NOT THE SUBSTITUTE BROTHER

School this week has been horrendous. Our principal, Delta Charlie had a new set of rules for all school events and venues which meant that as Student President, I had to be the bad guy and announce and enforce it across all the clubs.

There was a reason why I was nicknamed the Evil Queen of New Leaf Academy. Luckily I had Savy (Ice Queen) and Angela (Fire Queen) with me. We knocked on every club door after school everyday to inspect their premise and issue warnings and demerits.

Basically, we needed to find and destroy any and every nook and cranny a pair of highschoolers might make out in.

That meant the sofa back stage of the theatre club had to go. The sick bay for the first aid club required a special key card to access... Whatever, you know. It's not like removing all soft surfaces was going to stop teens from making out in school.

They could just kiss standing up.

But like I said, whatever.

When we got to the football club, Tim answered the door, "Well, if it isn't the three Queens of New Leaf Academy. We were just wondering when the football club was due to the honor of your presence."

"Let us in, Tim." Angela said. Tim could be annoying like this, so I was glad Angela was with me. Nothing to deflate him faster than having his own little sister step all over him.

I walked in without a word, I really didn't have the energy to socialize right now. The football club was our last club on my list, and I was keen to get this inspection over with.

"I wouldn't come in if I were you... The guys are still changing..." Tim threatened with his usual charming smile which might work on any other girl, but Angela was his sister, and Savy and I simply pushed past the door.

The guys screamed. Seriously.

"This is an affront to our male modesty!" Jonah accused us in his boxers. The other guys were laughing now.

I sighed, ignoring them so they can finish changing. Their clubroom looked like a locker room. It stank like one too.

Savy and Angela checked out the club room (and the guys.) Who had all but forgotten about their modesty and were strutting and flexing, casually of course, because it was completely natural and necessary to do a biceps curl when drinking from a water bottle.

Except for Jonah who was now the only fully dressed guy in the room.

"I can give you a ride home after this." He told me.

I shook my head, "No thanks. I still have paperwork in the student council room."

"Uh, okay." Jonah said, "But don't go home too late."

Jonah seemed to feel like it was his job to be my brother since Ben left for college. He had been offering me rides to and from school, he delivered dinner from the Packhouse kitchen for me - twice so far, just whenever he happened to know Mum and Dad were working late.

Overall, I'd have to say Jonah did more for me as a substitute brother this week than Ben did as my real brother for the entire of his life.

"Oreos and milk isn't dinner." Jonah told me quite firmly when he arrived with dinner.

"Why? If it can be breakfast, it can be dinner." I reasoned with him.

"Well, it isn't breakfast either." Jonah informed me.

Oh. Well, I wasn't surprised. Mum wasn't the greatest homemaker.

"I have to go for the meeting now." Jonah told me, "But you can text me if you need anything."

"Jonah, if I need anything, I would be perfectly capable of getting it myself." I told him.

Jonah raised a brow at the Oreos and milk on my dining room table.

"Uh, yeah. Okay. Bye."

And he left. Jonah was never very good at verbal comeback.

Once when he was arguing with Tim, (because every guy who knew Tim would have argued with him at least once), he has said, "I'm the gamma. When I tell you to show up for practice you show up."

"Don't you mean, you're my captain?" Tim smirked.

"Uh yeah. I'm that too." Jonah agreed.

Seriously! As if that was going to teach Tim a lesson.

It was Drew - perfectly nice guy Drew who couldn't take it and piped in, "Since you know that, Tim, shouldn't you at least apologize and make up for it?"

"Alright, I'm sorry. I'll show up for the next practice." Tim said.

"That's not making up for anything Tim." Shannon stepped in with a smirk. Drew and Shanon weren't even part of the football team.

"You should run around the school 10 times." Shannon decided.

"What? That's mad!" Tim protested.

"It's okay." Jonah had said, "He doesn't have to work so hard. All he has to do is sit on the benches this season."

"Wait, hey!" Tim was alarmed now, "What do you mean?"

Jonah shrugged and left, "That's what coach said. See you next practice."

And that was why the entire school thought Jonah was the coolest thing that walked our hallways.

But I knew better. Jonah was Jonah. That last bit was just a lucky shot.

I sighed as I finished up the totals for the club demerit records. Savy and Angela had both gone home earlier.

Alpha Kingsley and his Luna were really protective over Savy, so she was always expected home by dinnertime. Now that Sam was away at college, Savy's parents had been even more protective. She told me there was something about rogue activity along our borders this week. It's spooking everyone.

Angela had to go back home for the same reason. If possible, her grandparents were freaking out even more. I guess we all still remembered the past. Until recent years, rogues had been a very real threat along our borders, especially to Morning Light.

The border was miles away. And the war was long over. No rogue would dare come near our lands now, not if they had a functioning brain.

Although rogues were never known for their higher brain function.

By the time I left the school it was dark. I had to use my special access pass to let myself out of the school.

