She Was The Challenge He'd Been Waiting For.

Isabella could barely keep her eyes open as Alex drove her home. When he pulled into her driveway, she was ready to rush upstairs and head straight to bed. But, as expected, he had other ideas.

Alex chuckled, kissing her heatedly, murmuring about how he wanted to stay over and they could have some fun. But she wasn't interested. In fact, she was too tired to even tell him that.

She smiled, kissing his cheek and hopping out of the car. "I don't know if I'll be able to see you tomorrow. Mom's taking me out."

Alex sighed, nodding his head, visibly upset.

He watched as she headed into her house and looked down at his raging hard on.

Of course she didn't even realize that she did this to him. She made him so hard, it hurt. He groaned, mumbling about going home and taking a cold shower. It wasn't fair, but he couldn't help it. He liked Isabella's naivety and how she always strived to please him. Right now, though, he was frustrated and figured he'd have a lot of time to himself.

She was cute in her naive way... how she became wide eyed and blushed furiously when he even mentioned sex. It was so adorable that he couldn't hold himself back. He knew that she would do anything for him. It was really sweet just how much she believed him.

He wasn't used to girls like Isabella and didn't plan to change. He knew that he didn't have to do much else to finally have her. It was kind of nice to corrupt the most innocent girl he could find. She was so sweet and adorable. He almost felt badly about it.

It was funny that he took so much joy in toying with Isabella. He was so angry about Daniel's death that having control over someone else made him feel better. Isabella was a sheep without a shepard with her brother gone. Alex wanted to make her feel better in his own selfish way. The way that she trusted him so blindly almost made him feel badly about what he was doing to her, but he couldn't stop.

He groaned, looking at himself in the mirror. He didn't remember ever being this type of person who would do this.

Sure, he hooked up with girls all the time, had one night stands, but Isabella wasn't most girls. Matt had a point, even if Alex didn't agree. He almost hated what he was doing to her, but he couldn't stop. Not when he was so close to the gold.

"Alex, you have a session with Dr. Randall tomorrow."

He nodded to his mother, not saying anything.

He wondered if Isabella's mother knew what was going on between them. He knew that she would never lie to her mother. Maybe her mother hated him and thought he was scum of the earth. Maybe Isabella hadn't said what they'd been doing. He wondered what he was in for the next day. He wondered if Isabella would be happy to see him. She didn't seem so happy at the show and it had saddened him.

Despite everything, he did care about Isabella. Perhaps he didn't show it in a way that respected her or was obvious, but he did. She wasn't like any girl he'd ever been with and her uniqueness was part of her charm. He loved how childlike she was, and how trusting she was. She reminded him of a little girl and he felt a bit shameful for all of the damage he was causing her.

Isabella smiled softly as she sat at lunch with her mother. It was nice that they had their weekly gettogethers. Isabella had gone back to bright yellow nails and was smiling all the time. Her mother had been concerned about her, but was now relieved.

She was still a bit put off by how easily Isabella had made friends. Even though she'd wanted that, she wasn't totally sure of their intentions. Isabella was so fragile that people could take advantage of her easily. Her daughter would never even realize it was happening until it was over.

"Honey, how are things with you and Alex?"

"They're okay, I guess." She spoke, clearly uninterested in the conversation. "But he did say that tonight we could watch Pocahontas. I think that's one of my favorite movies..."

"I know it is, honey." Her mother smiled softly. "But he makes you happy? You feel... safe with him?"

Isabella didn't understand where all of these questions were coming from. She didn't understand why her mother was so concerned about her well being. It almost upset the girl that she was being watched like a hawk. She'd felt that finally she was being given independence, and friends, but her mother still was overbearing.

She understood that she wasn't normal. She understood that not everyone in the world would be kind to her, but her mother didn't want to give her any space to live for herself. She knew not to talk back, but she didn't know what to do. It angered her to feel so suffocated. Even Alex lately had been making her feel as if she had no control. She just wanted to have a say.

His lyrics, for the most part, were of people she didn't know and things that she'd never experienced. Whenever he had a new song, it saddened her that she hadn't helped him write it at all. His words were sometimes too deep for her to comprehend. She knew she wasn't stupid, but sometimes he made her feel so. Even if she wouldn't dare tell him that.

