I am Isabel (published)✔️

Chapter Ten Shirtless yummies

They were stiffly spread around my living room. I went to the kitchen with Jared and while I put the coffee on he started grabbing stuff for our breakfast. We worked like we always did. In silence, like a two parts of a whole. They watched but didn't speak. I kept glancing at the twins to figure out which was which and I figured it out when I caught the first one staring at me and blushing. I smiled taking a guess. "Morning, Jackson."
"How do you do that? Every. Damned. Time!?"

I shrugged and went to grab some mugs. "Anyone else?" They all nodded so I poured out six of the big mugs and started another pot before putting out the sugar and taking the milk from Jared. We both took ours black but the twins grabbed the milk and Mac added sugar as well as milk. Cough 'Wimps!' Cough. I giggled as I high fived Jared. We always took the piss out of people that didn't drink their coffee black. Cassie copped it regularly. I saw that the edge of a smile twitch on the corner of Derek's mouth. I quickly looked away.

"So you two, huh?" Mac asked. But we didn't get a chance to respond.
"Nope. Elliot was right. They aren't an item." Derek stated with confidence.

"Whatever, just let that go already! We want to know what the freaks happened yesterday." The twins said as one.

Jared just looked at me and after staring at each other a while I hopped on the counter and Jared stood in front of me. I put my arms around him and he grabbed my hands giving me a reassuring squeeze. We had decided yesterday. I had to make this believable.

"You guys know I, euh,... lost my mum, right?"
"Yeah?"

"Well, I, it's... when she died." I kept stammering and the tears that were on the rims of my eyes were real. I put my head in the crook of Jared neck. "You tell them."

"When she lost her mother she also lost her baby sister and she developed some anger issues."
"I remember that." I heard Derek say much to my surprise.

"Well. Her dad brought her to our dojo. She was in our classes. For a while anyway." I heard some mumbles from the twins about how they remembered me in their classes. Mac was then only one that was surprised as he had moved to our town later.

"Well, her dad pulled her out because her anger was getting worse and she used what she learned to beat some kids up one day. They put her in therapy. Sometimes she still has episodes, but usually it takes a trigger. Yesterday's trigger was being put on display, knowing she would lose."

"But she didn't lose." Max said happily.
"Because she lost her temper. That wasn't fighting that was survival instinct. Hers is to fight."

It wasn't the truth but it wasn't a lie. We'd just left out some major and important details, we'd changed some minor stuff and then I showed them an emotional girl. It worked.
I lifted my head and glared at the guys. "If any of this comes out at school, I'll come after you with my dad's gun and a blunt knife. That is not an empty threat, it is a promise!"

"Why not beat us up?" Derek smirked. "Let some of that anger out."
"The gun because," I smiled back sweetly. "I need you incapable of fighting back and the blunt knife to make sure you suffer. A lot."

"Holy shit, is it bad to admit that she is actually scaring me right now?" Mac asked sounding rather serious. They all agreed he was right to be scared.
"Good. Now that that is cleared there are a few other things to address." I said firmly. "You are still a bunch of idiots. I still don't want to hang out with you guys and the days for Jared don't change. He's mine Thursday, Friday and you all sit at the Jock table the whole week. You don't talk to me unless it is essential and maybe you could lay off on the before school harassments."

"I keep telling you sweet cheeks, a lot of girls would love to be in your place."
"And I keep telling you, Princess, I am not most girls."

"And that sweetheart, is why we like talking to you." The twins said with a grin.