𝐋𝐀𝐘𝐋𝐀 𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐒 𝐇𝐄𝐑 𝐁𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐊𝐅𝐀𝐒𝐓 𝐀𝐒 𝐇𝐄𝐑 𝐌𝐎𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑 prepares her father's lunch. Thea was in her room getting ready for the day. Today was the day that Mark would be making an appearance. Layla hasn't told her parents yet, and neither has Thea. It looks like they'll find out about Mark when he gets here.
The girl leans over to her father just when the bell rings. The three in the kitchen looks up when they hear Thea's loud footsteps from upstairs. Her footsteps get louder as she runs down the stairs towards the door.
“Who is at the door that she is so excited to see?” Thomas asks, looking at his daughter. “Your worst nightmare, dad,” Layla tells her dad.
The door opens and Thea let's out a loud scream, and Layla sighs, knowing that it was Mark. Thea really gave him their address.
Layla stands up, and her parents follows her to the front door. Layla stops in her tracks when she sees Thea and Mark making out at the front door.
“Thea!”
The redhead pulls away from her boyfriend before she looks at the three.
“Hey Mr. and Mrs Paxton. Hey, Layla,” Mark greets. Thomas looks at his wife before he looks at his daughter. “What is Mark doing here?”
“Oh, I forgot to tell you that he was coming. He came to visit me,” Thea tells her parents. “He came all the way from Michigan to come see you?”
“Yes,” Thea says, hugging her boyfriend.
Nina stares at her daughter, and she shakes her head. She had really thought they had gotten rid of Mark, but unfortunately, it seems they haven't.
“Mark, where will you be staying?” Nina asks, wanting to make sure her daughter didn't plan for him to stay in their house. She can't kick him out of town, buts he for sure can kick him out of this house before he even sets foot inside.
“Oh, I got myself an apartment in town,” Mark informs her.
“An apartment? How long will you be staying?” Nina asks the boy. “Just until Thea graduates.”
Layla's eyes almost bulges out of her eye sockets. That's almost five months. She has to keep seeing his face for five more months.
“What did I tell you, dad? Your worst nightmare,” Layla says before she makes her way back to the kitchen to finish her breakfast. She needed to get to school.
▷▷▷
“So, he actually came?”
“Yes. I now have to keep seeing his face for five more months. I thought I had gotten rid of him,” Layla rants to Starr as they wait for Mr. Evans to arrive. Thea didn't come to school because she wanted to spend the day with her boyfriend.
“Is he really that bad?”
“He's a manipulator, and he's so fucking toxic,” Layla tells Starr. “But because my sister is just as toxic as him, they fit each other so well,” she adds.
“Have you tried talking to her?”
Layla chuckles, shaking her head, “No use in that. My mom and I both tried, but she doesn't listen.”
“Stubbornness.”
Layla runs her hand through her hair. “Yeah, but the thing that makes me so mad is the fact that when they fight, he cheats on her, and she knows it, but she doesn't leave his ass. She's in far too deep,” Layla tells Starr. “Sorry for ranting. I just needed to get that off my chest.”
“Nah, it's okay. I'd rather listen to other people's problems than talk about my own,” Starr says. She knows running away from her problems never works because it always catches up with her, but for now, she'll just keep running away from it.
The bell rings just when Mr. Evans enters the classroom. Starr goes back to her seat beside Stiles. “Good morning everyone. How are you all today?”
“Good.”
Layla glances at the empty seat beside hers. Where is Scott today?
“I hope you'll still be feeling good after tonight,” Mr. Evans says, looking at the class. “You all remember that tonight is parent-teacher conference, right?”
The class groans. “Yes, tonight I'll be talking to your parents, and you all know I'll be telling them everything,” Mr. Evans says. “Also, you do remember that if you're under a C, you have to come with your parents, right? It applies to Mr. McCall.”
Layla looks over at the empty seat beside her. “Where's Mr. McCall?” Mr. Evans questions, looking at Layla. “I don't know.”
Mr. Evans looks over at Stiles, and he asks, “Does anyone know where Mr. McCall is?”
“Mr. Stilinski? Ms Carson?”
“We don't know, sir,” Starr tells the man. “When you see him, please remind him of that.”
“Okay.”
“Let us begin, then.”
.
“Do you two know where Scott is?” Layla asks Starr and Stiles after they exit their Biology class.
