Okay, so if you read my story "Cheated", then you'll probably recognize this intro (No one moved. No one breathed. All they could do was...). I was having writer's block, so sorry that I repeated. Anyway, this is a really intense chapter towards the end. I forget if I put any clues in here or not, but if you find any, good for you :)
No one moved. No one breathed. All the gang could do was stare at Troy, who was keeping his eyes everywhere but at his friends. He knew exactly what was coming.
"You can't be serious." Chad flatly said, still staring at his best friend.
Troy shrugged "Why would I joke about something like this Chad? Brandon saved Izzy. If you were looking at Brandon before I brought her home, it would be obvious. He had a few cuts on his face, his fists were red, and then he had part of Josh's shirt caught between his fingers. Now tell me that he didn't save her."
Gabriella argued "But it just doesn't make any sense! Brandon knows that Isabelle's your cousin, so why would he help out a Bolton relative?"
Troy answered "But he also knows that you and Isabelle are close to best friends, so I'm guessing that he's trying to impress you and persuade you to go back home."
Sharpay, no tear-free, stood and silenced everyone with "Wait, wait, wait! I think the easiest way to figure this out is to just ask Isabelle if she saw anything in the closet."
Turning to Isabelle, Sharpay calmly asked "Izzy, did you see anything that he was wearing or what he looked like? Did his voice sound like Brandon's?"
Isabelle looked at the floor for a while, deep in thought and feeling the pressure from everyone to come up with an answer.
She finally answered "I remember him wearing a black Hollister shirt. It was cuffed at the elbows and had white vertical stripes everywhere. He had dark blue jeans and his hair was about 2 inches from his shoulders. His eyes were medium brown and as for his voice, I've never really heard Brandon scream before, so I can't answer that question. That's all I remember."
Troy nodded and concluded "Doesn't that sound exactly like Brandon? He was the only one there who was dressed in head to toe black."
Taylor figured "But there were 2 guys at the dance with formal Hollister shirts, Brandon and Chase Williams."
Jason corrected "No, Chase was wearing Abercrombie, his shirt was navy blue, and his stripes were horizontal. Brandon was vertical, right Izzy?" Isabelle nodded.
Zeke sighed "Well, you can't really argue with that. I guess Troy's right."
Troy nodded "Thank you for finally agreeing with me. No the real question is, what do we do now?"
The room fell silent for a few moments, everyone pondering Troy's question. They were all exchanging confused glances until Sarah piped up "I say you either ask him yourself or if you really believe that he saved my sister, you, dare I say it, thank him."
Kelsi was the first to comment "She's right. Brandon technically saved Isabelle's life. We can't just ignore that."
Jason agreed "They're both right. We just need to forget the fight between Troy and Brandon for a second and actually think of him as someone who saved someone close to us."
It took them a while, but everyone eventually agreed with the three friends. Gabriella piped up "Okay, so we're planning on thanking Brandon, but I think we all know that we can't do this without Troy. He's a part of this too."
At that moment, Troy averted his eyes to the ground and shuffled his feet, shaking his head. Gabriella asked "Why no-"
"He can't," Chad answered for Troy "He can't be nice to Brandon no matter how much wants to. Remember the deal?"
Gabriella softened and recalled "Oh yeah. Well then what are we gonna do?"
Nobody knew. They all just sat there in a helpless heap. Closing her eyes, Isabelle finally sighed "I'll do it. I'm the one he saved, so I think I'm the one who needs to thank him."
Everyone's heads turned toward the beaten teen before them with confused and shocked faces, the biggest one coming from Troy. "Are you out of your mind?!" he bellowed, wide eyed. Isabelle nodded and stood, replying "I need to personalize this thank you and he might feel cornered with all of you around me. I need to do this alone."
"But Izzy-" Sarah tried, but Isabelle cut her off "I'm gonna go take a shower and go bed. See you guys later." With that, they watched her exit the room and limp up the stairs, not looking back at them.
Groaning, Gabriella let her head fall into Troy's chest, asking "Do you think she should do it?"
Troy closed his eyes and stroked Gabriella's arm gently, sighing "I'm not gonna follow your brother's example. We don't control Isabelle's life, so yeah. I'm gonna let her do it."
