Chapter 12: Identity

“You’ll be fine,” Celestria said, as we walked back to the dining hall to return our trays.

~Will I be?~ I thought. Because nothing seemed right anymore, I was second-guessing everything, and it was tiring.

“How can I go on knowing that my whole life has been a lie?” I said, placing my tray on an oak table for the kitchen staff to collect.

“You don’t know that yet,” Kenley said. “Sure, things don’t make sense now, but you need to wait for Dawson to finish digging.”

“Kenley is right. Besides, this is your first year at Oswalda,” Celestria said. “Nobody here knows about your life back home, or that your parents might be involved in something shady.”

“What do you propose?” I asked.

“Start over. Come up with your story. You are the one in charge of it. Most importantly, make your own decisions and choose your own path.”

“That’s a brilliant idea. Create a new identity, Hollis. Don’t let this stop you from growing into the future you.”

“I guess you’re right,” I said. “I do feel like a new person.”

“And if you’re starting over, you definitely need a new name,” Kenley added.

“And what would that name be, exactly?” I asked.

“That’s the fun part!” Celestria exclaimed. “We’re going to help you come up with one.”

We sat down at an empty table, Celestria pulled a piece of parchments out of her bag, and the game began.

“How about Cara?” Kenley suggested.

“Nah. Next.”

“Ban?” Celestria said.

Kenley shoved a piece of cookie in her mouth. “Isn’t that a boy’s name?” she mumbled.

“Whatcha doing?” Bartley asked and sat down across from me. The rest of the guys, including Tanner and Hunter, gathered around him.

Celestria and Kenley fell silent and looked at me.

“They’re helping me create a new identity,” I finally told everyone.

The guys exchanged confused looks. “And why are you doing that?” Tanner asked.

“I’m waiting to get more information, but it turns out I might be adopted. My parents disappeared, and my house burned down, which means that everything I had and was, is gone. Basically, I need to start fresh.”

“They left without even sending you a letter? That is wrong on so many levels,” Tanner asked.

His protectiveness came out of nowhere, but it was also kind of sweet. As nervous as I had been to even interact with him, I was starting to appreciate his friendship.

“That’s terrible,” Hunter spoke. It was the first thing he’d said since he walked over to us.

Tanner rubbed the back of his neck. “That explains why you’ve been so sad lately.”

“Yeah, and I can’t believe you just came out and told them. Didn’t you want to keep it a secret?” Kenley asked.

“It would be hard to explain the name change, Kenley,” I reminded her.

After a few more classes, we returned to the dining hall for dinner. Once we sat down, everyone started shouting up their name suggestions. Celestria kept a list of all the names I liked. After dinner, the guys offered to walk us to the girls’ wing.

“Hi, Tanner. Have you come to see me?” Allyah said. She lingered just outside of the building, as if she knew the prince had been heading her way.

Tanner nodded over to us. “We were just walking our friends to their dorm.”

She slid into our group and wedged herself between Celestria and the prince.

“You should walk me to my dorm one evening,” she said seductively. “With Arachnid threatening all of us, it’s not safe. Besides, you’re so strong. You could protect me.”

She tried sliding her arm under Tanner’s, but he quickly pulled away.

“There are guards for that, Allyah. We’re heading to our dorms. Have a good night, ladies,” he told us and, completely ignoring Allyah, walked away with Hunter and the rest of the guys by his side.

Allyah huffed, stomped her foot, and ran back into the building.

“Hollis?”

I turned around to find Tanner walking back toward me. Hunter had already walked off.

“Yes?”

“I just wanted to give you one more name. How do you like ~Drake~? It was Hunter’s idea, and I think it kind of suits you.”

I thought about it for a second. It did have a nice ring to it. “Why didn’t he suggest the name to me himself?” I couldn’t help but ask.

Tanner grinned from ear to ear. “For some reason he gets weird around you. I’ve never seen that happen before. Anyway, whatever name you decide to go with, I’m sure it will be great. And I’m sorry you’re going through this. I hope everything gets sorted out,” he said. “I might not have lost my entire family, but I do know what loss feels like.”

I watched him walk away. He never got to know his sister, but it was clear that he missed her. Finding out about my family must’ve brought that pain to the surface. The royals had feelings too, and it had been wrong of me to forget that.

“What did the prince tell you?” Celestria asked once I joined her and Kenley.

“That he understood my pain.”

Celestria sighed. “That’s so sweet of him.”

“Tonight’s takeaways,” Kenley announced, “Allyah is mean, she looks like a mouse without makeup and fancy clothes, she’s obsessed with the prince, and she hates us. On the upside, the prince and Hunter are nice guys, and Hollis has no reason to ignore them anymore.”

“There’s something else,” I told them when we got back to our room. “Tanner gave me a name suggestion. ~Drake~. Apparently, Hunter came up with it.”

“I like it,” Celestria said as she opened the wardrobe.

“I like Drake too,” Kenley chimed in. It was the only name they both had come to like.

“How about Drake Aurora?” Celestria suggested. “Why pick one name when you can pick two?”

I smiled for the first time today. Maybe a fresh start, a new name, and caring friends were exactly what I needed to keep going as secrets and lies began to unravel around me.