by Iris Taylor
“Not all of us have a steady ass to tap.” Sean and Ashley were an item since junior year. Probably the only one of us capable of a monogamous relationship. Or any relationship.
I frowned at Hunter. “You could have your pick any day.” It was true. Despite the dufus that he was, girls went wild for him, even though he barely remembered their names and dumped them the next day. Helps to be a jock and have groupies. I was loathe to discuss parties. It inevitably happened at our place, because of the space we had, and I didn’t feel it was worth it to get wasted and wake up to a nightmare of a house that had to be cleaned up. I loved Susan and would not risk losing her. Where is Cole? Not that I needed his backup, but he was taking too long. Maybe he got lucky with her. This, I doubted. Something told me that despite her naiveté, Ella would be a tough one to crack. She didn’t strike me as a follower, unlike most of the girls I knew. She didn’t seem impressed by us, nor did she attempt to conform to the hierarchy we had in the school. Her friends were the nerds from the school paper, and so it surprised me to hear her trying out for the cheerleading team and making it. I hoped to see her lovely pins in the delicious black cheerleading uniform. Cole wasn’t the kind to share, but things could change.
Chapter 7
Ella
Washing my hands at the sink, I took out some lip gloss from my bag and applied it to my chapped lips. The weather was really wreaking havoc on my skin. I needed a new skincare routine. Outside, the hallway was quiet, so I startled when the door opened suddenly. I hurriedly tossed the tube back into my bag and turned.
My heart stuttered to a shuddering stop when I saw Cole standing there. It had to be Cole – the chilling look in his fathomless black eyes gave him away. It spoke of danger and evil intent, and I realized there was no way he had come in here and found me by accident. He must have followed me. Awareness spread through my numb brain and kick-started my pulse. I took stock of his broad shoulders and chest, his clenched fists. How much taller than me he was. Fear assailed me, despite my mind telling me he was family and logically wouldn’t do anything to harm me.
“Excuse me.” I moved past him, my head bowed, not wanting to make eye contact. My throat clogged in fear and I found myself taking shallow breaths, not wanting to awaken the beast.
He moved, blocking me and successfully obstructing my only chance of escaping as he stood in front of the door. I was trapped, and belatedly realized that looking for a quiet bathroom at lunch was probably not one of my best ideas. I loved the peace and quiet but look where it got me. Again.
“What do you want?” I was proud to hear how strong and unwavering my voice came out, even whilst my pulse swooshed in my ears. I looked at him straight in the eye but felt a sharp jolt of terror and mild disappointment when his expression didn’t change. It was his eyes that told me this was no ordinary prank. It seemed premeditated, as if he had wanted to terrorize me all along.
“What do you want?” I repeated, though not quite as bravely as before.
Within a split second, he moved forward, slamming me up against the tiled wall. His large hand reached for my throat and squeezed, ever so slightly. I gaped up at him, my mouth hanging open as my eyes began to water, perhaps out of shock. He certainly wasn’t squeezing enough for it to hurt. My breath came out in pants until I realized I could just breathe normally. I tried to calm my stuttering heart, but his dark, dark gaze shattered any semblance of calm I could conjure. I tried again. Without removing my eyes from his, both my hands reached for his calloused fingers and tried to pry them off me, but he held on easily. My mind raced. It was perfectly quiet outside, and in here, with no one around, it seemed like the perfect spot for a secret lovers’ rendezvous, had Cole and I been different people, in wholly different circumstances. This close, I could see what a work of art his face was. His eyelashes were dark and thick, his skin flawless, his lips soft and almost too full. Despite this, he was obviously masculine, overwhelmingly so. He had a warm peppermint scent that would make a girl long to nuzzle against him. My eyes appreciated the bulge of his biceps, the broad expanse of his chest, the way his shirt tightened over his back. His dark pupils dilated as he took in my gaze, and as if in response, he allowed his eyes to roam my face, lingering too long on my lips. I watched with fascination as his jaw twitched, a brief flicker of movement that for some reason made my heart race. Ella. He’s choking you. And yet he wasn’t. Yes, his fingers were tightening on my throat ever so slightly, and yes, he had me cornered in a deserted part of the school, but beyond that, we might as well be enjoying foreplay.