"I went to his concert last night." Isabella spoke quietly. "Kara and I sold their merchandise. It was a lot of fun. I met some more friends."

"And you were safe? No drinking? No drugs?"

"Of course not, mom." She laughed.

"Honey, you may think its funny, but I don't. I really worry about you."

Isabella sighed, shaking her head, before her gaze went to the dark haired boy at the counter, picking up his takeout order. She smiled widely, immediately recognizing him. Without notifying her mom, she leapt from her chair and towards the boy. He chuckled, immediately wrapping his arms around her, even though they'd never hugged before.

Matt Flyzik thought Isabella Randall was the most adorable girl he'd ever met. He didn't know anything about her Asperger's, but he didn't care. He noted that she was a little off, but he didn't mind. He just minded that Alex took such advantage of her childlike demeanor and her immediate ability to trust. Her wide eyes and everpresent smile seemed to win him over everytime.

"Hey Izzy."

"Hi Matt. I didn't get a chance to tell you how great you were last night."

He smiled. "Thanks."

"I especially liked that acoustic song."

"'Sleepless.'" He told her with a smile. "I'm glad."

She didn't respond, her eyes drifted to the takeout order that was placed before him.

He chuckled with a boyish grin, taking the food. "Band practice."

Isabella smiled, not answering.

"Um... I hope this isn't too forward, but if you wanted, I was going to ask for your number... so, so we could hang out sometime."

The younger girl nodded, immediately accepting and they exchanged information. He smiled one last time at her, promising to call before scurrying out the door. She smiled widely before returning back to her mother, who looked at her with an expectant expression.

"Who was that?" She asked, her eyes flickering to the door.

That boy didn't look like the type of person Isabella should be around with his piercings. He probably wasn't a very good person... What about his parents? And how did Isabella know him? Was he one of Alex's band friends? This was something the girl's mother was not impressed by.

"Oh, that's Matt. He played with his band at the show last night... They're good friends with Alex and the guys."

"Oh." The woman spoke, taking a sip of her coffee.

"He's wonderful, mom. He's a really nice boy and he likes Mickey Mouse! I saw his car keys had a Mickey keychain!" She smiled widely. "He had to go to band practice... which is funny because they just played last night, but I don't mind. I loved Underscore. I wouldn't mind if they played again tonight. I don't know the songs that well yet, but-"

"Slow down, honey."

"Yes, mom."

"Alex, my Isabella may adore you, but I still have my doubts."

The teenage boy sighed, leaning back against the couch. "Dr., I understand that you and your husband doubt my intentions with Isabella, but I do care about her. She's a really sweet girl."

"And she comes home smelling of alcohol and smoke, Alex. How would you explain that?"

"I took Isabella to my concert, but she didn't smoke or drink. None of us did."

The older woman sighed.

Alex bit his lower lip, trying to plan out his attack. He knew that his therapist saw right through him. She knew his dirty laundry, so to get her own daughter involved was not a good idea at all. But she'd given him permission to take Isabella out, so didn't she trust him to some extent? He figured that was the card to play, but he was waiting to let her make the next move.

"You know that she isn't like other girls, Alex. She isn't totally normal- She has a problem."

"I don't see it as a problem, ma'am." He spoke.

Alex was used to charming teachers and parents alike, he wasn't too concerned. But Isabella's mother knew better than to fall for a lot of his tricks. It was funny, to her, that she'd thought Alex was a great boy until he got with her daughter.

Both of Isabella's parents were hesitant to let her date him, but Dr. Randall thought that maybe it would open her up to new experiences. Now she wasn't sure if those experiences were a goo thing. Isabella wasn't ready for the fast paced world that Alex lived in.

"I care about your daughter a lot more than you give me credit for." Alex spoke, trying to be as earnest as possible.

"Alex, that's not my concern. My concern is what you're exposing her to."

"You can't keep her caged up in this house forever." He spoke, eyes darkening.

"I think that's the end of today's session." She spoke.

"Good." He nodded. "Because I told your daughter I would watch Pocahontas with her."