“I know he came to school because we saw each other this morning, but he just disappeared,” Starr tells her friend. They were supposed to meet later today to study. She had told him it would be urgent that he makes it.
“Why? Do you two have to meet again?”
“Yeah.”
“Don't worry, I'm sure he'll make it.”
▷▷▷
Layla looks through her phone for Scott's number before she calls him. It was the end of the school day, and he still hasn't appeared. Almost all the teachers were looking for him because he had to be at the parent-teacher conference tonight.
His phone is off.
Layla looks around the library at the few students here. The redhead sighs, deciding to finish her homework here and just head home because it doesn't seem like Scott is going to make it.
She had told him it was urgent, but it looks like he forgot about it.
After she's done, she heads home. She wasn't actually excited to get home because she knew Mark was there.
Layla's phone rings when she parks in their driveway. It was Starr.
“Hey, did he make it?”
“Nope. It seems like he just disappeared,” Layla says, climbing out of the car. “Well, I just heard Allison didn't make it to class either. I'm guessing they are together.”
“Did they skip school?”
“It looks like it. I also heard it's her birthday,” Starr says, and Layla sighs. He skipped school to spend the day with her. It does seem like a fun birthday present.
“I do hope they enjoyed it, but he's going to be in so much trouble. Apparently he was supposed to write a test today for History,” Layla says, walking towards the front door.
“Why don't you just set him straight tonight,” Starr suggests.
“Tonight? I'm not going to the parent-teacher conference.”
“Make sure you do. I'm going because Paisley asked me to go. I also want to give him a piece of my mind,” Starr says. Layla chuckles and she enters the house. Her smile drops when she sees a shirtless Mark standing at the stairs with a tub of ice cream.
“Gross. Put on a shirt.”
Thea comes out of the kitchen, thankfully she was fully clothed. “Hey Layla. I didn't know you'd be back so soon.”
“Hey, what's going on?” Starr asks over the phone.
“Starr, I'll talk to you later.” She hangs up as she glares at the couple.
“Well, Scott didn't show up. Why are you guys here and not at his apartment?” Layla questions, closing the door behind her. “I had some homework to do, so we decided to just hang out here.”
Layla nods as she makes her way to the kitchen. “I'm going with mom and dad to the parent-teacher conference,” Layla informs Thea, who follows her into the kitchen.
“Okay. I'll probably stay over at his apartment.”
Layla raises her brow. Their parents will never allow that. “Dad won't ever allow that.”
“He can't stop me.”
“Yes, he can. Thea, you're a high schooler and Mark is twenty-one. Dad will not allow it.”
“I'm nineteen, Layla. I'm practically an adult already,” Thea says. She's nineteen, but she acts like a rebellious fifteen-year-old. “A nineteen-year-old high schooler who still lives under her parents' roof. . .yeah, no, he's still not going to allow you to sleep over at Mark's.”
Thea rolls her eyes. “Whatever.”
The redhead grabs a bottle of water out of the fridge before drinking it. “I'm going up to my room to study. Please be quiet, okay?”
The girl exits the kitchen, giving Mark a side eye before making her way to her room.
▷▷▷
The evening came, and they were on their way to school. Thea has sneaked off to Mark's apartment before their parents came home. Layla has not told them where she was because she's pretty sure they know where she is, but they don't know she's planning to stay over at his place. Her dad will blow a gasket when he finds out.
“I hope to hear only good things tonight,” Thomas says while subtly looking at his daughter through the mirror.
Layla glances up, and she smiles, “I'm a very diligent and good student. The teachers don't have a problem with me. It's Thea you have to worry about.”
“What? Why? What's going on with Thea?” Nina asks concerned. Thea had never had a problem with her teachers, so she's worried Thea might be causing trouble because she's still not happy because of their move.
Layla chuckles, shaking her head, “Nothing. I was just joking.”
Nina let's out a sigh. “I've been worried that your sister would be causing trouble,” Nina whispers. “Thea may be moody and rebellious, but I'm pretty sure she is serious about her schoolwork. Mom, don't worry so much.”
Thomas looks at his wife with a smirk. “You should stop worrying so much.”
“How can I not? We're barely home during the week, and I fear that may be—”
“Mom, this is your first full-time job after three years. I know you're worried about us, but I promise you, we're okay,” Layla says. Nina looks at her daughter and she nods.
They drive in to the parking lot. The parking lot was full of cars and parents.
