Please read the bottom, thank you! Enjoy!
"Thank you, thank you, thank you so much!" Kelsey hugged her friend.
Mariana sighed into the hug. She hoped she wouldn't be making a mistake this time.
Mariana had an alarm set for four in the morning and as she shut it off, she checked if Callie noticed. When she was certain that she didn't, she took the covers off of her and opened her bedroom door. She silently made her way down her steps, using the tip of her toes to step. She looked towards the living room where she saw Natalia asleep and continued her way to the kitchen where she knew the pills would be. She grabbed Jesus' bottle and took one and then she did the same with Natalia's. If she took one from each person's bottle a day, they wouldn't notice. She stuffed the pills into her pajama's pocket and turned around to see Natalia staring at her sleepily.
"What are you doing? It's 4 in the morning." Natalia blinked, still slightly asleep.
"N-nothing, I just had to get some water," Mariana felt guilty lying to someone who got really close to her.
Natalia narrowed her eyes. "Are you sure? Where's your water?" She didn't believe her.
"Um, well I just came downstairs, so yeah," Mariana smiled, walking to the cupboard and grabbing a glass.
Natalia kept her eyes narrowed, she pretended to believe her. "Alright then...g'night." She walked back to the living room.
"N-night," Mariana said.
It was Friday and the whole house was up to their regular routine. Natalia and Jesus walked up to the pill cabinet and pulled out their pills. They narrowed their eyes in confusion, there were too many pills missing. They took their pills everyday, but they saw that 4 were missing from each of theirs. Natalia pretended to take her pill, so that the moms wouldn't notice. Jesus did the same, knowing the moms would think he was "selling his pills" again if they found out he was missing any.
"Took your pills, Natalia and Jesus?" Stef asked to remind them.
"Just did," they lied in unison.
As they all spilled out to their cars, Jesus grabbed Natalia's arm gently, pulling her back inside the house. "You didn't take your pill, did you?"
"Shh," Natalia put a finger on his lips, checking to see if anyone heard him. "And no, how do you know?" She asked.
"Cuz I had to do the same," Jesus told her. "And I think I know who took some of our pills..."
Natalia's eyes widened. "Who?"
"Mariana."
"Mariana?" She shook her head. "What the hell would she need them for?"
"Listen, Mari's done this before," Jesus looked over at his sister. "She took my pills and sold them to some kids at school. There was a huge lockdown and they searched everyone's locker and I think she's doing this again," he looked disappointed.
"You're lying," Natalia didn't want to believe it, she couldn't believe it. But her missing pills tells her that Jesus is telling the truth.
"I wish I was, Nati," Jesus shook his head sadly. "Follow her all day and I'll follow Kelsey; I know she has something to do with this."
"Okay..." Natalia nodded.
Natalia followed Mariana and saw her meet up wit Kelsey in a shady place of the school. She felt someone behind her and she turned to see Jesus.
Jesus put a finger to his lips, telling Natalia to be quiet. He wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her into his body. They stared wide-eyed at the scene in front of them.
"You're the best, Mariana! You got me 8, how did you get so many?!" Kelsey looked ecstatic, staring at the little pills as if they were gold bars.
"Don't ask," Mariana looked around her, feeling someone else's presence around her. "Just take them. You owe me 160 dollars." She held her hand out.
Kelsey practically threw the money at her as she left to the bathroom to snort a pill.
Mariana counted the money and sighed in relief as all the money was accounted for.
Natalia couldn't handle it anymore and she walked up to Mariana. "Is this why you snuck downstairs at 4AM on Tuesday? To steal our pills, Mariana?" She was furious as she dug in her shoulder bag, taking out her wallet and grabbing the exact amount Mariana had and threw it at her. "Is this what you wanted? Money? Cuz I could've gave you some. You were starting to be one of my best friends and now you do this?" She shook her head. "And to think this isn't the first time you did this..." She said bitterly. Her fists shook at her sides and she knew it was a reaction from not taking her pills. She shook her head and left the twins, stomping to the lunch spot on the beach where the family usually sat at.
"You see what you did?" Jesus said quietly. "We didn't even take our pills today, so you're lucky that's all she did. I've been trying to stay normal all day so no one would notice." He shook his head. "I love you, Mari but this...I'm not taking the fall for it again if you get caught. And you will. I'll make sure she doesn't tell but Kelsey's always obvious so..." He trailed off. "Good luck, sis," he gave her a hug and walked to where Natalia went.
Jesus found her sitting on the sand, her sandals and her bag behind her. The wind blew her hair slightly and he thought the scene was beautiful. "Hey, you okay?" He dropped his bag with her stuff and slipped off his Toms and socks and sat behind her, pulling her into him.
She shrugged, feeling Jesus put his chin on her shoulder. "I guess...I lost it back there," she shook her head. "Even though I hate taking those pills everyday, they keep me normal." She said, choosing not to talk about Mariana.
"Hey, you're normal even without the pills," he wrapped his arms around her stomach and sighed. "Do you just want to skip school?"
