How to Date Alexis Brighten

By the time I got home, Isaac was already playing in the mud out the front. He was waiting for me to arrive so that I could unlock the door. Mud covered his hands, face and the front of the new shirt that Mum had bought for him only last week. She wouldn’t care when she found out, either. Isaac was the golden child. Isaac could do no wrong.

I sighed and trudged up the front steps, fumbling through my pockets for my keys. The list fell out of my jeans pocket to the ground and I gritted my teeth in anger, bending down to pick it up again. I clutched it tightly in my left hand as I shoved the key in the lock with my right. The door opened easily and I turned to call out to Isaac to come inside. I made sure that he had taken his shoes off first, so he wouldn’t get mud all through the house. Mum would only be furious and find someone else to blame it on. I could almost see the scene unfolding in front of me.

Mum would get home and see the muddy footprints all over her perfect cream carpet in the front room. She’d notice that the footprints were obviously too small to be mine and know that it was Isaac. She’d tell me that I should have been watching him more carefully. If I’d just been responsible, it wouldn’t have happened.

I knew it wasn’t Isaac’s fault that my mother took out her frustrations on me. She had a hard time at work, that was for sure, because working as a journalist escalated the normal rates of stress. I threw my keys onto the hall table and dumped my bag in the foyer. I turned to see Isaac attempting to take his shirt off. He’d managed to get it stuck on his head, his arms reaching up.

“Allie!” he whined. “Help me!”

I sighed and tugged at his shirt, until it came off his shaggy, blonde head. He smiled up at me and I knew right then that that was why I couldn’t hate him. He was just too adorable. Surely any other person would hate him if they were in my position. Sibling rivalry and jealousy would definitely come into place. But I knew my responsibilities, especially when it came to Isaac, and I was happy to fade into the background whenever he was around. I made sure that Isaac left his muddy shoes outside the front door, before closing it and heading for the kitchen.

“You want something to eat, Isaac?” I asked him tentatively, making my way to the fridge.

Isaac didn’t hear me; he was caught up in himself, as he usually was. He looked up at the ceiling fan in what looked like awe, observing as it span around in slow circles. I smiled weakly and got to work on making him a peanut butter sandwich, which I knew was his favourite. I set his sandwich on the coffee table in front of the television when I was finished and watched Isaac follow the fan, walking in circles, his head still trained upwards.

“Isaac? You want a snack?” I asked him. He stopped walking and looked at me blankly, before making his way over to me slowly. He sat down on the sofa and I placed the plate in his lap. I flicked on the television to the children’s channel and made my way quickly to Isaac’s room to get him another shirt.

When I returned to the living room, Isaac had managed to get peanut butter just about everywhere except his mouth. I took the plate from him and slipped the new shirt over his head, telling him to please, don’t touch it until I got back. I got a cloth from the kitchen and wiped his face and hands clean, before settling on the sofa next to him. I couldn’t leave him by himself and I knew that there was no way I was getting my Spanish homework done until Mum got home to take over the task of watching him to make sure he kept out of trouble.

Isaac didn’t bother watching the television much, he always seemed to be in a completely different place. His eyes wandered around the room as he got lost in his own daydreams and I found myself wishing that I had some sort of way to hear what he was thinking. I was always wondering what it would be like to be Isaac. And thought I found it hard to admit, even to myself, I was envious of him.

______

News travels fast. It travels especially fast if it’s gossip about someone seen in the car of her best friend’s ex-boyfriend. When I walked into school the next morning, the hallways were buzzing with the news. People stared at me even more than usual, before whispering things to their friends. It was a weird feeling, knowing that people were talking about you. I tried to ignore the students gathered in small groups as I passed them, but a strange fear gripped me as I made my way to the front lawns where my friends and I sat in the mornings. The girls were there, sitting at our table under the huge oak tree.

