[YEARS AGO]
Teenage Tatiana stormed across the hall, her long black hair flowing behind her. Her expression was cold, as if she was about to destroy whatever she was heading for.
With her fists tightly clenched, she ignored the other high school students staring at her with curiosity. She was unstoppable.
Some of the students murmured among themselves, realizing where Tatiana was heading.
“Is she crazy? Don’t tell me she’s heading towards the Mercedes twins…”
“I think so. The twins seem to have her sister. Everyone knows Tatiana doesn’t joke with her sister…”
“This is going to be a huge show!…”
“The twins are brutal too, don’t forget…”
Without knocking, Tatiana burst into the empty lab and found the Mercedes twins and some of their gang. They were all gathered around a girl kneeling in the middle.
Issabella.
“Tatie,” Issabella whispered, her eyes wide with surprise; she hadn’t expected her to be here.
“Aww, look who’s here. Tatiana Wallington. You’re here for your sister?” one of the twins spoke, standing up to face her.
“Let her go,” Tatiana warned, her voice cold as she stepped forward.
“Or what?” the boy smirked, pulling down his tie, his head raised high with a smug expression on his face.
The Mercedes were popular in the school, just like the Wallingtons. Though everyone feared the Mercedes because of their bullying.
One of the twins had wanted to date Tatiana, but she turned him down right in front of the whole school. Now, they were trying to use her sister against her.
The twins were seniors like Tatiana, preparing to graduate.
“Agree to be my girlfriend, and I’ll let your pretty little sister go,” he grinned.
Tatiana scoffed and moved to walk past him, but he held her back. “And where do you think you’re going?”
“Let go,” she glared.
His twin brother scoffed and stood up too. He faced the rest of the gang. “Lock the door,” they immediately obeyed, shutting the onlookers outside.
The one holding Tatiana bit his lip, his eyes dancing with excitement. “Fucking you right here isn’t a bad idea. Your sister is cool too; my brother can take her.”
Immediately after his words, his twin brother marched towards Issabella, grabbed her, and forcefully yanked her hair.
In the next moment, a high-pitched scream pierced the air. Blood dripped down from the hand holding Tatiana. His scream made her lips curl into a dark smirk.
His twin brother and the gang were shocked by this, as was Issabella. She knew Tatiana went crazy when she was upset, but she never thought she would actually hurt the boy.
Tatiana had stabbed the boy’s hand with a pen.
“You fucking bitch!” the twin with Issabella drew out a knife, and the other gang members did the same.
“Attack her!” he roared.
As they moved to charge at her, Tatiana suddenly pulled out a gun and pointed it at them. They all froze, their eyes wide. The twin she stabbed shifted back.
“Haha,” the second twin laughed, holding his knife firmly. “You think you can fool us with an empty toy gun? We’re not going to fall for-”
BANG!!
They all shuddered in fear when Tatiana shot the ceiling.
Issabella gasped. What was Tatiana doing? This was school premises, and she would definitely be punished for this. Expelled, even.
“Fuck!” Many of them cursed and dropped their weapons. They all began to kneel.
“We’re sorry, please don’t kill us.”
“Just let us go, okay? We won’t bother you or anyone. I promise,” they pleaded.
“If you want to come at me, come at me. But DO NOT TOUCH MY LOVED ONES,” Tatiana warned.
Just as Issabella thought, Tatiana faced the school authorities for bringing a gun to school. Her guardian was asked to come-it was Tristan, her uncle. She had actually stolen the gun from him.
She was almost expelled, and her father whipped her for it, though it didn’t make her cry.
Tatiana was busy checking out the bruises on her body when she heard a knock on her door.
“It’s me, Issabella,” her familiar voice rasped behind the door.
Tatiana hid her wounds. “Come in,” she said, and the door opened immediately.
“Tatie, are you okay?” Issabella asked, sitting beside her. Tatiana smiled and nodded.
“I’m good.”
“Why did you do that?” she asked in a whisper.
“I didn’t want you to get hurt, that’s all. Especially not because of me. I hate it,” Tatiana mumbled.
“You could have used another way, instead of a gun. You almost got yourself expelled,” Issabella’s face contorted with concern.
Tatiana stared at her sister. She had lost her mind when she heard the twins wanted to humiliate her. Just the thought made her blood boil. Issabella had been her closest blood. She was more protective of her than of Maya.
“They need to be scared. Next time they think of attacking you, they’ll remember your big sister coming to show them hell,” Tatiana said, and Issabella chuckled.
Issabella suddenly hugged her, and a whimper escaped Tatiana’s lips. She quickly broke the hug and stared at her worriedly.
“You’re hurt.”
“Just a few whippings from Father. I’m fine,” Tatiana chuckled.
Issabella’s eyes teared up.
“Don’t cry, little sis,” she held Issabella’s cheek, her thumb stroking the tear that fell from her brown eyes. “I’ll protect you no matter what. I’ll destroy anyone who hurts you. I promise.”
Issabella smiled. “I love you, big sis.”
“I love you too,” Tatiana smiled and kissed her forehead.
—
[PRESENT]
“I’ll protect you no matter what.”
The words rang like a promise she had broken terribly. Her heart ripped apart, clashing hard with her chest, making it hard for her to breathe.
How? How could this be?
Her sister, whom she long thought was dead, was right before her, staring at her. Issabella’s face was pale, her black hair messy, and bruises covered her delicate skin. She was dressed in torn clothes, looking like a fragile, broken doll.
Tears slipped from Tatiana’s eyes as she took in the sight of her sister. So many questions flooded her mind.
She survived… then who the fuck did they bury?
Nathan had mentioned seeing Issabella’s body being dragged out of the river. The news reported she was dead. How in the world was Issabella alive?
They faked her death?!
Though on the day of Issabella’s funeral, Tatiana never saw her sister’s face. All she saw was a body wrapped in white fabric in the casket.
They mentioned her body was disfigured by sea animals looking for a meal and made her Issabella’s body, unrecognizable. That was why her body wasn’t exposed.
Tatiana didn’t question them, as she knew she wouldn’t be able to bear looking at her sister’s disfigured body.
Now that she thought of it, she felt so stupid to believe them.