Gabriella nodded and announced "I think it's time for you guys to go home. We'll talk to you tomorrow."
The gang nodded and said goodbye to their friends, got into their designated cars, and sped off down the road, afraid for the safety of their friend.
--
Isabelle stepped into the shower and watched the blood drain off of her and empty through the tiled floor, feeling the warm, comforting water wash over her.
"Just like Brandon's touch..." she thought to herself dreamily. She remembered how gentle he was with her when he pulled her up off the ground and how he didn't look down at her revealed lower area. Any other boy, like Josh, would stop and stare, commenting on how sexy she was. This thought just brought more tears to her blue eyes.
She knew that everyone had to know by now and they were going to give her hell on Monday. Someone probably changed the story and said that she was willingly having sex with Josh. But they should've known her better than that. She would never do that. Not with Troy around.
Bringing her thoughts back to Brandon, she remembered how worried and restless his eyes were when he saw the state that she was in. They barely talked in the week that Isabelle had been at East High, but he really cared about her. He was a true gentleman.
"Slow down Isabelle Johnson!" she mentally kicked herself for thinking about Brandon that way. "What the hell are you doing?! You can't have a crush on your cousin's worst enemy! Stop it!"
She nodded her head to no one and finished taking her shower. She got changed into her nightclothes and limped over to her and Sarah's room, climbed into her light blue bed, and drifted asleep, the image of Brandon's smiling face lulling her into dreamland.
--
Monday eventually rolled around and Isabelle found herself in the one place she had been dreading the entire weekend. East High School.
"Don't worry Izzy," Gabriella comforted, rubbing her back "Josh got expelled and is jail for up to 2 years. He can't get you here."
Isabelle nodded and forwarded to her class, not wanting to tell Gabriella the real reason she was afraid to come to school. Three words: Her dance savior.
As Isabelle walked to her locker, she bumped into someone along the way. She turned a deep shade of red due to her clumsiness and apologized "Oh, I'm so sorry! I should watch where I'm going more."
The boy she ran into shook his head "No, it's my fault. I... Isabelle?"
Isabelle looked up from re-gathering her books and found herself looking into the brown eyes that she was dreaming about all weekend. "Brandon?"
Brandon smiled, making Isabelle's knees weaken. "Hey. Are you alright, you know, from the dance? Josh really hurt you."
Isabelle nodded and shyly answered "Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks for asking. Listen, can I talk to you at lunch? There's something that's been on my mind and I kinda need to talk to you about it."
Brandon seemed a little hesitant as he looked over in Troy's direction. The basketball captain had an angry look drawn across his face as he whispered something in Sharpay's ear. Sharpay turned to Brandon also and smiled sadly at Isabelle. With that, she said one last thing to Troy before turning on her heel and walking off to homeroom. Once Troy caught Brandon's gaze, he gave him a hateful glare and stomped off, following Sharpay.
"What about-" Brandon tried, but Isabelle cut him off with "Don't worry. Troy knows that I'm talking to you and he's fine with it. So, see you then?"
Brandon once again smiled at the blonde and nodded "Sure. Can't wait."
Isabelle grinned and walked off, feeling light headed. "What's he doing to me?"
--
...Lunchtime...
"So Troy figured it out?" Brandon groaned, feeling stupid for some reason.
Isabelle nodded as she adjusted her hood. Troy and the gang knew that she was seeing Brandon, but the rest of the school didn't. They were sitting in a dark table in the corner in which case no one could see them.
"Yeah. He knew before we even left the school. He saw the cuts on your face and some of Josh's shirt in between your fingers." Isabelle replied, shifting in her seat. For a cold corner, it seemed to be really hot.
Brandon sighed and fell back in his seat. "What did he say about it?"
Isabelle shrugged "Nothing bad really. He was in shock that it was you of all people. He also thought that you were using me to impress Gabriella and get her to... go back home." She finished in a whisper.
Brandon's face darkened "That's not true. I would never use a girl like that."
Isabelle smiled sympathetically and responded "I know you wouldn't. So what's the real reason you saved me? You obviously knew that I was related to the Boltons."
