THE GIRL IS MINE

Isabella's Point of View The event of yesterday is still fresh in my mind. Jake and I had been involved in a heated argument which never ended well. I couldn't sleep last night despite how hard I tried. I touched my cheek and immediately withdrew it as I felt sharp, burning pains. I still couldn't believe the fact that Jake had slapped me. I felt tears run down my cheek as the memory of Jake's hands connecting with my face in a hard way flashed through my mind. The most painful part wasn't even the slap, but it was him calling me names in the presence of those crazy students. At that moment, I silently wished and prayed that the ground would open and swallow me up, but unfortunately, my wish didn't come through. Jake has always had this unexplainable hatred for guys who assault their girlfriends or wives, and yet he has done that which he hates. I was very surprised at his actions, and me not knowing the reason behind them made it much worse. I hate ignorance. Why he behaved that way yesterday is still a mystery to me, which I can't unveil unless he tells me. At first, I thought he was drunk, but the more I thought about it, the more it became clear to me, he wasn't drunk, because if he was, he should have called to apologize. I could see the surprised looks on his friends' faces, which made me believe they were as ignorant as I was about the whole event. Flashback Steve, Dave, Stile, Jake and I arrived at the party late and took our seats round a table at the back. "Woo, let's party," Dave shouted amidst the loud music with a funny voice that made us all fall into fists of laughter. "Excuse me," Steve said, as he stood up and walked towards the bar. A minute later, he came back with bottles of beer and a soft drink for me, because they wouldn't let me have beer, and I am not 18 yet. I will be 18 in a couple of months. I can't wait because I'll be celebrating with Jake and his crazy friends. They are my second family. "Hey baby, this is for you," Steve teased as he handed me the soft drink. “Call me baby, one more time, and I will kick you in your ass”. I grinned in victory as I took in his scared expression. "Ohhh," the other boys echoed. I looked at them with a 'be warned' look, and they all maintained. I just couldn't hold back my laughter anymore and it came out. They all gave me a deadly look and I immediately swallowed the laughter. Just then, my phone began to ring. I said to myself, "Wow, perfect timing," and used it as a means to escape the guys. "Excuse me, let me go pick this up," he said, and ran off to the bathroom to receive the call. It was an unknown number calling. I came out at the end of the call and went back to my seat to meet an awkward-looking Jake. "Hi dear," I said to Jake, but got no response from him. I tried to touch him, but he avoided my touch. That surprised me. "Hey guys, did you hurt Jake?" I asked them, but they shook their heads negatively, sharing the same surprise look with me. I tried to touch him again, but he did the same thing he did before, avoiding my touch. "Try to touch me with those filthy hands of yours again, and you will find them on the floor, bitch." That threw me off balance as my eyes were filled with tears. "What's up with you man?" Stiles asked confusedly, but received no response.He stood up to leave, but I stopped him by standing in front of him. " What's wrong with you? Why are you using such words on me? I have done nothing wrong”. I could feel his angry gaze at me, but never in my life did I expect his next reaction. I heard a loud noise and the next thing, I found myself on the ground, and it seemed like I was seeing stars. "What??" I could hear the guys shouting with surprise in their voices. I could hear the music stop and everyone rushed in our direction. Just then, it dawned on me that Jake had given me a resounding slap, causing me to stumble and fall. I couldn't help but cry. What's wrong with him? Why this sudden behavior? "You slapped me, Jake," I sobbed. " Yes I did and I don't regret it. I hate you. Now I know what you are. A slut. "He spilled out the words with hatred. Back to present I love Jake and I miss him so much. I took my phone and dialed his number but immediately cut it off. I hate myself for feeling this way about a guy who assaulted me and called me names without any reason. I ought to be mad at him and not want to see him or talk to him anymore, but I just can't help it. Despite how hard I tried to get mad at him, I couldn't. I made up my mind and dialed his number again, but there was no response. After three times of calling him without getting any response, I then dialed Stiles' number. I wanted to ask him if he had found out the reason for Jake's action. He is closer to Jake than Steve and Dave. He picked up the call on the first ring. "Hi Stiles" " Hi Isabell, I'm sorry I didn't call to check up on you after last night's incident. I was about to before you called. So wassup? " "I'm fine and you." "I am fine," he said and paused for a while, "stop lying. I know you are not fine because you can't be fine after everything that transpired between you and Jake." "Yes, Stiles, you are correct, I am not fine," I sobbed. I really needed someone to pour out my feelings to. "Wait a minute, don't tell me you are crying." "No, I'm not," I lied, wiping away my tears as if afraid he'd see me. "See you are lying again." I know you too well to know when you are lying. You know what? Never mind. "Just stay put, I am coming over," he said, and disconnected the call before I could think of objecting. I just laid on my bed crying. I was too weak to get out of bed. If I had known the party would bring me pain, I wouldn't have gone as long as I would still have had Jake by my side. "Bella baby" my mother shouted, calling me. "Breakfast is ready." After waiting for a response and getting none, she yelled my name again. "Bella baby," she called, "breakfast is ready." I just stayed mute, not wanting any