Chapter 2 Death threats or Lovers

"We're here."

Naya looked outside the window to see the huge house she had once called home. She took a deep breath before pushing open the car door. She was finally back after been gone for ten long years.

A guard led her upstairs and down the corridor where the president's office was. She closed her eyes and counted to three before stepping through the open door.

"Father" Naya said as she looked at the man that forever changed her life. She wasn't sure if she was to hug him or just stand there. At the end she didn't have to make a decision.

"Come here child" The president told her, the smile on his face creasing the corners of his eyes. Naya walked to him and let herself into his open arms. She had missed him dearly. They were like that for a while before the drew apart.

"Welcome home" He said. He caressed her cheek like he used to do when she was little. The president looked at the grown girl little Naya had turned into. She was almost as tall as he was now.

He motioned for her to sit down. It was hard to get to the real reason he had asked her to return to the last she wanted to be. Naya noticed how nervous the President was which was a rare occurrence. She knew then that something had happened or was about to.

"Tan is leaving for the Royal High today" He started. Naya was confused on how that had anything with her coming back but said nothing.

She watched him scratch his temple suddenly looking like he had aged more than the 10 years she had been gone.

"Tan has been getting death threats" He said making Naya's eyebrows spring up. "I don't trust anyone enough to keep him safe for me. I know you've not completed your military training, but I have great confidence in you. He's a brother to you, I know you wouldn't want harm to come his way".

The last few words made Naya uneasy. Tan was anything but a brother to her. He was her first love. She had spent the last years at military school thinking about the light brown eyed boy she had first seen in the car when she was just five. He was the one that kept her going on days she wanted to give up.

"I'll do it" She said, without thinking clearly about the situation. She didn't know how she was going to feel seeing him again. She only had to keep him out of danger, there was no need to be close to him.

"There's one problem" The president said, scratching his almost white beard this time. He wasn't sure she was going to agree to what he was about to say. It was absurd.

"What is it?" Naya asked, slowly growing impatient with the president's growing silence.

"You'll have to stay in his dorm room."

"But a girl can't stay in the boys' dorm."

"Exactly" the president said.

Naya thought for a while what the problem could possibly be. "What!" She said when it finally dawned on her. She was furious. He was asking her to pretend to be a boy.

It was laughable really. She knew she didn't look so feminine. Her his were yet to grow out wide, her boobs were almost as flat as the day she'd been born.

"What's in it for me?" She finally asked.

"Freedom" The president answered. He knew how to make a deal. He was offering her something he knew she has always wanted. The president had been nice to Naya, offering her a place to stay after her father died and she was grateful to him.

But deep down, she wanted to of on her own, to find the people that murdered her father. To avenge his death, she couldn't do it her, where everyone was watching her.

"Deal" Naya said.

"No one must know your secret Naya, not even Tan. This is just between us." He said.

Naya nodded.

"I have your clothes all packed for you. Here's your ID" he slid it across his table towards her. Naya looked at the identity card. Her new name was Joe. Her eyes widened when she saw the picture attached to it.

"I'm not cutting my hair" She blurted out.

The president eyed her wearily but nodded. That was the only thing that he wouldn't take away from her. It was the only connection she had left of her father. It was braided all back like she always wore it.

"Just don't let it out" The president said. It was fine with her.

"You should get going, change and meet Luke downstairs he'll drive you to the school."

"Okay"

She left the office and went straight to her childhood room. Fingers running across the walls she looks around the room. Her toys were still stuffed in the same corner she had left them.

Part of her felt sad that nobody had been here but at the same time grateful that the President cared enough not to clean out the room after she was gone.

She shut her eyes tight to prevent the memories from slipping into her head. All the times she had spent here with Tan, her first memories she couldn't deal with at the moment.

With determination she opened her eyes and walked to the bed where a suitcase sat. she opened it eyeing the clothing inside. She stripped out of her cloth and her underwear.

Using the white bandage laid in front of her she covered her boobs by wrapping it around her chest a couple times. There was not much to hide. She threw on a black shirt with a trouser that was slightly big for her. The only thing she keeps are her boots, she always wore boots.

A knock on the door had her closing the suitcase. It was Luke, he had come to get her. her bags in one hand they both walked to the car.

Tan was already seated in the black limo his eyes fixed on his phone. He only looked up when the door was slammed to see Naya sitting opposite him.

"Who are you?" He asked coldly, more annoyed than concerned.

Naya cleared her throat before answering, a certain coldness slipping into her tone when she realized tan didn't even recognize her. "Your personal guard".

"What?" Tan asked, anger taking over his features.

"Did father..." Naya cleared her throat and continued "Did the President not inform you?" She asked instead.

No, his father had told him nothing. This made Tan angry, why he couldn't he just have a normal life. Now he was in his last year of high school and instead of having a life filled with girls and parties he'd have a bodyguard following him everywhere. He had to make him go away by all means necessary.

Tan did not talk to Naya for the rest of the drive and she was thankful. If she talked too much her tiny voice was surely going to give her away.

The sun was setting when the wheels of their car rolled onto the school grounds. Tan was exhausted, he looked over at the tiny body of his guard who was still in a rigid position. He didn't look tired one bit.

Luke helped Naya carry her bag as Tan's had been sent to his dorm room days before. Luke walked through security and the admissions office before going to the dorm. He gave them both a key before leaving.

Tan watched Naya carry in her bags before concluding the guard was too small and wondered why her father hired him. If a fight ever broke out, Tan was sure he would be the one protecting the guard instead.

