𝐈𝐍𝐒𝐄𝐏A𝐑𝐀𝐁𝐋𝐄, jp

Challenges.

Leaving her bedroom was a hard enough task for Isabella, but something had clicked in her head, and she was determined to convince her parents that she didn't need to see a shrink.

The morning after the New Years Eve party was the hardest, and Izzy found that she couldn't leave her bed until lunch time, but that was still somewhat an achievement in her eyes.

She showered and cleaned herself up, wrapping herself up in warm clothes before heading downstairs, straight to the front door.

"Where're you going?" Lyall called from the living room, and Izzy closed her eyes, taking a deep breath.

"Out," she called back, grabbing her keys.

"Izzy, come here," he said, and she groaned. He wanted her to go out more, why couldn't she just leave? "Where are you going?"

"To see Jess at the café."

"And have you eaten breakfast? Lunch?"

Izzy paused, looking at her father quizzically. "I'm going to a café, dad, where they sell food?"

"Okay," he hummed. "I expect you back by dinner time. Your mother and I are going to make a roast dinner, so make sure you're home for it."

Izzy didn't reply to her dad's comment. She just nodded, yanked the front door open, and stepped outside. The cold hit her like a wall, and for a moment, she just stood there, her breath fogging in the air. The dull ache in her chest hadn't gone away, not really, but she had promised herself that if she could do something, anything, each day, it'd keep her parents happy, and maybe she'd feel even a fraction of normal again.

She shoved her hands into the pockets of her coat and began walking, her boots crunching in the slush left over from last night's frost. The streets were quiet, still shaking off the hangover of New Year's. Christmas lights clung to windows, some flickering half-heartedly, others already unplugged.

As she walked, her mind wandered.

The party had been surprisingly okay. Good, even. She kept replaying that midnight kiss in her head like it was a memory from another lifetime— James' warm arms around her, the fireworks bursting overhead, the gentle way he'd kissed her like she was fragile glass he didn't want to break.

It was the first time in weeks that she hadn't felt like she was disappearing. It was the first time in weeks she'd actually felt something. She had James to thank, of course. Somehow, she always did. It made her feel guilty for all of the times she'd ignored her, but she promised herself she'd do better, things would get better, she was sure of it.

She had still woken with that familiar heaviness in her limbs, the dread pressing on her ribs, the burning guilt about the marks on her arms and the lies she told every time she said "I'm fine." Still, she had forced herself to get up. Shower. Get dressed. Leave the house. And now she was almost at the café.

Jess was already inside when Izzy reached the little cafe on the corner, its front windows fogged with condensation and twinkling fairy lights around the doorway. She saw Jess through the glass, working hard as she served customers.

Izzy wondered if she even remembered her. They hadn't seen one another since the summer, she usually saw her every day when she was home from school.

The familiar bell jingled as Izzy stepped inside.

Jess looked up and her eyes widened. She quickly rushed over to Isabella, abandoning the customer she had been serving, and pulled her into a tight hug. "You're here," she said like it was a miracle. "Oh Izzy! You bitch! I thought you'd died or something! I thought that the new Scottish school had kidnapped you for good! Where have you been!?"