I sighed. It was a half an hour walk home from school. That's okay, unlike Savy and Angela, no one would be waiting for me at home tonight, again.

I kept walking, and then realized, I'd have to cut across a number of alleys or the walk home would take even longer.

I hesitated at the first one.

The cool autumn breeze teasing my face. My long jet black hair swayed. Okay, we were in Morning Light. It's not as safe as Night Leaf, but it was safe now.

I took a deep breath. I walked.

I promptly regretted it when I heard someone behind me. I was careless. I had assumed my wolf would have picked it up, but my wolf was focused on getting home before the Packhouse kitchen closed for the night. I didn't actually feel like oreos for dinner.

But by now, I didn't need my wolf to tell me anything. There definitely was someone behind me. I walked faster. Someone walked faster too. I ran. Someone ran. Heavy footsteps. Someone large.

I was seriously panicking. I considered knocking on the first door I passed, to ask for help. I've never been a fighter. Or a runner really.

And then a large hand grabbed me by the shoulder. I screamed. He screamed.

Apple breath.

"JONAH! WHAT THE HECK!" And then I hit him.

I didn't stop hitting him. How dare he freak me out like that.

"Ow, ow, ow. Lizzy it's me!" Jonah tried to shield himself from my hands.

"I know it's you, you....you nincompoop. You scared me half to death!" I hit him a few more times. Because I felt quite sure that if I didn't beat him up, I would surely cry.

"Ow... Lizzy, ow...you're like a violent bunny." Jonah observed.

Which only earned him a few more whacks with my school bag. What the heck was a violent bunny?

He laughed and caught my bag, "My truck's nearby. Wanna ride?"

I sighed, "Yeah."

"I've got dinner too." Jonah told me, "You weren't home. Savy said you might still be in school so I drove over to check and saw you turn into this alley."

Why didn't he just mindlink me directly? Idiot.

I followed Jonah to his truck, it was parked around the corner.

"Are you a stalker?" I growled.

"Just call me Stan." Jonah nodded.

I hit him again, because he was an idiot.

And then I leaned back in the passenger seat of his truck. It was comfortable. And unlike the Lambo, Jonah's truck ran very silently. The seat was high too and you could see into everyone else's cars, not that there were any cars around.

"There are rogues at our borders." Jonah told me, "We're on yellow alert. You shouldn't be out alone at night."

I sulked. I didn't need an idiot to tell me that.

"Next time just mindlink me if you need to stay back late. I'll come pick you up." Jonah offered.

"You're not my brother!" I told him, "I don't need a substitute brother just because Ben's away."

"I'm not trying to be your brother." Jonah said.

"Oh yeah, then what are you trying to be?" I challenged him.

"Uh... I'm like your... brother's best friend." He managed.

IDIOT.

But I've reached home. Jonah walked me in and left dinner on the table. He had night patrol tonight.

"Uh, okay. Bye." He said. And then he let himself out.

Later that night, Mum and Dad came home. They talked about the meeting. They worried about Ben getting into all kinds of unimaginable trouble in college. Dad complained about his early retirement plan being set back with the rogues along our border and our FAO (Future Alpha Office) now in a dorm room of Gate City Business College.

And then they looked up as if seeing me for the first time. I was here, you know, at the coffee table doing my homework the entire time.

"How was your day, Lizzy?" Mum asked.

I thought about all the stupids today, and Jonah featured in every single one of them, "The usual, Jonah's an idiot. School's a pain..."

"Jonah?" Mum looked surprised, "I haven't seen him around for a while."

That's because you haven't been around for a while, Mum.

"How's Jonah doing?" Mum asked.

"He's fine. He just thinks he needs to be my substitute brother since Ben left." I grumbled.

Mum laughed, "I guess he's worried about you missing Ben."

Was he? Could idiots think that much?

"But I don't miss Ben. Not one bit." I lied.

I only realized it was a lie when I said it out loud.

I actually did miss Ben.

List of things I miss doing with Ben:

1. I missed arguing with him

2. I missed sassing him

3. I missed covering for him

4. I missed nagging at him, threatening him, teasing him.

5. I missed banging on his door, yelling for him to wake up

6. I even missed being ask where he was on a daily basis.

I know that all those things might seem weird to miss about someone. But Ben was my brother, not just any brother, he was my twin. So this was a perfectly natural relationship.

Mum patted my shoulder, "We all miss Ben. I think Jonah would be missing Ben too. Maybe you can help him deal with that."

"It's only for a year, Mum. If Jonah misses him that bad, he could apply to Gate City College next year. Plus it's only 30 minutes away. Jonah could drive over anytime." I reasoned. Once I started, I could list a lot of reasons why Jonah didn't need me at all. But I wasn't going to be bothered to write it out, so let's just skip that.

I was the escapee type. So after my homework, I re-read by favorite webnovel, finishing it by dawn, just in time for the weekend.