How We Began

by Sandra Corton

  "She did?"

  "Yeah, Dad, she practically threatened me with bodily harm, and threw a box of condoms at me," Isaac sounded so casual and sure of himself, but Kayla detected that pink tinge creeping onto his cheeks. James meanwhile, let out a snort of laughter.

  "Kylie never was a subtle person," He shook his head, as he looked between them. "I suggest you do as she says." James ordered, as he rose and headed for the stairs.

  "Do they really think that we're running off and having sex every free second?" Isaac asked with a shake of his head, making Kayla giggle in embarrassment.

  "I think they're just worried." She said, before moving closer to him again.

  "You know I'm not going to push you into anything, right? I mean I've waited this long, more time isn't going to make much difference." He told her earnestly.

  "For a guy that used to date a different girl every week, that sounds awfully long term." She teased him, and when he huffed angrily, she jolted away from him.

  "Kayla, this is long term for me. So far you have been the longest term ever in the history of Isaac Thornton." He told her plainly.

  "I know believe me I know. The thing is that scares me, as much as it makes me happy." She admitted softly.

  "Why does it scare you?" He asked, as he pulled gently at a stand of her hair.

  "Dinner guys, come on." Dana called out from the dining room.

  Kayla was happy that she didn't have to answer. Hayley thundered down the stairs past them with James moving at a more sedate pace. Kayla went to move, but Isaac pinned her with a frown and a hand on her knee.

  "Answer me, please." He encouraged, as he squeezed her leg.

  "You have a huge potential for breaking my heart. That's what scares me," she told him honestly, and he sucked in a breath. "I'm sorry, but that's the truth."

  He went still next to her, and she bit her lip. He closed his eyes, tilted his head back, but said nothing. She cursed silently to herself. She knew she shouldn't have told him that! Her heart clenched, as the silence extended.

  "Am I a risk worth taking? Knowing what you know about me, is it worth it?" He asked quietly.

  "Yes, Isaac, you are, otherwise I never would have agreed to be your girlfriend." At her answer, he finally smiled.

  "Thank God, you had me worried there." He pulled her into his arms fully, and cradled her against him.

  "Come on, you two." Dana's voice was stern, as she called to them again.

  Kayla knew it was time to have dinner with her boyfriend parents. Just the thought of that sent a thrill through her. Her nerves were completely gone, which was a relief. She knew Dana and James; she had been having all sorts of meals at their house for years.

  Knowing what she knew about Isaac managed to settle her nerves too. He was trying to be there for her, even when he had no real clue what to do. He was nothing like the serial dating guy who she had watched over the years, and that was a wonderful shock to her. He clasped her hand tightly in his, so together as boyfriend and girlfriend; they strolled into the dining room.

  Chapter 18 - Games afoot

  The roar of the crowd surrounded her, as Kayla nervously took the seat next to Hayley. With Isaac's jersey smothering her, she felt the heat of the day beating down upon her. She felt all eyes on her, which had her internal temperature continuing to rise.

  "I've so got to teach you some style," Hayley said, as she turned to her friend. “I had thought Mitch would manage it, but look how wrong I was there,”

  "Why, what's wrong?" Kayla asked looking down at her outfit.

  The jersey she wore covered her jean shorts completely. In fact, the shirt covered her almost to her knees, and she felt comfortable in it. The added bonus of it smelling like Isaac’s cologne, felt like the icing on the cake. Being able to wear a hat, even just a cap was a great relief as well.

  "Stand up for a sec." Hayley eyed her friend, who awkwardly stood.

  She gathered the loose material of the shirt, and bunched it around Kayla's middle. She then tied the material up in such a way that it tightened and skimmed against Kayla's body in a far more flattering way.

  "Now it's a winner." Hayley grinned.

  "Fair enough. So, has the game started yet?" Kayla sat back down, and tried to appear more inconspicuous.

  "Yeah, of course. You always arrive late," Hayley looked at her friend suspiciously. "Which is odd when you're on time for everything else. Let me guess, you were trying to talk yourself out of coming?"