disturbance. I heard my door creak open and mum stepped in. "Oh my God," she exclaimed, "Bella, why are you still in bed by this time?" She asked, patiently waiting for an answer as she placed both hands on her waist. "Mum, it's Saturday," I managed to speak up. " Yes, I know, but that's no excuse. The worst of it is that you haven't even taken your shower. Anyway, breakfast is ready, and I want you downstairs in a couple of minutes." She said something about opening the door but turned back as if she had forgotten something. Just then, her eyes widened as she took in my features closely. "Bella baby, you have been crying," she said, more like a statement, looking at my puffy eyes, walking slowly towards me. "No, mum," I tried denying. " Stop denying the evidence is all over your eyes and face. Tell me who made my princess cry. Let me go teach him/her a lesson. " "What's wrong, princess?" She asked, sitting down and pulling me into her embrace. At her question, the tears rushed out as if waiting to come out for a long time. "Mum, it's Jake," I said with tears. "Woo, what happened between you two?" Yesterday you guys were perfect couples," she asked, pulling me back a bit. "Mum, we had a fight at the party yesterday." "What brought about that?" Mum asked curiously. "Mum it’s confusing. He called me names and hit me without giving me any reason." "Sweetie, you have to take it easy. Maybe he was drunk." "Mum, that was what I thought also, but I doubt he was." "Why conclude so?" "If he was, he should have called to let me know he was sorry." "Sweetie, you have to be patient with him. I know Jake so well that he wouldn't hurt you under normal circumstances. Jake loves you so much. I promise he will come around” she said calmly. l embraced her, and cried on her shoulders. "Hey sweetie, it's okay," she said in a soothing voice, patting me on the back. Just then, we heard the doorbell. "Sweetie, excuse me, let me go get the door." "OK, mum," I said, wiping my tears away. "Sweetie, it's Stiles," Mom voiced out. Stiles Point of View I got to Isabell's house and rang the doorbell. A minute later, her mum came to get the door. "Hello Mrs.Lucy" "Hi Stiles, how are you today?" "I am fine." "Please come in," she said, stepping aside for me to come in. "I am here to see Isabell." "She is in her room." "Sweetie Stiles is here!" she called out to Isabell, who didn't respond in return. "Don't worry, I'll just go upstairs to her room," I told her. "How is she doing?" "She has been crying." She told me she had a fight with Jake. Did you know how it happened? " "I had no clue. It got us all surprised," he said. "Alright." "I will be going up to her room now,"she nodded in response. Locating Isabella's room wasn't a problem because I had been there with Jake a couple of times. I opened the door to find her lying on the bed. I looked at her and her eyes were red and puffy. She sat up on seeing me. "Hi Stiles," she said, forcing out a smile. I shut the door behind me and leaned on it, not taking my gaze off her. I felt a pain in my chest as I saw her appearance. What caused this in the first place? It hurts me as much as it hurts her. "Stiles?" she called in a questioning manner. "Why are you doing this to yourself?" "Doing what?" she asked in ignorance. “Don't act like you don't know what I'm talking about. Why have you been crying? Don't you think you are taking it too far? He hasn't even said the breakup word yet.” " I am sorry, Stiles. I love Jake and I miss him. I am just scared," she said as tears flowed down her cheek. "Hey, you don't have to be", I sat on the bed and laid her head on my chest, stroking her hair softly. We stayed like that for some time before she broke the silence. "The reason I called earlier today was to ask if Jake had told you anything pertaining to what transpired yesterday. I called his line, but he wasn't picking up.” "The guys and I haven't even set our eyes on him after he left the party yesterday, so I haven't been able to speak with him." "What's really wrong with him?" " I don't know, but I promise he will come around. I will talk to him, but you have to promise me to stop crying. " "I promise,"she said. " Good girl," she smiled as she hit me on the chest. "Ouch, don't you get tired?" I grimaced, making her laugh. "No, I don't." " Alright, go take your shower. I will be downstairs." I made sure she got into the bathroom before heading out of the room. Later, in the dining room, "Isabell," I called, giving her a scolding look, "my hand hurts, can you please open that mouth of yours, so I can shove this spoon inside?" " No, thanks, I can't remember asking you to feed me," she replied, rolling her eyes. "Yea, but I had to take on the responsibility since you refused to eat." “Give me the spoon, I can feed myself.” "Atlas, you agreed to eat," I handed her the spoon, but she refused instead. At that moment, I picked up my phone and made a fake call. "That was Jake." Her face brightened up on hearing his name. "Really? He picked up the phone? " "Yes, he asked me to hand over the phone to you, but I ended the call," she frowned. "That's the penalty for not eating," I grinned. "Alright, I promise to eat." "Eat before the call," I said. In a few minutes, she was done with her food. "Alright, I am done" she announced and l made the fake call again. " Why did you end it without giving me?" she asked, annoyed. I really need to come up with a good lie lest she finds out it was just a trick to make her eat. "Well, he told me not to give you the phone that we had to see first." She gave me a deadly look that made me scared. What if she finds out it was just a fake call? I know this girl would definitely kill me. " At least I am happy he will be talking to you. He would probably tell you what made him react that way." she said, smiling, but I could see the sadness in her eyes. I sigh, relieved that I am finally free. I cracked some jokes to make her laugh before making my way out of the house.