I SPENT THE rest of the evening cooped up in my room with my window wide open as I waited for James to come home. I had been calling and texting him nonstop but I got no reply. I didn't even want to imagine where he was and why he wasn't home because my mind kept alluding to the worst possible scenarios. Wherever he was, I was hoping he'd come back soon. After much deliberation, I decided if he wasn't back by tomorrow morning I was going to the local police station. Sure they would probably be useless given I didn't know his location but something was better than nothing. I couldn't just sit here idly and wait for him to show up.
A light knock on my door brought me out of my thoughts. "I'm taking Alex to Isaiah's for a sleepover and then I'm going to practice," Brenton said.
I tried to suppress any hints of worry from my face. The last thing I wanted was to tell Brenton about all of this and have him tell Holden. "Practice? Nice excuse," I scoffed.
I could've sworn my brother, the tool, actually blushed. "I doubt you'd want to hear I'm seeing Amber."
"You're going out? On an actual date?" Brenton didn't do dates so I was shocked and slightly impressed that he was being a decent guy.
"Just dinner and a movie." His cheeks reddened even more and although I wanted to puke I was happy he was shaping up for Amber.
"You really like her, don't you?"
He nodded, avoiding eye contact with me. "A lot."
Despite the growing urge to upchuck I had to admit seeing Brent bashful about Amber was cute. So long as he didn't break her heart I was happy with whatever disgusting little relationship they wanted.
"You better pay for her dinner."
He shot me a grin. "What kind of boyfriend would I be if I didn't?"
I choked on air. "Boyfriend?" I squeaked.
"Soon to be," he corrected. "I'm officially asking her at the restaurant."
"You," I jabbed my finger in his direction, "are asking her to be your girlfriend? Who are you and what have you done to my brother?"
Brenton rolled his eyes but laughed. "I really like Amber, idiot. Plus she's your best friend, I'm not going to hurt her."
I eyed him warily. "Get out before I call the cops on you, Brent imposter."
"You're so dramatic," he said with a shake of his head.
~*~
After my brothers left, Brenton called me to tell me that Mom said she was coming home late as well which meant I was tasked with preparing dinner for one tonight. I wanted to call Amber to hang out but unfortunately, she was too busy with the lesser Parker. It was at this moment did I realize I didn't have that many friends. I was giving Niko some space with the whole Monica thing so I didn't bother to call him and the only other person I could think of was Holden, though I knew inviting him over when I was alone was the absolute worst idea.
Instead, I decided to have a Dani day. I ordered a few beef shawarmas and hung out in the living room while I searched for a movie to find. Finally deciding on a horror movie, I flicked the TV on and watched. In hindsight watching a horror movie alone at night wasn't my brightest idea. Not only was it one of my least favourite genres but I probably shouldn't have been watching this when I was alone and paranoid about James. During the entire movie, my mind was cluttered with thoughts of James.
I tried calling him a few more times but I still got no reply. I was so fixated on calling him I didn't even notice the doorbell ring. When it rang a few more times I jumped in my seat, emitting a high-pitched shriek. Attempting to compose myself, I took a few deep breaths before opening the front door to reveal a bored delivery guy.
"Two beef shawarmas with extra pickles, extra turnips, no onions," he drawled.
I nodded. "That's me."
"Sixteen forty-two."
I handed him my debit card which he inserted into the handheld transaction machine he had. Once the payment was processed he handed me the paper bag of my food and left. I was about to shut the door until I caught a glimpse of a gleam not too far from my house. It was getting dark and the streetlights were fairly dim but I squinted my eyes to focus, my eyes bulging when I recognized it as a motorcycle. Dropping my bag of beefy goodness, I dashed out the door to the motorcycle. The driver was still wearing a helmet but that didn't matter because I could recognize him in a heartbeat.
Without waiting for him to take the helmet off I jumped into his arms. He was so taken aback that by the time he had steadied me we were both falling onto the ground. He landed on the ground with a thud, me falling right on top of him but I didn't care. I took off his helmet, revealing the breathtaking face of the guy I was worried sick about. Not letting him speak, I crashed my lips against his, melting into the warmth and softness of his lips. He was hesitant at first but soon returned the kiss, his arms wrapping around my waist and pulling me closer to him. We were there for who knew how long, but our kiss was interrupted when someone cleared their throat.
I pulled away and we looked up to see the delivery guy from earlier standing not too far from us. "You...uh, you forgot your receipt," he murmured awkwardly. He didn't let me answer as he placed it on the ground a few feet from us and swiftly walked back to his car.
