Two Sided

You're Kidding, Right?

It was all too strange; his words were vague, ambiguous even, and there was no telling what he meant by them. I mean, technically I could imagine: the two of us clamored on top of the kitchen table, his hands swiping off pieces of silverware while our bodies clashed together. But from the way he ruffled my head downstairs, that seemed more like a pipe dream than actuality. JJ's statement aligned more with the notion of an inevitable argument, his need to expostulate over the fact that I'd been impertinent towards the poor Pogue. And that just meant all the more reason to feel the festering pit in my stomach grow: I didn't exactly want to find myself in the midst of a quarrel after such an insufferable day surrounded by obnoxious Kooks. By dint of that reason, I wasn't sure if I even wanted to jump on his offer; honestly, staying at home instead of being complained at seemed like it was the best choice of action – but my god, if my imagination was correct ...

I shook my head, attempting to rid myself of any venereal thoughts that embedded themselves within the grooves of my brain as I pushed the wooden door open. But no matter how much whiplash I gave myself, the visions of JJ wouldn't leave me. It was like Sarah planted a seed inside my head the other day, allowing it to grow and thrive until I couldn't handle it anymore. I groaned in frustration, my back slamming against the door as the edges of my spine followed the splintered pattern until my knees found their way to my chest. I had to admit, it wasn't the best of positions to be in – but for some reason, it was the only thing that helped me breathe. The way my forehead rested against my legs, the way the ends of my hair shielded my eyes from the censored lights of the bathroom; it allowed everything in me to be at ease. There was no fear of vomiting, no fluttering of my stomach. It was just ... peaceful.

However, for some dumb reason, there wasn't enough tranquility in my body to erase the fantasies that circled around. I tried to suppress them, think about the horrors that would soon come to be with Topper babbling away about the sight of JJ and I – and truthfully, if anyone had seen my friend lean into my ear the way he just did, they were most definitely going to believe those rumors.

I let out an exhausted sigh, my brain continuously torn between wanting to make those bruit's reality or to stay as far away from JJ as possible to keep Rafe from opening his mouth due to the sight of amorous behavior. You know what? Maybe the best course of action was to stay here, hidden in the confines of the bathroom. In fact, I would've loved that. I could miss out on any potential falsities, any stupid conversations the elites decided to conjure up – but who was I to think that life would start going my way now?

A loud knock revibrated off the walls, forcing my head to shoot up from its previous spot. I opened my mouth, ready to respond to whoever was concealed behind the wall, but a small lump in my throat restrained me. It was as if I was too frightened to speak, too worried that the one person behind the door was none other than JJ himself ... or worse, Rafe. Yet, another knock soon followed suit; only this time, a voice went with it. "Isa? Are you in there?"

I furrowed my brows together, brushing stray strands of hair behind my ear while my back slowly worked itself up the wood. The voice behind the entrance was all too familiar – I guess that's why when I took away the separation between us, I wasn't all that surprised to see my mother suddenly face-to-face with me. "Mom? Why are you here?"

"Oh – I followed your dad here. Technically your father was supposed to be busy with some personal affairs, yet it seems that everyone he needed to meet ended up being here," I nodded at her quick response, understanding the notion that my dad had now opted to join the Cameron's party in an effort to further his discussion of business. It wasn't the most exciting of news, but still, something about it made the pit in my abdomen ache a little less. Perhaps it was the idea that, with my parents being here, Rafe wouldn't dare allow such an appalling rumor to spread ... right? "Sarah told us where you were when we passed by her, are you okay?"