I noticed that people started moving closer, following me from a distance. They wanted to see what Lacey’s reaction would be. The air was alive with the anticipation of a fight. I swallowed once and lifted my chin a little, in an attempt to appear completely confident and fearless, as I strode straight over to the table. Melody gave me a warning look that I ignored and Amelia was too busy making eyes at the exchange student to take any notice of what was happening right in front of her.

I straightened up and was prepared for Lacey’s inevitable outburst, but the minute her eyes locked with mine, the little confidence I had was shattered and I felt awfully exposed. Lacey’s eyes looked my body up and down and she raised her eyebrows at me. I didn’t think it was possible for such an action to appear as threatening, but Lacey managed it with no trouble at all.

I opened my mouth to say something, but my tongue was dry and my throat felt as rough as sandpaper. I wanted so badly to say something to diffuse the spark of tension, but no words came to me. I was left standing there completely blank and helpless, for everyone to see. I must’ve looked pathetic to them. I knew that they wanted to see a fight, but I wasn’t going to create one. It was not my obligation to please them. It wouldn’t matter if it was. I had a feeling that nothing could keep these people happy.

The morning bell sounded, signalling the start of the school day, and the students were reluctant to head off to class, even more than usual. They didn’t want to miss out on any of the action that was sure to unfold between Lacey and I. I watched Lacey carefully, trying to read her face for any emotion. Her eyes bored into mine and I suddenly wished that I could disappear. Lacey got up from the table and walked straight past me, shoving me in the shoulder on the way.

I knew Lacey. I also knew that her silence always led up to something much worse. She was small, but when she wanted to, Lacey could get violent. I gulped and stalked after her. I had to appear confident. In this school, I was dominant. I knew that it was important to keep up appearances. I couldn’t have people thinking that I was weak.

I shoved my way past Lacey on the way to my locker purposely. Her reaction was just what I had expected. Lacey’s predictability was one of her weaknesses.

“Hey! Bitch!” she yelled at me, her tone acid. I stopped walking and turned around slowly, my lips turning up into a small smile. I placed my hands on my hips and raised my eyebrows at her in challenge. Passers-by stopped to look at us in interest. Lacey handed her bag to Melody and walked right up to me, stopping only when her face was just inches from mine.

“What the hell were you doing in Justin’s car?” Lacey said through clenched teeth.

“He offered me a ride. I said yes. I don’t know why you’re so mad. It’s not like you date him anymore, anyway. He was too boring for you, remember?” I replied. The words had come out in a harsher tone than I had intended. I almost sounded...threatening.

“What gives you the right to judge me?” Lacey seethed, shoving my shoulder. It was harder than I expected and my body was forced back a few steps from Lacey’s touch. I regained my composure and looked right into Lacey’s eyes.

“Bitch,” she muttered, suddenly advancing on me and pushing me with force into the lockers. My back connected with the hard metal of the locker doors and I cried out in pain as I slid down to the floor, my body a crumpled mess from the unexpected push.

Lacey left, as did everyone else. As far as they were concerned, the fight was over, and things continued as normal. I sat on the cold floor and tried to pick myself up, but my back was still throbbing. I sighed and stayed where I was. I figured my situation couldn’t get any worse.

“Can you move?” A deep voice cut through my thoughts. The voice didn’t care that I was obviously hurt and alone. They just wanted me to move out of the way so that they could get to their damn locker. I rolled my eyes and looked up at the incredibly inconsiderate person who had chosen to make my day even worse than it already was.

Daniel.

I should have known.

“Why should I?” I protested.

“You’re in the way,” he said bluntly, slighting nudging my leg with his shoe. I’d lost the energy to argue with him. I sighed and picked myself up, leaning my head against the lockers for support.

“What’s wrong with you?” The way Daniel said it made it sound like an accusation.

“What isn’t?” I retorted, instantly regretting my moment of weakness. He turned his face to look at me and considered what I had said. He raised one eyebrow before returning to his locker. He pulled out a few textbooks and shoved them in his backpack before slamming the locker door shut.

“Well, look on the bright side,” Daniel said, his full lips turning up into an obnoxious smile. “We’ve got Spanish next.”