“Please.” It was a mere whisper. I didn’t like where my mind had headed. “Let me go.”
He released me and stepped back immediately, shaking his head forcefully. For a split second I thought he looked dazed, but then a sneer twisted his mouth into an angry jagged line, and I was back in the presence of Cole, the twin who hated me for no good reason.
“Stay away from us.”
“Us?”
“Me, and my family.” He almost spat out the word, the force of the venom in his voice sending me reeling. He was angry because my mom and I had entered his life? Despite my brain nagging me that I had known this all along, having it confirmed was no less difficult to accept. What was I supposed to do about it now? Split up his dad and my mom? I would never do such a thing, not when their happiness was so readily apparent in their faces and gestures. Not when my mom was the most deserving of a happy ending.
“They’re...getting married.” As if my simple explanation was even needed. Cole’s face turned a vivid red upon hearing my words.
“They. Are. Not. They won’t! I’ll make sure of it.” It was a low growl, but what surprised me was how clogged his voice was. I sneaked a quick look to confirm what I heard. His eyes were brimming with unshed tears. Oh. Before I could follow up that thought, he raised his arm high, and I immediately ducked and covered my face with my arms, anticipating the blow that would come next.
Instead, a loud bang sounded, and then silence ensued. I looked to find myself alone in the empty bathroom, my heart thudding hard in my chest, my mind racing, wondering why he had so much anger within him, and what I was going to do about his threat.
***
“And so Linda said, “Why don’t you bring those two handsome boys and that pretty daughter of yours to dinner with us?” My mother looked at us with a huge expectant smile. Across from me, I saw Cole stiffen. My own smile had yet to make way to my face, having been in hiding the entire time after being called downstairs to have dinner “as a family”. The topic of wedding preparations hadn’t even come up yet, hanging over us like a dark cloud, but the conversation was already strained, punctuated with silence and the occasional grunts from Cole. Even Hans, who was often cheerful, had trouble giving more than the occasional short response.
“That’s great to hear. I haven’t caught up with her or Simon in a while,” Marcus replied with a smile. You had to be blind not to see how fondly he looked at my mother. “Did she say when?”
“Next week, Saturday sound ok?”
Marcus nodded, then looked at all of us. I quickly nodded, focusing on quickly finishing the last of my salad. Cole didn’t reply, and Hans shrugged. Marcus gave them both a sharp look before saying, “Yes, that sounds good. Tell Linda we’d be happy to join them.”
Cole pushed back his chair and stormed off without a word. Soon, we could hear his bedroom door slam, too. “Well, at least one of us here is being honest,” Hans muttered drily. I cringed at his uncharacteristic jibe. His words didn’t go unnoticed the way I hoped they would.
“Enough!” Marcus barked. “You’re both acting like children. Don’t you want what’s best for this family?”
Hans spoke so quietly that I almost missed it. “But you never asked us what that was.” And with that, he joined his brother. My mother reached out and touched Marcus’ arm, who shook his head and suddenly looked his age, his eyes weary and mouth downturned. My heart went out for him – raising two h
eadstrong boys must have been exhausting.
“I’ll...I’ll speak with them.” The words were out before I could even process what that would entail. My mother’s eyes shone with what looked like gratitude, and Marcus nodded and squeezed my hand. “I’ve always wanted a daughter like you.”
His words rang in my ears even as I shut my eyes as I lay in bed and willed my brain to stop going through the day’s events, like a horrible instrument of torture. No matter what I did, Cole’s troubled eyes haunted my mind, being front and center in my thoughts. My heart went out to the boy I thought I saw in him today. The one who hurt, who wanted me and my mother to go away. Why did he despise the idea of his father remarrying so much? I realized I had no idea where the twins’ mom was. It had never come up in my mother’s stories, and I had assumed Marcus was widowed. That information would likely shed light on a lot of things. My hand reached for the tender spot where he had touched my throat. Despite the anger, and the opportunity he had had, he hadn’t actually hurt me.
