How We Began

by Sandra Corton

  "I haven't got the details worked out yet, Hayles. C'mon, I'm doing all the planning and I'm the one that was drugged," he told his sister pointedly. "Can you do that? Pretend we're broken up?" He turned to Kayla, who simply frowned.

  "I don't really know. I've never been much of an actress." Kayla warned him, as she licked her dry lips.

  "All you really need is that same angry, but sad face that you had on when you walked in here, and everyone will believe you." Isaac assured her, as he grasped her hand again and squeezed.

  "Sorry for blaming you." She whispered, as she looked down at their joined hands.

  "Those pictures are pretty convincing. It's kind of creepy to think of how she got in here." Isaac made a face and Kayla grimaced.

  "We really should report this." She told him, but Isaac shook his head.

  "They wanted to mess with our lives, so we are going to mess a bit back." He told her determinedly.

  "Hey you two! What have I said about you being in this room together?" Dana's stern voice had Kayla jumping away from him.

  "Mum, I'm in here too." Hayley poked her head around the door, and Dana looked relieved.

  "That's better, but still go down to the lounge room. Isaac, honey, are you sick?" Dana came into the room, peering with concern at her son.

  "Yeah, that's why they are both up here." Isaac quickly latched onto his mother's idea.

  "I guess that's why you stayed in last night, hey? You rest and the girl's should leave you alone." Dana glanced pointedly at Kayla and Hayley.

  "Can I just say goodbye to him?" Kayla asked hesitantly and Dana softened.

  "Of course, Kayla. Just leave this door open."

  "You can go too, Hayles," Isaac waved at his sister who looked disgruntled, but left them alone. "Are we okay?" He asked Kayla once everyone had left. He patted the bed next to him, so she would sit, but she didn't budge.

  "Everything just seems a bit weird. I've been so mad at you. I didn't even wait to hear the full story. I should have talked to you about it, instead of jumping to conclusions." She looked down at the ground feeling ashamed of her actions.

  "You had every right to take those pictures at face value, I'm not angry at you for that. I guess I'm more disappointed that you thought I was that same old Isaac." He let out a grumbling noise, and she felt a bigger sense of shame.

  "I should have had more faith in you. I'm truly sorry, Isaac." She stood uncomfortably with a flaming face and an aching heart.

  "Come here, Kayla." His words became commanding, and Kayla finally glanced his way.

  He seemed determined but cautious at the same time as he held a hand out to her. She took a tiny step forward, but placed her hands behind her back. She wasn't sure what to do next. She hadn't trusted him, and it had hurt them both.

  "Please." He pleaded, and his eyes that lured her in.

  "I feel so stupid, I fell for it exactly as they knew I would." She blurted.

  "Kayla, just have more faith in me next time something like this happens. Come and talk to me, yell at me, whatever." He threw his hands into the air.

  He stood then, a little wobbly on his feet, but he gently unclamped her fingers from behind her back. He sent her a small encouraging smile, but she couldn't help still feeling embarrassed for the way that she had acted. He didn't even have her awful voicemails yet.

  "I just kept remembering what you used to be like, and well Melissa is a lot prettier than me..." She trailed off, and stared at the floor.

  Isaac let out a grunt, and she dared a quick look at him. His soft but rather loving smile filled his face. She didn't move she simply stared at him, as he clasped their hands together once more.

  "I get it, okay. I really do," he said, as he rubbed a hand along her arm. "You need to know something; you need to see the real reason that Melissa is having trouble dealing with you."

  "And that is?" She asked with a sigh.

  "Beneath your baggy clothes and hats, you are way prettier than what she is. You're gorgeous, Kayla, and you have a hot little body from all those years of dancing. She's so freaking jealous of you that she has decided not to let me go. She's trying to punish you for taking her spot as a sought after girl to date." He reassured her, and his description shocked her. She finally managed to smile through her astounded blush.

  "That was a really nice thing to say." She told him happily.

  "Well, it's the truth," he trailed a finger along her cheek. "On that note." He went thoughtful, and she waited for him to finish his sentence.

