That up there is Lauren Reed. IDK which actress/model that is, I'm sorry.

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"Fucking hell Logan, hit harder!" I screamed, jumping about in excitement. What am I doing? Cheering Logan on. Why?

 Lemme catch you up. 

The entire gang, meaning Nick, Alex, Luke, Benjamin, Logan, Lauren, and me are at the club. We decided to meet up after school. That's apparently their hangout spot pretty often.  The other one is a Café near Eastwood High.

Turns out, all the boys love playing Tennis, though only Benjamin is actually anywhere near 'competitive' level good.

That was hard for me to admit. Fuck.

Yes, he's still Mr. Grumpy Pants to me, but to the rest of them? He's one fucking goofball. I am this close to committing a murder because of this. He was in a bad mood when we met, so what? He's gonna hold onto that?! What did I even do to deserve this?

You called him an animal, told him to fuck off . . . oh, and don't forget, you labeled him an underdeveloped neanderthal too!

Subconscious to the rescue. Am I supposed to thank that bitch? Cause I'm not gonna.

Right then, Logan was playing against Benjamin. A best of seven. They wanted a set but I flatly disagreed. I wanna beat ass too.

The score right now is 2-3, 30-40. Logan is serving. Matchpoint to . . . ahem . . . Benjamin.

It's not really a surprise to be honest because I whoop Logan's ass every time we play against each other.

I screamed earlier because Logan is getting sloppier and sloppier with each hit. He's obviously not played a serious tennis match in a while. Still, I'm rooting for him, though. Cause I hate Benjamin.

"Hit a backhand crosscourt," I yelled. The idiot hit a backhand down the line, that dumbfuck. I closed my eyes, anticipating the outcome and sighing. My theories were confirmed when I heard a pathetic grunt followed by a triumphant feminine cheer.

Logan lost. Benjamin w-

No.

Logan lost. That's all.

"The score, umpire?" Benjamin taunted me. He knows I was rooting for Logan. Rather, I was rooting against his majesty himself. I spared him a glare.

"4-2, game, match, Benjamin," I grit out.

"Yay!" Lauren cheered again. I swear that bitch vomits rainbows and glitter every time she opens that mouth of hers.

"Damn right," he said smugly, walking to the net and shooting Lauren a wink.

Gag.

"Good game, man." he shook Logan's hand.

"You too," Logan congratulated solemnly.

Benjamin walked away to his bench rather arrogantly with Lauren fawning over him.

"When was the last time you freaking played tennis, Logan?" I demanded in a low voice to make sure no one else heard.

"Umm a few months ago," He dropped down on his self claimed bench beside Benjamin, speaking in a low voice as well.

"And you were dumb against to go against Benjamin?" I asked incredulously. I heard from the boys that he's on the football team (captain, goddammit) and that he plays tennis along with it. Not to mention, he's on the swim team too, again, as a freaking captain!

". . .Yes?" he said though it came out more like a question. I gaped at him wordlessly.

"Belle," he sighed, "Not everything revolves around winning."

"Don't start." I glared.

"It's true," he shrugged, "Playing just for fun brings you more joy. Even if you don't win, at least you had a good time. Revel in that."

"Preach," I scoffed.

"How is it that I knew you'd react this way?" he laughed, completely unbothered by my comments.

I eyed him, not replying but fighting a smile.

"Just smile, Belle," he chuckled. I gave in, grinning.

"To each their own," I conceded.

A hand went around my shoulder suddenly, startling me. I looked up to see Lucian.

"Hey," he gave me a Cheshire cat smile.

"Hi," I beamed. Yes, I let that incident go. It wasn't his fault, not really. That was all Tarter. That, and it's hard to stay mad when he's always so perky. Not in the way Lauren is. That's irritating. He's different.

"I won," he flexed the muscles in his other arm standoffishly. I laughed. He was playing against Alex on the adjacent court. I glanced over at Alexander to see him sulking. Haha.

"Great job, Luke," I commended. His grin widened. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Nick going over to Alex and say something to him. I saw how Alex's frown turned upside down as the boys tossed and started a new game of their own.

"Aren't you gonna play too?" he asked.

"I am," I nodded.

"I wanna play too," Lauren quipped. I suppressed a slander and plastered a fake smile on my face. 

Funny, I don't remember asking her.

Logan eyed me warily.

"Why don't you play with Nick?" I asked. It was no secret that he was the worst player among us all. And looking at her hands and posture, I could tell that apart from Gymnastics she probably did along with Cheerleading, she didn't play much.

"No, I want to play with you," she insisted.

"Why?" I asked dubiously.

"Because you're a girl, so we'll be evenly matched," she stated nonchalantly. 

What?!

That oversized pretentious moronic Barbie.

My nostrils flared . . . figuratively. I've tried many times but I can't seem to literally do that. If I could, I would be more impressive when angry, don't you think? I do.

"Come again?" I queried disbelievingly.

"You are a girl, I'm a girl," she explained patiently, "We'll be evenly matched."

Sexist pig. News flash, people, it's not just ones from the male population who own that title.

I was about to burst out, quite literally. How dare she suggest something so hideous?

