She's looking at me. Oh my god, she's looking at me. I want to look away but I mean she's looking at me. Why does she keep staring at me? Is she planning on how to murder me? Or maybe there's just something on my face ... Come on, just stop looking at me please.
"Angela's looking at you," Lauren whispered into my ear.
"Uhu." I was very well aware of that.
"Oh shit, she's coming for you," Kylie mumbled under her breath.
"Let's run," Sophie suggested.
But I couldn't move, I was nailed to the ground as I watched Angela taking steady steps towards us. I hated how she could put this mask on, hiding her thoughts, her true intentions. Is she going to punch me or hug me? I couldn't tell. I could never tell with Angela.
"Girls," she greeted but her eyes were fixed on me. "Jade."
I gulped. "Angela."
She brushed some hair out of her face and I noticed that she had a haircut. It suited her but I wasn't going to say that to her face.
"It's good to be back," she said.
"It's good to have you back ... ?" Oh man, I'm the worst liar ever.
Angela suddenly dropped her backpack and I tensed up. Even the girls behind me took a step back.
Angela looked at us, an amused smile breaking on her face. "Relax, you chickens."
We watched her like a hawk as she fumbled in her bag, taking out a small little box.
"This is for you," she said, handing it to me.
I eyed the box skeptically.
Lauren's hair tickled my cheek as she whispered in my ear again. "Don't take it, remember your lunch box last year?"
Oh I will never forget that. Angela thought it was funny to steal my lunchbox, throw away my lunch and replace it with a bunch of cockroaches. It was safe to say that I almost died of a heart attack. I never asked where she got those cockroaches, I think it's best if we don't know.
Angela rolled her eyes as she opened the box. "It's just cupcakes, jeez."
"Oh, thanks."
When I still didn't accept the box, she shoved it into my hands. "It's a peace offering, you know, after I almost broke your nose."
Oh yeah, I remember that.
"You look better though, so no hard feelings?"
I shook my head. "I already told you, Angela. I don't wanna be friends anymore."
She clenched her teeth and I thought she was gonna explode, but to my surprise she actually managed to stay calm. Wow, those therapy sessions payed off.
Angela shouldered her backpack. "That's alright, it's not like I can force you or anything. I know you never eat but at least try one cupcake. See ya!"
Oh Angela wouldn't be Angela if she didn't insult me at least once.
"These look actually really good," Sophie said, reaching for a cupcake.
Kylie smacked her hand away. "They could be poisoned, you idiot!"
Sophie looked sad. "But it's chocolate."
Kylie put a hand on her shoulder. "You need to lay off the sugar, Soph. Remember that dress you bought, it almost fits you, just a couple more pounds."
She straightened herself. "You're right."
Poor Sophie.
"You okay?" Lauren asked me. I was so glad she was my best friend.
I nodded. "Yeah, it wasn't too bad right? I mean we're all still breathing."
Lauren chuckled. "C'mon let's get to class before Mr. Kavanagh chews us out for being late again."
I ended up throwing away the box of cupcakes. If Angela was really my friend, she would've known that I was an ice-cream girl. Luckily she didn't bother us throughout the rest of the day. She even sat at another table at lunch and she never once sat next to me in class. It was great, let's just hope it stays that way.
FADED
After school, I perched myself on one of the front steps at the entrance of the school. I was waiting for Noah who was still at practice. I was lost in my own thoughts, playing with my hair when a pair of long legs suddenly appeared in front of me.
"Hey Jade!"
I looked up, squinting my eyes from the sun. Oh crap, Penny. I almost forgot about her.
She took a seat next to me. "How was school today? I heard Angela's back, I hope she hasn't given you any trouble."
"Uhm, Angela didn't bother me so today was great." Until you decided to ruin it.
"That's good." She paused and I started feeling awkward until she opened her mouth again, "Aren't you gonna ask how my first day went?"
"Oh right, so how was your first day?" Not that I care.
She beamed. "It was great! Everyone was really nice to me today. I always thought kids were little jerks but you guys are not so bad."
If this was her attempt at making a joke, it sucked.
"Don't cheer too soon, wait till Thursday."
She frowned. "Aren't you in my class Thursday."
"Yeah, and Angela too."
"Oh boy," she breathed out heavily. "So who's picking you up today?"