“Will you wait inside the car?” Nina asks her daughter as they exit the car. “No, I'm going to go find Starr. . .there she is,” Layla says, pointing to the girl standing at the steps with headphones.
“Okay.”
Layla walks over to the girl, and she luckily sees her just in time. “So, Paisley is not here, yet?” Layla asks Starr. The girl looks back at the door. “She just went in with her parents. She'll probably be back in a few minutes.” Layla sighs, sitting down on one of the steps. “What are you listening to?”
“Just the radio. I don't have any songs, so I'm listening to the radio.” Starr sits down beside the girl. She gives Layla one of the earpieces and the two sits and listens to the radio on the steps waiting.
***
“Let me tell you, there's plenty to say about Layla and Thea,” Mr. Evans says looking at Nina and Thomas who are seated in front of him.
“Good things? I hope it's good things,” Nina says. Thea has been very difficult since they moved, so she is a bit afraid Thea might be causing some problems.
“Academically, both of them are two of the finest students I've ever had. They are three years apart, right?” Mr. Evans questions the parents. “Yes. Thea was held back a year in middle school after she fell ill,” Nina explains.
“I was wondering about that because her IQ test was really high,” Mr. Evans tells them.
“I would actually like to have Layla's I.Q. tested as well. She had so far scored 100% in all her tests,” Mr. Evans says. Nina smiles proudly, grateful that her daughters are doing better than she expected.
“Both our girls love reading. They got it from their mother, seeing as almost everyone on her side are geniuses,” Thomas tells the teacher. Nina smiles at her husband. It wasn't a lie.
“Yes, they are really brilliant. They both show great social skills, especially Thea. I don't have any problems with them at all,” Mr. Evans tells the two. “Only Thea is a bit distant during some of her classes.”
“Yes, I had figured. She was not happy about the move, so she might be a bit distant.”
Mr. Evans nods, giving the two parents a smile.
“I do hope she feels better,”Mr. Evans tells them. Thomas frowns, staring at the teacher. “She wasn't in class today. I had thought maybe she was sick.”
Thomas looks at his wife and he already knew. Having Mark here in Beacon Hills will affect Thea more. He doesn't want his daughter to slip into old habits of missing school, disappearing from the house for days. He thought he had gotten rid of that boy.
The man sighs and turns to Mr. Evans, “She didn't inform us she wasn't feeling well, but we'll be sure to check up on her when we get home.”
Nina looks at her husband with a worried look.
* * *
“What do you think is being said about us in there?” Layla questions.
“Your parents will probably be with Mr. Evans, and he will most likely talk about how great of a student you are. You know you are his favorite student, right?” Starr says and Layla shrugs. “Favourite? I don't think so.”
Starr rubs her hands together. “Mr. Evans admires students who actually do his work. He thinks kids don't take him seriously because he is only twenty-three.”
“He is pretty young for a teacher,” Layla says. “He's actually the swimming coach but because our teacher is on sick leave, he is filling in for her, and I'm so happy he is because that woman was everyone's nightmare,” Starr says jokingly. “She can't be that bad.”
“We couldn't talk in her class, and we couldn't do group work unless it was assigned to you. She's just like Mr. Harris, they both hate students.”
“Then why did they become teachers?”
“Only they will know.”
The door behind them opens and the two looks back to Paisley exiting the school. Her smile fades when she sees Layla beside Starr on the steps. They two of them were sitting too close to each other. Starr didn't notice, but Layla certainly did, which made her move away from Starr. One thing the girl didn't want to do was to cause a fight between the couple.
“Hey babe. Are you done, already?” Starr asks the blonde. Paisley squeezes into the small space between them. “Yeah, my parents are still inside speaking with the teacher.”
Paisley looks at the redhead and she smiles. “Hey Layla. I didn't think you'd be here. You don't seem like someone who can get a D in any subject,” Paisley says. “I invited her because I didn't want to wait for you here alone.”
Paisley looks at her girlfriend, and she raises her brow. “Why? I said I'd be back in a few minutes, though.”
“Babe, you were in there for an hour, and I wasn't about to wait that long.”
Layla looks at the entrance of the school. Her parents better come out so they can leave. The doors opens and Layla sees the parents starting to exit the school. It seemed most of them were done. “Looks like they're done.”