Brandon grinned "I don't know. I just hate seeing girls get hurt by Josh. Especially like that."
Isabelle blushed "So you didn't do it just because you're a nice guy and my official hero?"
Brandon's face lit up at the mention of being her hero. "Your what?"
Isabelle smiled "You saved me from possibly the worst thing that could ever happen to me. How can I not call you a hero for that?"
Brandon felt a warm spot in his heart that didn't signal a good thing. He and Isabelle had been talking about random things earlier in the period and one of them was how Troy found out that he was in love with Gabriella. He couldn't be in love with Isabelle. Not after just one week!
"Thanks. I guess I should be flattered." Brandon joked, hearing Isabelle laugh again. He couldn't help but laugh along.
"Damn right you should. Everyone wanted me to personally thank you instead of us all just ganging up on you and saying it, so thanks Brandon. You're really a lifesaver." With that, she leaned over and kissed Brandon's blushing cheek. He froze as Isabelle dragged back over to Troy's table. Brandon softly touched the spot where Isabelle had kissed and whispered to himself "I'm only your hero."
--
...One Week Later...
Isabelle and Brandon walked through the halls laughing about how Brandon had thrown the spitball at Ms. Darbus in homeroom. They both burst out laughing and got a 2 hour detention. But they were in it together. And that's all that mattered.
"Oh my God, did you see her face when you were trying to put the straw away without her seeing?!" Isabelle recalled, not noticing the glare being given from Troy.
"Yeah, she was so red! She really needs to learn how to lighten up!" Brandon replied, barely being heard from his laughter.
Isabelle giggled one last time before feeling him lightly take her hand in his and continuing walking down the hall. Shocked by this movement, she didn't let it show as she blushed for the 50th time that day. He was her weakness now.
"Izzy, can I ask you something?" Brandon suddenly asked after about a minute of a comfortable silence.
Isabelle nodded "Shoot."
"Are you willing to lie to Troy?"
Confused by this question, Isabelle answered "What do you mean? Lie to him about what?"
Brandon rested them both against a locker and replied "Will you... umm... g-go out... with me... tonight?"
Isabelle felt the world stop when he finally asked her out. She stared into his worried and anxious eyes, which seemed to scream "PLEASE SAY YES!!!"
Isabelle gave her million dollar smile and finally hugged him, saying "I'd love to. Call my cell after school."
Brandon let out a relieved sigh as he hugged her back, replying "Will do. See you at lunch?"
Isabelle nodded "Count on it."
Brandon smiled and felt his heart soar. Even though Gabriella had decided to stay at the Bolton house for one more week to make sure that Brandon didn't explode on her again, he didn't care at the moment. Isabelle would quickly fill the burning emptiness inside of him. He was sure of it.
--
Isabelle and Brandon now found themselves sitting under the shining moonlight, staring at the lake in each other's arms. Brandon had his arm around her shoulders and her arms rested in his lap while her head fell into his chest about 10 minutes earlier.
"It's so beautiful, isn't it Brandon?" Isabelle suddenly sighed, referring to the lake in front of her.
Brandon tightened his grip around her and restrained from saying "Not as beautiful as you." Instead, he just kissed her hair and replied "Yeah it is. I had a really great time tonight."
Isabelle smiled "So did I. I'm glad I said yes to this. It was the best night since I've been here. Thanks."
Brandon laid his head in her shoulder and mumbled "No problem."
Isabelle smiled and closed her eyes, taking in Brandon's scent. It was sweet and natural, just like he was to her. She loved that about him.
As Brandon gazed out into the water, he felt a drop of water hit his nose. Before he could even raise his hand to wipe it away, he felt another one land on his arm. He looked up at the sky and, smiling, told her "Looks like a storm's coming."
Isabelle nervously rubbed her arm and said "Yeah. Do you want to go back to your car? It looks heavy."
Brandon was already getting hit with more raindrops as he shook his head "No, this night isn't over yet. Do you want to go home?"
When Isabelle saw the playful and childish look in his eyes, she knew that she couldn't say no and ruin his fun. She smiled and took his now outstretched hand, saying "No, I'm fine. Shall we?"