"Jordan."
"I can drop you off too, if you want," she proposed.
I rolled my eyes. "Penny, just stop trying please."
She cocked an eyebrow. "Excuse me?"
"Stop trying to be nice, stop trying to be the perfect future sister-in-law."
"What the hell are you talking about?"
I jumped to my feet, no longer wanting to be in her presence. "Are you trying to take Tristan away from us?"
She laughed, confused. "Jade, I love your brother."
"You got a strange way of showing it."
"Okay, what is this about 'cause I'm lost here."
"You know damn well what I'm talking about," I forced through gritted teeth. "Ashton told me."
Her face fell and I swore I would've laughed if this was funny, but it wasn't.
"Hear me out, I made a mistake - "
"Mistakes, as in plural," I corrected her. "And this isn't even a mistake, you don't make the same mistake more than once except if you're really stupid. Are you stupid, Penny?"
She stood up, fixing me with the same glare. "Hey, what gives you the right to talk to me like that?"
I straightened my back, meeting her fierce eyes full on. I wasn't scared of her. "You cheated on my brother, Penny. Multiple times."
She blinked, her face hard. "I wasn't in the right state of mind, I had things to deal with and I needed something to distract me."
"Aww, what happened to poor ol' Penny? Did you break your nail, did you gain some weight? Or no wait, is it because Ashton turned you down, or didn't you like it when Tristan preferred to spend some time with his little sister instead of his girlfriend."
Penny's mouth dropped, shocked. "You little bitch."
"Careful now, Penny, we're still on school ground. You don't wanna get fired on your first day for calling a student a bitch."
She scoffed. "You have no idea what you're talking about. You don't know me."
"I don't wanna get to know you, I already know enough," I shot back. "I didn't like you since the day Tristan introduced you to us. There's something off with you - first you're the nicest girlfriend on earth, then your ugly side started to show. You liked me, then you didn't, and then you pretended to like me to please Tristan - make up your mind already, it's confusing Penny. But I guess that's what you do, you love messing with people's feelings."
"This isn't about you, Jade," she snapped. "I never chose to spend the rest of my life with you, I'm in love with Tristan. And guess what? He loves me too."
"Let's see if he'll still love you after finding out what you did."
"You think he's gonna believe you?" She snorted. "Ashton tried before but Tristan trusts me, Jade. And who said I'm gonna do it again?"
"Cause that's what you do, Penny. You lie, you betray people, you're so used to have everyone at your back and call, you think you can get away with anything."
"I've changed, Jade," she pressed.
"Yeah right."
Penny grabbed her stuff and started to leave. "You know, I underestimated you. You're not the girl I thought you were. You've changed too."
I drew a fake smile on my face. "Nah, I didn't change, I just realized shit."
She laughed but it didn't meet her eyes. "You're not gonna win this, Jade."
"Watch me."
The minute she left, I suddenly became aware of my heart pounding against my chest. What was that? I didn't mean to lash out like that - I just wanted to put her in her place but as soon as my mouth opened, I couldn't stop the rest of my thoughts from coming out.
I dropped myself on the steps, burying my head in my hands. "Stupid, Jade!" I muttered under my breath. I screwed up - it wouldn't be long before she'd tell Tristan everything, and knowing Penny, she won't hesitate to exaggerate every word I said. Why couldn't I just shut my mouth!
"Jade!"
I looked up to see Noah walking towards me, hand in hand with Stella.
I tucked some hair behind my ear, composing myself. I fetched my bag as I stood up but making a point of not meeting their eyes. Noah had this gift where he could always see right through me, he said I was an open book.
"You ready?" he asked.
I just nodded, starting to walk ahead.
Noah kissed Stella goodbye and they exchanged a few words before kissing again. It wasn't long before Noah was catching up with me. He nudged me with his shoulder.
"Hey, I didn't see you all day. How was school?"
I shrugged. "Fine."
"You don't look fine," he pointed out as he swung an arm around my shoulder. "What happened? Was it Angela?"
I bit the inside of my cheek, the longer I thought about the things I said to Penny, the worse I felt about it.
"Jade," he pushed.
I let out a shaky breath. "I think Tristan's gonna hate me."
"What? Why would he hate you, that guy worships the ground you walk on."