A woman exits the school with her phone in hand. Her eyes fall on the three girls, and she sighs, walking over to them. “Starr, do you perhaps know where Scott is?” the woman asks. Layla guessed that it was his mom. “I haven't seen him.”
“When I find this boy. . .” she mumbles, going through her phone to probably call him.
“Scott, you need to call me immediately.”
Layla looks at the woman. So, Scott had really ditched school without telling anyone, and not even his mom knows about it.
“Allison, answering your cell phone will make discussing the terms of your grounding much easier. Well, call me back before your punishment reaches biblical proportions.” Layla looks back when she hears Allison's name. It looks like they were Allison's parents.
Paisley frowns and she looks at her girlfriend. “Wait, did Scott and Allison both ditch school today?” the blonde asks. “It seems like it, but now they are both going to be grounded it seems.”
Melissa walks over to the two parents. “Excuse me, you're not Allison's parents, are you? I'm Scott's mom, and I hate to say it, but he's not answering his phone either,” Melissa tells the two of them.
“You're his mother?” Mr. Argent asks her. “Funny how you say that like it's an accusation,” Melissa says with a scoff at the end.
“Well, I wouldn't claim it as a source of pride, since he basically kidnapped my daughter today,” Mr. Argent accuses her. Layla's eyes widen, and she looks back at the two girls just when her eyes falls on a certain couple exiting a car.
“How do we know skipping school wasn't your daughter's idea?” Melissa asks him.
Layla sighs, “So, they finally decided to show up.”
“My daughter—” he gets cut off by a car door closing. He sees Allison walking towards them with Scott in tow. Mrs Argent sighs heavily. “—is right there.”
The Argents walk right after Melissa towards the two teenagers. “Where exactly have you been?” Melissa asks her son.
“This is getting good,” Starr mumbles under her breath.
“Nowhere, Mom,” Scott says, glancing at the girl beside him. “Nowhere, meaning not at school?” Melissa asks him. “Kind of.”
“It's not his fault. I didn't want to be here today, and we thought that—” Allison gets interrupted by a feminine voice.
“Allison. Get in the car,” Mrs Argent orders her daughter.
A girl screams, causing them all to look where the scream came from. Layla and Starr jumps up from their positions. They hear indistinct yelling and the girl screams again.
Starr looks at Layla and the two girls walks around the cars to see what is going on. Starr walks towards where her uncle was with Layla in tow, while Paisley had run back to her parents. Layla stops when she hears growling. She turns her head before looking around to see where Starr was. The girl just disappeared. Layla slowly starts to back up as her heart beat rises. The girl turns just when a car horn goes off.
“Layla!” Scott yells out when he sees the car speeding towards her. Layla's eyes widen when she sees the headlights driving towards her. She was about to jump out of the way, but her body gets pushed to the ground by another body. “Ow.”
Layla opens her eyes to see Scott's face far too close to hers. “Are you okay?” She raises her brows staring at the boy not understanding why he was still on top of her. “Are you okay?” Scott asks her again. “Uh, yeah. . .”
“Good.”
He stares at her, and she gives him a smile. “Scott! Layla! Are you? . .” Allison stops beside him, and she frowns when she sees their positions. Scott quickly gets off her and helps her up. “Are you two okay?” Allison questions, pushing what she just saw to the back of her head.
“Yeah.”
“Move! Move!” Stilinski tells the people. A car keeps on honking. Stilinski goes behind the car when it pulls out and hits him on the side. “Uncle Noah!” Starr screams. Layla immediately runs over to Starr and the sheriff.
The tire screeches as a girl screams again.
“I'm okay,” he tells his niece. He stands up thanks to Starr. “Mr. Stilinski, are you okay?” Layla questions.
“I'm okay.” Stilinski takes out his gun, and he walks over to where the girl's screaming came from.
Gunshots go off and Layla looks at her friend. “Oh, my God.”
“Layla!” The redhead turns to see her parents running towards her, worried looks on their faces.
“Are you okay?” Nina asks her daughter, pulling her into a hug. “I'm okay.”
Nina looks at Starr. “Are you okay?” she asks the girls.
“Yes I am.” Nina nods and Thomas hugs his daughter.
“What is going on? What was that scream and that gunshot now?” Thomas questions.
“I don't know.”
They look around to see everyone moving to see what was shot at. Layla and Starr follows them to see, and their eyes widen when they see the dead cougar on the ground. The growling she heard was really a cougar?