The Sharpie mark on my arm was an agonizing reminder of what I had to deal with today at school. I tried to wipe it off with no luck.

"Isaac's getting worse with you," Zoe stated as she drove into my driveway.

I wouldn't deny it, he was. But I wasn't sure how to make him stop since everyone liked Isaac. No one ever saw it when he did something wrong and if they did it would probably just get pushed under the rug by school leaders. Isaac was the king, and no one could take him from his throne.

"It's just marker," I said, trying to play it off. I was just glad it wasn't worse. At least he didn't jab me with a pencil, which I had seen happen to one of his teammates.

Zoe sighed. She knew it was more than just marker; this was an attack against me. "Want some company?" Zoe asked as she parked the car.

She knew I was upset with not just Isaac. But I knew she was busy tonight. "Nah, I'll see you tomorrow. Thanks for the ride." I got out of her car and walked into the empty house without looking back as she pulled out of the driveway. With Mom away on a business trip and Everly at a cheer practice, I was all alone in this house that closed in on me.

Tears welled up in my eyes as I dropped my books in the hall. The last time the house was empty was right after Dad died. Everyone was at the funeral home setting up, but I couldn't join them. The fear kept me here in silence. My heart raced in my chest as I remembered that day, the tears, the unsaid words, the regret. I should have been there; I should have helped set up.

Breathe.

With a deep breath, I let it out slowly then looked outside in our backyard at the basketball court that Dad made years ago. I couldn't stay in here and even though I wasn't a lover of basketball, today that place called me out. Without wasting a moment, I walked into the garage and pulled out a basketball, then ran to the back.

Without the house crushing my thoughts, the events of today flooded my mind. Isaac was starting a war with me that I couldn't win. No one had won a war with Isaac, and that fact terrified me more than I wanted to share. He could destroy what little I had left if I let him.

I threw a basketball at the hoop in anger, only to have it hit the metal pole and bounce back towards me. I shouted at the ball as if it would make it better.

My mind quickly changed topic to Tristen as I bounced the ball. For weeks, I had been waiting for Tristen to come back, my best friend. But he ditched me for a girl he had only been dating for two weeks. I was hurt, pissed, and upset all at once. I thought we were closer than this. "That tart will not last one month. But I'm here to stay. Can't he see that?" I shouted.

Just when I felt stable, everything stood on shaky ground. I was on the verge of an emotional breakdown as I looked at the hoop. I let out a choked breath. This wasn't what I signed up for. My tears stung as they ran down my face.

This was supposed to be Tristen's first full day back, and after not seeing him for two months, I was craving his company. I had his whole stay all planned; we would go out for ice cream tonight.

"Tristen, you prick," I shouted as I picked up the ball and threw it at the hoop again. This time it was nothing but net.

Hands clapping broke me from my thoughts. "Did you ever think about joining the ball league?" Miles asked with a smirk on his face.

I looked at him, worried about how much he heard. "I thought about it, but I decided I was too good for them," I said as I bounced the ball towards him.

He caught it. "Want to play a game of pig?"

Miles and I had no plans to hang out today. He was supposed to be writing new music or something. I wasn't sure he even knew I was upset until now, so it made me wonder what made him come. Regardless of that, I wanted him here with me for company and I welcomed the game to distract me. "Please."

He smiled and stepped onto the court. "This is cool, you can come out here and play any time you want," he said as he bounced the ball on the blacktop.

I nodded as I stole the ball from Miles. "Yeah, Dad made it when Tristen was into basketball like five summers ago."

"How long did his love for basketball last?"

Like most of Tristen's hobbies, they didn't last long. He was talented in a lot of things actually, but when things got easy for him, he quit. "A summer."

He laughed as he shot the ball into the hoop.

"Good one," I said as he grabbed the ball, then passed it to me. I caught it, then watched as Miles shook his hands as if he touched something hot. He had done this before, and I wondered why he did it. "You ok?"

He nodded. "Ok."

By time we were done with the game, the sun was setting and, in the distance, wolves howled, beckoning the night to come. I sat on the grass to catch my breath as the sun lit up the sky.

Miles stumbled to a sitting position beside me. I smirked as he hit his leg to loosen the muscles up. "Looks like you need to work out more." The game of pig was hardly something to be exhausted over, but yet he looked so tired.