"Of course, she'll play with you," Logan spoke on my behalf.

Jesus-fucking-Christ, if looks could kill, I'm sure he'd be six and a half feet underground already.

He gave me a reproachful look.

Reproachful my ass.

"Yay," she animated, turning to Benjamin for a racket to borrow.

I swear to God, she's either blissfully oblivious or really knows how to get on someone's nerves.

I find both options rather disturbing traits. I shrugged off Luke's arm.

"You better sleep with one eye open today, you fucker," I hissed at Logan, pulling out my own racket from my kit and pulling off my cover up.

He smiled at me. I resisted the urge to bash his brains with my equipment.

You don't wanna go to juvie now, do you?

Nope, he's not worth it. 

I took a calming breath.

Luke was looking at me amusedly.

"What?" I snapped.

"Calm down, love," he placated me with a lopsided grin. I wanted to stay mad but he's so cute. I didn't wanna smile though.

"I am not you love," I groaned. He shrugged.

"Don't kill her," Logan teased.

"No promises," I sighed, "And you're on thin ice, mister."

"Come on Bells, I even got you lunch," he protested with a grin.

"Let's go!" Lauren exclaimed. I groaned again.

"I'd wish you luck but I know you don't need it," Luke grinned, checking me out shamelessly.

"Eyes up here, buddy," I glared at him playfully.

"Heads or Tails?" she asked.

"Heads."

Benjamin tossed a coin.

"Tails!" he declared.

"I want that side!" she exclaimed.

"I guess I'll be serving then," I sighed. At least I got one thing going my way. "Don't you want to warm up?" I asked her.

"Naw," she shook her head, "Let's just hit the ball back and forth for a while and I'll be good."

"You mean knock," I told her.

"Whatever," she rolled her eyes, strutting off to the baseline.

Hell. It's gonna be a long night, isn't it?

"Yup," Logan agreed. Seeing my confused expression, "You said that out loud," he chuckled. I nodded.

"Let's go, Izzy," she called.

"It's Isabelle to you," I mumbled under my breath.

God, take me now.

*************

4-0.

I won four love. That's how terrible she plays. We wrapped up in less than thirty minutes.

"Next time, I'll win," she pouted when we grabbed our bottles.

"Sure," I rolled my eyes, sipping my water. I was itching for a good game. Playing with Lauren was like playing with a beginner. I've been playing tennis since I was seven. I creamed her.

"What's the time?" I asked Logan.

"Umm quarter past seven," he informed me, "Why?"

"I usually go home by seven-thirty to have dinner with Jake by eight," I replied.

He nodded understandingly.

"Want to head out now?" he asked.

"Yeah," I sighed.

"You're itching to sweat some, right?" he eyed me.

"Am I that transparent?" I asked, starting my cool down.

"Not usually, no. Right now? Yes, actually, it's pretty evident," he chuckled.

"Pack my bags," I commanded. He obeyed.

"I'll drive," he announced when I finished, holding his hand out for the keys.

"Oh, no," I disagreed, "You are a horrible driver, Log, and you're not crashing my Maserati," I shook my head decisively and threw on my coverup.

He made a face.

"I've improved," he argued. I clicked my tongue, pulling my kit over my shoulder.

"No," I denied firmly.

"Bye, guys, we're heading out," I called.

"Bye!" Lauren chirped.

"See ya tomorrow!" Alex grinned.

"Bye," Nick nodded with a smile.

"See you, love," Luke side hugged me.

"Bye," I repeated, so did Logan. He even fist-bumped all the boys, grinning at Benjamin. What was surprising was that Benjamin grinned back.

We headed out.

"Take outs or ramen?" I asked.

"Take outs," he replied.

"I agree, just let Cart and Jake know," I told him.

"Yes ma'am."

*****************

I swiftly pulled into the garage and shut the door behind me with the remote. I noticed there were two new cars in here. A BMW convertible and an Audi A8 occupied the empty parking spaces. Our garage is quite big and can house five cars. Right now we have four cars and a motorcycle occupying it.

It was a good sight.

"I see your rides are here," I stated the obvious, getting out of the car. He walked to stand beside me.

"Yeah, Mom told me they'll be here today, or tomorrow by the latest," he shrugged, acting cool. I looked at him carefully, observing his stiff posture and restless feet.

"Go take her out for a spin," I shook my head with a laugh, leaning against my door and crossing my arms over my chest.

"I'm fine," he forced a shrug.

"Oh, my god, Log," I chuckled, amused, "I never said you weren't. I just told you to go for a ride in Cher."

Yeah, he named his car.

Moron.

"Hmm maybe I will," he said.

You will. Trust me. I give you thirty minutes tops before you crack.

"Sure . . . " I drawled out, "Let's go, I'm hungry," I whined, changing the subject. I pushed myself off my car, pulled out my kit and our take-outs from the backseat. Logan pulled out his own kit. The hood was up and I kept it that way.

I pushed open the door to the ground floor corridors. I didn't bother being quiet. Despite everything, I was overall pleased. I made friends. I like them, too. Nick, Alex, Luke. Even Lauren and Benjamin are tolerable.

