Flip of a Coyne

A Coyne Twins Story

Chapter 1: "Welcome to the Neighborhood"

Fiona Coyne got out of her car and looked up at the large building which she would call home for the next year. The outside was beautiful, the building was a robin's egg blue mixed in with white. The sun reflected off of the glass of the window covered building, sparkling as if glitter had been poured upon it. A fountain sat in the front, pushing water up into the air before it arched over and landed back into the pool to start the process again.

Fiona turned to her newly appointed guardian, Ms. Cartwright, to gauge her reaction to the palce. Ms. Cartwright is a friend of the family, she's been there since the twins were born and Fiona couldn't think of anyone else who would be a better guardian for her.

"Do you like it?" Fiona asked her.

Ms. Cartwright lifted her sunglasses as the chauffeur of the limo helped her step out of the long car. She put her hands on her hips and took in the scenery. "I still don't understand why we couldn't stay in your mansion," she muttered.

"Daddy sold it, remember? He said if I was going to stay here I didn't need the house that large to myself." She rolled her eyes. She wasn't planning on doing much to the house, only move all of her clothes and her shoes to Declan's old room so it could be her closet, that's all. And maybe even put in a beauty salon, or a spa, or a little runway so she could have showed off her clothes and imagine what they would have looked like if they were on show in Fashion Week.

"It doesn't really matter if we like it or not, Fi, we're here for the next year," Ms. Cartwright said as she placed a hand on Fiona's shoulder. "Come on; let's get this whole thing sorted out. I need a martini."

The girls heels clacked against the ground as they walked into the entrance of the condominium. The lobby was spacious and had a home like feel to it. The tables, lamps, chairs, and receptionist desk were all made of dark wood that went well with the white walls and the light colored decorations .

"You must be Ms. Coyne," the lady behind the counter said with a bright smile.

"Yes, that's me," Fiona said with a smile as well but it faltered as she gave the lady a once over. The woman's bright red lipstick didn't go well with her skin tone or her dull gray and white uniform. When she smiled Fiona saw that some of the lipstick had stuck to the woman's teeth. Oh well, that wasn't something that Fiona couldn't fix or "Fion-ize" as she called it. If she could Fionize Vanderbilt's uniforms, she could Fionize a woman easily. "Now is there someone around here that will help me move in or do I have to move my furniture myself?" She asked, staring hard at the woman behind the counter.

Her eyes shifted and her lips parted slightly as Fiona waited with raised eyebrows. Behind her Ms. Cartwright was looking around that the lobby, pursing her lips when she saw some brochures sitting on the tables of the waiting area. "Um, well, you see new Condo owners usually move in their things themselves."

"But I have to move in a whole house amount of furniture, not to mention my clothes and shoes that I have to bring in here as well," Fiona said innocently. "I'm sure you can do something." A smirk slid onto her face as the woman looked around before leaning forward.

"I'll see what I can do," she whispered.

"Thank you." Fiona turned to the moving van that had been pulled around. "I'll need my clothes and shoes brought up in an hour."

The lady looked out the window. "That's all full of your clothes and shoes?"

"Of course," Fiona replied. "What else would be in it?"

"Oh, um, I didn't…" the woman's voice trailed off as Fiona held out her hand, her designer purse hanging off of her elbow. The woman gave a nervous smile before searching for the key for the new condo owners. She put the keys into Fiona's palm who gave her a pleasant smile before turning away.

Fiona waved to Ms. Cartwright to follow her to the elevator, the smile dropping from her face as she rolled her eyes. "My gosh," she muttered under her breath. "Some people…"

"Be glad that your mother let you stay here," Ms. Cartwright reminded her as they stepped into the elevator and pressed the button for their floor.

"Yeah, at least now I can be with my friends…er…friend," Fiona agreed, mentally kicking herself for admitting that she was friendless in front of Ms. Cartwright. Of all the people she didn't want Ms. Cartwright to know that she only had one friend in Toronto when she'd been bragging about having a lot of friends before going back to Manhattan. Truth was, Declan and Holly J were her only friends. She convinced herself that they were the only friends she needed but seeing the other students at Degrassi hanging out and being excited to see each other made her a little bit upset that she didn't have anyone else to spend time with. Especially now that Declan was in a completely different country.