"I said some things, horrible things."
Noah frowned. "Wait, when did you even talk to Tristan?"
I sighed. "Not Tristan ... Penny."
Realization flickered through his eyes. "Oh right, she works here now. Wow, Jade! She's been here for only a day and you guys already had a brawl."
"More like a difference of opinion." I looked down at my feet, kicking a tiny rock. "She's just, ugh! She's such a bitch!"
Noah chuckled, squeezing my shoulder. "I hope you didn't call her a bitch in her face."
"I wish. Actually, she's the one that called me a bitch."
"Whoa!" Noah stopped dead in his tracks, his face suddenly clear of any amusement. "She called you a bitch? And you're scared Tristan will hate you?"
I should've just shut my mouth about this.
"It's not like that, Noah. I kinda had it coming, I mean after the things I said."
"So?" He shoved his hand in his pocket and grabbed his phone. "We need to tell Tristan about this - "
"No!" I took away his phone, hiding it in my own pocket.
"Jade, what the hell. She calls you a bitch, I don't care what you've said to her, you don't call a twelve year old girl a bitch. Especially if said girl is the baby sister of her future husband. And let's not forget that we're talking about a grown ass woman who should know better than calling you a bitch."
"I'm not a baby."
"Really? That's the only thing you heard." Noah looked unimpressed. "Give me back my phone, Jade."
I turned away from him when he reached for my pocket. "Promise me you won't tell Tristan."
He groaned, annoyed. "What do you think he'll do when he finds out, huh?"
"He'll hate me! He'll never talk to me again," I cried.
Confusion flashed over his face. "Penny called you a bitch, why would Tristan decide to hate you?!"
"Don't you get it, Noah!" I stomped my foot in frustration. "Tristan is not the Tristan we know anymore. It's like she has hypnotized him or something and he's so blind to everything happening around him. I mean for god's sake, he wants to marry her. Her! And he knows damn well that we're not exactly happy about it but it's not like he cares. The Tristan we know always cared about us. And now he's putting her first and she doesn't even deserve him."
Noah let out a heavy sigh as he looked up at the grey sky. "Listen, I don't like her either, I don't necessarily hate her, but I mean if she decides to leave forever I definitely won't miss her." He nervously scratched the back of his neck. "But what if she's not that bad. What if the Penny Tristan fell in love with isn't the same Penny we know."
"Both versions are horrible, Noah! She's a compulsive liar, a manipulative bitch and a psychopath."
He tilted his head to the side, his eyes softening. "Jade, aren't you exaggerating just a tiny little bit - "
I stepped closer to him, staring back at him. "Noah, trust me, she doesn't have one good fiber in her body."
"What do you mean?"
"Nothing." I didn't want to tell him about Penny cheating on Tristan, he didn't need to know that. Also I promised Ashton I wouldn't tell anyone. I just hoped that Penny would stick to her loyalty and prove us wrong.
I started walking again when I felt Noah's hand searching my pocket, and I pulled away.
"C'mon, Jade, I need my phone."
"You still didn't promise me," I reminded him.
He rolled his eyes. "Fine, I won't tell Tristan."
I took his phone but hid it beneath my shirt instead. "Now say it like you mean it."
"Are you fucking kidding me right now?" When he saw I wasn't giving in, he tried to take matters in his own hands.
I let out a surprised squeal when he sneaked his hand inside my coat.
"Hey!" I protested. "You won't get it anyway, cause it's in my bra."
He smirked. "You don't even wear a bra."
Ouch.
I narrowed my eyes as I crossed my arms over my chest as if hiding my non-existent bosom. "How would you know?"
"'Cause I'm almost always on laundry duty, and trust me I never came across a bra. Except if you're hiding a D-cup under there, I'm pretty sure the bras I do find belong to Ashton's sluts. No offense."
"You're mean," I pouted. I fished his phone from under my sweater and slammed it into his hand. "It's not my fault puberty skipped me."
"Oh c'mon Jade, I didn't mean it like that."
As if on cue, Jordan's car pulled up at the sidewalk and I angrily climbed into the backseat, slamming the door behind me.
"Hello to you too, sunshine," Jordan greeted sarcastically. "What's up with her?" he asked Noah who got inside the car too.
