Chapter 8
After my pointless conversation with Lauren, I hopped in the shower. My body refused to put me out of my misery and allow me some restful sleep. Instead, I lay awake, staring at the chipped ceiling, mulling over what Ethan and Kieran had said to me. How could they possibly think I belonged to them? I had just started school here and hardly even knew them, yet they claimed I belonged to them as if they had known me forever.
It would’ve been easier to ignore the twins if I wasn’t feeling this annoyingly strange connection to the two of them. Sure, they were drop- dead gorgeous, but some innate part of me wanted to be around them. It was as if my instincts were pushing me closer to them while the logical side of me pulled away. Nonetheless, my body seemed to react on its own under the twins‘ touches as if it wanted to be claimed by them.
I had no choice but to go to school the next day. Lauren had a day off, and the last thing I wanted was to be stuck inside with her and Darren. Their arguing would torment me enough. I pulled myself from the bed with a tired groan. I had slept a total of four hours last night.
I groaned as I looked down at the dirty pile of clothes in my room. I had completely forgotten to do my laundry yesterday, leaving me with minimal options on what to wear. I had a floral thigh–high dress, a pair of extremely short shorts, and one pair of fuzzy pajama pants. Choosing the option that would grant me the least amount of attention, I slipped on the floral dress. I paired it with an old jean jacket I had available and a pair of ratty old sneakers.
My eyes were bright and somewhat bloodshot as I stared into the mirror. I glared at the bags forming under my eyes and silently cursed the twins. I came downstairs at the last minute, ignoring the death glares Lauren shot
my way.
“Sophia, come here for a minute,” Lauren called out, and I ground my teeth together. My body instinctively clenched as I approached the woman who had carried me in her womb for nine months.
“Yes?” I pursed my lips and stared into her pale eyes. When I had first moved in with Lauren, it hurt to look at her. Every time I looked into her pale eyes, I saw what she could’ve been. She could’ve been the mom to
teach me about boys, to take me out to the mall and spend afternoons teach me about boys, to take me out to th laughing and watching movies. She could’ve been so much more if she had only tried, if she had only cared in the slightest. Over time I stopped seeing what she could’ve been. Now, I only saw her for what she was. Something lurked in her pale eyes, and I knew any kindness she portrayed would be false.
“Why don’t you call the social worker and tell her you were just being dramatic,” Lauren said nonchalantly, dismissing it with a wave of her hand.
“Why would I do that?” I frowned, crossing my arms as I looked into her blue eyes. Darren sat off to the side in his recliner, watching something on the TV. I purposefully kept my eyes away from him.
“I’ll tell you what, if you do, I’ll split the cheeks with you.” Lauren’s voice was unusually soft, and I wondered how much effort she put into her words. On extremely rare occasions, Lauren would say or do something that made my insides hurt with longing. The softness in her voice caused
a sharp pain to radiate through my chest, wishing she wasn’t putting on a cheap facade.
“Think of how much that could help for college,” Lauren pointed out, and my chest continued aching. I had no idea she even knew of my plans for college. I certainly had never told her, and she never asked.
I clenched my teeth and fought against the pain. “Let me think about it.”
“Of course,” Lauren nodded, turning back to her task in the kitchen.
I turned my back and headed for the front door. “Have a good day at school.” Her words sliced through me like a knife, and I was sure she knew the impact they had on me.
My heart ached the entire way to Kat’s car, and for once, I desperately wanted to walk to school. Tears formed in the back of my eyes, making my head and throat ache. Just when I thought I had hardened myself against any pain Lauren could cause, she did something that hurt me. Whenever Lauren wanted something, she used everything she could at her disposal. She knew deep down I wanted a mom, that I wanted to be loved and accepted. She’d pretend to care for as long as it took to get her way, reverting back to her usual self once she succeeded.
“You feeling alright?” Kat raised her eyebrow at me, pulling out of the driveway and down the road. I took a few seconds to compose myself and chase away the tears that threatened to form.
“Yup,” I forced the word from my lips. “Didn’t sleep very well.”
Chapter
That was one thing I was beginning to truly appreciate about Kat. When you wanted to drop the subject, she didn’t fight it. She simply went with
the flow.
“Loving the dress, by the way,” Kat smiled, nodding to the floral dress I had on.
I shrugged. “I’ve had it for a few years. I forgot to do laundry yesterday.”
“You need to let me take you shopping sometime.” Kat sighed and shook her head, making her fire–kissed curls bounce.
“I told you, I don’t have the money for clothes right now.” I raised my eyebrow at her, knowing she could be quite stubborn at times.
“I already told you-” She started, but I cut her off.
“Nuh–uh, nope. You’re not buying me clothes.” I shook my head. “I could never pay you back for that.”
“Once again, I already told you I wouldn’t need you to pay me back.” Kat rolled her eyes at me. “My family can definitely afford it.”
“If I say maybe, will you be satisfied?” I lifted my eyebrow at her, grimacing when a smirk came over her face.
“Yes, yes I will.” Kat smirked.
Chapter
“Fine.” I rolled my eyes, but a smile played on my lips. “Maybe.”
“Good, maybe is two steps away from a yes.” Kat grinned.
“And one step away from a no.” I snickered at her.
The first two classes went perfectly. I somehow managed to maintain an A average and turned my homework in on time. School never came hard for me; it was everything else that gave me a hard time. My third class was just another speed bump in my normal day.
Kieran and Ethan once again sat on opposite sides of the table, leaving me to choose between who I was sitting next to. The two of them looked cocky and gorgeous as they stared me down. I could feel my face heat uncomfortably as their dark eyes trailed my exposed legs. I should’ve just worn the fuzzy pajama pants to school.