James chuckled and I was about to join in too until I remembered the countless missed calls and texts I had sent but got no response to. I punched James' arm as hard as I could, earning a wince from him.
"What the hell?" he groaned. "Can we go back to nice Dani?"
"Where have you been?" I demanded. "I've been calling and texting you nonstop and I didn't get a single reply!" James was about to answer but I continued, needing to get this all off my chest. "I called your mom and you weren't there. I also know you quit your job at the café. Why have you been lying to me?"
James propped himself up on his elbows, and it wasn't until now I realized I was still sitting on top of him. "I mixed up the dates with my mom and I realized too late so since I was out I decided to clear my head. I stayed at a friend's house for the weekend just to get away from things and think, and my phone died but I forgot to bring my charger."
I raised my eyebrows. "A friend's house?"
He nodded. "One of my childhood friends from my mom's neighbourhood. I would've stayed with her but Bobby..."
"I get it," I assured, knowing Bobby was a touchy subject for him. So far his story checked out but there was still one missing piece. "What about the job? I thought that was going well."
"It was but the hours were too much and I didn't want my grades to start slipping."
I frowned at him. "James, why didn't you just tell me?"
He looked down to avoid making eye contact. "I didn't want to disappoint you."
I cupped his cheek, forcing him to look at me. "You could never disappoint me. Next time just tell me instead of keeping it to yourself."
"Thank you," he said so genuinely it made my heart melt. James gave me a quick peck and I had to hide the disappointment on my face. After not seeing me for three days that was all I got?
I stood up and extended my hand to help him up. Although it had only been a few days since I'd seen him I didn't realize how much I missed him. "No one's going to be home for a few hours," I started. "Want to come over?"
He smirked down at me. "If you want me all to yourself, all you got to do is ask."
I rolled my eyes and walked back to my house, ignoring the taunting laughter coming from behind me. "You can have some of the food I ordered," I told him as we went upstairs to my bedroom, the paper bag in my hands. We sat on my bed and I handed him a shawarma before keeping one for myself.
James had only taken one bite when he made a face. "Why'd you get tomatoes in this?" he grumbled. Being the overgrown baby he was, James proceeded to unwrap the shawarma and individually pluck out all the tomatoes.
I bumped his shoulder with mine. "They're not so bad."
"Coming from the human garbage disposal who will consume anything," he scoffed.
I let out a laugh as I rested my head on his shoulder. James slid his arm around me and pulled me close, making me emit a happy sigh as I breathed in his scent. We continued eating in silence while enjoying each other's presence. "I should get going," James said as he took his last bite.
I pouted at him, making him roll his eyes. "Can't you stay for a little bit?"
He shook his head. "I'm tired from all the driving."
An idea suddenly popped into my head. "Spend the night."
"What?"
"Just sleep over. No one will find out."
He raised his eyebrows. "I don't think that's the best idea."
"Why not?" I whined. "You've done it before. Besides, you owe me after making me think you were abducted."
"You're something else," he said with annoyance which was also his way of succumbing to my request. I grinned at James, overjoyed he was spending the night with me. That way we could make up for lost time and I wouldn't be alone. "Can I take a shower?" he asked.
I nodded. "Bathroom's down the hall. I'll get you some clothes."
While James went to the bathroom I went to Brenton's room to rummage through his closet. I took a black t-shirt and a pair of red plaid pyjama pants before grabbing a spare towel from the linen closet and taking it to the bathroom. I knocked on the door before jiggling the doorknob, which James conveniently left unlocked so I stepped inside. I could hear the shower running so I quietly placed the items on the stand beside the shower before exiting the bathroom and returning to my bedroom. While I was killing time I decided to change into my pyjamas as well so I slipped on one of Niko's many old long sleeve shirts I'd borrowed and never returned, and I slipped on a pair of cotton shorts. I brushed my hair before tying it up into a bun and flopped on my bed.
A vibration caught my attention, so I grabbed my phone to check my notifications but I didn't receive any. Realizing it was probably James' phone, I checked my bed before spotting it resting on my pillow. Now, I knew it was wrong to snoop but what if the message was something important? I wasn't going to snoop, I was simply going to see who the message was from and then put the phone back in its place. All I could see was who sent the text, but the message itself wasn't displayed from what I presumed to be his privacy settings. What ignited my wonder was that the message was from an unknown number, my curiosity getting the best of me as I unlocked his phone. Of course, the phone had a password and I tried to wrack my brain for possible four-digit number combinations.