  "What is it?" She finally asked when she couldn't wait any longer.

  "We have to make this breaking up thing believable. I think it's time the ugly grey cardigan and hats make their way back into your wardrobe."

  "Why?" She asked not wanting to agree with him. She had been enjoying dressing differently more than she had ever expected.

  "You're supposed to be heart broken. Hey, I just thought of the prefect name for you!" His eyes gleamed, as he changed topics, and she smiled up at his enthusiasm.

  "And that is?" She asked feeling muddled by the dreamy look on his face.

  "Chick pea." He said with a wink, and she rolled her eyes.

  "Back to the hats and cardigan." She told him, but she secretly liked that he wanted to give her a nickname.

  "If those photos were true, what would you wear to school tomorrow?" He turned serious, and she finally saw where he was going with his idea.

  "You're right; I would've covered up and tried to hide." She replied with a definite nod.

  "Which is what you need to do tomorrow. I'm going to miss you at school." He said leaning down to drop a soft kiss on her lips, making everything more than better in her world.

  "Me too."

  "Are we okay?" He repeated his question from earlier, seeming a little less apprehensive.

  "Yes, and Melissa is going to get what's coming to her for trying to break us up." Kayla sounded fiercely determined and Isaac grinned.

  "I like this Kayla too. So bossy and demanding."

  "Okay, back it up you two." Dana barged into the room, destroying the very moment that Isaac was going to kiss her again.

  "Mum!" Isaac exclaimed.

  "You need to rest and Kayla can come and see you when you feel better later on." Dana pointed Isaac to the bed and Kayla to the door.

  "Bye, girlfriend of mine," He grinned, and picked up his still charging phone. "I promise to text you later."

  "Bye, Isaac, feel better." She gave his hand one last squeeze, before turning for the door.

  She left his room feeling a thousand times better than when she had arrived. She still had Isaac, and he had done nothing wrong. He had in fact been the victim in a game that Kayla couldn't fathom.

  She found Melissa's behaviour bizarre, but she knew it was the truth. She was furious that Melissa had somehow managed to drug Isaac and take advantage of him.

  She went straight into Hayley's room and knew the plan for payback on Melissa would begin there. Shy, introvert Kayla was no longer. Melissa had inadvertently awoken something inside of Kayla that was screaming to fight back, and she was quite happy to accommodate that feeling.

  Chapter 22 - Pretending is the strangest thing to do.

  Feigning a broken heart was one of the hardest things that Kayla ever had to do, especially when she had never been happier. Her anger remained, and that helped her to focus on how she would have been feeling if Steve and Melissa had achieved what they had planned.

  Monday morning found her dressed in her last baggy uniform that Mitchell didn't have a chance to adjust. She threw her Dad's old cardigan in her bag, and grabbed the most concealing hat that she could find. She stared at herself in the mirror. She felt pleased to realise that this was no longer who she was. She didn't need to hide anymore, and that made her immensely happy.

  She was glad her parents had taken Mitchell out for breakfast, before he returned to school today. She could only imagine their reaction at her outfit, scruffy hairdo,
and the sad expression that she kept practicing. She decided keeping her head down was probably best today, she didn't want to give things away by accidentally smiling happily.

  She continued to practice on her drive to school. Trying to look as sombre and depressed as possible. She kept thinking about the photos, which helped her a lot. It forced the anger to overtake her happiness at having Isaac back. By the time she arrived at school, she had her expression set.

  "Don't forget to look horribly sad, Chickpea." The message on her phone made it harder to focus on her apparent devastation, but she managed it before getting out of her car.

  Once more all eyes focused on her, but this time the feeling of their pity overwhelmed her. Everyone obviously knew about her supposed break up with Isaac. She shouldn't have been surprised at the fast spread of gossip, but she was. She was sure that Melissa would have made sure that the news travelled everywhere.

  "Hey, Kayla, I heard about you and Isaac. I wanted to make sure that you were alright." Steve's voice grated on her nerves, but she forced herself to face him.

