Twintastrophe

Addison: Handle With Caution

Jack's outfit above!

A/N: I'm proud of you if you've made it this far! Thank you so much!

~

The week flew by in a blink of an eye. 

Jack was grounded and got detention for her actions, Betsie fell in love with Blythe at first sight and Blythe and I had become close enough to be sisters. Sooner than expected it was Friday and it was safe to say that Jack was not prepared. 

"I have nothing!" I ducked, nearly avoiding a red Timberland boot barrelling towards my head. Blythe looked up from where she lay on the floor, her loose, black plait skimming the open pages of A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab. 

"Compared to me, you have the world," she whispered. Blythe wasn't used to human interaction and often had little snide remarks to anything people said. Jack found them, albeit worrying, oddly amusing so I never bothered to call her out on them. Standing up, Blythe strolled over and placed a hand on Jack's tense shoulder. "Calm down chica," Blythe liked tapping into her Spanish roots whenever she could. She claimed that it reminded her of home. "I can help. But first I need to know who the boy is."

Glancing off to the side, Jack uttered out Keith's name. Snickering, I tuned my guitar, strumming the strings. "KEITH ABATE?!" Groaning at  Blythe's shock, Jack flopped down on her bed. 

"I can't do this," she announced, "He probably doesn't even want to hang out with me after what I did to that Chloe girl."

"Rebecca," Blythe was quick to correct. A blur out of the corner of my eye caught my attention, and I swiveled around, narrowing my eyes out Jack's window. Jack's phone buzzed, distracting me from the window.

Keith: Is it okay if I pick you up in five?

"He's going to be here in five minutes," I told them, texting a positive reply back.

"If you are going on a date with the football captain, baseball star, pre-Acormabercrombie and Fitch model, you are going to need a lot more than my help," Blythe sighed, shuffling through the clothes on the floor with her stocking-clad foot. "Here!" She tossed a neon Aztec pink, high-waisted, skater skirt at Jack who caught it with one hand. When Jack didn't budge, Blythe clapped her hands loudly. "Move chica estúpida!" 

Forty minutes later, my sister looked naturally stunning. Her blonde hair was curled at the ends and put into a low ponytail. Glittery gold eyeshadow made her brown eyes pop and coral pink lip gloss decorated her lips. A long, flowy white shirt was tucked into the waist of the skirt and black sneaker wedges adorned her feet. To make the outfit more Jack-y, (you see what I did there?) she wore Titus' old, black, zip-up hoodie, with the sleeves pushed up to her elbows.

"You. Look. Smoking!" Blythe wiped her hands off on her sweatshirt, triumphantly admiring her work. 

Wringing her hands together and gnawing on her glossed lip, Jack's eyes darted over to me for confirmation. Releasing my guitar, I gave her two thumbs, catching the guitar before it tumbled out of my lap. This time, instead of a blur, I heard a tapping on the window. Placing the guitar done on Jack's bed, I crawled over to the window, wrenching it open and popping my head out.

"What are you doing Addison?" Jack questioned, causing me to jolt upwards, bumping my head on the window.

Wincing, I rubbed the spot, safely ducking back into the room. "Nothing," I spoke, cursing softly. I looked back once at the window, watching the sun sink, turning the sky an orange color that was bleeding into a midnight blue. The doorbell rung, shocking me out of my paranoia. Blythe and I beamed at the worried expression that Jack tried (and failed) desperately to mask. 

"You'll be fine," I assured, walking over, to her and clapping her on the back. She stumbled forward, flailing her arms around to regain her balance. Shooting me a quick glare, she ran down the steps, Blythe and I trailing behind her.

Betsie was talking cheerfully up at a figure that took up our entire doorway. His brown hair was tousled carelessly, his eyes had settled on blue and he wore an affectionate smile as he stared down at Betsie.  Clad in a white, button-up, baseball jersey, loose black skinny jeans, and red, high-top Adidas, Keith lived up to his title as the hottest boy in school, only outranked by Leonardo.

Apparently, that boy was in a league of his own. 

Not that I could disagree.

Blythe's phone pinged in her pocket and her face paled when she read the screen. "I should be leaving," she said quickly, rushing to the door before I could stop her. 

"Betsie!" Jack jumped in front of Betsie, her face flushed. "Keith and I are already late. He does not need to see baby pictures of Addi and me." 

I started at the nickname and cursing, Jack realized her mistake as well. "Sorry Addison, it just-"

Shaking my head, I managed a weak smile, scratching the back of my neck. "Um...it's okay," I swallowed the taste of fear in my mouth. Giving Keith a sheepish half-wave, I bolted up the stairs, darted into my bedroom and slammed the door shut behind me. My chest rose and fall rapidly as I struggled to get air into my collapsing lungs. 

Tears pricked the corners of my eyes while I struggled to get air, strange hacking noises spilling from my throat. A burning hand wrapped around my waist and guided my body to the ajar window.

"Focus on my heartbeat."

Leonardo. 

Leaning my head back into his chest, I let my eyes slid close. My fingers clenched and unclenched in time with his heart. Eventually, it became natural to take a breath and I sagged against his body. Quicker than I could comprehend, I was spun around so that I was met with a rock hard chest. 

"Leonardo," I muttered, focusing on the amber depths that were his eyes. 

He thumped a fist softly against my temple. "Just call me Leo, stupid Blondie." Something like a smile decorated his face before his familiar scowl overtook it. "What the fuck was that all about?" Shoving him away from me, I ducked my head down so that he could see the humiliation painted on my face like a flag.

"Nothing," I answered, sitting down at the musical keyboard pushed into the bottom left corner of my room. My fingers danced over the keys, never pushing them down to sound. 

A growl came from the walking sex god still present in my room. "Don't give me that bullshit," he barked, approaching me. 

The images violently burst into my head at his words and I shot up, away from him. "You broke my heart, ruined my life, made me cry every single night! Aren't you proud of yourself?! WHAT MORE DO YOU WANT FROM ME?!" I bellowed. The tears streaming down my face, blurring my sight but I could see the impact of my words as Leo's brows furrowed. 

"Who are you talking to?" He whispered, taking another step forward. He froze in his pursuit as a knock was heard. 

"Addison, darling, all you alright?" Hearing the concern in her voice made me feel ashamed of my actions. 

Clearing my throats, I choked the words out, "I'm fine Betsie." 

There was a lengthy pause as I waited for Betsie to respond. "Okay, sweetie. Call me if you need anything." Another pause as she considered whether or not to say it. 

Please don't.

Please don't.

"Feel free to come into my room if Blake calls you again." 

As her footsteps faded away, I could feel Leo's penetrating stare on the top of my head. "Blake," he announced and my heart sank to my stomach. "Who the fuck is Blake?" 

If possible, I would've run past him and leap out of my window. "No one," I answered, not shocked by the darkness interlaced into my words. He did that to me. He created Addi. 

"He may as well be dead."