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CHAPTER TWENTY TWO
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UNSPOKEN BOND CHAPTER TWENTY THREE
CHAPTER 23Caleb Matthews sagged in his chair as the last bell rang, marking the end of another Weekly school day. His attention shifted to the window, where the rain beat against the glass in a constant pattern. Basketball practice loomed, and after missing last Friday's session and discussing it with Coach Harris, he knew the coach would be watching him intently."Earth to Caleb." Maddie elbowed him and smirked. "You have been spacing out all day. Still dreading practice?Caleb jolted out of his daze, his mouth clenching slightly. "Just prepping myself mentally." "I bet Harris is gonna run you ragged," Trent said as he slid into the desk beside Maddie. "No more slacking off for you, dude."Caleb felt a leaden knot in his stomach, but he refused to make any more excuses. He'd messed up, plain and simple. He shifted in his seat and feigned a casual demeanor. "It will be OK. "Not a big deal."Maddie raised her brow, evidently skeptical. "So no more putting it off. Want to grab an earl
UNSPOKEN BOND CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR
CHAPTER 24"Your sister, Julia, will be starting at Willow Creek High on Monday."Caleb was taken aback by his father's statements. This was the last thing he expected out of all the scenarios he was thinking about. "You're joking, right?" His laugh was harsh. "Julia attends my public school?" Why the devil would she transfer from Brookfield Academy?His father gave him a serious look. "Because it's time she experienced the real world instead of that privileged bubble she's been coddled in."Caleb's stomach hollowed out as the implication set in. Julia is at his school. Suddenly, his safe refuge of anonymity, his escape from the weight of familial expectations, was about to be destroyed."This is ridiculous," he exclaimed, his frustration palpable. "You can't just upend her entire life like this two weeks before the Championships!" "We can and we are." His father's tone accepted no debate. "Your sister needs a reality check, and you're going to help provide it whether you like it or
UNSPOKEN BOND CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE
CHAPTER 25*** SATURDAY LUNCH DATE WITH MIRANDA ***Caleb rubbed his fingers against the sticky tabletop, resisting the temptation to check his phone for the tenth time He'd arrived at Sally's Diner twenty minutes early, wanting to escape the smothering atmosphere at home. The cherry red vinyl booth squeaked as he adjusted his weight to examine the front door. Where was she? Miranda was always late for everything, but she had never stood him up unexpectedly before.The chime of the bell over the entry signaled her arrival, just as a tendril of worry began to emerge in his gut. Caleb's breath seized in his throat, as it usually did whenever he saw her float through a room.Miranda Turner, the most beautiful girl at Willow Creek High, made even Sally's Diner feel honored by her presence. She smiled brightly at the spotty, middle-aged servers before focusing her sight on Caleb in the corner booth."There's my handsome jock," she said in a light tone that made his stomach flip pleasantly
UNSPOKEN BOND CHANGE TWENTY SIX
CHAPTER 26The sunlight had given way to dusk by the time Caleb and Miranda emerged from Sally's Restaurant, hands clasped and matching grins on their cheeks. Despite the emotional turmoil that lingered beneath the surface, Caleb felt significantly lighter after dumping his troubles on Miranda's sympathetic presence."So," she lilted, gently bumping his shoulder, "now that you've successfully reunited with your smile, what's next on the agenda for us?"Caleb's spine tingled with fire as a husky undertone ran through her tone. He angled his body towards her, their hands resting on the strong plane of his abdomen."Well, if my incredibly wise, insightful girlfriend will recall..." He mimicked her sly tone, telegraphing his intentions with the smolder of his stare. "It's been over one week since we last had any, ah...quality time together.""One week, and..." Miranda's smokey giggle cut right through his core. "Approximately eleven hours, if my calculations are correct."God, the sound o
UNSPOKEN BOND CHAPTER TWENTY SEVEN
CHAPTER 27*** MONDAY MORNING ***Julia Matthews stroked her hands over the silky cotton of her sundress, her palms moist from nervous perspiration. She took a fortifying breath, taking in her new surroundings with a mix of fear and morbid interest.Willow Creek High's main door loomed ahead, a faded relic of red brick and institutional dreariness. Students surged through the ancient double doors in chattering gangs, jockeying and roughhousing with the unrestrained energy of wild beasts. A big difference from Brookfield Academy's polished formality.Julia gulped hard, fighting the knot of anxiety in her throat. The entire world, with its foreign sights and sounds, felt so...gritty. Unpolished. Dangerous even in its sheer sincerity.She was startled when a solid hand came to rest on her shoulder. Caleb's craggy features softened into a reassuring smile. "You've got this, Julia," he said softly, giving her arm a reassuring squeeze. "Just breathe and go with the flow, alright? "I'll be
UNSPOKEN BOND CHAPTER TWENTY EIGHT
CHAPTER 28JULIA POV:Julia wiped her hands over her sundress, hoping to get rid of the damp sweat. She took a deep breath and prepared herself to enter Caleb's classroom after the lunch break.Her first day at Willow Creek High was already unsettling, a stark contrast to the elegant decorum of Brookfield Academy. The raucous energy, graffitied lockers, and shameless honesty created a raw, unrefined image that was utterly unlike her privileged upbringing. But Julia was determined to have an open mind and immerse herself in this new atmosphere, no matter how chaotic. She simply hoped that speaking with her brother would help her stay grounded in the face of an overwhelming tide.Julia squared her shoulders and pushed through the classroom door, her gaze immediately drawn to Caleb's recognizable presence among the rows of full desks. He sat with Miranda draped over him in a proprietary manner, both of them accompanied by boys she recognized as Trent and Maddie from earlier encounters.
UNSPOKEN BOND CHAPTER TWENTY NINE
CHAPTER 29JULIA POV:Julia couldn't get the unsettling pictures out of her mind in the hours following the altercation with Caleb and his friends. Lila's stubborn yet resigned emerald stare was burnt onto the backs of her eyelids, mocking her with its quiet resolve in the face of such obvious brutality.Julia's mind kept going back to the enigmatic, selectively mute girl as she worked on her algebra homework that night. What underlying past could generate such hostility and scorn among Caleb's circle, to the point where they felt justified in harassing Lila merely for being in their presence?The entire situation smelled of ugliness and cruelty, which turned Julia off. Perhaps because it reflected an insidious kernel of ugliness she'd always suspected lurked beneath Caleb's charming exterior but had chosen to ignore in favor of sibling loyalty.Julia felt her blinkers had been destroyed after seeing his explosive, aggressive side firsthand. The sibling she idolized as a child had an
UNSPOKEN BOND CHAPTER THIRTY
Chapter 30The rusty groan of her locker door signalled the beginning of another torturous day at Willow Creek High. Lila took a deep breath and began transferring textbooks with mechanical efficiency, the familiar ritual grounding her in the cacophonous cacophony ringing through the crowded hallway.Halfway through the transfer, her fingers remained motionless against the cool metal as her sight fell on an unexpected object nestled near the top shelf. A folded sheet of paper appeared benign enough, yet its presence made the hairs at Lila's nape bristle with innate uneasiness.Lila carefully withdrew the paper and twisted it over in her grasp, as if it would catch fire. No taunting scribbling or wicked emblem disfigured the outside surface, heightening her sense of doom tenfold. Dark curiosity gnawed at her resolve, and she eventually pried open the crumpled folds to expose a neat wall of letters written in looping script.Lila's breath stuttered in her chest when she heard the top sal
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