"Noah said I looked like a boy," I sulked with my face buried in the seat.
"That's- that's not what I said," he sputtered. "You lied about wearing a bra, so I just simply pointed out the truth."
"You insulted me!"
"I said 'no offense'!"
"Well, offense taken!"
Jordan looked between us two, confused out of his mind. He revved up the car and mumbled something that sounded like, I don't even wanna know.
FADED
I was sitting at the kitchen table, doing my homework when Ashton walked in with his phone.
"Tristan wants to talk to you."
I froze, my heart skipping a beat. Oh no, Penny told him and now he was gonna chew me out!
"Tell him I'm in the shower," I whispered.
Ashton cocked an eyebrow as he held the phone against his chest. "But you're not in the shower."
"Just tell him!" I whisper yelled.
"But you're not."
"Ash!"
My brother looked at me suspiciously. He put his phone back against his ear and said, "She can't come to phone right now, she's taking a shit."
As soon as he hung up, I kicked him in the leg. "What is wrong with you!"
He didn't even wince, but did shoot me a challenging glare. "Wanna try that again?"
I huffed and forced myself to focus on my homework again. Unfortunately he didn't leave me alone and grabbed a beer before sitting down next to me.
"What was that all about?"
"I'm just too busy right now doing homework."
"Then why didn't you just tell him you were doing that, instead of lying about being in the shower?" he tugged at my ponytail to get my attention when I didn't answer him. "Hmm?"
I exhaled loudly before facing him. "I might have told Penny that I knew about ... you know."
His face hardened, his tongue darting out to lick his bottom lip. " ... Jade, how could you be so stupid? I told you - "
"I know, I know," I interjected. "It just came out, I don't know how it happened, I'm sorry. And I also might've said some mean things to her and now she told Tristan, so he's probably calling to tell me how much he hates me right now."
"He doesn't hate you, JJ," he patted my head with a roll of his eyes. "He just wanted to ask you about your day and if you wanted to help him move some things to their new house tomorrow."
I sniffed. "Oh."
"Yes, oh." He laughed at my face. "Jade, you're gonna die real soon of a heart attack if you don't stop worrying yourself to death about everything."
"Shuddup," I mumbled under my breath. Ashton chuckled, reaching over to mess up my hair. "Get off!"
"Ashton, leave your sister alone," Jordan commented as he joined us in the kitchen. I swear, there's not a day that goes by without Jordan telling Ashton to leave me alone.
"What are we having for dinner?" Noah asked as he too sat at the kitchen table.
Jordan opened the fridge. "There's some meatloaf."
"Nah, I'm in the mood for taco's." Ashton once again flicked my hair. "Jade, make us some taco's."
"Stop it," I shrugged him off. "I'm trynna do my homework here."
Jordan grabbed Ashton by the shoulders and dragged him out of his chair. "Jade is not your personal cook and she already made breakfast for you lazy asses. Now put your ass in gear and make your own taco's."
"Alright, alright, jeez."
"What are you smiling at?" Jordan asked Noah who was engrossed with something on his phone.
"Ooh, texting your new girlfriend," Ashton teased, "Send me her nudes."
Noah shut his phone and put it down. "I don't have a girlfriend."
I fake-coughed. "Um, actually you do have a girlfriend."
He clenched his teeth. "Jade - "
"Her name is Stella Crawford, she's a new student at our school. She's been dating Noah for two weeks now, and I even caught them making out on the couch like two days ago."
Noah's mouth dropped.
Payback, I mouthed back to him.
"Oh you can say goodbye to using my computer."
I smiled smugly. "I don't even need your computer anymore."
"Why didn't you tell us?" Jordan wanted to know.
Noah groaned as he ran a hand through his messy hair. "'Cause it's not official yet, we were taking things slow."
"Hmm," Ashton wiggled his eyebrows. "Wait, does she happen to have an older sister, Maxine?"
Noah nodded. "Max, yeah. Why?"
"Oh we hooked up once. Turns out she's a carpet muncher."
"A what?" I frowned. "What's a carpet muncher?"
Jordan sighed as he shot Ashton a glare.
"What's a carpet muncher?" I repeated.
Ashton snickered as he sipped from his beer.
"What's a carpet muncher?"