A coarse laugh escaped me. Melissa was right – Gray Lake had changed my perceptions of guys here. Why else would I sympathize with a guy much bigger than me who cornered me in a deserted washroom and acted to strangle me? Why was I sympathizing with him, anyway? I should be telling Marcus and my mom about what he did, just to make sure he wouldn’t do it again. That won’t stop him, my mind said. It probably wouldn’t, but they both needed to know how seriously insane Cole was, how serious he was about us leaving their family alone.
Their family. It was laughable. I hadn’t seen the twins have a proper conversation with Marcus since they arrived from their holiday. Had it always been this way? Strained, with no semblance of a relationship? Marcus to me seemed like a pretty likable guy, but was it because he was trying with me?
My mind wouldn’t quit, so in the end, I reached for my phone and on a whim, opened Instagram and searched for Cole, unsuccessfully. I gave up and searched for the Gray Lake Tigers instead, and found him tagged in one of the pictures. It was a picture from several months ago. His smile was bright, a real, happy one, as he was carried on his teammates’ shoulders after a game. He looked relaxed, victorious, like he belonged. I quickly went to his account and saw his profile picture, a black-and-white photo of a tiger as it ran, muscles bunching. Football appeared to be his life. There were only a few photos of him, and most of them were of him on the field or with the team. I clicked on his most recent post, one from a few days ago.
This was a monochrome shot of a coffee mug with a hand holding it, presumably his, a muscular thigh in shorts in the background. I couldn’t tell if it was taken in the kitchen downstairs on not. Breathe, the caption said simply. I wondered if anything had happened that day. Another post, this time from a few weeks ago, was of him and Hans, both in sweatshirts, making silly faces, his arms slung over Hans’ shoulder. There was no caption, but there were well over a thousand likes. And no wonder – the twins were gorgeous. I hadn’t ever seen Cole looking happy before, but in this picture, he was stunningly so. His dark hair was tousled, his smile white and huge as he stuck his tongue out, and a dimple peeked out from his left cheek. Somehow he managed to look flawless even whilst goofing around.
That feeling of sympathy threatened to surface again. I shook my head. I needed to feel for him less and focus on decoding him and his hatred for me instead. He throttled you, remember?
I quickly scrolled down further. My eyes caught a picture of a bouquet of white flowers on a table, from nine months ago. Gone, said the caption. What did he mean? I clicked on the comments but saw no one had a clue either, nor did he reply to any of them. Suddenly hit by a wave of exhaustion, I put down my phone and snuggled deep into my plush covers. Being in Gray Lake wasn’t the easy ride I had initially thought it would be. Instead, my life was now intricately entwined in some other person’s life, and I had to watch my back both at home and at school, too. Yet, my stupid brain had decided to let this guy get off easy and worry about him at the same time. Sigh. Tomorrow was another day. I felt drained already.
Chapter 8
Cole
I watched as Brea sidled up to Jeremy, only for him to stand up and move to the other end of the table. What was up with everyone hitting on him these past few weeks, anyway? It was as if something had happened and I didn’t get the memo. Eyeing him, I wondered if he tended the other way. Not that I had ever seen him express interest in a guy, but because he never really appeared interested in girls, either. Not since we got to know him freshman year.
“Babe.”
I gritted my teeth. I hated it when Monica called me that. Her voice was dripping with a fake sultriness that made my skin crawl in a way it never did before.
“Babe,” she repeated, trying to slide into my lap.
I shoved her aside. “Stop it,” I hissed, moving so that she had space to sit on the bench. I thought I had made it clear countless times that I was not her babe.
She feigned a wounded look, batting her eyelashes, but slid into the spot next to me, regardless. “What’s up with you today?”
