Pacifier

// Isabelle \\

Della didn't show at school and so i spent the day lingering around Jake and Dylan, listening in on the conversations they had with their friends. Mostly they talked about girls, or music, normal stuff i suppose but every now and then they'd make the eyes at someone across the room and their friends would snigger and say something about the Bottlemen and sometimes it was a joke but sometimes it wasn't and they'd all stiffen. Even the lads who had nothing to lose if a fight broke out.

"Theyre watchin Isabelle," yawned Jake, "one of em thought itd be funny leave her this noncey fuckin joke the other day and her brothers gone mad about it,"

"someones fucked," snickered Kieran, I'd never really spoken to him but he hung around the Balcony most Friday nights and I knew he fancied himself one of the lads. I knew he fancied himself full stop, but I'd heard what Jake and Dyl called him behind his back and I knew what my brother thought of him. Kieran was all talk. No balls.

"Nah," shrugged Dyl, "am convinced it was just some hard twat thinkin he was funny like, none of your mates know owt about it?" he shot him a cheeky smile, only teasing and yet even then, even just a joke, was enough to put him on the defense. To make him stiffen and shake his head quickly. That was the power the Bottlemen had.

"Its not that deep anyway," i shrugged, feeling their eyes turn to me as if they'd forgotten i was there, "Johnny's overreacting,"

For a second they were quiet, as if they didn't want to agree with me. I wondered whether that was because they knew something I didn't, or whether it was because they didn't want my brother knowing they'd agreed with me over him.

I took my bottom lip between my teeth and turned back to my book, waiting for their conversation to turn in a new direction. But it didn't and they all just sat there, looking between one another, having some silent conversation without me, about me, and they all looked stunned.

So i closed my book, hugged my knees to my chest and looked back up at them.

"Dyl..." i dragged his name out, tried to sound sweet, "have you got a spare ciggy?"

He looked at me with a small smirk, turned back to his mates, shared a look with Jake.

"This girls gonna get me killed one day fuckin hell," he chuckled lettin out a sigh, "hereyare tink, dunner tell..."

"Do i look green?" i sighed mellodramatically, rolling my eyes at him. "Thank you," i smiled a little sweeter remembering myself, though i was beginning to think maybe it was my cheek that was getting me places.

"Oh shit yeah lads," Jake blinked as if waking from a daydream to a stark reality, "Any of yous know Della Lau?"

I watched as his friends shrugged their shoulders one by one, all of them looking between eachother as if they expected at least one of them to know someone.

"Larrys sister?" asked one of them, he was smaller and so i assumed he was from Jakes year, quieter too, with mousy features, mal nourished with tiny wrists and a hoodie pulled up over his hair, "she lives round my way, why?"

"You see her walkin school today?"

"I thought you said this wasn't deep," grinned Kieran, almost as if he were excited to see something kick off.

"No, I didn't," he trailed off looking between Kieran and Dylan to see if anyone was still listening to him anyway. "But I uh, I usually do," he flushed almost embarassed and i felt a small smile creep onto my face, endeared to him. Kierans teasing of him only endearing me futher, because I'd decided i didnt like Kieran at all.

"its not," shrugged Jake, "Lau just thinks she skyving," he said and for a moment I wondered why they had played it down. I'd played it down because I didn't want to seem like i was scared. But Dylan had no need to cover his fear up because Dylan was fearless.