Faking Perfection

27|Confessions

𝟚𝟟|ℂ𝕠𝕟𝕗𝕖𝕤𝕤𝕚𝕠𝕟𝕤

𝕀𝕫𝕫𝕪

I stare at my father wide-eyed, terrified that he'll punch Zane's front teeth out as he stands in the doorway. I scramble to my knees, attempting to find my shirt, but it's nowhere to be found. Instead, I fling the comforter over myself to hide my chest. "Dad!" I shriek. 

Granted, there's a boy in my room, but hasn't he heard of knocking? What if I was getting dressed?

Zane, who has never been afraid of father figures, sits up proudly without a care in the world as he says, "Mr. Holden. What a pleasure."

Oh my god.

My father is going to kill him.

With a vein popping out in his forehead and fists clenched tightly at his sides, he points over his shoulder to the staircase. "Get the fuck out."

Zane releases a tiny sigh as if he's annoyed he has to leave, but he follows instructions and slings his t-shirt back over his head. I'm still huddled in the comforter, tears stinging my eyes. My father has no idea what he walked in on was about to stop, and even if I told him what my intentions were, I don't know if he'd believe me.

"Dad, it's not that serious. We were just making out." My bottom lip trembles as my entire body shakes.

"Not that serious? Izzy, who are you? Who is this?" He waves his hand over my current state to prove his point. "You're a straight-A student who has never missed class, you're the captain of your cheerleading team, and you always have your nose in a book. I don't understand. What changed?"

He doesn't understand. I've put up this front for so long that he doesn't know me. He doesn't know his own daughter, and realizing that slices my heart into two. Why did I think I'd ever get away with this? There's no way to save me now. All the excuses running through my mind are useless when he won't believe them.

I want to beg him to listen to me, but Zane laughs, and at the sound of it, all the hairs rise on my arms. "Oh, you're playing the innocent act? How cute, Iz."

Elbowing him in the rib cage, he winces, but my father takes that as his opportunity to stride the few feet of distance between them and grab him by the neckline of his t-shirt, throwing him out into the hallway himself.

My father has every right to be upset, but to put his hands on him? I'll tell him the truth if only he'd take a few seconds to calm down. I'll tell him everything. He'll never have to worry about seeing Zane's face again.

He towers over Zane. His face is red, and his fists is still clenched. He's going to punch him, isn't he?

"Oh my god, stop!"

I barely hear my mom talking as she hears all the commotion, joining them in the hall. My shirt fell underneath my bed, so I'm quickly trying to put it on as I send a silent prayer for my father to wait before he knocks him out.

"Mom, he's insane! We were just kissing! I should have asked. I should have told you guys. I'm sorry! Just let him go," I scream, finally joining them in the hall. She looks as horrified as me, eyeing my father holding Zane by his t-shirt. Now Zane looks like he'll wet himself, and a part of me is glad. Cameron Holden isn't someone to be messed with, and although he's acting crazy, it's nice to know he'd go to any lengths to protect me.

"Cameron," my mom whispers. "Come on. Let the boy go. We'll speak about this with Izzy in private."

When his eyes meet hers, they instantly soften. He'll be the first to admit my mom is his weakness, and right now, I'm watching it firsthand as he releases Zane and pushes him backward, almost knocking him on his ass, and Zane doesn't think twice about bolting down the staircase to leave.