What’s up with me for the past few weeks, you mean. The thought irritated me endlessly, having been turned over and examined again and again in my mind. I had known my father would remarry for almost a year now. It hadn’t bothered me quite so much until...now. When she showed up. She got under my skin from the moment I saw her. Who on earth dressed like that anymore, anyway? Such a priss. How ramrod straight she sat up between us. How she enunciated her thank yous and sorrys. Her impeccable manners. I felt like scratching my eyes out just so I wouldn’t have to see her again.
My gaze searched the cafeteria until it landed on her. Her blond hair in that tight bun, not a hair out of place. Those square glasses. If it weren’t for the school uniform she would probably be wearing collared blouses buttoned up all the way and loose pencil skirts. She was laughing at something that editor guy was saying, and appeared oblivious to the fact that he was stealing peeks down her shirt. My jaw clenched, and I looked away. Who she hung out with and who she dated was the least of my concerns. What I should be thinking of was my next move that would send her and her mom running back to wherever they came from. She appeared unaffected by the warning I gave her yesterday. She even joined us to school this morning, for fuck’s sake. Either I was going soft, or she was just that dumb. I grit my teeth at the thought of either possibility. I was going to have to work harder to send her packing. There was no way she was going to mess up whatever we had left as a family.
“You’re ignoring me.” Monica’s whiny voice grated at my already-thin nerves. I had forgotten she was next to me. I took a deep breath, because whatever I had to say was best delivered candidly, and without me shouting at her. I disliked her, but she didn’t need to be shouted at.
“Look. I’ve said this already, but I’ll say it again. We are done. I think you and I both know it’s been coming for a while now. It’s got nothing to do with anyone I met over the summer, or even after. We’re different people now.”
She gave me a fierce, hard stare that I held with no remorse. I watched as she then stood up in a huff, throwing her dark hair behind her shoulder, eyes filled with hatred. She was staring at Ella.
***
Ella
I smiled as I high-fived my new friends. My first practice session and I had barely broken a sweat. My limbs felt like putty though, and I knew I had to continue practicing to get my strength back to where it was. The girls on the team seemed alright, and even Monica hadn’t glared at me once. I took that as a step forward.
I hummed as I showered. The girls waved as they left, and I quickly dried myself off and pulled on a dress and tights. Pulling out my phone, my smile wavered when I saw my mom’s text saying she had to work overtime and wouldn’t be able to take me home. I looked up at the dark sky – if Gray Lake’s weather wasn’t reliable, I didn’t know what was. I sighed, putting my sweater on and pulling it tightly against me. The chill in the air told me I had better start
walking, and quick.
Slipping a pair of flats on – and now wishing I had brought my comfy sneakers with me instead – I speed-walked to the school gates, all the while Googling the nearest bus stop. I didn’t want to hitch a ride with the twins, who both had been at football practice earlier. I was keen to avoid another encounter with Cole since I certainly didn’t know what could set him off. I sighed. Now would be a good time to have either Sarah’s or Jules’ number. I guess I didn’t have any real friends in Gray Lake yet after all.
As I walked past the gates, I heard the engine of a car rumble past. My heart jumped when I saw Cole in his Audi, alone. Where was Hans? He drove past without looking back once, and my palpitations slowed down even as disappointment blanketed me like the heavy clouds threatened to. I shook off the feeling and put one foot in front of the other resolutely. It was a good thing that he left me alone. A drop pelted my cheek, followed by another. I swore under my breath, even though I could hear my late grandmother’s voice in my head telling me ladies did not swear. I was going to have to get a car of my own. I would need to borrow some money from my mom – but whatever it was, I couldn’t depend on anyone else for a ride anymore.
A good half hour later, I stepped into the house, drenched, and wishing I had remembered to charge my phone the night before. It was good to know early I was living on the right side of town – the rich side – which had zero use for public transportation. As I walked past the living room I heard a scoff.
“I was right.”
I looked into the dark eyes of one of the twins, unable to tell who it was without something more to clue me in.