  After all, he was the one she had to convince of their break up. The smug look on his face barely showed any sympathy. Kayla's hands clenched at her side. Knowing that this guy was part of the reasons for the photos only made her angrier.

  "I'm fine, Steve," she told him, and she hitched her voice as if she was about to cry.

  "That was so terrible what he did," Steve shook his head and clicked his tongue, which only made Kayla's fury grow hotter.

  "I don't want to talk about it. Please, leave me alone." She said as she heard her phone beep.

  "Is he bothering you?" The message from Isaac seemed agitated, when she checked her phone.

  "No, but he's a terrible liar." Kayla replied, as she headed to her locker and ignored Steve who tried to follow her.

  "I've told Jay what's happening. Melissa's being a pain too; she's pretending those photos don't even exist." Isaac wrote back.

  He looked at his phone with such inconsequential messages written on it. He hated this plan, even though it had been his own. Seeing Steve approach Kayla just made him want to throttle the guy.

  He didn't trust Steve, he never really had. He had found Steve to be the kind of guy that pouted if he didn't get his own way. He could make someone's life a living hell, and Isaac knew that very well. Sure, he was normally quiet and friendly, but recently he had been showing a much more aggressive side to Isaac, especially on the field.

  "Hello, handsome, how about tonight," Melissa's unsubtle approach made him want to gag.

  "Melissa, she broke it off with me because of some pictures of you! Why the hell would I go anywhere with you?" Isaac snarled at her, and Melissa looked shocked.

  "I told you that I don't know anything about these so called pictures." Melissa sounded completely innocent. "Maybe she made it up. Did she even show you these pictures?" That question made Melissa's voice raise to almost a squeak. Isaac had to work hard to stop the smirk that wanted to appear.

  "No, she was so angry that she deleted them all. What exactly were these pictures of?" He threw the question back to Melissa, whose smug smile dropped from her face.

  "I told you that I had nothing to do with these so called pictures of me. She's making it up!" She insisted with a stamp of her foot.

  "Just leave me alone, Melissa." Isaac told her abruptly, as he saw Jay walking his way.

  "But... but, Isaac, I thought we could..."

  "Just leave me be!" He shouted, and Melissa backed away from the fury in his words.

  "Hey, man," Jay said, trying to hide his grin. "This is some bizarre stuff you got going around today."

  "Yeah, I know." Isaac answered, as they walked away from Melissa.

  "Is Kayla actually alright? She looks really bad and upset." Jay asked quietly.

  "She's a way better actress than she thinks." Isaac assured him, as the bell rang.

  Melissa and Steve left them alone for the morning, and Isaac was happy to be free of the pair of them. It was hard not to send Melissa a vicious grin at the payback he was preparing to send her way. He still couldn't get over the way that she had invaded his privacy. His distrust of her only increased every time she tried to be nice to him.

  He watched Kayla from across the cafeteria and realised that Jay was right, she did look incredibly sad. She looked up and caught his eye. For the tiniest second, he was sure that he saw the smallest of smiles, before she dipped her head so her hat covered her face and she became invisible. He breathed a little easier.

  "Isaac, I thought I should apologise," Melissa's voice made him want to grind his teeth.

  "For what exactly?" Isaac said roughly.

  He was dying to know what she was actually sorry for. Was it the drugging? The violation of his privacy or for pretending that nothing had happened.

  "Well, you just had a break up, and it was insensitive of me to ask you out." She simpered while running her fingernails down his arm.

  "Wow, how nice of you to finally notice," Isaac said sarcastically.

  "I just want you to know that I'm here for you." She tried to sidle closer, but Isaac quickly moved away.

  "You two are just perfect for each other!" Kayla had managed to make her voice sound as though it was dripping with malice, which made Melissa gasp.

  "Oh, I'm finally glad that you can see that." Melissa regained her composure to purr out the words and creep back to Isaac's side.

  "Get away from me!" Isaac insisted, as he stepped back towards Kayla.

  "You need to believe me, Kayla." He deliberately led her away from Melissa.

  "I don't need to believe you at all." Kayla said scathingly, as she kept moving away from the other girl and Isaac followed.

