Invisible To Her Bully (Jessa and Noah) novel Chapter 241

Chapter 241

Jackson

I barely made it through the front door before I knew something was wrong.

The house was too quiet.

Not the normal kind of quiet – not Mom–at–work quiet, not Jessa–in–her–room quiet.

This was the kind of quiet that felt like walking into a storm.

Then I saw her.

Mom was standing in the living room, arms crossed so tight it looked like she was holding herself together by force alone. Her purse was still on the chair like she hadn’t even taken a second to breathe after coming home.

Her eyes locked on me.

“Jackson.”

My stomach dropped.

“Hey…” I started, forcing my voice casual. “What’s-”

“We need to talk. Now.”

The way she said it made my chest tighten.

I set my backpack down slowly. “Okay…”

She took one step forward.

And then she just said it.

Flat out.

“Am I going to be a grandmother?”

I froze.

For a second, I honestly thought I misheard her.

“…What?”

Her voice rose, sharp with panic and anger.

“Don’t play dumb with me. Answer the question.”

My brain scrambled to catch up.

“Mom–no! What the hell?”

Her face was flushed now, eyes bright with something that looked dangerously close to fear.

“Then explain to me why I’m seeing an I*******m post saying Mariah Morales is pregnant with your baby.”

The words hit like a slap.

Heat rushed up my neck.

Chapter 241

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“Oh my God,” I muttered, dragging a hand down my face. “Are you serious right now?”

“Dead serious.” She jabbed a finger toward the kitchen counter like the evidence was sitting there. “One of my coworkers showed me. She asked if it was true. She asked if I was excited.”

My jaw clenched.

“It’s not true.”

Mom stared at me, breathing hard.

“You swear?”

“Yes,” I snapped, then immediately softened because she looked genuinely shaken. “Yes. I swear. Nothing happened. It’s a stupid rumor.”

Her brows pulled together.

“A rumor?” she repeated, like the word didn’t make sense in her mouth.

“Yes,” I said, sharper now because the frustration was boiling over. “A rumor. Gossip. Ridgeville being bored and disgusting like always.”

Mom’s voice trembled.

“Why would someone start something like that?”

I let out a bitter laugh.

“Because someone made a joke this morning. It blew up. That’s what this school does. It takes one stupid comment and turns it into a full–on circus.”

Her expression darkened.

“A joke.” She said it like it tasted awful. “This isn’t something to joke about, Jackson.”

“I know,” I muttered.

“No.” Her voice cracked. “Do you? Because I thought you knew better. I thought you were smarter than this.”

My hands curled into fists at my sides.

“I didn’t do anything!”

Mom shook her head, pacing now.

“Jackson, do you understand what people think when they see something like that? Colleges see that. Recruiters see that. People assume the worst.”

“I told Coach,” I said quickly. “He knows it’s fake. He’s handling it.”

That made her stop.

“…Coach knows?”

“Yes,” I said. “He called me into his office today. Asked me straight up if it was true.”

Mom pressed a hand to her forehead like she was trying not to lose it.

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“Oh my God,”

“I told him no,” I said. “Because it’s no. Because it’s not real.”

She looked back at me, voice quieter now.

“And Mariah?”

My throat tightened.

“She’s getting dragged too,” I admitted. “And she doesn’t deserve it.”

Mom’s eyes narrowed slightly.

“Have you… have you two…”

“No,” I cut in immediately. “Mom. We haven’t. I swear.”

She studied my face like she was searching for cracks.

Then she exhaled, long and shaky, sinking onto the edge of the couch.

“I thought Noah’s dad gave you the talk,” she muttered.

1 let out a strained sound that was half laugh, half groan.

“He did.”

“And you listened?”

“Yes!”

Her eyes flicked up again, sharp,

“Then why are we here?”

The question hit deeper than she meant.

Because it wasn’t really about sex.

It was about the fact that everything in our lives felt like it was always on the verge of falling apart.

I swallowed hard.

“Because people don’t care about the truth,” I said quietly. “They care about the story.”

Mom’s face softened just a fraction.

“…Jackson,”

I stepped closer, voice rough

“I didn’t do anything wrong. But it doesn’t matter. They’ll still talk. They’ll still make something out of nothing.”

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