She pulled her phone out of her pocket and pressed 1 on speed dial, waiting for her twin to pick up. The elevator doors opened after a loud ding and they were met with an amazing view of the city from the balcony in front of them. Fiona leaned against the balcony and looked around, trying to find the school as she waited for Declan to pick up.

"Hey Fi, no bad news I hope," Declan's smooth voice said on the other line.

"You're in luck, Decs," Fiona replied with a smile. "We got to the Condo just fine. We haven't gone inside yet we're taking a look out the balcony. The view is amazing, you'd love it."

"Send a pic?" Fiona removed her phone from her ear and quickly took a picture before sending it to her brother. "You're right. I'm jealous; it beats all of the buildings that block my view." She could practically see him leaning back in his chair. "Now, don't forget out little wager…"

Fiona rolled her eyes. "I won't lose this time, bro. This time Christmas you won't have heard anything bad about me and drama."

"Remember, it can't come from anyone. If word ever comes back here from any source I win."

"I know, I know." She turned and looked at Ms. Cartwright who was standing in front of the door to their Condo, tapping her foot impatiently. "Look, I have to go. Ms. Cartwright is getting antsy. Really I called to find out if you wanted me to decorate your room or if you want someone else to take care of it."

"Oh, Fi, I don't need a room in your Condo."

"Yes you do for when you realize that Vanderbilt isn't for you."

"Getting a little wishy washy there, eh sis? I thought you couldn't wait to come back to Manhattan."

"And now I realize that some things are more important than the Coyne family name. I want to start over…as much as I can. New year, new Fiona."

"I can't wait to see how much trouble this one gets in." Fiona could practically see Declan grinning.

She chuckled. "Shut up."

"I love you too, Fi. Call me back once you're all moved in."

"I will. Taa." Fiona hung up her phone and started walking over to Ms. Cartwright. She had her head bent as she dug around in her purse for the key so she didn't see the little girl that had suddenly come out of a Condo and crash right into her.

"Oh, sorry! I didn't see you," the little girl said breathlessly as Fiona stumbled back a little bit. Fiona looked up and was about to yell at the girl to watch where she was going but stopped when she saw the smile on the little girl's face. Fiona's eyes rested on the little girl's eyes which were blue and green. "Are you ok? Did I hurt you?"

"Oh, um, no," Fiona said, shaking her head. "Just…watch where you're going next time ok?"

"Cute Girl's right, Maxie, you should watch where you're going." Fiona lifted her eyes before they locked with bright green ones. She blinked and took in the boy who was standing in front of her. A quick once over gave her the image of a boy with jet black hair that fell into bright green eyes which rested on a chiseled face. The red mouth was pulled into an amused smile. "Sorry about my sister," he apologized, putting a hand on 'Maxie's head and pushing her back into the apartment. "Nothing is broken I presume?" Fiona shook her head, suddenly unable to get words to come to her mouth."Good, I didn't want a Coyne lawsuit on my hands."

"Wait…you know who I am?" She blurted out.

He laughed a chime-like laugh that struck her heart. "Who doesn't know who the Coynes are? Thank you for honoring me with your presence." He gave an exaggerated bow and she found herself grinning. His smile slipped when he heard a crash and some shouting. "Sorry, I gotta go and take care of this. See you around." He stepped back into the Condo and went to close the door, stopped, and opened it again to add, "Welcome to the neighborhood." He closed the door and the sounds of shouting were muffled.

"Glad to be here," she whispered before walking over to Ms. Cartwright, making sure to take the smile off of her face.

So what do you think? Did I get the character of Fiona right? Did you like it? Hate it? This is my first Degrassi story although I've been a fan for years. This is set right after Breakaway (2) although it won't follow the show's plot line it might include some scenes. This story idea is all from my imagination. Please read and review!

~Crystal