  "Maybe, you know I'm not good with crowds," Kayla shrugged, as the said crowd came to their feet with a scream. "What did I miss?" She asked, as Hayley leapt to her feet, dragging Kayla along with her.

  "Jay just scored for our side." Hayley did a little happy dance, before reclaiming her seat like the rest of the crowd.

  "I guess that's good." Kayla said simply, having no idea of how the game even remotely worked.

  "Of course it is," Hayley told her with a grin. "Uh oh." Her grin fell away, as a shadow loomed over them.

  "Is that Isaac's jersey?" A voice asked, and Kayla looked up.

  Melissa stood in front of her, with her arms crossed, and a furiously jealous look in her eye. Kayla stared at the girl, not sure how to respond. She had hoped that with the amount of attention Isaac kept giving her, that everyone would get the message. It seemed that she would have to answer some people's queries.

  "Yes, it is." Kayla answered simply.

  "Where did you get it from?" Melissa practically snarled.

  "Isaac gave it to her, you skank, so back the hell off." Hayley snapped out the words, making Melissa reel backwards.

  "I reckon you gave it to her." Melissa reasoned, and Hayley let out a laugh.

  "I can't believe that I got sucked in by your rumours this last week. I accused my brother when he had done nothing wrong. Give up the game, bitch, he doesn't want you." Hayley stood defiantly, and faced down the other girl.

  "Sit down, Hayley. It's alright, she's just jealous." Kayla calm words had Melissa spluttering, but Hayley just grinned broadly.

  "Yeah, you're so right about that one," Hayley agreed, before sitting down. "Do you mind? We are trying to watch the game." Hayley swished a dismissive hand at Melissa who suddenly seemed unsure of herself.

  If Kayla thought people were looking at her before, now she was fully aware of the blatant stares. Melissa finally stalked off, with a hateful glare to the two friends. Kayla breathed out a sigh of relief, as the crowd once again surged to its feet, so thankfully she was no longer the focus.

  "I will never be able to keep up with this game." Kayla said in confusion, as she sat back down.

  "You'll get used to it. Just don't let onto anyone that you're wearing a jersey, but have no idea what's actually going on." Hayley advised and Kayla nodded.

  The sun gave them no peace as the game continued. After the earlier cheers, the crowd had become rather silent, sullen even. Kayla frowned, as she continued to watch.

  It finally dawned on her that their side was starting to lose. Kayla felt bad for Isaac and his team, as they struggled desperately to turn the tide of the game.

  "Just watch, this is where Isaac comes into his own." Hayley said proudly from beside her, even though her fingers were white knuckled on her chair.

  Kayla took her eyes from the intensity of the game to find Hayley on the edge of her seat. Her eyes were as full of intense anticipation, as they were anxiety. Did she know something that nobody else did?

  "Come on, Thornton." A voice behind her whispered.

  She realised that this whole crowd were depending on Isaac to make some unknown move and turn things around. Her admiration for Isaac inched even higher when in the next fifteen minutes the game completely changed. She wasn't sure how he did it, there didn't seem to be any defining factors, it just happened.

  Though she still didn't understand the game, she found her knowledge of Isaac increasing. It now made sense why everyone had admired him over the years. He had a way of ove
rcoming life's adversities, even a simple football game with flare, determination, and confidence.

  It seemed odd to her that he was such a contradiction. Here he was this amazingly, effervescent guy that every girl wanted. He was the hero on the football field, as much as he was with the girls. When they were alone, he was surprisingly shy and vulnerable, at times uncertain. It only made her want to be closer to him to figure him out.

  A screaming, deafening cheer echoed around, and Kayla realised that she had missed something important in the game again. When Hayley hugged her wildly, she just hugged her friend back. She hoped Hayley would explain all this craziness to her later.

  "Did you see that Kayla?" Hayley shouted, as she did another little mad dance.

  "Um, no, I guess I missed it," Kayla admitted feeling a bit embarrassed to have no idea what was going on.

  "I'm never going to be able to make you understand sports," Hayley let out a rueful chuckle.

  "Sorry."

  "Ah, don't worry, that's probably why you two are so good together. Let's go and meet up with Isaac." Hayley turned towards the edge of the stairway.