  "Thanks for saving me from her." Isaac whispered in her ear the moment they were alone, but it didn’t last for long.

  "He's mine you bitch! Stop dragging him away." Melissa's screech had them both rolling their eyes.

  "One more dramatic moment. This may hurt a little," Kayla warned Isaac. "Why don't you just go back to her already?" She screamed out the words, before slapping him as softly as she could.

  That one sure surprised Isaac, as he recoiled more from the idea of Kayla hitting him that the actual sting of the hit. He saw her wince, and it was hard for him not to grin. Her soft tap didn't hurt him, he copped a lot worse during football matches. They had to make the break up thing seem believable, and this would do that.

  "Dammit, that hurt, Kayla!" Isaac raised a hand to his cheek dramatically.

  "It's nowhere near as much as you hurt me." Kayla told him sharply, before turning to walk away.

  The bell pealed, and Kayla realised how much attention they had received with their fake dramas. On all sides, they had a crowd watching their every move. Some of the girl's looked pleased at her, grinning openly, and she knew why. Most of them had never really gotten to know Isaac when they had dated. They all think he deserved a good slap. All Kayla could think was that at least it made this situation believable.

  Her phone beeped, and it was hard to keep her sad face on when she knew it was Isaac. She continued walking to class, and felt bad that she had left him alone with Melissa again.

  "See you after school?" His text asked.

  "Dance class, remember. You pick the other girls up and I'll drive myself home." She replied, and she could almost hear him grouching over her answer.

  "C'mon, Chickpea, I really want to see you."

  "This craziness was your idea. If we're seen together it will all fall apart." She reminded him.

  "I miss you." He wrote, and she felt her heart melt at his sentiment.

  "Sorry, I hit you, but I miss you too." She walked through her classroom door and turned her phone to silent.

  She ducked her head, and took her normal seat at the front. Today the protection of her hat was incredibly welcome; she relished the ability to hide. The rest of the school didn't seem to agree with her.

  She felt someone s
it beside her, so she glanced over to see a smug Melissa. She wanted to groan, but she realised that she wouldn't mind getting some information from her with a few pointed questions. She knew now was not the time for that, but she was sure going to try.

  "Stay away from him," Melissa demanded coldly.

  "He keeps coming back to me. I don't want him," Kayla answered with a snarky pointed look. "You know what; now that you're here I want to ask you something." Melissa baulked and went to stand.

  "Just don't forget that he's mine."

  "Why would you do that? He had a girlfriend, me, and yet you deliberately went to his house, and did, well, God only knows what. Why would you send me the pictures of you half naked?" Kayla deliberately raised her voice for all the class to hear, and the room dropped to silence.

  "Shut up! I did no such thing." Melissa denied quickly.

  "I wish I hadn't deleted them now." Kayla said regretfully.

  "You have no proof, so everyone knows you just made up a story." Melissa voice filled with relief, and Kayla forced her face to go blank.

  She knew the truth; copies of those pictures were in at least four phones that she knew of. She had a copy, as did Hayley, Isaac and even Jay now had a copy. She had to let stupid Melissa believe they were gone; it was the only way that Isaacs plan would work.

  "Whatever you reckon, Melissa." Kayla said, hoping that she sounded snide.

  "Melissa, I've told you to leave Kayla alone," a new commanding voice, which turned out to be Steve had her brows raising

  "She started it." Melissa's muttered, as she scurried away at Steve's commands.

  "Hey, Kayla, sorry if she was bothering you." Steve sat down in the chair that Melissa had vacated and smiled at her. The smile came across as rather creepy to her, and Kayla said nothing.

  The rest of the afternoon rushed away, including dance class. It was only in the evening where things began to drag. With Mitchell gone back to school, and her Mum at work as usual, things were quiet.

  Her Dad had gone out to meet up with his friends, so she was all on her lonesome. Her Dad had insisted on staying at home with her, but she simply explained that it was normally this way. She told him to go out, and see his friends. She assured him that she was used to this, and that she wasn't a kid anymore.