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A/N: Paul in the picture above.
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Jayden was out of his seat the moment the siren went off for recess. Grabbing Noel’s arm, he pulled him hastily to his feet and shot out the door not bothering to wait for the class to be dismissed. It was all Noel could do to stay on his feet as he was dragged unceremoniously across the quadrangle.
They didn’t get very far when they heard someone calling after them.
‘OI! Wait up!’
It was Samuel. Jayden didn’t slow down but rather quickened his pace. Samuel however, soon caught up with them.
‘Damn, you’re fast,’ he panted, struggling to keep up.
Jayden didn’t bother looking at him. ‘Go away.’
Samuel pouted at that. ‘Oh come on, you can’t treat me like that after what happened.’
Jayden ignored him and continued to quicken his pace. Samuel rolled his eyes in frustration and stepped in front of them, forcing them to halt in their tracks.
‘Enough. Don’t you think you owe me an explanation after throwing me under the bus like that?’
Jayden glared at him for a few seconds before rolling his eyes in surrender. ‘Fine.’
Without waiting for a reply, he sidestepped him and continued on his sprint across the yard.
Samuel pumped a fist into the air in excitement before quickly jogging after them. They arrived at the cafeteria and Jayden led them to a secluded table in the corner of the garden.
A blue sparrow alighted on the table and begun to chirp pleasantly as they took their seats. Samuel and Noel cooed over it until Jayden chased it off with just a single glare.
‘Why do you always have to be so mean?’ Samuel pouted as he stared after the bird.
Jayden ignored him. Without warning, he suddenly turned to smack Noel hard upside his head.
‘Ouch!’ Noel winced as he rubbed his head. ‘What was that for?’
‘That was for being a fool,’ Jayden replied with a blank expression as he watched Noel put his glasses back on.
‘What did I do?’ Noel protested loudly.
‘Though I appreciate the sentiment, I expected you to have a bit more sense on your shoulders. It was my choice to take the blame for you and I knew full well the consequences of my actions when I made that decision. I can afford to break the rules but you can’t or need I remind you?’
Noel glanced down at the table and muttered, ‘I know but you have done so much for me and I didn’t want to be the reason you were suspended.’
‘Okay, I’m lost,’ Samuel broke in. ‘Why can’t he afford to break the rules?’
‘Because I’m a scholarship kid.’ Noel answered. ‘If I break the rules my scholarship could be revoked and I’ll get kicked out.’
Samuel’s mouth formed into an ‘o’ shape. ‘But why did you put a phone in your backpack in the first place.’
‘I didn’t!’
‘Okay, hold up. If you didn’t put the phone in your bag how the hell did it get there?’
‘I have a theory,’ Jayden commented wryly.
Samuel and Noel both turned to him expectantly.
‘Remember this morning when a certain sorry excuse of an ape threatened to tear you down?’
Noel’s eyes widened in disbelief. ‘You don’t think…’
Jayden nodded. ‘Yes. I’m surprised he struck so quickly. I underestimated him, a mistake I do not intend to repeat twice.’
‘Hold on, who are we talking about again?’ Samuel asked.
‘Charles Mensah,’ Noel responded.
‘Okay then.’ Samuel rubbed his palms gleefully. ‘How are we planning to get him back?’
For the first time since they had sat down, Jayden turned to face him directly. He arched an elegant eyebrow.
‘We?’
‘Yes, we,’ Samuel affirmed.
‘There is no ‘we’.’
‘Why not?’ Samuel whined. ‘I could help.’
‘No.’
‘Come on, I’m already involved after I took the bullet for you. I could have gotten detention or worse suspension!’
Jayden snorted at that. ‘You wouldn’t.’
‘How can you be so sure?’
‘Please, look at the way he was fawning over you. He was sooner going to punish you than I was going to be the King of England.’
Samuel humphed and crossed his arms. Noel looked at him with pity and turned to Jayden.
‘Maybe he could help us. Besides we know we can trust him after all he did help us once already.’
Samuel nodded eagerly. Jayden just rolled his eyes and turned away. Samuel was about to complain when his eyes caught sight of a distant figure.
‘PAUL! Oi Paul, over here,’ he called out with a wave.
The person, Paul, walked over with his backpack slung over a shoulder and a confused expression on his face. Noel’s eyes widened and he couldn’t help but stare as he took in the sight of this new visitor.
Who could blame him? Paul was quite the sight. With a beautifully sculpted face, a tall six-foot frame, soft skin, and deep soulful eyes, Paul was what you’d call a male Adonis.
‘Hey,’ he greeted in his smooth velvet voice.
Jayden nodded whiles Noel could only stutter in response causing Jayden to shoot him a long curious look.
‘Everyone, this is my roommate, Paul. Paul, these are my friends Jayden and Noel.’ Samuel introduced brightly.
Jayden frowned slightly at the use of the word ‘friends’ nevertheless, he turned to Paul and nodded.
‘Your royal highness.’
‘Mills.’ Paul nodded politely back.
Samuel was confused. ‘Wait, you guys know each other?’
‘We’ve met,’ Jayden replied simply.
‘Our families are good friends.’ Paul offered. ‘We used to have play dates together.’
