Torn Between Twin Brothers

The music was playing. Children were conversing with each other, and laughter all around the ballroom could be heard. Everyone loved it when they were speaking to someone they didn't know. It's the mystery behind the unknown that excited them all.

Some of the children found the courage to start approaching other children and began conversations. At the same time, they would never have the courage to do so if they were bare-faced. It's what Queen Alexa wanted to happen; she wanted all the children to feel at ease with one another instead of being so aware of things like titles, money, and power.

Some even wondered if the guest of honor, Crown Prince Edward was among them. Girls were whispering to each other while pointing here and there as to who they think might be the Crown Prince.

Ava, Akira, Pearl, and Arria didn't have the chance to see what the boys were wearing, so they had no idea what they looked like. Add the mystery of masks that they were wearing; the girls wouldn't be able to know until it was unmasking time.

The same thing went for the boys; since they didn't get the chance to see the girls' dresses for the ball, they also had no clue who was who. All three girls were about the same height and similarly built. So the only way for them to distinguish the girls is as if they didn't change their hairstyles.

However, Jeffrey would know Ava and Arria no matter what they wore, even if they were wearing masks. The closeness of the three siblings exceeded other's expectations.

Unlike for James and Ashton, as soon as Ava walked inside the ballroom, they knew it was her. But, when Akira walked in a little later, they had no idea whatsoever that it was their younger sister.

Pearl and Arria were so obvious when they arrived. They were glued to each other while Pearl was holding a stick with a camera attached. Arria was having fun pointing and motioning while Pearl was busy talking to her followers.

===

Pearl's followers increased tenfold once again with her special edition. She couldn't believe that in a matter of fewer than 30 minutes since they walked inside the ballroom, she reached almost a million views, while her followers increased in thousands.

She and Arria jumped with joy, but when they did, Pearl bumped into a young boy of about the same height as James or Ashton, "Excuse me! I'm sorry!" Her voice was so low as she apologized.

"No harm done; you don't need to apologize." The young man replied with a soft but husky voice. 

"Thank you!" Added Arria as she jerked Pearl's arms and was ready to leave.

The young man realized what Arria was planning to do and spoke before they could leave, "Excuse me, miss! Are you by chance live streaming the party right now?" He asked curiously but sounded suspicious.

Arria and Pearl looked at each other, unsure how to respond, "Sister Pearl, I think we are in trouble; what should we say?" Arria whispered to Pearl while her hold on Pearl's arms was getting tighter by the minute.

"Y-you see, we're just taking some pictures for souvenirs. It's a once-in-a-lifetime event for us, and we wanted to have some memories to look back on." Was the only safe, correct answer that Pearl could think of at the moment. 

The young man sensed that the two young girls were afraid of getting caught and were already thinking of running for their lives. But, on the other hand, he felt that they were so cute and innocent. So he decided to befriend them and began to strike up a conversation.

"Don't worry! Even if you're doing a live stream right now, I won't tattle on both of you. Also, don't worry if you get caught; my rank is high enough to get you both out of jail if need be." He was, of course, only kidding, but from the way the two girls heaved a sigh of relief, He knew they believed him.

The young man raised his hands, and a palace server with a tray of drinks came forward. He grabbed two non-alcoholic cocktails and handed one to Pearl then to Arria. He then took another one for himself. 

"Do you mind if I tag along with you ladies?" His voice was so sweet and polite; who could turn him down? So, the two girls happily invited him to walk around with them.

===

Once Ava was inside, she tried to find familiar features she could recognize. Then she spotted a pair of eyes that looked so cold yet so warm following her gaze. The moment their eyes locked she felt like she had fallen into a dark abyss. She quickly averted her gaze elsewhere.

She continued roaming around the room while still thinking about those eyes. She felt that she had seen them many times before. Then it hit her, 'Could it be James?' She thought. Ava quickly turned to look where she saw the eyes, but he was no longer there.

As she was about to continue walking around when she heard a voice from behind her. "You look so beautiful tonight..." So said the person with no face.

She turned around to face the voice with no face, and she froze instantly. She was now totally confused as to who was in front of her without seeing their face. The voice was also identical, not just their features. She knew who was who before because Ashton was always ready with a smile while James always had a stone-cold, emotionless and serious face.

She decided to take a guess, although it was more like a hope that she was right, "Hello, big brother!"

James was momentarily frozen; he couldn't believe that she could guess that it was him instead of Asthon. He was taken aback, unsure of what to do at the moment.

Then, of course, he must respond to what she said, but then he thought of fooling her once again....