  "Isn't he playing?" Kayla asked, to which her friend snorted.

  "He just won the game, Kayla."

  "How did I miss that?" She asked aghast.

  "You were off doing that dreamy face thing of yours. He's just going to be happy you turned up anyway." Hayley said, as she tugged on her friends arm.

  Kayla felt conflicted. On one hand, she was happy that Isaac had won, but she was sad to have missed his winning goal. She felt like a bit of a phony if she congratulated him on something that she didn't even see, let alone understand.

  He was on the shoulders of his teammates, as they all hooted, hollered, and cheered. All the while, they smiled broadly at their welcoming audience.

  Kayla stood awkwardly with Hayley, as the team rushed by. She looked at Isaac, and not for the first time did she wonder what he saw in her. She was surprised to find that he was searching the crowd, as he watched from his lofty perch.

  When their eyes met, and he grinned that devastating, gorgeous smile, she knew that he had been looking for her. Her anxiety settled, and she stopped questioning things.

  What did catch her focus were all the other girls vying for his attention. His eyes never moved from hers, until he completely left her sight. She sighed, and knew that her heart was completely lost to him.

  She wasn't sure how long she simply stood there, but Hayley didn't seem to care. Her mind kept repeating in her head that Isaac was her boyfriend now. She glanced to where he had disappeared, and felt her heart race, while wonderful pleasure flooded her very being.

  "That guy is major hotness. I wonder what he's doing tonight," a girl Kayla didn't recognise asked another girl standing next to her.

  "He's dating this nerd," Melissa's voice sneered, and once again, Kayla felt the eyes of many on her.

  "No way." The girl flicked her deep chocolate brown hair off her shoulder, as she looked at Kayla with disbelief.

  "Leave her alone," Hayley's eyes narrowed on the circling girls. "He chose her over you Melissa, accept it, and move on."

  "He wasn't that good anyway." Melissa said dismissively, as she flicked invisible lint from her tight shirt. Kayla let out an undignified snort, and Melissa's cold eyes focused on her.

  "He said that you're boring, and that you can't kiss," Kayla told her pointedly, what Isaac had mentioned a few days ago.

  "What a nasty lie!" Melissa exclaimed, with her face going bright red.

  Kayla took in some air and continued to stand her ground, no matter how shaky her hands were. The previous dreamy feeling washed away with the anxiety of facing this rude girl. She knew if she didn't say something more, than Melissa would continue to try to come between them again. With that thought in mind, Kayla straightened her spine and faced her adversary.

  "I'm only telling you what Isaac told me." Kayla forced a smile, only to see fury build in the other girl’s eyes. Hayley meanwhile laughed like mad

  "Oh, zing! Good job, girl." Hayley raised a hand for a high five, so Kayla shyly complied.

  "You're lying!" Melissa screeched.

  "Those were Isaac's words not mine." Kayla told her determinedly.

  "What's going on?" Isaac's voice was a relief to hear.

  "Oh, hi, there." The strange girl that Kayla had forgotten about crept up to Isaac in a slinky manner, but he ignored her.

  "You okay, Kayla, Hayley?” Isaac asked, as he strode past Melissa.

  "I'm fine." Kayla said swiftly, as he threw a hand over her shoulder.

  "You wore it." His eyes gleamed at her, as he tugged on the sleeve of the jersey wore. His eyes drifted over her deliciously, giving her the shivers.

  "Are you telling me that you actually gave her the jersey?" Melissa sounded furious, but her voice wobbled with barely any control.

  "Of course I did. Now why are you bothering Kayla or my sister?" Isaac pressed her seeming rather angry himself. "Geez, Melissa, take a damn hint. I-don't-like-you." He stated each word forcefully.

  He glared at Melissa, as she stood there in complete shock at his words. When she didn't look like she would respond, Isaac frowned. He gave a frustrated grunt, before walking off, making sure to take Kayla and Hayley with him.

  "What was she saying?" He asked them seriously.

  "Not much, just showing her bitch side. You're going to have to watch her Isaac," Hayley warned him and Isaac flinched.

  "Yeah, I know. Did Mum and Dad come?" He asked, but Hayley shook her head.