‘Oh.’ Samuel seemed a bit put off by the fact that Jayden though still cold was a bit warmer to Paul than he was to him.
Noel started to shift uncomfortably and Jayden, sensing his discomfort stood up and pulled him to his feet.
‘We’re leaving,’ he announced before walking away with Noel at his side.
‘Hold up,’ Samuel called after them. ‘What about our plans?’
Jayden as usual ignored him and led Noel back to their classroom. They walked in silence for a while before Noel broke it.
‘Is he really a prince?’
Jayden nodded. ‘Not a prince, the prince. He’s the crown prince of the Ashanti Kingdom.’
Noel gaped. ‘I can’t believe I’ve been face to face with royalty,’ he squealed in excitement. ‘But his eyes seem to have a bit of a tortured look about them.’
Jayden gave a derisive snort that. ‘I’m not surprised given the kind of family he has.’
Noel shot him a confused look.
‘The Ashanti royal family is not like most other royal families,’ Jayden explained patiently. ‘For starters, the crown doesn’t automatically pass to the crown prince after the death of the king.’
Noel furrowed his brows. ‘Why not?’
Jayden shrugged. ‘It’s tradition. After the death of the king, the council of elders meets with the queen mother to select the new king. Anyone is eligible to become king as long as they possess royal blood. You’re bound to be a bit tortured if all the members of your family are snapping about, circling for your blood in order to gain your crown.’
Noel’s face filled with pity. ‘Imagine living like that, not being able to trust your own family. To be constantly looking over your shoulder and to be surrounded with lies and deceit.’
‘Mn.’
They split up after that, each leaving to attend their different classes and each lost in their own thought. It wasn’t long before the school day came to an end and they met up again.
On the walk back to the Sand, Jayden noticed Noel’s downcast face. He said nothing and they arrived in their dorm without a word between the two. Jayden slumped down into the couch and lay down with an arm covering his eyes.
He lay there in silence until the nervous shuffling of feet broke the still air. He ignored it and a minute later, Noel whispered in a tentative voice.
‘Jayden.’
He said nothing and continued to lay with his arm still draped over his eyes.
The shuffling came again and after a moment, Noel whispered softly.
‘I’m sorry.’
Jayden finally removed his arm and fixed him with a long stare.
‘I know you were trying to protect me and I shouldn’t have tried to stop that. You’ve done so much for me and that was ungrateful of me. Please don’t be mad.’
Jayden sighed and sat up. ‘I’m not.’
Noel looked up from his feet. ‘You’re not?’
‘No.’
He sighed in relief. ‘That’s great. I really am sorry though. I shouldn’t have frustrated your efforts to help me.’
‘Don’t worry about it. But remember, if you are to survive in the elite world, practicability should always come before sentimentality.’
Noel nodded and sat down on the couch facing his. ‘About that, I’ve always wanted to ask. It’s about something Charles said on the first day back in the cafeteria. The big 22, the erm… great 42…?’
‘The Noble 52.’
‘Yes, that. What’s the Noble 52?’
Jayden lay back down. ‘Not what, who. The Noble 52 are fifty-two of the most powerful families in the country. The Grande 200 are two hundred of the most powerful families in Africa and the High 66, the sixty-six most powerful families in the world.’
Noel raised his eyebrows in surprise. ‘And you and Charles are part of the Noble 52?’
‘Yes.’
‘Which other families are on the list?’
‘Google it.’
‘But who determines who gets on that list?’
‘The Invisible Hand.’
‘The what?’
Jayden sighed. ‘Are you familiar with Adam Smith’s, The Wealth of Nations?’
Noel hummed in assent.
‘Well, like how that invisible hand determines the prices of goods and services, this invisible hand determines the members of the 52. The list keeps changing as families move up, down, or out of the list as they struggle for power and influence behind the scenes.’
‘That sounds… disturbing.’
Jayden shrugged nonchalantly.
‘What about what you said about Charles’s family? What’s going on with them?’
Jayden turned to fix him with a piercing gaze. He held that stare for a long time causing Noel to shift with unease.
‘It is not my story to tell neither is it yours to ask,’ he answered finally before turning to drape his arm back over his eyes.
‘Oh, come on!’ Noel whined.
‘Your appetite for gossip is unbecoming.’
‘But we’re best friends and best friends tell each other everything,’ Noel continued to plead.
‘We’re not.’
Noel blinked, a bit taken aback. ‘Well, at least we’re friends, aren’t we?’
‘No.’
‘But…’ Noel was crestfallen. ‘I thought…’
‘Just because I helped you out and continue to tolerate your presence doesn’t mean we’re friends.’
‘Then why do you do it,’ Noel demanded. ‘I don’t want you to feel sorry for me.’
‘I don’t.’
‘But…’
Jayden swung his feet onto the floor and made his way into his room, signalling the end of the conversation.
AUTHOR’S NOTE: How have you guys been? I know this chapter is a bit shorter than my usual ones so I’ll give you an extra long one soon. Pinky promise🤙🏾😉.
What do you think about this chapter? Let me know in the comments and don’t forget to click on that pretty star below if you enjoyed the chapter. Thanks 😊.
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