"Honestly...?" She sighed as well. "...yes. But can we just watch the waves for a little?" She asked. "They make me feel a little more calmer."
"Anything..." he breathed, also staring at the waves.
Natalia and Jesus arrived at the house and changed into their pajamas, both coming into the living room to watch a movie.
"What do we do if one of your moms come home early?" Natalia looked at the guide for movies to watch.
"They won't, trust me," Jesus said, knowing Lena doesn't leave school til 30 minutes after everyone is off campus and Stef comes home just before dinnertime. He laid down on the couch and smiled as Natalia laid in between his legs. He liked the fact that she was warming up to him more and more. Jesus didn't want to admit it, but he had started to get a crush on Natalia, something his sister only knew. He didn't want to make the same mistake he made with Lexi by not telling Mariana so he told her this time. "What movie did you pick? He asked, trying to take his mind off of Lexi.
"I'm not sure. There was too many interesting movies to pick so I scrolled between a bunch of them and picked one at random." She grabbed a piece of popcorn that sat in the table in front of them.
"Oh, I've seen this before!" Jesus cheered when he saw the opening credits.
"What is it?"
He grinned. "Saw."
Natalia's eyes widened. "Let's pick a different movie," she scrambled for the remote.
Jesus had it in his hand. "Let's not and say we did," he grinned at her.
"Jesus, no." She said firmly. "I hate scary movies. Let's watch something else."
He laughed. "The fact that you hate it, makes it even better. The answer is no; we're watching the scary movie," he said, trying to focus on the first scene of the movie.
Natalia tried to get the remote but it didn't work. She turned around and got an idea. She put a seductive smile on her face as she straddled him.
Jesus gulped as he saw Natalia on top of him. "Wh-what are you doing, Nati?" He stuttered. He didn't know where to put his hands.
"Please let me have the remote, Jay," she breathed in his ear, leaning down so that they were chest to chest. "I really don't like scary movies," she nibbled on his ear and reached for the remote. She moved her face to his neck and kissed it, slightly sucking and licking on the skin there, trying to get him to release the remote.
Jesus shut his eyes in pleasure and groaned. "U-um, yeah okay. Sure," he loosened his grip on the remote, not knowing what she was doing.
Natalia grinned against his neck as she grabbed the remote. "Thank you!" She backed away from him and sat on the other side of the couch. She giggled at Jesus' reaction.
His eyes flew open when Natalia suddenly got off of his body. "You tricked me!" He gasped. "That's not fair!"
She shrugged, her eyes now on the TV. "Hey, I don't play fair," she winked at him. "You might want to cover that up on your neck though," she grinned.
Jesus ran to the mirror next to the front door and moved his neck to the side, seeing a hickie becoming more and more visible. His eyes widened at it, walking back to the living room where Natalia sat, nervously looking at him.
"I'm sorry," she said, biting her lip. "I just wanted the remote. I know it was wrong doing it the way I did, but-"
Jesus covered Natalia lips with his finger. "Shut up," he grinned. He looked at her lips and then at her eyes. He smiled even bigger when he saw her nod. He started to lean in, their lips only a few centimeters apart when -
"Guys, we're home! And we know you skipped so you have some explaining to do!" Brandon opened the door and yelled.
Jesus and Natalia's eyes widened and they scrambled to look normal. Jesus laid his head in her lap, the side where the hickie was currently on was not visible to the family.
"So what happened?" Callie walked in and sat in the reclining chair as Jude sat next to her.
"We just didn't take our pills today and I almost lost it so I asked Nati to take me home," Jesus shrugged, his head still in her lap. "And then I asked her to stay with me so that's it. No big deal," he lied easily.
Mariana came through the door and looked down, overhearing her brother's lie, obviously protecting her. She looked over at her brother and her close friend and tried to think of a way she could apologize to them. She shook her head as she walked upstairs to her room.
"You guys have to explain to the moms why you guys skipped then," Brandon explained.
"Yes, dad." Natalia rolled her eyes playfully as she saw Jude, Callie and Brandon go upstairs. She turned to Jesus, waiting for him to speak.
"We'll finish this later," he whispered in her ear. He smiled as he saw her bite her lip. And on impulse, he gave her a quick peck on the lips as he got up from the couch and started to walk upstairs. He gave Natalia a wink before climbing the stairs two by two.
"What?" Natalia whispered to herself, smiling slightly. She fell back on the couch as she grabbed a pillow and covered her face with it.
It was dinnertime and Mariana couldn't help but smile at Natalia and Jesus, knowing what happened between them. Jesus scrambled upstairs and told her everything. Mariana helped Jesus cover up that hickie with some foundation. She still didn't know how to handle the situation with Natalia and the pills.
"Thank you for telling us the truth, Natalia and Jesus," Stef said after hearing them explain why they skipped. "But please continue to take your pills." She looked at them.
"And don't skip school again," Lena added.
Natalia and Jesus nodded. "Sorry," they said again.
"We just thought we could handle it for a day, but obviously we were wrong," Jesus said.
