The Hidden Princess At All-Boys Alpha Academy

Chapter 2 – A Boy Named Ari

“You two,” Rafe mutters, and I glance over to see him pressing the bridge of his nose between his fingers, just like dad does. “This is going to cause a damn firestorm that I am going to have to sort out.”

“But you’re the best at solving our problems!” Jesse points out, laughing. “Come on, cousin,” he says, giving Rafe a little punch in the arm. “It’s an adventure.”

Two hours later we’re in the boxcar of a train headed east, towards the war front where the Academy is located.

It was shockingly easy to smuggle me out of the palace once I got rid of the wedding gown. Jesse just gave me some of the clothes he had packed, and after I had rolled the hem of the pants about a dozen times and tied the waist with some ribbon torn off of my gown…honestly, the clothes don’t fit so bad.

“Okay,” Rafe murmurs, leaning back into the hay that fills the boxcar, grimacing as he types out messages on his phone. “Mom and Dad are on board.”

“They are?” I ask, wide-eyed with surprise.

“I mean,” Rafe says, flicking his eyes at me, “I didn’t give them any details about where we are or where we’re going, and mom is completely flipping out about you being gone from the palace without a guard for the first time in your life. But…she gets it. And they trust us.”

We were always inseparable. I didn’t even really figure out that I was a girl – or that being a girl meant something different than being a boy – until I was around eight years old and I had to go to ballet class when Rafe and Jesse went to martial arts. I was devastated when I figured out that being different genders meant we had different futures in store for us.

But, well. I figured out pretty quickly that being a Princess means I have my own responsibilities. Even though I loved running wild with Rafe and Jesse, I learned how to be pretty, quaint, and sweet because I knew it would help mom and dad. Plus, it kind of came natural to me.

Rafe and Jesse, they secretly taught me everything they learned in their fighting lessons because they didn’t want me to feel left out. But I’m mom’s tiny twin – petite with long rose-gold hair and a heart-shaped face. I’m not built for hand-to-hand combat the way Rafe and Jesse are, but things like ballet come naturally to me.And while I thought that I was eager to do my duties as a Princess, to marry a Prince to save our nation from war?

think my heart has ever been as happy as it is right now, running away from those duties and hopping a train with my two best

backpack, finished talking to

along with

at him. “You mean like, into Alpha

we’d keep her safe, right? If

dreamed about going – but, of course, it only accepts male students. And while Rafe and Jesse will certainly take the warrior track, I fantasized about taking up some of the other things you can study –

in mystery. But whenever one of the Alpha graduates came to the palace to consult with dad or report on the amazing advances they made for our nation? They always had this air about them – like they could take on the

did

got far. While we always knew Rafe and Jesse would go, I had to make other plans.“Well, I’m definitely not letting her out of our sight,” Rafe grumbles, his voice growing deeper at

hanging

don’t want you there, Ariel,” Rafe sighs, guilty. “It’s just not a safe place

protest that I can take care of

no female attention for months. You’ll get eaten alive. There are going to be

champion of our nation as well as a rather notorious ladies’ man. But he just retired from boxing to join the military in a show of

is…insanely good looking. He’s got these

had no idea he was going to

to just keep plans the same?” Jesse asks, interrupting my thoughts. “Ariel just…comes