By now, the rain had reached its highest point as it pelted the teenagers' heads and drenched their entire bodies. But they didn't care. They were too busy dancing like maniacs and laughing their heads off. As they spun around, Brandon called to her "Told you this night wasn't over yet!"
Isabelle laughed back "I guess you were right! This is so much better than riding in a car and going home!"
Brandon couldn't help but give a wide smile. She was just so beautiful in the rain and smiling. Amy would've killed him if he was doing this, but Isabelle just seemed to go along with it and actually have fun with it. She was carefree. That's what he loved most about her.
After about 15 minutes of acting like fools, Isabelle lost her footing on a rock and tumbled to the ground, taking Brandon with her. The two fell in a heap in the wet grass and just laughed again, staring into each other's eyes. Blushing furiously, Isabelle picked herself up and apologized "Sorry I'm so clumsy. I should really work on that."
"It's okay. I have the same problem sometimes too." Brandon replied, standing right behind her. After wiping some of the mud off of her shirt, Isabelle turned around and expected to see an empty space to walk, but instead she just bumped into Brandon's wet chest and slipped. But before she could fall, Brandon caught her by her arms and by instinct, pulled her as close to him as he could. They froze, staring at each other with love shining in their eyes. Slowly, but surely, they leaned in closer and closer until they were just mere centimeters from the other's lips. Just as Brandon was about to close the gap between him and Isabelle, she flinched and whimpered, signaling that she was still not over what happened with Josh.
"I'm not going to hurt you Izzy." Brandon whispered, stroking her now curly hair.
"I know, but..." she looked up into his pleading eyes and closed hers, finally meeting his lips in a strong, passionate kiss. Finally, after 2 weeks of emptiness, Brandon finally felt human again. He felt whole. Just from the touch of someone's skin against his.
They were now in a proper make out stance, meaning their arms were fully around each other's waist or neck, and never wanting to break apart. But oxygen was obviously needed more than the need to kiss somebody. They eventually separated and smiled into each other's eyes, breathing hard.
"I love you Izzy." Brandon muttered into her fist, which he was now kissing.
Isabelle lightly smiled "2 weeks. That's a new record for me."
"What do you mean?"
"The shortest time I've ever fallen in love with someone was a month. You broke that record for me. I love you too."
Brandon smiled, feeling the tears well up in his eyes. Knowing that the rain would cover for him, he let them fall freely as he pulled Isabelle into another loving kiss, feeling all of his problems melt away and not seeing the dreaded person that was staring at them from the bottom of the hill.
"Thanks for an amazing night Brandon. You're amazing." Isabelle breathed into his chest after breaking apart for the second time.
Brandon hugged her back and whispered "Not as amazing as you."
Isabelle felt her own tears start to build in her own eyes as she closed them, letting out a shaky breath. She had been reluctant when moving to Albuquerque, but now she knew that it was worth it. She had finally found the love that she had been missing her entire life. The worst enemy of her closest cousin.
--
"Troy, wait! Calm down! I'm sure that what you think you saw isn't really what was there!" Gabriella called up to her boyfriend of two weeks. Troy was on a rampage, quickly speed walking back to his car in the park parking lot. What he thought would be a romantic night with Gabriella turned out to be a complete disaster on his part.
"How the hell can I calm down Gabby?!" Troy shouted, turning to his girlfriend. "I just saw my effing cousin kiss my worst enemy and you're telling me to CALM DOWN?!"
Gabriella groaned "It wasn't that bad Troy! It was probably just a friendly kiss! They're becoming friends now and he probably just did something really sweet and thanked him for it with-"
"Playing tonsil hockey with him?!" Troy shot back, not letting her finish.
Gabriella let out a frustrated growl, watching Troy continue to his car. She followed him and once she reached the car, she asked "You're not gonna explode on her, are you Troy? Because you know how I feel about that kind of stuff now."
Troy sighed back "No, of course not. I just plan on sternly telling her to stay the hell away from him. There. Perfect." He finished with a cheesy grin.
Gabriella rolled her eyes, not wanting to push the subject any further. She was already wet and she somehow got into a bad mood when she was soaked. She threw her head back in the seat and rode back to Troy's house in silence, praying that Isabelle knew he was there.