"We're home, suckers," I hollered.

Nothing. Nada.

"We have food," I announced.

"Coming!" Carter screeched, running all the way from the living room. I grinned. Logan looked amused. I bet a hundred bucks that Jacob has a similar expression on his face.

"Where i-" he caught himself, seeing me grin evilly and raise my eyebrows. "Ahem," he coughed into his hand, "How was your day?" he improvised.

"Great, how was yours?" I teased, not yet passing him the food bags.

"Ours too," he nodded, staring at the food bags. I laughed, unable to stop myself. His eyes snapped up to mine.

"Bells," he groaned, realizing I was teasing him. I'm surprised it took him that long considering it's a pretty regular occurrence. Jacob decided that moment to walk into the scene.

"She did it again?" he addressed Logan, entertained.

"Yup," Logan smiled back.

"Seriously man," Jake chuckled, "You fell for it again?"

"Shut up, Jay," Carter grumbled.

"Hello to you too, Jakey," I narrowed my eyes at him.

"Hey, Iz," he smiled at me. I shook my head, "Sometimes I can't believe that it's you and me who's blood-related and not me and Carter."

"What?" Logan exclaimed. We all turned to him, surprised. His eyes were wide and he looked positively appalled.

"Hun?" I asked confused.

He froze like a deer caught in headlights.

"Are you alright?" I chuckled.

"Umm, yeah," he chuckled too, but he was stiff, "It's just this message I just received."

I glanced at his phone in his hands. The screen was dark. I frowned.

Really?

"Is everything alright?" I asked instead.

"Yeah . . . umm - it was just - umm-" he stuttered, "a project we have to do. Yeah. So, Benji just texted me. Yup, that's it," he nodded furiously.

"Riiiigghhhtt," I nodded back as if agreeing.

Project with Benjamin, my butt.

By the looks on Cart and Jake's faces, they agreed. They shared a glance then shook their heads in what looked like disappointment, simultaneously.

"I'll just go on a drive," he mumbled.

What did I say earlier? Not even fifteen minutes have passed. Ha!

He walked past us into the living room, avoiding eye contact.

"What's with him?" I asked our brothers.

"Nothing," they said in sync quickly. I huffed.

"Next time you lie, at least do it convincingly," I grumbled.

Logan reappeared with his keys before either of them could say anything.

"Hey," I stopped him, catching his arm.

"Hmm?" he didn't meet my eyes.

"You okay?" I asked.

"Yeah, I'm cool," he replied curtly.

I resisted the urge to kick him.

"Fine," I said brusquely, "Just take this with you and eat it, understand?" I shoved his order out of the bag and towards him. He grabbed it gingerly, a small smiled tugging on his lips.

"Wipe that smug look off your face or I'll do it for you," I snapped at him, annoyed.

He broke out into a smile.

"Thanks, Belle," he said. Then he bent down kissed my cheek and abruptly walked away. The door shut behind him. I turned to the other two.

"Is he bipolar? Why is he acting so off so suddenly?" I asked them both, "He was fine literally five minutes ago!" They shared a knowing look.

"What are you talking about?" Jacob asked. I pursed my lips. So they don't wanna tell me.

"I'm gonna shower, you guys go eat," I sighed, "And Carter?" I added, finally handing him the bags of food, "Stay away from my cheeseburgers and coke, got it?"

"No promises," he smiled cheekily, taking the bag. I shook my head, smiling myself, and headed upstairs for a nice, long, hot shower.

***********

"Fuck!" I hissed. What was I thinking, taking a hot shower? It was burning! I stepped away from the stream of water and switched to cold water.

Finally being able to tolerate the temperature, I enjoyed a nice shower, singing aimlessly. It felt therapeutic.

When I was done, I dressed in a pair of pajama shorts and a plain blue t-shirt. With the Blacks moving in, my 'wear to bed' outfit choices are a little limited.

I checked my phone, sitting on my bed for a minute.

Freya
Hey! u wanna hang out tom after school?
6:18 pm

Me
Hii
Sure I'd love to. See u in school tom?
7:58 pm

My phone buzzed almost immediately with the reply text.

Freya
Yeah. See u then.
7:58 pm

Me
Yupp.
7:59 pm

I hesitated on Logan's contact, my finger hovering over his name indecisively. I wanted to check on him, but I wanted to give him space too. He felt off today. Maybe I offended him, no? But after replaying the conversation in my head twice, I still couldn't get it.

Maybe he did receive a message from Benjamin. Maybe he does have a project. Why would he lie anyways?

My stomach erupted into audible unpleasant sounds whose precursor can only be one thing: hunger.

Sighing, I locked my phone and threw it down on my bed before switching off the lights. I shut my door behind me and locked it. With three boys in the house, it was kind of a necessity. I skipped down the stairs for dinner and shrugged off any bothersome thoughts.

Double cheeseburgers, here I come!

_________________________________
19th April 2021
_________________________________

A/N:-

A short and filler update but an update nonetheless. 

Vote, comment, and share! Lemme know whatcha think!!

All my love,
xoxo.