Chapter 6
Chapter Six
Isaac
Iwatch those steel eyes blur, her voice cracks, but Alexa doesn’t notice.
If she did, she doesn’t show it, and at this point, I feel that being here with Alexa was a mistake.
I know it’s a mistake. I just couldn’t help the urge to see her, to see the truth for my very own eyes when Alexa told me about Max and Ronnie, so I figured she was over us… over me.
I moved on because what else was I supposed to do? Moving on is the only choice. I just needed to confirm with my very own eyes. Even though she has made it clear time after time that it was a one-time thing. Forcing us to be apart, all while she lives in regret and I live with heartbreak.
Alexa wraps her arms around my neck, and I spin her around so I can watch Ronnie as she walks through the crowd.
She’s panicking. My little bird wants to take off, but her wings won’t open because we just clipped them.
A pang hits my chest. Desperately, I beg that she turn around, that she look back.
Of course, she doesn’t. Why would fate grant me any mercy when it’s taken so much from me already?
She keeps moving, and then she’s gone behind the curtain of smoke and bubbles.
“Lex, I think this should be more of a girls’ weekend. I’ll head back tonight. The drive isn’t that bad. Go chill with your friend,” I whisper in her ear as she continues to grind into my body. The last thing I want is to overstay and be the reason her voice cracks or those beautiful grey eyes cry.
Alexa stops, her arms fall from my neck, her chest rising slowly.
There are times I wish I could return the love I see reflected in those blue eyes, but I can’t.
Sometimes I wonder if it’s even love that she feels or just comfort.
Alexa is beautiful, gorgeous, but she isn’t what I want.
She could never be my queen... that spot is reserved for Ronnie.
Her eyes begin to water, but she blinks them away, a smile appearing on her face.
“That’s fine,” she answers. “I’ll see you when I get back,” she adds, fixing her white corset. Alexa is dressed as an angel, a cute white tutu, a white corset, matching fishnets, and silver heels. Her hair is braided into a single braid, with silver and white beads in it.
“I’ll come back for you,” I say, to which she shakes her head.
“No, I’ll see you when I get back. It’s better that way.” As much as she tries to hide, her pained expression fails, but I don’t acknowledge it, only offer a small nod because she’s right.
We’re not together… we just hook up. I’m just a selfish asshole who wanted to see Ronnie so badly that I agreed to come.
What was I thinking? I can’t even answer that, because clearly, it was nothing.
Alexa walks away from me, and I leave, or at least that was my intention.
But after five minutes on the highway, I have a change of heart.
I didn’t come all this way to hurt the woman I love.
I came to see her, to ask if I meant anything—better yet, to know if he means more. Because I need to know.
So, I do what any normal person would. I wait in my car, parked down the street, as they party for hours.
Watch as they walk with no care in the world, just like I’m watching her run out of her door, gasping for air.
Her hands dig into her scalp, trying to do away with the bun sitting on the top of her head.I can tell she’s going through it; she shouldn’t be out in this weather.
Looking up at the sky as if she could find some answers.
It’s pouring out, and she stands there barefoot, still in her costume.
My body moves on its own as it turns off my car, opens the door, and walks across the street.
“Trouble,” I whisper.
Her shoulders tense at the nickname I’ve called her since we were kids.
To me, Ronnie is many things, but there are three that automatically come to mind when I think of her.
Beautiful like a Sunflower. Pain in my ass, Trouble.
Lastly, fleeting like a fucking butterfly.
She doesn’t turn away as sobs wrack through her body.
The rain pours down on us, like a scene straight out of a movie, but this isn’t a movie.
And her pain… my pain… is very much real. This is real life, uncut.
“Please look at me. I’m right here,” I say, my voice a little louder, not caring that Alexa is still in her house.
Not when she is tearing herself apart for loving me, and I her.
Ronnie finally turns to look at me, her makeup smeared down her face, her hair wet and cascading past her shoulders.
Even in the rain, I can still see the tears that shine in her eyes.
“Why?” she chokes out between sobs, her eyes pleading for an answer.
“Wh-y.” I stutter at first, the rain mixing with my own tears, making it hard to see her clearly.
But her question rings through my mind. Why?
“Because I’m an idiot,” I confess, closing the distance between us.
The rain is cold and soaks through my clothes immediately, but I hardly notice.
“Because I miss you and because… because…” I pause for a moment, searching for the words that could explain my actions.
None comes but one. Love. This is what brought me here. Love. Because I love her.
“Because I love you,” I say finally, my words barely audible above the rain.
Ronnie tenses, her head shakes as if she can take back my words.
Erase what I just confessed. The words hang in the air like fragile glass, ready to shatter at any moment.
Her wide, teary eyes meet mine with such intensity that it feels as if we are the only two people in the world.
She stares at me for what seems like an eternity.
“Then unlove me, like I have, Iz. This can’t happen,” Ronnie snaps, throwing her arms in the air. “What are you even doing here? Alexa said you left.”
I move closer, and she takes two steps back.
