books she reads? "I guess I just wanna know...why give the readers and…the characters so much hope for 22 chapters and just...kill him in the end?" "Why don't you just email the writer and ask?" Gus suggested. "She can't, dumdum. It's under an anonymous writer. If an account is labelled anonymous, the only way for you to get in touch with the writer is through the comments section.'' Penny revealed before pulling out her phone. "Let's check out the comments. Maybe...some fans have the same sentiment as you." She added, going to the website of To Read and Write, choosing the title Magic Beyond Worlds. Scrolling down to the latest comments, they saw that all the comments were just sad face emojis and broken hearts. “Okay, so they’re sad…but they’re not complaining.” Penny said and it made Gus scoff, chuckling as he pulled back and went back to his seat to eat. “I’m…I’m not complaining, okay? I’m just…deeply invested.” Beck sighed, going back to her seat as she continued to eat her lunch. “Whatever. I’m just gonna…write a long ass comment on the story about the disappointment of the story’s biggest fan.” She said, deciding to just deal with it later tonight. “And what about him?” Gus asked, signaling for the girls to look at the table behind them where the basketball team is. There, Tom was sitting comfortably on the table as he looked at Beck, waving a little at his ex when she looked at him. “He keeps bugging me in gym class about getting you to talk.” “Just ignore him, Gus. I’m not…ready for that. I just need to get through today, relax on the weekends and think about the rest on Monday.” Beck responded, taking a sip of her bottled water. “Are you going to the game tomorrow? It’s a big game for the team.” Penny reminded her. Beck shrugged and sighed. “I’m not sure. I’ll think about it. As much as I wanna move on from him, I still do want to support him.” She agreed and the two nodded. “Well, just let us know, then. I’ll drive.” Gus offered and Beck thanked him before continuing their lunch to talk about something happier. Thankfully, Beck didn’t think about the story for the rest of the day. She was able to focus on school since she needed to think about applying to Harvard, as her parents wished. Sometimes, she just wished her parents would understand that there is a job out there, in the world full of stories and imagination, destined for her as she believes her passion is worth aiming for. Still, maybe it wouldn’t be so bad going to college for something too. On her drive home, Beck was glad that Tom hadn’t bothered her anymore. He still has basketball practice at the end of the day, especially with the game coming up tomorrow. Parking her car, she saw a man standing in front of their house. She couldn’t recognise him, with the white medieval ruffles he was wearing. Getting out of the car, Beck closed the door of her car and walked closer to the man. “Hi there. May I help you?” Beck asked. Turning around, the man smiled and nodded. “Yes, please. This is…144 Carlson Street, right?” “Uhm…yes. That’s correct.” The guy smiled, glad that he found what he was looking for. “And this town…this is the town of Westwood, right?” Beck got even more confused, wondering why this man was asking very basic and obvious questions. “Okay. Who are you and what are you doing in front of my house?” Beck confronted the stranger, quickly pulling out the pepper spray from her backpack to be ready, just in case the guy tries anything. The man just chuckled at her, seeing the little spray on her hand. “Okay, I was expecting a sword, mi lady but I never expected a perfume.” “A perfume? You don’t know what this is? A pepper spray is proven to blind you if sprayed directly in your eyes for at least ten seconds. And I guarantee you I wouldn’t mind spraying a hundred seconds on you.” Beck warned, roughing herself up to threaten the stranger. He immediately stepped back, knowing he should just explain himself instead of challenging the woman. “My apologies. I'm just here for Ms. Rebecca Harris. Do you know who she is?” He asked. Beck got even more confused, now more worried than ever that the man not only knows of her address but also her full name. “Who are you?” Beck asked straight up, raising the spray up higher to show that she’s not afraid to use it. The guy quickly covered his face, believing completely that the said spray could blind him in a matter of seconds. “I am Martin Fitzpatrick, Prince of Truston! I am looking for Rebbeca Harris because I need her help!” He said out loud, surrendering as he closed his eyes and covering himself for protection. Hearing the name, Beck felt her eyes go wide like she just saw a ghost. But really, it did feel like she’s seeing a ghost or to better explain it, a figment of her imagination. She was just reading and thinking about this guy all day and now she is looking at him. The man in her imagination is right in front of her. “Is this some kind prank? You think this is funny?” Beck asked, feeling more angry than scared now. “Who sent you here?” “I…I don’t know how I got here but the last thing I remember is I died, okay? The sorceress killed me and the next thing I knew, I woke up beside the town sign. That’s how I found out that I’m in Westwood.” He tried to explain but Beck feels like the guy was still playing tricks on her. Was he just another fan trying to mock and tease her? "Please. You have to help me. The Kingdom of Truston is in danger. I need to go back." He begged and Beck wasn't sure what to say. Staring at him, she could tell he carried so much confusion and fear in his eyes and this is not the character she fell in love with in the story. But what do you expect about someone being thrown into another world and dimension after dying just mere seconds ago, according to him? "Oh, god. Maybe I am going crazy about this story." She murmured to herself before stepping closer. "How can I be sure you're telling the truth and...you're not just some random dude, out to harm me? If you are who you say you are, there's a good 90% chance I won't believe you. After all, you're just some fictional character from an internet story." She said, almost as if she was trying to convince herself that none of this is real. Martin stood there, confused about what she was saying. "I'm sorry. Fictional character? What is...what's an internet?" He asked, needing some clarification. The guy has no clue that he's a character from a story so Beck decided to help him, just so he could get his story straight. "The story Magic Beyond Worlds. Martin Fitzpatrick is the main character from the story. That's how you got the name, right? You a fan?" She asked and Beck instantly saw the realization flash before the man's eyes. He was starting to understand this in a way Beck didn't believe in the first place. "You're...you're saying...I'm a fictional character? From a story?" He asked and Beck nodded at him. "My, my, my. Ms. Rebecca Harris. You're in for some crazy news because...well, I know all about you because...you're a fictional character from my favorite book." He revealed and he saw the same way her eyes went wide as he did about hearing the similar news.