AYE! It's been a while since I worked on this story. The bits I already had written for it was running stale to my taste, so I'm chopping and fung-shui it at the moment. Expect updates to be sporadic, as usual, since I'm really just taking a break from my originals/warming up my imagination. To all of you who have badgered me to update - well, I serve to please ;)

Again, sorry it took me a while. I had no muse for this fic so I had to go scratch one out of the dust pile. And I found a nice one ^_^ Hopefully that translates into the story. OH, ooh ooh! AND, the layout will no longer be...weird. Because I actually got the hang of format! Whoo?

The bus stop had no shelter and Zoe found herself waiting in the scorching heat of late noon. Students swarmed past her, laughter and voices drifting by her. She caught scraps of conversations, and in a long fit of paranoia, her mind took each random word and somehow made her believe everyone was talking about her. She was certainly winning a lot of looks, and not the kind she was used to.

Pity. Warmth. She could almost hear them thinking 'tsk tsk'.

And where was Tanya? Had she stood her up for the hell of it? Zoe straightened up from where she'd been lounging against the bus stop. She wiped the perspiration from her face with her sleeve and turned to leave - and came up short against a sturdy and warm chest. She blinked at the black shirt - insanity to be wearing that colour in this heat! - and in the same instant recalling that neither Jess nor Kevin had been wearing anything close to that colour.

Her gaze darted up to the face scowling down at her. Electric blue eyes. Or were they midnight coloured? Violets and deep luminous blues of a million different shades seemed to swim in their depths, but what caught her breath was the coldness behind them. She recognised the ancient malevolence glinting in that gaze. It felt like someone had dumped her in a bath full of ice.

"You again," Zoe breathed, and then remembering she was dealing with Jess's dad, she tore her eyes from his to stare at her feet. "I mean, hi, Mr. Thornton."

"That was some stunt you two pulled." He didn't sound angry, but Zoe couldn't force herself to relax.

"We didn't mean to upset ev-"

"Of course you did, that's why you did it," he cut in. "To take a stand against the adults. To prove a point. To teach your parents a lesson."

Zoe licked her lips and swallowed air. "I'm sorry."

"Not sorry enough. You're coming home with me."

This did make Zoe finally look back up at him. She shook her head at his piercing gaze. "My parents-"

"Are waiting. The longer you keep them waiting, the worse off you'll be."

"But I had plans to meet up with some friends of mine," Zoe backtracked.

He tilted his head to the side and stared at her as if he was trying to decipher her thoughts. The sun glared brilliantly off his white hair.
Julian. That's what Kevin and Haley called him, she remembered. He's different, like Jess.

"Zoe, as much as I'd like to play this game of cat and mouse with you, I..."he trailed off, suddenly looking at her with a serious thoughtful expression. Then the intensity of his gaze wavered and a ghost of a smile flashed across his lips. "Come with me. No arguing. You'll do as I say, understand?"

It was the cut-throat authority in his voice that choked the "yes, sir" from her lips. She allowed him to lead her to a bright green Volvo outside the school grounds. She was surprised to find Jess already in the car as she slid into the backseat.

"Mom must be really angry with me," Jess said a few minutes after they started driving.

Julian said nothing. Jess let out a deep, despondent sigh. "Silent treatment, huh?"

"You know what your mother would say," Julian said curtly.

"What? That I'm grounded for life, again? That I'm not allowed to leave her sight? That she's going to homeschool me from now on because I've proven to be a rebel?" Jess said scornfully.

"No," Julian said, and his lips lifted in one corner. "She would want to know why didn't you just ask us."

Jess was quiet for a moment, dumb-struck. He shared a glance with Zoe in the backseat before staring at his father again. "It didn't occur to me. I didn't think you guys would tell me anything. You've been so...secretive about Zoe."

"It's not exactly something you just bring up in casual conversation, son," Julian said, and shrugged. "But since you want to know, Zoe is part of our family."

"Huh?" Jess blinked, and Zoe leaned forward in surprise, "What?"

"You heard me," Julian said.

"Family? You mean like a cousin or something like that?" Jess spluttered.

Julian sent him a look of indulgence, and glanced at Zoe over his shoulder. "You knew you were adopted. It shouldn't come as a shock to you, am I right?"

"I...didn't expect this," Zoe said.

"You didn't? You had no idea that I've been looking for you all this time? Not even an inkling of a feeling?" Julian pressed lightly.

"I thought it was just me being dramatic," Zoe said, blinking back tears of disbelief and joy.

"That's what I was told every time I thought I just missed getting hold of you. Shows how little people know."

"So...you're my sister?" Jess asked loudly, frowning at Zoe. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I didn't know I was your sister!" Zoe spat back with equal heat.

"What if I wanted to stay an only child?"

"Why, so you can be the freak of nature all by yourself?"

"That's not funny!"

"I'm sorry, okay! You're kind of shouting at me and I didn't do anything wrong and this is a little bit much for me to take in right now so just-"

Jess interrupted her rambling with his hand and a huge grin plastered across his face. "For the record, I'm glad it's you and not some other ordinary brain-fluff."

"What?" Zoe asked, confused and breathless from her rant.

"Welcome to the family, Zoe," Julian said, and offered her a smile that seemed to make the world's colour pallette that little bit brighter.