Jordan pinched the bridge of his nose. "Jade, please stop saying that."
"Imma keep saying it until someone tells me what a carpet muncher is - "
"It means she's a lesbian," Noah finally answered.
"Well, you could've just said that." What was the big deal? Wait. "I don't get it, why's it called a carpet muncher?"
Ashton nearly choked on his beer as he laughed.
"Ashton this is all your fault," Jordan pointed a warning finger at him. "I already told you not to use that kinda language around her."
"What's a carpet muncher!"
"Stop saying carpet muncher!" Noah yelled back at me.
"Fine, if you won't tell me, I'll look it up."
"NO!" Jordan shouted.
I thought Ashton was gonna die by now, he was laughing way too hard about this. He walked behind me, put his hands on my shoulders and lowered his face to whisper in my ear. As I listened to his explanation, utter disgust washed over me.
"Ewwww!"
"You happy now?" Jordan turned to Ashton, not thinking this was funny at all.
I shuddered, trying to rid of the image in my head.
"You know, there are many other words that could be used too, like rug muncher, muff-diver, cunnilinguist - "
"ASHTON!" Jordan growled.
I caught Noah's shoulders shake as he tried to hide his laughter.
FADED
I was in my room doing my homework because with my brothers around I could clearly not concentrate.
I heard someone in the shower and knew it was Jordan, he always had the quickest showers on earth. I suddenly remembered something he had promised me this morning and decided to ask him about it.
I started for the bathroom and knocked.
"Come in, Jade."
I opened the door and walked inside, waving away the fog. "How did you know it was me?"
He stood at the sink with a towel wrapped around his waist while he shaved. "You're the only one in this house who bothers to knock."
I plopped myself down on the toilet lid and crossed my legs. "Uhm, I wondered if I could use your phone to call mom."
He momentarily stopped what he was doing and looked at my reflection in the mirror. "I had hoped you'd forget about that."
"I just wanna check up on her."
He washed off the shaving cream from his cheeks and jaw and turned to me as he dried his face. "Lemme get dressed first and I'll let you give her a call."
I bit my lip. "Or you can just give me your phone and I'll call her now."
He sighed. "I prefer if you'd call her with me around."
I tilted my head to the side. "You don't trust me?"
"You know I do, sweetheart."
"It's mom."
He nodded, confirming my thoughts.
I jumped off the toilet and moved closer to him. "It will only be ten minutes, I swear. I just need to know if she's okay."
He dropped his hand on my cheek and seemed to think about it.
"Please," cue poppy dog eyes.
"Stop that." He playfully pinched my nose. "Alright, ten minutes and I want my phone back."
"Thank you, thank you!" I grinned, hugging him around the waist. "Ugh, now you made me all wet," I cringed, wiping at my cheek.
"Get outta here," he chuckled, turning me around and gently shoving me out the door.
FADED
"Hello? Jordan?"
I laid back on my bed. "Um, no it's me mom. Jade."
"Oh, Jade! Hi baby girl, so nice to hear from you," she sounded genuinely happy. "How are you?"
"I'm good," I half-smiled. "How are you?"
"Oh I'm just fine."
I drew my eyebrows together. "You sound kinda sick."
"It's just a cold, nothing to worry about."
"How's work?"
"Exhausting. There's this woman that really gets a kick out of making my day hell, but the job pays well and my boss isn't too bad, so I can't really complain."
I flinched when she started to cough heavily.
"You sound miserable, mom. Maybe you should take a day off."
"Oh no I can't do that, I'll lose my job. It's my own fault really - doctor said I need to lay off on the booze and smokes, I'm also not getting enough sleep but I'm sure it's nothing I can't fix."
"Are you still living in that apartment?"
"I am. It's not much and my roommate's one hell of a motherfucker but it's better than nothing."
I could practically hear her smile, trying to reassure me.
"So, are you still using ... "
She laughed, but it sounded nervous. "Mommy's sick, Jade. I need the meds."
Right.
"Mom, can I ask you something?"
"Sure honey, hurry up though my break is almost over."
"Are you happy?"
There was a long pause and I thought she had hung up on me when I heard her breathe out.
"Why do you wanna know, baby?"
I traced some patterns on my wall. "Just wondering. When was the last time you were happy?"