"Pass the pasta, Mari. Please," Natalia spoke to Mariana for the first time since she blew up at her early. She just wanted it to be over and for Mari to be her friend again. She just wanted to forget that Mariana even did it.
"Um, yeah." Mariana handed the bowl to Natalia, her head bowing.
"Are you okay, darling?" Stef asked her young daughter.
"...I have to tell you guys something," Mariana made her decision.
Sounds of forks falling on plates could be heard as Jesus and Natalia looked at Mariana.
"You don't have to do this, Mari..." Natalia grabbed her hand.
"Let it go, Mariana," Jesus warned his sister in Spanish, knowing both her and Natalia were the only ones who could understand him.
Natalia also spoke in Spanish. "Please. Don't. I don't want you to get punished." She tried to convince her.
"I have to do it," Mariana said in Spanish as well.
"Hey! No Spanish at the table when we can't understand it," Lena spoke up. "Now what's going on, guys?"
"Um, I'm the reason why Jesus and Natalia didn't take their pills today," Mariana said nervously.
Natalia shook her head and bit her lip nervously. She felt Jesus grab her hand under the table. They both didn't want Mariana getting in trouble.
"What do you mean?" Stef asked.
"The first time Jesus' pills went missing, it wasn't him. It was me. I'm the one who stole them and sold them," Mariana closed her eyes. "I needed to get some money so I can help Ana, our birth mom. Jesus just took the blame for it. On Tuesday, Kelsey asked me if she could get more and I kept saying no but then she said she'll pay me 20 dollars a pill and she needed 6 pills. I couldn't deny her that. I needed more money so I wouldn't have to ask you guys."
The whole family looked shocked at this news but not Natalia and Jesus because they already knew this.
Mariana continued. "I knew we were struggling to make ends meet, so I didn't want to bother you guys by asking for money. So I stole from both Natalia's and Jesus' pills. I gave Kelsey 8 instead of 6, she paid me but then Natalia and Jesus caught me." She looked at her brother and someone who she could call her best friend. "Natalia asked why and she said if it was money, I could've asked her. She threw 160 dollars at me, the same amount I got from Kelsey then she left. Jesus said he wasn't going to take the fall for me, then he followed Nati. That's the real reason why they skipped, because of what I did," she looked down. "They were just protecting me."
Stef and Lena looked shocked. They didn't know what to do. They looked at each other then back at Mariana.
"I think it's best if we end dinner and we all go to our rooms while your mother and I talk about this in the living room," Lena finally spoke. "Natalia, we'll be using the living room, so while we're talking, please go upstairs with Jesus and...yeah. We'll call you guys down when we're ready."
The kids cleaned up while the moms stayed frozen in place. While the kids were making their way upstairs, Brandon turned around.
"Um, I'll be in my room if any of you guys need me." He sped upstairs.
"Jude and I will be in Mariana's room, if that's okay." Callie said. "We want to give you three time to talk." She grabbed Jude's hand and jogged upstairs.
The twins and Natalia walked in Jesus' room, not knowing what to say.
"I'm sorry you guys," Marianna spoke first.
Natalia shook her head. "I already forgave you. The reason why I said those things was because I didn't take my pills today and I was just mad. I didn't mean it," she sat on Jesus' bed next to her.
"I just hope I can gain your trust back someday..." Mariana looked down. She got up and gave Natalia and Jesus a hug. "I just need to think for a little bit, I'll be back."
Jesus and Natalia were silent, not knowing what to say. Natalia laid back on Jesus' bed and shut her eyes, just laying there and replaying the day's events over again.
Jesus grinned to himself as he thought something. He slowly crawled on top of Natalia's body. "Nati..." He whispered in her ear. "It's later," he smiled.
Stef and Lena were discussing what to do with the new information that their daughter had just told them.
Lena shook her head. "What are we going to do, Stef?"
"We try to get Kelsey to go to rehab again..." Stef spoke. "As for Mariana, we take away her phone and laptop and ground her for two weeks and we make her take a class about addiction. And from now on, we keep Jesus' and Natalia's pills in our room."
"But will that solve the problem?" Lena asked, still unsure of what to do. "Do we know if she's sold the pills to anyone else?"
Stef shook her head. "I don't think so. For Mari to tell us the truth like that, it had to be the whole truth. But just to be sure, have a search again at the school. We'll find the pills that Kelsey has and that will be enough to send her to rehab again. We'll also be able to find out if Mariana has sold to anyone else." She suggested.
Lena nodded. "That sounds good. But we'll also have to watch Marianna a little more closer now, just in case," she said.
Stef agreed. "I'll call down our little delinquent." She walked to the stairs. "Mariana Foster, please come downstairs to hear your punishment." She smiled to herself as she sat next to her partner.
"Really?" Lena had an amused smile on her face but exchanged it for a stern look when her daughter came downstairs.
So I made an impulse decision and changed Natalia's name but then I changed it back because I just like Natalia's name the way it it! :)
I hope I didn't make NataliaxJesus happen too quickly, let me know if I did.
Please review. It sounds cliche but it really does make me right faster. And it lets me know how you're liking this. :)