“I didn’t go. I couldn’t leave without talking to you,” I respond, taking cautious steps towards her, close enough that her chest is on my skin.
So close I can feel the slow rise of her chest, so close that I can touch her cheek.
Just like I’m doing now. The rain and tears have smeared her makeup, and to me, she is still the most beautiful girl in the world.
A sob breaks from her as I lean in and kiss her forehead gently, feeling her shiver under the contact.
“Ronnie, you can’t just demand I unlove you.
That’s not how it works,” I say, my voice trembling with the force of my emotions.
“My feelings for you… They’re not a switch that I can turn off.
We’ve been trying to do this for how long now?
I’ve been in love with you long before I understood those words.
How can I just turn away from everything my heart longs for? How could you?”
I pull away now, towering over her, my eyes locked on hers as tears fall freely. She looks down, avoiding my gaze.
“Iz… I told you that night that this couldn’t happen. It was one time.”
I scoff. “One time, two times… a lifetime… all the same because you are the only thing I want. Now tell me, am I what you want? Tell me to move on, and, Ronnie, I’ll walk away.
Push you so far from me that you will forget I exist. I’ll rip out my heart and leave it here with you if need be. But give me something.”
With a sigh, she looks back up at me, her gaze glassy. “Iz, I…” She swallows hard, a tear trickling down her cheek, blending with the rain that coats her skin. “Isn’t it obvious? It’s always been you. Always. But that doesn’t change anything. It’s not enough.”
Her words sting harder than usual. Cupping her face in my hands, I ask, “Am I not enough for you? What’s not enough?”
She avoids my eyes, her voice breaking as she responds, “YOU ARE MY FUCKING STEPbrOTHER. GET THAT IN YOUR FUCKING HEAD, ISAAC VARGAS.”
Her words echo through the rain-soaked night, stinging like a slap.
The rain continues to pour over us, joining our tears, as if the heavens understand our anguish.
She pulls away from my hands and turns her back to me, her shoulders shaking with sobs.
I feel a sharp pain in my chest and stand frozen in place.
“Kiss me, one last time, because when I leave this place, I’ll be leaving my heart here. You want a brother? Sure. I’ll step into that role. If that’s what you want from me, I’ll give you that, but kiss me. Kiss me and feed me all that love you have balled up inside you. Drown me in it.”
“Isaac…” she whispers, her voice hollow.
She turns slowly to face me, her teary eyes piercing into mine, a silent plea.
To let her go. But how can I say goodbye to the only person I’ve ever loved?
My heart hammers inside my chest, an echo of the thunder rolling overhead.
The world around us seems to stop as she takes hesitant steps towards me.
Her hands reach up to caress my face, and then her lips meet mine.
A sob, a moan, escapes our lips, but our hungry mouths drown them out.
The kiss isn’t soft; it’s angry, greedy.
Teeth and tongue clash as I walk her towards the side of her building.
I pin her against the damp bricks. Her fingers clutch at my soaking shirt as if trying to hold on to her sanity.
The cold rain seeps into our clothes, making us shiver, but we don’t care.
We kiss, and the world around us melts away, leaving only the two of us.
My hand cups her neck as I deepen the kiss, my grip tight but not enough to hurt her, and my other hand trails down her backside. She pulls away, placing her hands on my chest—stopping me. Placing the walls higher than I can climb in an instant.
“No more, Iz. I like Max. You’re hurting Alexa, and if I lose her because of you, I will never forgive you. Never,” she says before storming off. I follow behind her, grabbing her wrist before she can storm back inside, when a voice sounds behind me.
“Everything okay?” the voice asks. I turn slowly to be met with who I assume can only be Max. Baring my teeth at him, I snarl, “Back off.”
He shakes his head, moving closer to my girl. Staking his claim. “I’m afraid I can’t do that.”
Ronnie yanks her arm free. “Everything is fine. This is my asshole brother,” she tells Max as she rubs her wrist, her eyes remaining on mine. And as much as she tries to hide it, I see all the despair written in them. The love. All of it. Laid bare for me to see.
“Step… I’m her stepbrother,” I bit back, swallowing every ounce of venom slowly creeping up my throat. Ronnie rolls her eyes and looks over at Max, who is now inching towards her. Wrapping his arm around her like a prize.
“Iz, this is my boyfriend, Max,” she introduces him, her eyes never leaving mine. “And Max, this is Isaac. My overprotective, brute stepbrother.”
Max extends his hand towards me. I glare at him for a moment before shaking it.
His grip is firm and confident, but his eyes give away his unease as they look at me.
His eyes are watchful, aware of the charged atmosphere.
It’s not like I wasn’t kissing her, fuck, her lips are still swollen from it.
My jaw clenches, and I release his hand.
“So you’re Isaac,” Max says in an attempt to break the ice.
“Veronica has told me all about you.” I scoff internally, biting back the words, desperately wanting to leave my mouth, instead of lashing out.
I decide to be the bigger person. Overall, I respect her choice.
“If Alexa’s sleeping, and it’s okay, I’ll be back on Sunday for her,” I respond, my voice low and pained, before turning away and walking back to my car.