Invisible To Her Bully Chapter 27

Jessa

By the time sunlight filtered through my curtains, my eyes were puffy and my throat felt raw from all the crying I’d done. I’d barely slept, replaying last night over and over in my head like some horrible movie I couldn’t shut off.

Every word I’d screamed at Noah echoed in my ears, ugly and broken.

“I can’t help it that I’m not attractive! That no matter what I do, I can’t lose weight!”

“I hate that I’m fat! I hate that I’m nothing like Jackson—he got everything and I got nothing!”

The memory burned, leaving a sour taste in my mouth.

I rolled over in bed, clutching my blanket tight around me like a shield. I didn’t want to face today. I didn’t want to face anyone. Maybe if I stayed in bed long enough, the world would forget I existed.

But then there was a soft knock on my door followed by Mariah’s voice.

“Jess? You awake?”

I groaned. “No.”

The door creaked open anyway, and Mariah peeked in, still in her pajamas but with her curls piled high on her head. She studied me for a moment, her usual bright energy dimmed.

“You look… rough,” she said gently, stepping inside and sitting on the edge of my bed.

“Thanks,” I muttered, my voice hoarse.

Mariah sighed and nudged my leg. “Come on, talk to me. Last night was… intense.”

I buried my face in my pillow. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Too bad,” she said firmly. “You need to.”

I sat up slowly, hugging my knees to my chest. My hoodie swallowed me whole, but even wrapped up in it, I felt exposed and raw. “I just—I exploded, Mariah. In front of Noah. I said everything I’ve been bottling up for years. And now I just… I don’t even know who I am anymore.”

Mariah’s eyes softened. “Jess, you’ve been carrying all that hurt alone for so long. It was bound to come out eventually. Last night wasn’t pretty, but maybe it’s what you needed—to finally say it out loud.”

I shook my head, tears welling again. “He looked at me like…” My voice cracked. “Like I was pathetic. Like I was proving him right.”

“No.” Mariah reached over and grabbed my hand. “You don’t know what he was thinking. And honestly? It doesn’t matter what Noah Carter thinks. This isn’t about him. It’s about you.”

I wanted to believe her, but the ache in my chest wouldn’t let me. “It does matter, though. Everything matters. Daniel laughing when he saw me walk in, Jackson rolling his eyes, Noah making those stupid comments like—like I’m some joke to him. I can’t take it anymore, Mariah. I feel like I’m drowning.”

Mariah’s voice softened even more. “I know. But you can’t keep living for their approval. You’ll never win that game because they’re too busy being… well, shallow idiots.”

That actually earned a tiny, watery laugh from me.

Mariah smiled. “There it is. There’s my girl.”

Before I could respond, the sound of footsteps in the hallway made both of us glance toward my door. A moment later, Mom appeared, still wearing her scrubs from her overnight shift at the hospital. She looked exhausted, dark circles under her eyes, but she smiled when she saw us.

“Morning, girls,” she said, setting her coffee cup down on my dresser. “You two were up late last night, huh?”

I quickly wiped at my face, trying to hide the evidence of my breakdown. “Yeah. The party went kind of late.”

“Oh, right, the party!” Mom’s face lit up as she turned to me. “Did you have fun, sweetheart?”

My throat closed up. Fun. If only she knew.

I forced a tiny nod. “Yeah. It was… fine.”

Mariah shot me a worried glance but didn’t say anything.

Mom didn’t notice. She rarely did. She was already bustling around the room, tidying up like she always did when she was home. “I’m glad you went. It’s good to get out there and make friends, especially with Jackson’s crowd. You know, you should really spend more time with your brother and his friends, Jessa. They’re good kids.”

I bit down so hard on my lip it almost bled. Good kids. Sure. The same good kids who laughed at me, who made jokes about me behind my back. The same good kids who would rather I didn’t exist.

“Mom,” I said quietly, “can we not talk about it?”

She paused, blinking at me. “Oh. Of course, honey. Sorry.” She gave me a distracted smile before glancing at her watch. “I have to head out soon, but you two have fun today. Maybe go to the mall or something.”

And just like that, she was gone, leaving behind a swirl of coffee scent and the sharp sting of her obliviousness.

As soon as the front door closed, I slumped forward, burying my face in my hands. “She has no idea, Mariah. She doesn’t know what it’s like for me at school, or how Jackson treats me like… like I’m nothing. She thinks everything’s perfect.”

Mariah rubbed my back. “She’s trying, Jess. She works so much, she probably just doesn’t see it.”

“Exactly,” I said bitterly. “She doesn’t see me at all.”

Mariah’s voice was gentle but firm. “Then you need to start seeing yourself. Stop focusing on what Jackson or Noah or Daniel thinks. Focus on you. What makes you happy?”

I didn’t have an answer.

Before I could even try to think of one, there was another knock at the door—this one louder, more insistent.

Mariah frowned. “Who is that?”

My stomach dropped. I had a horrible feeling I already knew.

The door opened, and there he was.

Noah Carter.

He stood in the doorway, hands shoved into the pockets of his hoodie, his dark hair a little messy like he hadn’t slept much either. His eyes swept over me, unreadable, before flicking to Mariah and then back to me.

“Hey,” he said, his voice low.

My heart slammed against my ribs.

Mariah stiffened beside me, immediately bristling. “Seriously, Carter? You’ve done enough damage.”

Noah’s jaw tightened, but he didn’t back down. “I just… I need to talk to Jessa. Please.”

Everything in me wanted to scream at him to leave, to slam the door in his stupid, perfect face. But some masochistic part of me still craved his attention, still wanted to hear what he had to say—even if it destroyed me all over again.

I swallowed hard, my voice barely above a whisper. “What could you possibly have to say to me now, Noah?”