"Leave it to you to poke me while I'm down," he chuckled as he took a sip of water from my water bottle.

"Hey, that's mine," I retorted and pushed him, causing him to almost fall over onto the grass.

He pushed himself up with a smirk that said trouble. "Well, you didn't get one for me, so I have to take what I can find," Miles said as he ran his hand through his dark blonde wavy hair that was longer than when I first met him, now hitting his jaw.

"I like your hair," I said to him as I put the ball between my black legging-covered legs.

He shook his head, making his hair catch glints of sun, turning it red. "It wasn't my idea to grow it out but I'm glad you like it," he said with light bitterness.

"Was it your managers idea?" I asked. Miles told me he felt suffocated by Rodger but was too afraid to leave and find someone else. His story wasn't too different from mine since I remember feeling the same when I was with Isaac.

He nodded in silence. "I feel like he's the one that really runs my life. I'm just a puppet in his hands. In fact, I feel like I'm a puppet in many people's lives. People want me to be this person who I'm not most of the time."

The pain in his voice was like nails on a chalkboard, but I didn't know how to take it away. I couldn't relate because I was myself, not caring if they thought less of me for it. "Well, at least you have me. I will not force you to do anything."

"Thank goodness for that," he said with a chuckle. "Can I get that in writing?"

I rolled my eyes as I took his palm. With my finger I wrote, "Isla will not boss Miles around," then closed his hand and pushed it back towards him. "There. It's official."

He smiled as he looked out into the woods. For a moment, we were quiet as we watched the sunset, turning the sky ablaze with bright shades of orange.

"What happened to you here?" Miles asked with concern as he looked at my Sharpie-marked arm.

I shrugged at him. "Some guy tripped while carrying a marker," I lied, not wanting him to worry about my silly high school drama when he had so many other important things to deal with.

"He should watch where he's going."

I chuckled at that statement. I would have been completely happy if Isaac never stumbled into my life from the beginning. If he watched where he was going, I wouldn't have him as an ex. "Yeah, he should have."

For a moment we were quiet as we looked out into the woods.

I reached for the water bottle and smiled at Miles. This was exactly what I needed, him with me. He was so good at making me feel better. "How did you know I needed company?" I asked, breaking the silence as I took a sip of water.

"Your texts said it all," he said simply, as if it was that easy to read into them.

"I barely texted today."

"And that's how I knew, they were curt and short and normally you write paragraphs."

I couldn't help but feel my heart flutter at this. He knew my writing; he cared about me. I couldn't deny it any longer, I was falling for Miles Kit Keen.

"I got worried and thought I should pay you a visit."

I smiled at him. "Thank you. I needed this."

He nodded. "Whatever you need, don't hesitate. I'll try to move mountains for you," he said and took my water bottle from my hand, took a sip, then dumped the last bit of water over my head.

"Agg. Miles!" I shouted as I wiped the water from my face. Suddenly, our heart-to-heart moment vanished like the water in my water bottle. He was so good at quickly changing the mood. It was as if he was afraid to have a deep conversation for too long.

He smiled at me with a shrug. "I couldn't help it. Sorry."

I pushed him lightly, but I guess hard enough that he fell over into the grass. He frowned as I stuck my tongue out. Serves him right. I shivered as the wind whipped my hair around my face. Fall was coming in fast and strong, before long winter break would be here. "Want to get dinner?"

"I thought you would never ask," he said as he got up from the ground. He offered his hand to help me up and I took it. "Where's Everly?" he asked as we walked towards the house.

I pulled out my phone, knowing that she wouldn't be home for another 30 minutes. "At cheer practice," I said as I put the phone back into my pocket.

"Are you often home alone?"

I shook my head. "Not really, not after Dad died. However, when I need them the most, they're nowhere to be seen."

"Whenever you feel alone, you are more than welcome to call me," he said as he took off his shoes.

As kind as that was, and as much as I wanted to take him up on the offer, I couldn't do that to him. He was busy; he had a life, he couldn't just drop everything for me. "Thank you. And the same goes for you. You act tough and strong, but I see through your mask. When you feel like sharing, I'm always willing to listen."

He hugged me tightly, as if that was exactly what he needed to hear. "Thank you, Isla."

"No problem. That's what friends are for," I said as I hugged him back, although wishing we were more.