  "I didn't see them."

  "Of course, we were here. We just couldn't find Hayley in the crowd. It was a good turn up today," James said cheerfully.

  "Well done, Isaac," Dana congratulated him, as they turned to face his parents.

  "Thanks Mum." He let go of Kayla to accept his Mum's excited hug.

  "Who needs a lift home?" James asked, as he looked between them all.

  "I've got my car, but thanks anyway." Kayla piped up.

  "Would you drive my car home Mum, so I can go with Kayla?" Isaac asked, as he dug his keys out of his bag.

  "Sure, honey, what are you two going to be doing?" Dana asked, and Kayla was quite curious of the answer as well.

  "Dunno, yet." Isaac replied with a shrug.

  "Take care, and ring me if you're not going to be home for dinner." She told him firmly and Isaac nodded.

  They walked to her car silently. His hand dropped from her shoulder to trail down her back, and fiddle with the knot that Hayley had made. It made it hard to focus with his fingers caressing against her.

  They passed by so many people congratulating Isaac. They all seemed to want to stop and talk to him, which amazed her. He was polite to all of them, but continued walking

  When he sat down in the passenger seat, and threw his head back, Kayla was worried. He continued to say nothing, and she wasn't sure where to begin. She started the car, and drove to her house, not knowing what else to do.

  "Tell me what she said to you," Isaac finally said into the quiet.

  "It doesn't matter, Isaac," she answered him, not sure why this was bothering him so much.

  "It does, she keeps on pestering me, every damn day she is in my face, and I’m freaking tired of it." Isaac ran a hand into his hair.

  "Is this why you had that talk with me about her the other day?" Kayla asked, as she dared a quick glance his way.

  "Yeah, I just need you to know that I'm not interested in her at all. It's really important that you know that." He insisted and she nodded.

  "I know because you keep telling me." She told him, as she pulled into her driveway. "Congratulations on winning by the way." She reached over, and touched the back of his hand.

  "Thanks, but it's a team effort you know," he grinned at her, as she stopped the car. "Do you really think we should be here?"

  "Mum knows I want to work on our assignment. She's here, but she's sleeping, so we'll work on the dining ro
om table. Mitch is around somewhere too." Kayla told him, and he groaned at the thought of homework after the gruelling match he just had.

  "If we work all afternoon then you are coming to a party with me tonight." Isaac bargained and Kayla's face fell.

  "I, uh, I've never really been to a party." She admitted quietly.

  "I guessed as much, so I thought today's a good day to start." He smiled encouragingly.

  "Okay." She replied hesitantly.

  "Does that mean that you're trying to talk you're way out of it?" He asked, as he leaned in closer to her.

  "No, not yet anyway." She whispered the last three words.

  "I won't let you regardless. If I have to do homework all afternoon, then I deserve compensation. I demand to party." He waved a hand in the air.

  "Alright, but we have to work." She demanded.

  True to his word, Isaac concentrated on the assignment. By the end of a few hours, they had hammered out exactly what they were going to do. Kayla felt immensely pleased at their effort. Kylie awoke to find them still working, so she left them be.

  "Please, tell me that's enough," Isaac let out a groan, as he stretched.

  "Yeah, that's enough," Kayla agreed, as she gathered their paperwork together.

  "Well I've done my part, now I get to take you to the party." Isaac grinned at her, and she slowly nodded her head.

  "I can't really say no, now can I?" She replied dryly.

  "That is very true. You don't have to sound so disgruntled though."

  "Have you two finally finished being so boring?" Mitchell asked, as he entered the room.

  "Yes, Mitch."

  "It was worth it, because now she's coming to a party with me." Isaac grinned at Mitchell, who gasped and appeared to almost faint.

  "It's about damn time," Mitchell cheered. "In that case, you need to leave, and I will help her get ready."

  "I drove him here, Mitch."

  "Then move your booty, and drive him home. Then I expect you back here quick smart." Mitchell pointed to the door.

  "Wow, I think I've found someone bossier than you." Isaac said with a grin to Kayla.

  "C'mon, Isaac, or he will bug us continuously until we do what he demands."