Invisible To Her Bully (Jessa and Noah) novel Chapter 232

Chapter 232

Jackson

The locker room smelled like sweat, detergent, and teenage stupidity.

Cleats hit the tile. Someone was arguing about whether Coach actually had a soul. Someone else was blasting music off their phone like they were the DJ of misery.

I wasn’t listening.

My head was still full of lunch.

Mariah standing up like she owned the room.

The way those girls looked at her.

The way she acted like it didn’t matter.

And the way it clearly did.

I yanked my shoulder pads off harder than necessary and tossed them into my locker.

Shane glanced over. “You good, Lombardi?”

“Fine,” I muttered.

No one believed me.

They didn’t push, though. Which was smart.

A few guys filed out toward the showers. The room thinned. The noise dropped down into something quieter, echoing.

That’s when Noah stepped up beside me.

He didn’t say anything at first.

Just leaned against the bench like he was trying to decide how to do this without getting punched.

I kept my eyes on my locker.

Then he cleared his throat.

“Hey,”

I sighed. “Hey.”

Silence,

Then-

“Noah,” I said flatly, “if you’re about to tell me you’re sorry for existing, don’t. I’m not in the mood.”

He huffed out a laugh. “Not that.”

I finally looked at him.

He looked… tired.

Not football tired.

Just… Ridgeville tired.

Chapter 232

+25 Bonus

He rubbed the back of his neck.

“I wanted to apologize.”

I blinked. “For what?”

His jaw tightened.

“For what I said. About you and Mariah. The couch thing.”

Oh.

That.

I stared at him for a second, then let out a breath through my nose.

“You mean the joke that basically lit the gossip world on fire?”

“Yeah,” he said. “That one.”

I shrugged like it didn’t matter.

It did.

But I wasn’t going to give it oxygen.

He kept going anyway.

“I shouldn’t have said anything. I didn’t think. I was just… running my mouth.”

I shut my locker and leaned back against it.

“Noah,” I said, “this school thrives on gossip. You could sneeze near someone and by sixth period people would be saying you got her pregnant.”

Noah snorted.

“Fair.”

I nodded once. “It’s fine.”

He didn’t look convinced.

His eyes flicked down, then back up.

“I just hate that it landed on her.”

That made my chest tighten.

Because yeah.

Me too.

I ran a hand through my hair.

“Mariah can handle herself,” I muttered.

Noah’s mouth twitched. “Oh, I know. I watched her verbally murder a sophomore today.”

“Yeah,” I said, and despite myself, I smiled. “That was… kind of hot.”

Noah barked out a laugh.

Chapter 232

“Dude.”

“What?” I shot back. “I’m allowed to think my girlfriend is hot when she’s terrifying.”

Noah shook his head, still smiling.

Then his expression shifted.

More serious.

“But still,” he said quietly, “I’m sorry.”

I studied him for a moment.

Then I sighed.

“It’s fine.”

Noah nodded, but then he added, almost under his breath-

“Truth is… I probably would’ve teased you if it was reversed.”

I stared at him.

A beat

Then another.

I scoffed. “You absolutely would’ve.”

Noah’s lips twitched.

“I would’ve been relentless.”

“Yeah,” I said dryly. “No kidding.”

He hesitated, then muttered-

“But I’m with your sister.”

That hit different.

Not as a joke.

As a reminder.

As if he was saying: I can’t afford to screw up.

I exhaled slowly.

Noah sighed too, rubbing his face,

“Yeah…” he said, like the weight of it was crushing him. “Okay. Maybe I would’ve teased you.”

I smirked despite myself.

“Oh, you definitely would’ve teased me.”

Noah groaned. “Shut up.”

I bumped his shoulder with mine.

“Relax. She knows who you are.”

+25 Bonus

Chapter 232

His eyes flicked up. “Does she?”

I didn’t answer right away.

Because that was the thing, wasn’t it?

Jessa was still learning how to believe any of this was real.

Mariah was still learning how to let herself be cared about.

And me?

I was still learning how to not screw everything up.

I shrugged.

“She’s happy,” I said finally. “That’s what matters.”

Noah nodded slowly.

Then, quieter-

“I like her, Jackson.”

I looked at him sharply.

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify