MY ABOVE 'the' NORMAL PRINCE

Chapter Three: My Imaginary Prince

Tori's POV

We entered the classroom—not late for once!

Rose and I practically leapt with joy, grinning like we'd just won the lottery.

"Can you believe it?" I whispered, barely able to contain myself. "We made it on time! Miracles do happen."

Rose threw his hands up dramatically. "I'm about to write a thank-you letter to the universe."

We shared a victorious high-five before sliding into our seats, already feeling like queens of punctuality.

We settled into our chairs, still buzzing from our victory of being on time.

Of course, Rose couldn't resist poking my side—again.

"Rose, what now?" I giggled, trying to wiggle away.

"It's him," he whispered, eyes sparkling like a kid who just found out Santa is real.

I raised an eyebrow. "Who?"

"My Ice Prince. Caius Montclair," he said, poking me again for emphasis.

I rolled my eyes but smiled. "You and your frozen heart."

Rose grinned, totally unfazed. "He's smart, mysterious, and a little bit cold—just like a real prince should be."

"Sounds like you're already writing your fanfiction," I teased.

"Don't you dare," he warned, but he was already smiling like he'd won the lottery.

Just as Rose and I were caught up in our little world of pokes and Ice Princes, the door swung open.

A group of five guys swaggered in, led by a guy named Rain. Yeah, like the weather. Because of course.

Overly confident, like he had a camera crew following his every step, Rain sauntered up to my desk and casually draped his arm over it.

"Hey, Tori," he said with a wink that screamed too much confidence.

I immediately grabbed my notebook and held it up to cover my face like a shield.

"Help me, Rose!" I whispered desperately.

Rose, unfazed, smirked. "Don't worry, Princess, I got your back."

Rain chuckled, clearly enjoying the attention. I just wished the ground would swallow me whole.

"My best friend's not feeling okay right now, so you'd better go back and practice your charm somewhere else."

"Ohh, okay," Rain said with a slow smirk, stepping back just enough to look casual.

"But I'll be back," he added, then handed me a letter and a single flower—the kind that looked like it belonged in a romance novel.

Rose grinned, waving the flower dramatically. "Rain is handsome. Most of the guys here are—except my Ice Prince, of course. He's still number one. Rain's a solid second."

I blinked, genuinely confused. "What eyes do you have?"

He smirked, nudging me with his elbow. "Ahh, better than your eyes, dear. You're basically blind. All you see is your imaginary prince."

I quickly put my hand over his mouth, cutting him off. "Shut up," I whispered fiercely. "That's a secret of mine—of us!"

Rose's eyes sparkled mischievously behind my hand, and I could tell he was fighting back a laugh.

As I tucked the flower into my notebook, Rose's eyes kept darting toward the book in my hands.

"Hey, what's that you're reading?" he whispered, leaning closer with that mischievous grin.

I clutched the book tighter. "My new favorite. It's a secret."

Rose wasn't having it. Before I could stop him, his fingers sneaked over and gently flipped a page.

"Hey! That's cheating!" I exclaimed, trying to pull it back.

He held it just out of reach, eyes sparkling with amusement. "I'm just getting a sneak peek. You owe me for defending you from Rain, remember?"

I sighed, half annoyed, half amused. "Fine, but only a sneak peek."

Rose grinned triumphantly as he read a line aloud in a dramatic whisper, "'And then the prince revealed his true power...'"

I rolled my eyes but couldn't help smiling. "See? Told you it's good."

It was finally lunch time. Rose and I pulled out our lunch boxes, the smell of home-cooked food immediately making my stomach growl.

"Woah," Rose said, eyes wide as he opened his lunch box. "Your mother is really a good cook, Tori."

I smiled proudly. "Told you, her cooking's the best."

Rose took a bite and nodded approvingly. "I might have to start calling her 'Chef Extraordinaire.'"

I laughed. "Wait till she hears that. She'll want to cook for you every day."

We ate side by side, the simple joy of good food and better company making the noisy cafeteria feel a little more like home.

After we finished eating, Rose and I headed back toward the classroom.

There, standing at the front, was the queen bee Samantha—well, according to Rose, literally a bee.

She was holding court like she owned the place, and it seemed like everyone was hanging on her every word.

"We will have a Sports Feast this year, and our year needs participants. Please fill this out," she announced, passing out forms.

Then her eyes landed on me.

"Hey, Tori," she said with a smirk, "you're not allowed to join."

I raised an eyebrow. "I don't have plans to join."

"Yeah, she won't join," Rose chimed in, puffing his chest out like he was my personal bodyguard.

"Good to hear," the queen bee said with a smug smile. "I don't want our year level to be a total loss."

I gave her a deadpan look. "Yeah, yeah... as if I care."

Rose gasped dramatically beside me, clutching his chest like I'd just delivered the final line of a telenovela. "Ooooh, Tori, you didn't just say that!"

The queen bee rolled her eyes and turned her back on us, continuing her little recruitment speech to the rest of the class.

As we made our way to our seats, Rose leaned in and whispered, "If we were in a fantasy novel, she'd totally be the villainess with a tiara and a dramatic backstory."

"And a kingdom made of hairspray," I whispered back.

We both giggled under our breath.

Just as Rose and I were still snickering over the "kingdom of hairspray" comment, the door creaked open.

And in walked Caius.

Cue the invisible spotlight and slow motion. Or at least, that's how Rose saw it.

"There he is," Rose whispered like he'd spotted a wild unicorn. "My Ice Prince returns."

Caius walked in—cool, calm, and completely ignoring everyone. He took his seat in the back without a word, casually tossing his bag down like it weighed nothing and staring out the window as if the world bored him.

Rose immediately fixed his hair using the reflection on his spoon. "How do I look? Do I look smart? Should I pretend to read something?"

"You're holding your chopsticks," I pointed out.

He quickly grabbed his notebook and opened it upside down. "Perfect. Mysterious yet intelligent."

I couldn't help but giggle.

Caius glanced briefly in our direction. Our eyes met for a second—exactly one second—and I felt Rose grip my arm like a giddy fan.

"He looked! HE. LOOKED!" Rose whisper shouted.

"Rose, calm down. He was probably looking at the clock behind us."

"I will take what I can get," he said dramatically, fanning himself with his notebook.

Just as things started to settle down, the click-clack of high heels echoed through the classroom.

Her perfectly curled hair bounced with each step, and her lip gloss probably cost more than my entire bookshelf.

"Hi, Caius," she purred, leaning ever-so-slightly on his desk. "You probably don't know me yet, but I'm Samantha. You know... class president, volleyball team captain, and social butterfly."

Caius didn't even flinch. Didn't blink. Didn't breathe, probably.

He just continued staring out the window like a poetic statue of indifference.

I could feel Rose vibrating with rage beside me. His nostrils flared.

Samantha, clearly not catching the hint, laughed awkwardly and reached for the chair beside him. "Mind if I sit here?"

Still no response. No eye contact. Not even a twitch.

"Wow," Rose muttered under his breath. "He just hit her with the emotional ice bath. I think my heart grew three sizes."

Samantha finally gave up, flipping her hair dramatically as she turned away. "Whatever. I was just being friendly."

As she walked back up front, Rose leaned over toward me, fuming. "How dare she try to talk to my Ice Prince like she's the main character of this story?!"

"You're the one who calls him your Ice Prince," I whispered back, trying not to laugh.

"I knighted him in my dreams. That means something."

I rolled my eyes. "Let it go, Elsa."

"I'm gonna let her go... off a plot twist cliff!"

"Tori," one of my classmates called out as we were packing up for the day.

"Yes?" I looked up from my notebook, where I may or may not have been doodling hearts around a fictional prince's name.

"We're planning to play after school. Wanna come?"

I blinked. Me? Socializing after school? When there's a perfectly good romance novel waiting for me at home?

"Hmm... I can't today," I said with an apologetic smile. "Maybe next time?"

"Sure!" they said with a grin before heading off with the group.

As they walked away, Rose leaned in and whispered, "Wow. Look at you. Turning down an after-school hangout for your fictional boyfriend."

I placed a hand over my heart dramatically. "He needs me."

Rose sighed. "You really are a Disney princess."

"Thank you," I said proudly. "That's the nicest thing anyone's said to me all day."

After school, Rose and I walked together to the school entrance, our steps slow and lazy like we had all the time in the world.

"I swear," Rose sighed, "if my driver's late again, I'm going to start charging him for emotional damage."

I laughed. "You mean you'll complain for three minutes, then offer him candy like last time."

"Exactly. Emotional damage... then emotional healing," he said with a wink.

Soon enough, a sleek black car pulled up in front of us. His driver stepped out, and Rose flung his scarf like he was starring in a fashion ad.

"Well, my chariot awaits," he said dramatically, opening the door. "Farewell, my beloved best friend. May the wind carry you safely home."

"Goodbye, your royal dramaticness," I replied, bowing slightly.

He blew me a kiss and hopped in, the car driving away as I chuckled to myself.

I was still standing there, checking my phone for the hundredth time, when another car pulled up beside me. A familiar woman stepped out with a graceful smile.

"Hi, Tori!"

I straightened politely. "Hello, Ma'am," I said, recognizing her as Caius's mom.

She smiled warmly. "Caius is here too," she said, nodding toward the car.

My eyes flicked to the window and—yep—there he was, sitting calmly and staring straight ahead like a statue that happened to wear a school uniform.

Then his mom turned back to me. "Oh, by the way—your dad called. He and your mom had to go somewhere urgent, so he asked me to take you home today."

"Oh..." I blinked, surprised. "He did?"

"Yes, dear. Come on, hop in. We don't bite," she said with a wink.

Oh great.

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Hi-Yu