His Heartwarming Secret

"Bella Winters, do not make me come in there!" My older brother Jedd bangs on my bedroom door which has become a daily routine of his. I cover my exposed face with the warm sheets, sinking back into dreamland.

"Bella!" He warns me through the cracks in the door and I sigh, feeling myself pull deeper away from sleep and merging further into the grim reality of my life. I'm not a morning person . . . At all.

"Leave me alone Jedd!" I murmur sleepily, my voice groggy. I hear him sigh behind the door, his footsteps retreating.

"If you're not up in twenty minutes Bella, I'm breaking down your door!"

"Keep your hair on Grandad, I'm getting up!" I yell in response, throwing my duvet to the side and groaning from the sudden cold that hits my warm sleepy body. I hear Jedd mumble something about difficult teenagers outside my bedroom and I roll my eyes at him. He's twenty, making him three years older than me but acts like the age difference between us is years apart.

I pull down my hair from its ponytail and head to the bathroom, pushing open the door. The strands of my hair cascade down my back, tickling the exposed skin. I rotate my head left and right, relieving the tension from sleeping in one position all night. I reach for my toothbrush, applying some toothpaste before getting to work on my teeth.

My eyes wonder over to the small photo pinned on my bathroom mirror. It's a picture of Jedd, Dad and I taken a few years ago at a summer BBQ. I'm holding a burger in my right hand, Dads arm swung over my shoulders. The smile on my face is the definition of uncomfortable from having my picture taken.

My parents divorced when I was five but truthfully it didn't affect me. My mother and I never seem to get along. She's into dresses, I prefer hoodies. She's into perfect makeup, I like the natural look. She's into long hair extensions and I religiously wear my hair in a ponytail every single day. My mother also loves her heels whereas I love and treasure my converse.

tugging my hair out of the towel. I begin to blow dry it,

of my nose and cheeks that I sort of like. I feel uncomfortable. . . out of place when my hair isn't tied in a ponytail.

denim jeans and

It saves time in the morning and most importantly it's the

a

with some deodorant before grabbing my school backpack and heading out the door. I run down the stairs two at a time and hear Jedd's old car rumble to life outside signalling he's ready to go.

I dive for the last piece of

my mouth as I sprint down the hallway and outside. I open the passenger door with my free hand, wobbling unsteadily from everything I'm juggling. I slide in, throwing

the toast and grimacing from its texture. I chew slowly, avoiding

lectures me, keeping his eyes trained on the road ahead as he begins to drive. I swallow the toast in

I was up late studying for my maths exam today." I tell him truthfully. I crammed hours of revision inside my brain and

a straight A student and proud of it. I work my bottom off studying every night

exactly what you call a . . . social butterfly.

distance myself from pretty much everyone in school due to simply being socially awkward. I don't have a single friend. The idea of even keeping up friendships causes

say

decide they don't like me after all and ditch the