--
Isabelle walked into her new home soaked to the bone. But no matter how cold she was, she couldn't help but feel the heat of hell rise upon her. Brandon had broken into her heart and stolen every piece of it. And she didn't mind at all. She had done the same thing, hadn't she?
With a dreamy sigh concerning her new boyfriend, she closed the door and just as she did, a scream escaped her throat.
"Hey Iz." Troy greeted, trying to sound cheerful and struggling to hold back the glare he was dying to give her.
"Troy, don't ever scare me like that again!" Isabelle scolded, holding her hand to her chest.
Troy nodded and followed the blonde, who was now proceeding in walking up the stairs to the shower. "Where've you been?"
Isabelle rolled her eyes. "I told you. I was at Sharpay's."
Troy's eyes squinted as he figured "Then why are you all wet?"
Isabelle lied "Her and her family were going out so I had to walk home. Can I please take my shower now?"
Troy, now letting his glare loose, pushed his cousin up against the wall as he growled "Really, or did you just catch a ride with Montez?"
"Troy-"
"Admit it Isabelle! You went out with Brandon and ended up making out! Just say it!"
"Troy, I-"
"ADMIT IT!!!" Troy screamed, tightening his grip on her shoulders, which were now lightly bleeding.
"I'M IN LOVE WITH HIM!!!" Isabelle screamed back, glad that her and Troy were the only ones in the house. Gabriella was in the shower or listening to her iPod, so she couldn't have heard them.
Troy shook his head slowly and full of rage, his eyes flashing with disappointment. "Just as I thought. Falling for the enemy."
"Troy, can you just stop?!" Isabelle furiously snapped "It's not like you're not doing the same thing to him! You're in love with his sister!"
"That's different!" Troy replied loudly. "I'm not just trying to get in her pants! That's all Brandon wants! He's just another Josh!"
At that moment, Troy felt a burning pain radiate through his cheek, signaling that he had just been slapped. He sighed and looked back at Isabelle, who's face was red with rage and her hands curled up into fists.
"Don't...you...dare. Brandon would never do that to me! He loves me! I can see it in his eyes! He's different around me!" Isabelle spat, starting to shake with rage.
Troy had to strain to not tackle her to the ground and scream how wrong she was. Instead, he just let out an angry sigh and said "One week. That's all you have to realize how I'm right about Brandon. You have one week to date him."
Isabelle tried "Don't even go there!"
"Listen to me Izzy!" Troy shot at her "The only long term girlfriend that he's had was Amy and they've broken up like 50 times!"
"42 to be exact!" Isabelle harshly corrected.
"Like I give a dead rat's ass!" Troy rejected "You'll break up with him in one week or he's strangely going to find out about your promise to Austin."
Isabelle's face drained of it's red shade, her shaking switching from rage to fear. "You wouldn't dare..."
"Try me." Troy seethed in a whisper.
"Fine!" she nearly screamed at him. "But if he doesn't try anything in a week, I'm staying with him and show you that you're out of your mind!"
"Fine!" Troy finalized before shoving her out of the way and stomping up to he and Gabriella's room. When she finally heard the door slam, Isabelle let loose the tears that she refused to let Troy see when he was in front of her. She slid onto the middle stair and let her head collapse into her knees, which were now pulled up to her chest. One week. That's how much time she had to love him properly. She had no idea how tell him. He couldn't find out. She couldn't stand to see him broken hearted.
"Why do you always ruin these perfect nights for me Troy?" she whimpered to no one before the sound of Brandon's "I love you" lulled her to sleep, right there on the middle stair.
Hmm... I think I made them fall in love a little fast, dont you? Oh well. Brandon and Izzy are in love! What else could go wrong? REVIEW!!! Thnx :)
Rachel :)
Trivia:
- Brandon and Isabelle were supposed to jump into the lake to get wet, not by the rain
- You were supposed to see how Troy and Gabriella found out that Isabelle was kissing Brandon, but I decided to leave that out
- Isabelle wasn't supposed to fall asleep on the stair. She was planned to cry herself to sleep in her room