Naya went to her side of the room which was demarcated by a tin white curtain. She sat on the bed with a thud. She was alone in the same room with Tan. She wanted to run to him and tell him everything and that she came back partly because of him. she couldn't.

She remembered their last night together. The night she had confessed her feelings to him. She quickly went to the bathroom and changed into a clean shirt with big shorts, she left the boots on.

When she came out, stepping into Tan's side of the bed there was a red head sitting on the bed with him. They were talking and had not noticed her yet.

The red head had more muscles than Tan. His shirt showed her that much. He looked up when he felt someone with them. It gave Naya a close look at his face. It was well defined and had lost all the baby fat that was still in Tan's. He could easily look dangerous if he wanted to and Naya knew to stay away from this one.

"I didn't know you had a roommate" Red head said.

Tan looked at Naya before turning back to what he was doing. "That's my personal guard."

"You have a guard in the dorms? That's cool man!" He punched Tan lightly on the shoulder "At least he's cute".

Tan finally shifted his attention to Naya "What is your name?" he asked her.

"Joe" The name was strange on her mouth as she said it. She almost cringed.

"James can we get out of here now?" Tan asked said red head who was still looking at Naya.

"The ladies are going to love this one" he said instead of answering Tan.

Tan stood from the bed annoyed that James was beginning to pay attention to Naya instead "He's short, all the girls will be taller than him" Tan scoffed, eyeing his guard wearily.

"True but that will be his charm. The hair too, damn even his skin!" James said.

"Are you gay now?" Tan asked in horror, looking at James in disbelief.

"Oh please" James said and rolled his eyes "I love boobs way too much". He got up rom the bed "Let's go. I'm sure the girls are dying to see you". He looked at Naya one last time before following Tan out.

James knew immediately that the guard was hiding something, and he was going to find out. He always had dirt on everyone, that was how he worked. The president must have a reason for sending a petite guard instead of his usual hefty ones and he was going to find out why.

Naya waited for the soft bang of the door before following them. They didn't even notice her walk behind them. They were going for a party from what she heard Tan say.

She had never been to a party before, she wondered if all the boys there would be as handsome as James and that brought a smile to her face. It might not be bad after all she thought to herself until she remembered she was a boy here. She was one of them and that wiped all the smile from her face.

Naya waited a couple minutes before entering the black door Tan and James had gone through. All her years of training did not prepare her for the scene she was faced with.

Bright colorful lights bounced around the room making her feel like she had been transported into another world. She walked slowly through the crowd of dancing teenagers.

She was walking to the middle of the room where there was a large table of drinks when she bumped into someone.

"Joe?"

Naya looked up after making sure no drink spilled on her and saw Tan's annoyed face peering into hers. They looked at each other for a while, not moving.

"You followed me here?" Tan asked.

"That's my job?" Naya asked with a raised brow.

The smug look on Naya's face annoyed Tan even more. He needed to get rid of her if he wanted to have fun tonight.

"Why don't you enjoy the party since you're here already. Let me get you a drink". Tan walked to the large table and back with a red cup in his hand "Here".

He gave Naya the cup. It had all the alcohol he could get his hands on at the table. If he was going to get her off his back, then he needed to get her drunk. That way, she wouldn't be able to follow him everywhere he went.

"Go on, drink and have fun" He said after Naya made no move to drink from the cup. He watched her take a sip and squeeze her face in distaste.

"Never had a drink before?" Tan asked, a small smile working its way to his face. Naya, one to never back down took a large gulp, then another one.

"I'll leave you to it then" Tan said, he patted her lightly on the head before leaving.

Naya watched him go. She swirled the contents of her cup wondering what Tan had put in it. She trusted him anyway, he wouldn't dare to hurt her.

She kept drinking even though she knew she should stop. It was her first time drinking and she had to protect Tan. She couldn't, each gulp bringing its own relief to her burdened heart.

She spotted Tan walking towards her but there was three of him if not four. She rubbed her eyes and looked again he was gone.

James watched quietly from his corner as Naya stumbled around. He knew what Tan had done and it was clear she couldn't handle her drink. He wasn't about to watch her make a fool of herself plus, he wanted to find out what it was about Naya that didn't fit.

He walked over to where Naya stood by the drink table.

"Let's go" He said.

Naya whipped her head to him when she heard his voice. "You're cute" She said, smiling.

James was confused for a while. Joe had called him cute and his voice was tiny and adorable. He shook his head he was not going to think of Tan's bodyguard as adorable.

He held Joe's shoulders and led him out of the party. He was going to take him back to their dorm then go and look for his red head. Joe fell just as the got to the door making James wonder just how much alcohol Tan had given him.

Naya wasn't heavy which made their journey back easy. He laid her on her bed and was about to leave when she mumbled something before proceeding to throw up the entire contents of her stomach.

James cussed when he saw the mess but didn't have the mind to leave Naya in that state. He went back and turned her to her side so she wouldn't choke on her own puke.

He cleaned her up with a scowl on his face the entire time. He unbuttoned Naya's shirt and stopped midway when he saw the bandage carefully wrapped around her chest.

He pulled the sticky shirt away from her then started unwrapping the bandage so he could clean what he thought was an injury.

When he was done, he froze. He was not staring at an injury but a pair of boobs. They were not as big as the ones he was used to, but they were boobs nonetheless. This wasn't the type of secret he had hoped to find but it was still one that could work to his advantage.

He looked at Naya in a new light. The tiny voice, small body, and delicate face? It all made sense to him now. Tan's bodyguard was a girl. What he wanted to know was why the president would allow this? He needed to find out.

James took a piece of paper from the table and scribbled something on it before leaving. This was going to be his best school year.