"Uhm, I don't know Jade. A very long time ago. I guess I was happy when I was with Adrian."
I sat up on my bed. "Who's Adrian?"
She exhaled heavily, a static sound through the earpiece of Jordan's phone. "Adrian - Adrian is your dad, Jade. And Noah's."
My mouth suddenly felt dry. "If he made you so happy, then why aren't you with him anymore?"
"Because some things happened - "
"What things?" I pressed on.
"Just some things. Jade listen I need to go now, kiss your brothers goodbye for me. Love you."
"Mom - "
I groaned when she had already hung up. I looked down at Jordan's phone and went to my desk for a piece of paper. I wrote down her number and hid it in my journal.
My mother just admitted to me that she wasn't happy. Her job sucked, her roommate sucked, her apartment sucked. She was sick, addicted to drugs, and felt like shit. Maybe if I found a way to turn her life back to how it used to be, maybe she'll feel much better. If I can make her happy again, like she was with my dad, it could solve all her problems and we'll have the old Carla back. I could have my mom back.
I knew what I was gonna do - shoot I might need Noah's computer after all.
FADED
When I went back downstairs, I found Noah playing on the Xbox while Ashton was making taco's in the kitchen.
I sat down next to Noah and put on the sweetest and most innocent face I could muster.
Noah's eyes flickered from the screen to me. "Why you looking at me like that?"
I scooted closer to him. "Noah, I need to tell you a secret."
"Jade, I'm kinda busy right now."
"You don't wanna hear my secret?" I whispered. I hugged him, ignoring his protests.
"Jade, get off, you almost got me killed!"
I just held him tighter and waited for him to pause his stupid game. "Noah, out of all my brothers, you are my favorite."
He patted my arm. "Okay, awesome. Can I go back to my game now?"
I squeezed him tighter. "No, you don't get it. I love you more than Jordan and Tristan and even Ashton combined. They're just my half-brothers, but you - you are my full brother. We share the same last name, we have the same blond hair although mine is prettier, but to be fair you are better looking than me. We also have the same sense of humor, we're both allergic to cats, we used to share baths and beds together, we - "
He moaned. "Oh my fucking god, just get to the point."
I used the smile I knew no one could resist. "Noah, can I please use your computer?"
He scoffed. "No."
"Please, pretty pretty please," I begged.
"Did you forget how you told the whole family about Stella?"
I pretended not knowing what he was talking about. "I don't remember that ... "
"Really, 'cause it just happened an hour ago."
I hugged him again. "Noah, come on I just said you were my favorite."
He rolled his eyes. "Deal is a deal. And you broke it."
I pulled away. "You're not my favorite anymore. Go find yourself another sister, but you'll never find someone as good as me." I started to get up when he pulled me back, trapping me in his own arms.
"Oh no, please don't leave me. I'm sorry! What am I gonna do without you, I'm gonna die!" he started fake-crying and I jabbed him in the stomach.
"Let me go, you jerk!"
His arms tightened around me as he pressed a wet smooch on my cheek.
"Noah, you pig!"
He just laughed and finally let me go. I glared at him and walked off but not before smacking the back of his head. I decided to move on to my other brother.
"Ashton, can I please use your computer."
He licked his spoon after stirring it in the sauce. "What do you need it for?"
"I just need to look up something."
"Like what?"
"Something."
He eyed me closely. "You gonna use it for porn?"
I pulled a face. "It's not because I'm related to you, that I'm like you."
"You gonna look up carpet muncher?"
"No, I need to use it for school."
"'Cause if you wanna see a carpet muncher, I got enough videos of that on my phone."
"School, Ashton. School." I grabbed the spoon out of his hand before he ate all the sauce. "And get your mind out of the gutter. So can I use it or not."
He shrugged. "Yeah whatever, it's in my room I think."
"Is your password still the same?"
"Beaver," he smirked. "One chews up wood. The other...well, I suppose the other does that too."
I still don't understand what's so funny about that. But it didn't matter either, because I had a more important matter at hand. I was on a mission.
I was gonna search for my dad, Adrian Jacobs.
A/N: Please don't forget to comment, vote or follow! Also thanks for taking the time to read my story, everytime I get a notification it's like receiving a virtual cupcake, and unlike Jade, I looooooove cupcakes ;)