Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Caleb Jacobs never needed anyone. Or at least, that's what he told himself every day as he sat in his room, flicking the ash of his cigarette out the window. The morning light filtered through half-drawn blinds, casting shadows over the mess that had become his life. The faint sting of the smoke in his lungs was the only thing that cut through the haze left by the booze. It wasn't enough to numb the noise of his thoughts, but it was something. Caleb liked having something—anything—if only to remind him he still existed in a world where he barely felt real.
Growing up in the Jacobs family had taught him early that being *good* wasn't enough. You had to be perfect—Nate had figured that out long before Caleb did. Nate, his twin brother, who had turned from Caleb's partner in crime into his father's protégé. They were inseparable once, two halves of the same wild, adventurous soul. But that was before Nate learned to speak their father's language: control, power, manipulation.
Caleb could still remember the days when he and Nate were close—when everything was simple. Back when they were seven, they'd build forts out of blankets and play knights with plastic swords in their backyard, their mother watching from the kitchen window. Nate was always the leader, and Caleb didn't mind playing along. They were brothers; it was supposed to stay that way forever.
But it didn't.
When they turned ten, everything shifted. Nate started hanging out more with their father, Cal Jacobs. At first, Caleb didn't notice the change. But soon, Nate was echoing their father's words, falling into the same patterns. Suddenly, Nate had structure, discipline—everything Cal wanted in a son. And Caleb? Caleb became invisible. He watched as Nate slipped further into Cal's shadow, becoming the golden boy who could do no wrong. Caleb was left wondering what he had done to be cast aside.
There was one night that stood out the most. Caleb had pulled a harmless prank at school, a silly joke on the teacher that had gotten him detention. Cal, of course, didn't see the humor in it. He had sat Caleb down for a lecture that stretched on forever, his words cold and harsh, comparing Caleb to Nate as always.
Why can't you be more like your brother?" Cal had snapped, his tone as sharp as the slap that followed.
That was the day Caleb realized something: no matter what he did, no matter how hard he tried, he would never be Nate. "Fuck it,"Caleb had muttered under his breath when his father turned away, too disgusted to look at him. It was the first time he said it, and after that, it became a mantra. If they wanted him to be the black sheep, he'd show them what that really meant.
---
Present Day – East Highland High
Caleb strolled into school like he owned the place, his cigarette dangling from his lips despite the no-smoking policy. He thrived on that edge—on breaking the rules that kept everyone else in line. The hallway buzzed with whispers as students glanced his way. They were always watching, always waiting for him to do something. Trouble followed Caleb Jacobs like a shadow, and he let it. If everyone thought he was bad news, then why not give them a show?
