The Philippaerts Twins

Chapter 3

Apparently my excitement had lost the battle to exhaustion, because a series of knocks on the door woke me from my slumber. Soft light peered into the room from behind the curtains, causing me to squint my eyes. Sunset already? I must have drifted off, I thought as the knocking on my door resumed. I glanced at my phone as I stood to answer the pestering noise; it read 5:45. Huh... Not as late as I thought.

Then it hit me: 5:45AM.

"Motherfucker!" I grunted while dashing like a madwoman to the door. I threw it open to find and unimpressed Olivier who was wearing his usual frown. Has anyone ever told him he was going to age prematurely if he kept that up? It'd be a shame for such a pretty face to wrinkle earlier than it should.

"Nice of you to join the land of the living, Sleeping Beauty." Before my sleep-clouded mind could even register the nickname, he was already talking again, "Horses are supposed to be fed at 5:30 every morning. Now hurry up unless you don't want me showing you around." With that said, he turned around and made his way downstairs.

For a second I just stood there processing. Then I scrambled toward my suitcase in search of breeches and a shirt. There was no time for a shower and I felt absolutely disgusting, and to top it off I was starving. Somehow I managed to do some basic hygiene and get dresses in just seven minutes. Personal record! I was wearing a pair of brown Equiline breeches with pink accents paired with a cream Animo shirt and a random black belt I didn't remember packing. I almost fell face-first as I tried walking and putting on my boots simultaneously, but alas I was ready...ish.

Once downstairs, I joined Olivier near the front door. Without sparing me a second glance, he stepped outside and made his way toward the stables. I did that awkward little half-walk half-run—usually done when you're kind of far away from the door, but someone is holding it open for you— to try and keep up with his big strides. To put it simply, I was panting by the time we reached the barn.

I kept rubbing my arms in an attempt to create some warmth and keep myself from freezing to death. I was about to complain when I saw a familiar set of white ears peeking from the corner stall. The cold and hunger were momentarily forgotten as I hurried to meet my mare. She huffed in annoyance when she noticed my lack of treats, but seemed pleased to see me nonetheless.

"Hey Callie," I murmured while petting her gently. "I missed you girlie."

I sensed someone behind me and turned to find Mr. Always-Annoyed himself watching the mare with a softened gaze. "So that's what you call her?" he asked.

"Y-yeah," I hesitated slightly before continuing, "That or Cal."

He nodded almost like he was giving the nickname his approval. "We didn't really know what to call her since Winbishi Calliope is a mouthful."

"Trust me," I chuckled, "It took me a week to learn her name. Apparently, Winbishi is the breeder and Calliope's her actual name, but I didn't learn that until a couple of months after buying her."

The fact that I was having a conversation with Olivier Philippaerts was blowing my mind. Maybe the lack of coffee was to blame for me being so star-struck. Although, what was really beyond belief was that it was nice. Neither of us was being sarcastic, which didn't happen often—at least for me. It looked like he was about to say something, but Cal slammed her hoof against the stall door, startling both of us. The moment was dissolved and the relaxed demeanor that the younger twin had a moment ago vanished.

"Come on," he said, already moving elsewhere, "Their food's late enough as it is." A slight disappointment clung to me from our lost friendliness, but stubbornness countered it as Olivier when back to being his usual snarky self. Since it was my first time, he helped me feed all eighteen horses and explained which one required what supplements and whatnot. As we finished, someone else popped their head inside the barn. I was expecting the eldest brother to appear, yet it was someone new.

"Good morning," He chirped. "Oh, you must be Nina! I'm Alistair, nice to meet you," He continued, and his American accent was music to my ears. Finally someone that wouldn't distract me just by speaking!

"Well," Olivier started, "I'll leave you two to muck stalls and get acquainted." As he reached the door he turned back and said, "In that order!"

"I was afraid he'd never leave," Alistair moaned. I raised an eyebrow in question and he explained, "Do you honestly think I can work with his Royal Moodiness looking all hot while he sulks?"

I couldn't help it, I laughed. "You know," I began, "I think we're gonna get along just fine."

"Damn straight we are!" he agreed.

Alistair told me he had worked here almost a year, as he showed he where everything was. Each of us would muck nine stalls, he'd take one side of the barn and I'd take the other. In addition, we'd need to groom at least the first three horses that were to be ridden. The order changed almost everyday, and it was written down in a small white board by the door, along with the class schedules.

"Okay," he said when he wrapped the explanation up, "Any questions?"

"Yeah," My cheeks heated up from embarrassment, "Um... How do I muck a stall?" Alistair stared at me as if I had grown another head, "You've got to be fucking kidding me." I decided it was time to take out the big guns: puppy eyes.

Three... two... one... "You're gonna be the death of me princess." With that said, he showed me the ropes. By the time I was doing the third stall I felt like a professional stall-mucker, yet when I finally finished all my cockiness had crumbled and given way to the sensation that my arms were about to fall off.

I plopped down unceremoniously on Cal's tack box and leaned my head against the wall. Just then, Nicola decides to come inside the barn looking well rested and in an amiable mood. He barked out a laugh as soon as his eyes settled on me.

"Shut up," I grumbled without moving from my resting spot.

"At least you haven't lost your spunk," he stated, mirth still pooling in his brown orbs. "Are you ready?"

I furrowed my brows together, "What for?"

"To ride of course," The older twin answered with an honest smile. Leaving me there with a mixture of eagerness and nerves, plus a bunch of stupid butterflies in my stomach. It should be illegal for someone to have such an adorable smile.

Alistair took one look at me and grinned, "Oh, you've got it bad."

Author's Note: This is kinda awkward... I'm back? After 2 years lol. I'm sorry for the hiatus, but I finally got my shit together. I'm going to try and update every week. I'll try to finish this book before I go to college in August, but don't worry, I have a sequel planned. Also, I changed Nina's last name and age(now 18 bc we don't want our favorite twins committing any crimes). Anyway, lmk what you think! xo

PS: would you like to see a picture of what Cal looks like or Alistair? or both?