I tried the typical 0-0-0-0, then 1-1-1-1 and so on, repeating the same number four times. By the time I reached the number three I figured that password was rendered useless. I tried 1-2-3-4 but I knew James wouldn't do something that obvious for his password. I knew I only had a couple more tries until I got locked out so I had to be strategic. What four digits were significant to James? I didn't bother his birth year or birthday because I figured they were too obvious and James wouldn't do something that simple for his password. Â It was like a lightbulb went off in my head when I realized his password probably had something to do with his mom. What was Helena's address again? I knew she lived on Juniper Lane but I couldn't seem to recall the number. Something with a three, or a two... My eyes widened when I remembered I saved the address Martin gave me. I whipped out my phone and scrolled through my notes in search for her address. There it was: 3286 Juniper Lane.
I typed in 3-2-8-6, excited to see the phone unlock but it didn't. What the hell? I was beyond puzzled now, it just didn't make any sense. If his password wasn't that, then what could it be? I was really pushing my luck now and I doubted I had more than one attempt left before I got locked out of his phone. I didn't know how long I'd lock his phone and the last thing I wanted was for James to finish his shower and see that there was an attempt to unlock his phone. He'd know it was me and then he wouldn't trust me anymore. My best bet was to stop trying but the worry building up inside of me on what that text message could be pushed me to try to think of his password.
I trusted James a lot but something in my gut was telling me he wasn't being completely truthful about this weekend. I had no reason to doubt him or be suspicious but I couldn't shake off the feeling that there was something really wrong. If the message was harmless then I'd stop prying and give him the benefit of the doubt, but if it was something more... God, I needed to figure out his password. Whatever the password was, it had to be something I knew. James would clearly not choose a basic or simple password so it had to be something more complex. It wasn't the number of his childhood home and I didn't pin him to save sentimental dates as his password so it must have been something random but still of significance.
Then it clicked.
I practically bolted to the bathroom and knocked on the door until I heard a response. "Yes, I'd love some company," James voice muffled through the sound of the shower running.
I rolled my eyes even though he couldn't see me. "What's the name of that book you like?"
"Super specific question," he replied sarcastically.
"The one I asked you about," I pressed.
"Is someone finally abandoning picture books for real books? Good job, I'm proud of you."
I let out a sigh. Why couldn't he be straight to the point? "No, dummy, the one that I asked about in that note I sent you and you told me when you slept over." How I remembered all those details I had not a clue.
"1984," he said, making that lightbulb go off in my head again. "Why the curiosity?"
"Just making a summer reading list," I answered dismissively before running back to my room.
I typed in those four digits and the cell phone unlocked with ease. Had I known what was waiting inside that phone I would've thought twice about unlocking it. I tapped the most recent text message in his notifications before being brought to the message by the unknown number. My jaw dropped and I had to grip his phone with both hands to stop my trembling fingers from dropping it.
I hear you're trying to get back in. How about 30K for a delivery?
Had James never told me his backstory I would've given him the benefit of the doubt that this was just one hefty pizza delivery, but I knew exactly what it was. He was back to delivering drugs. There were so many emotions coursing through me but the one I felt strongest was deflated. When James opened up to me I truly thought he had changed for the better, especially after his reunion with Helena. It hurt that despite everything he went through he was reverting back to his old ways. I knew James was a good person but things were actually looking up for him now, so why the hell did he choose now of all times to get back into this? My heart sank when the realization dawned upon me. He needed the money for school. I understood why he was doing this but I really didn't want James getting pulled back into this. He had just mended his relationship with Helena and if Bobby or his guardian found out he'd lose all the progress he made. I knew if I deleted this message or blocked the number he'd just get a message from a new number, so without thinking it through I made a decision for him.
I'm interested. Text the information to my new number.
I sent them my cell phone number before deleting the message and blocking the number from James' phone. I refused to let him get dragged into this again. For now I had to play cool and act like I didn't know anything. If James found out what I did not only would he be beyond pissed, but he'd probably still go through with it and I had to protect him. I hadn't fully decided if I'd actually go through with the delivery or not, but I knew the money would really help him. The thought of doing that made my stomach do flips and I forced myself to stop thinking about it. I just had to pretend the last ten minutes never happened and I had to act like normal.
"Hey," James said as he entered my room. I let out a surprised yelp which made him chuckle. "Someone's a little jumpy."
I mentally chastised myself. So much for playing cool... "Hey," I responded, trying to keep my voice levelled.
James sat down beside me as he dried his wet hair with a towel. "Want to watch a movie?"
I nodded nervously, hoping he didn't notice my body shaking. "Sounds good."