Backstreet Boy

|Chapter 49: The Figure in the Window|

Jason

"So you got her back then?" Alex asked, gesticulating at me with the spanner he was holding loosely in his grease-tarnished hands.

"How do you know?" I replied gruffly, perplexed because I had never actually informed him that I was back with Isabella. In fact, I hadn't informed anyone. Not that I wanted it to be a secret and I wanted to hide it from everyone, but it felt more safe and protected to keep it out from other people's minds.

"You've been smiling for a good ten minutes whilst working on that," he perceived. "And I know when my brother's in love." He rubbed his stubble with the hand grasping the spanner loosely and added, "I don't get to see it too often."

"We just need to find you a lady now." I dropped my own apparatus on the bench behind me and sat down next to it. "I'm finished. And just in time, too."

Outside, the sky was already morphing into the evening sky. Shades of oranges, yellows and even a tinge of pink were in there, somewhat disfigured by clouds, as the sun was setting. The moon was already discreetly visible from the other side, just round the corner from the garage which I could detect from where I was sitting. Recently we had put benches in because it was becoming immensely warm to sit around in the office and work on paperwork. With our dad nearly there with handing everything over to us, we were checking everything to the finest detail.

"I don't need a lady," Alex objectified. "And I would have thought you'd never love her again. Sabrina was one nasty-"

My head having previously lolled back now snapped up right with so much force that what I had presumably thought impossible about ten seconds ago, affected my balance and I nearly ended up falling off the edge of the bench. Alex was gawping at me and my perplexity was only adding to his.

"Where does Sabrina come into this?"

Alex continued his quite gormless gawk at me. "She's not who you're back with?"

"You thought I'd get back with Sabrina?" The mere musing was enough to make me erupt in laughter. "Jesus Christ, Alex. I would never get back with Sabrina, even if she was the last female alive. Or if her competition was a seventy year-old granny."

"So you're back with Isabella?"

"Correct."

Alex stared at me for a moment longer before turning back to the car. "Just don't regret it, all right? And don't lose her. I've seen what you're like when you're with her, and I've seen you what you're like when you're not. Just make sure she stays safe, okay?"

"You only lose a girl if you forget to cherish her. I'll never forget that. And I'll always keep her safe. She means more to me than-"

"Me?" Alex asked, smirking.

"You're my brother; you're out of the question."

Alex muttered something incomprehensible and got back to working. Whilst I got to bask around on the bench and wait for Alex to finish, my thoughts didn't hesitate before drifting off to Isabella. I'd be seeing her in a couple of hours and I couldn't wait. After what she told me last night about the regulations for the pier, it made my blood boil, but how she defended everyone in The District was sweet, even if she might blow our cover.

I had several reservations about the plan which could just bite us in the ass as soon as we come clean, but for Isabella I was doing this. A million and one things could go wrong, but there was the thrill in this whole escapade making it so tantalising. We just needed no distractions when it came to planning future stages – which were a real shame because anyone could be distracted if you had Isabella as a girlfriend.

There was a knock on my front door that night.

Racing up from the sofa to the front door, I let Isabella into my home at once. I had barely any time to close the door – which mercifully I ended up accomplishing by a mere fraction of a second – before Isabella's lips were on mine and her hands were in my hair. Alex was asleep in his room so we managed to make it up the stairs (how was behind me considering her legs were around my waist and I was virtually transporting her) and to my room safely and somewhat quietly. In triumphant, I dropped her back on the bed.

Bending down on all fours to crawl up to her as she neared the headboard, I whispered, "Is this all you came here to do? Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining, but-"

"No, I came here to talk as well."

"We're talking now," I pointed out.

Isabella smirked. "Then it's time to kiss again."

So after much overdue kissing and... other things, we finally settled down on the bed. Our bodies now devoid of sexual frustration or whatever the accurate terminology would be, we sat next to one another and leaned back against the wall. We leaned in to one another and her hand was resting gently on my knee.

"Has Jackson tried to contact you again?" she murmured softly, keeping her eyes down.

"No, he hasn't. He said I'd be free after those drug deals and despite having me beaten, he had to stick to his word, didn't he?"

"I suppose. But I wouldn't put it past him." She yawned softly and then added, "Exams start on Monday."

"Are you nervous?"

"Well, yeah. Aren't you?"

I shook my head and let a small smile coil at the edge of my lips. "Not really. I mean, I bet we'll all exceed any expectations the teachers or examiners have of us by just turning up. We don't really have to turn up, but I ought to, hadn't I? Just for the exams, and then I'm out and free and ready to spend all my time with you."

Isabella smiled. "You better get good grades."

"For you, I'll try."

After what was only another hour but felt much shorter to me, we both agreed that it would be safer for Isabella to go home now. So I walked her downstairs and to her car. Because of her outfit, she was shivering slightly in the cold. One of her limitations would always be her inadequate wardrobe choices that never suited her environment.

Kissing her one final time, she got in her car and waved, prior to driving off down the road. Waiting until she was completely out of sight, I turned around and began walking back to the house through the alleyway. However, on my way, in one of the windows, there was a figure immobilised.

Stopping dead in my tracks, I kept my gaze on the figure. It was hard to tell whether it was the back or front of someone because it was simply just dark and I couldn't distinguish anything about the character except the outline. So instead, after detecting no further movements – not even a slight flicker – I carried on my amble, cautious from this point on until I got home.

It dawned on me that I felt quite uneasy.

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Author's Note:

Do you think Jackson has truly left Jason alone or nah??? Let me know your predictions please!! And we have roughly 15 chapters left of this story!!!! I'm not ready to let this story go just yet :(((((

Thank you :) x