Kieran leaned against his chair, his short hair tousled to perfection while the T–shirt he wore showed off his defined arms. Ethan’s hair was intoxicatingly messy, and the leather jacket he wore made him look like some kind of bad–boy biker. If I was being honest, I didn’t really have to choose who to sit next to. Kieran was more stoic and serious than his brother, while Ethan seemed to be more playful at times. Instead of choosing, I just picked randomly. Either way, I would be tormented.
I plopped down next to Kieran and made sure the hem of my dress was tucked under my bottom.
“Looks like the little doll chose you this time.” Ethan smirked at his brother, his eyes flickering dangerously as he looked me over.
Chapted
Kieran leaned farther back in his chair and draped his arm over the back. of my own. There were a few wary glances from some of the other students, but no one said anything.
I let out a long sigh, setting my books on the desk and opening them to today’s assignment.
“Something wrong, sweetheart?” Kieran’s rough voice was low in my ear, making me jump unexpectedly.
“Just wondering if I can ever catch a break.” I stared pointedly at Ethan and Kieran.
I nearly wanted to laugh at the innocent looks that fell on their chiseled faces. Even with my discomfort around them, I was becoming bolder with my reactions. They continued pushing my boundaries, and in return, I began pushing back.
“Why would you want a break, sweetheart?” Kieran murmured in my ear, a smirk on his face.
“Especially when we’re having so much fun, little doll.” Ethan’s devious smirk matched his brother’s.
I raised my eyebrow at the two of them, ignoring the feeling of blood rushing to my face.
“The only ones having fun are you two.” I grimaced at them, turning my attention to the teacher’s enthusiastic lecture on the nineteenth century
“Are you not having fun?” Kieran’s voice sounded amused, shooting goosebumps down my exposed legs.
“Isn’t it obvious?” I mumbled, keeping my eyes locked on the teacher.
“We’re going to have to change that, brother.” Ethan smirked, his voice growing husky.
I kept my attention on the teacher for the remainder of class, but Ethan’s words stuck with me. Something about the way he said them held some underlying meaning. My stomach twisted into knots, and I suspected they had something planned.
My next class was quite miserable.
I sat next to Kat as usual, but that didn’t stop Jessy from being unusually cruel today. Typically, I could ignore her snide comments and insults, but she was growing bolder.
“Such a shame,” Jessy snickered to her friends. “The little freak didn’t show up today. I was hoping something happened. Too bad she’s back.” Jessy sighed as though I had massively inconvenienced her, and all her little friends laughed.
I made the mistake of rolling my eyes, not finding her comment amusing in the slightest. Usually, I had self–control when it came to bullies, but lately, I felt unusually cranky and constantly on edge, with no explanation for why I felt that way.
Chapter
“What was that, freak?” Jessy spat, standing from her desk and stomping over to me. The smell of her designer perfume was strong and almost sickening, making my head feel strange and floaty.
Her strong perfume triggered my gag reflex, and I clenched my teeth together to maintain some control. A distant part of me wondered if I was pregnant. The first girl pregnant without ever having sex–what a
hilarious anomaly.
Kat sat next to me, rigid as can be. Her face was reddening, matching the shade of her fiery curls. Ethan sat across the room, talking to a group of guys about something unimportant.
“Why don’t you leave her alone,” Kat spat, sounding much more venomous than I ever could.
Jessy turned to Kat and snickered. “So the little freak can’t defend herself now?”
“Fuck off, Jessy,” Kat growled. It was such a strange sound coming from someone as small as her.
“Ooh, you’re so threatening,” Jessy feigned shock. “Why not let the freak stick up for herself? Got a little crush on her?”
“I don’t think Ethan would like how you’re talking to Sophia,” Kat glared at Jessy, speaking loud enough to catch Ethan’s attention.
My eyes flickered over to the god–like twin, lingering on the dips and
grooves his muscles formed in his shirt. Ethan’s dark eyes locked on mine, then flickered over to an equally pissed–off Kat and Jessy. What happened next was somewhat strange, and I would’ve given it more thought if my head wasn’t swimming from Jessy’s overwhelming perfume.
Ethan said nothing to Jessy, but his expression turned furious and deadly. Jessy paled, all traces of anger wiped from her slim face. With one last. glare that screamed absolute hatred and murder, Jessy turned around and twitched back to her seat. Ethan nodded once at Kat before his dark eyes flickered back to my face.
“Stupid bitch,” Kat grumbled under her breath. I laid my head down against the cool desk and took a few calming breaths. My head was completely swimming now; the smell of Jessy’s perfume was lodged somewhere between my sinuses and frontal lobe.
“You feeling alright, Sophia?” Kat’s concerned voice was close by.
I opened my eyes for a second and looked at her concerned face. “Yup, just feeling kinda nauseous.”
“Do you wanna go to the nurse?” Kat frowned, her eyes flickering somewhere across the room.
“No,” I sighed, lifting my head from the desk slowly. “It’ll pass. Honestly, Jessy’s perfume is just really strong.”
“If you say so.” Kat looked at me strangely. “I could hardly smell it.”
‘Maybe there’s something wrong with my nose.” I shrugged. Kat stood
rom the desk and walked over to the window, cracking it open wide and etting a gust of fresh air invade the classroom.
‘You’re amazing.” I sighed, leaning my face against my hand.
Kat snickered. “You flirting with me. Sophia?”
“I just might be,” I chuckled alongside her.
