4 chapter 4

Darren decided it was a better idea to come over later, that way we wouldn't be blackmailed into one of the cleaning crew.So we where sitting there in his dining room eating lunch with Jack and Ari. It was raining outside so apparently they'd cancelled Saturday footie practice and it was just before the winter game. So Ari was pissed off already before Jack started attempting to flirt with her.After all the moaning about having a headache the size of the moon it was a wonder he was able to recover so fast."So we where all sitting in a circle and they where spinning the bottle but it was square so it wasn't spinning properly and I took it and put it in a hole in a box of- no wait that sounded weird! Let me start over-" Jack rambled.Ari, after being still and unresponsive for almost half an hour now, suddenly spun round and turned to glare at him.Jack looked a little surprised."No, don't. I don't need to hear any more about the party you insist on pretending to remember!"I smiled slightly and chuckled.Darren ignored this and continued pouring half the contents of the gravy over on his mash potatoes.He seemed used to it, Jack obviously came over often enough for him to have found ways to ignore the incessant nattering going on. That made me a bit sad Maybe had I stuck around a bit longer I would have been the only one to be so comfortable around his family.But then again, it hadn't really been possible at the time.Had I stuck around with Darren during the time he was vaguely becoming aware of my sexuality the way he had been treating every one else would have turned on me. And I couldn't handle that, I couldn't handle being bullied.Yeah. Darren was a bit of a bully back then. Well... He was the bully. Our school didn't have many people like that, not back then anyways. It used to be a private school but turned public four years ago.So how did I become friends with him?Well we'd been friends since primary school, I'd spilled fruit juice on his shirt and given him mine. All I really remember though is complementing him on something or other.And suddenly we where hanging out, it eventually became as natural as breathing air.I obviously had no idea that what he was doing was wrong. I was mostly confused because for my age I had been a pretty small kid, and when he beat up the smaller kids but was so nice to me I thought those kids must have deserved it.It was embarrassing to think now, that I had thought something so stupid, that they had deserved it.I even remember glaring at a couple of the kids the day after for offending my friend. I remember Darren laughing and I didn't get why.He was always nice to me, sometimes a bit cold, he ignored me if he got mad at me and hated talking about why, but otherwise he was an amazing friend.When I was little I had like no money, I still don't. But he would still find ways to have fun, even if they where a little daring.I would just follow him everywhere and do whatever he told me to do. Well, we stopped hanging out during high school. We rarely contacted.I mean.There where a few nasty texts sent from him, but since I don't really understand why I've never really been able to get mad at him for them.Besides, I didn't want to loose the only somewhat steady friend I'd ever had, and I felt like if I brought it up he would suddenly return to how he was and leave me.I sound pathetic when I say that but it was simply the truth."Oh Jack!" Darren started."Yeah?" Jack nodded."I almost forgot to ask you. Who was the girl who's party we went to?"Am-"Just as he was about to reply Sandra jumped into the kitchen screeching loudly as she went."You guys are up on Twitter! You look adorbs! Could I ask for a better shot?!"I scowled but made sure not to face it at anyone. I didn't like what she had does but I still don't want to upset her.I stared oddly at the scene before me.I was surprised.Just as she took a seat at the table calm collected yet snarky Ari stood up and threw her chair out, got up and started to leave the room.Sandra got up too."Ari." She said loudly.Ari stopped but didn't turn.Me Jack and Darren all stared at them oddly.Ari had her head bowing slightly leaning on the door. She seemed conflicted."Don't you d-"Before she could finish her sentence Ari was gone, the door slammed shut and her feat pattering away back up the stairs.There was something painfully nostalgic about the scene but I couldn't quite put my finger on it, so I just passed it off as dejavu."What was that about?" Jack asked Darren.Darren hadn't the time to respond before Sandra butted in."None of your business." She snapped.I glanced at Darren. He seemed pretty unconcerned about the whole scene so I just ignored it. If their brother thought it was normal it wasn't my place to stick my nose into it."So what was her name?" I asked Jack.Darren nodded signalling for him to continue."Amy... I think it was that though I might need to check." "Well then check?" Darren asked, he looked impatient.Jack flicked through his phone and I set about collecting in the dirty dishes. Jack looked up at me just once with a confused expression but seemed to pass it off."No her name was Mae sorry. Mae Andorran." "Nice name." I commented as I slipped the dirty dishes into the sink and sat back down in my seat."Yeah what'd you want it for?"Darren shrugged. "Mylo left his id card at the house we need to go get it back before school starts or the girl is grounded for all the broken windows around her house." He said, chuckling lightly.Jack nodded. "Yeah." He turned to me. "Any idea where you could have lost it?"I shook my head. Lie.He sighed. "Well where do you remember having it last."My lips remained shut as he stared at me and then to Darren and back.

"Do you know or don't you?" He said, clearly growing impatient."Ah-h." I stuttered. "I might have an i-i-idea..." I faded out. "Well?"

"The boy's room. The uh, guy w-who gave me the h-hickey's..."Jack looked at me wide eyed as Darren lent forward in his seat."Well hot damn. Do you think he took it?" Darren asked me, smirking.

Before I could respond however Jack intervened."Wait." "Yes?"

"It was his room?" "I- Uh- I don't know, I think so." "Okay I'm not going to ask why the fuck you where in there but are you sure he was the guy who gave you those hickey's?"My brows scrunched up in confusion."What? Yes I'm sure."Did he not believe me?He paused, suddenly whipping out his phone again and searching through it like a mad man."Was he- was he, like an Asian dude? Black hair? Kind of macho with a baby face that say's cross me and I'll burn you at the stake?"I nodded slowly.That pretty much summed up how he looked.I hadn't actually noticed he was Asian but when I thought about it, it seemed obvious since whatever he had said to me was obviously either Korean or Japanese or something along those lines.He stared at me."I can't believe it, that guy from Hanran Bo-"Darren stopped him. Just before Ari butted in."YANCHA BOYS!?" She screamed, loudly. Abusing the technique at its fullest. "Jack you like them too?! Oh my god I'm like, so obsessed with them" She squeaked fanning herself. "They are literally my life!"Darren sighed.I inwardly groaned."Did you know their song 'Murasakiiro no Niji' Came out on my birthday? Fourth of September! And then it became so famous and I was like-" "Okay, okay so you know where she lives?" Darren demanded impatiently.Jack nodded."I sent you a text with the address on it."Darren nodded and took me by the arm, pulling me out of the room and up the stairs."Wait why are we going upstairs? Didn't you want to leave already?" I don't think he heard me. "Did we forget something?" I ask as he pulls me back into his room."Look Mylo I've no problem with you showing those hickey's off. But shit everyone's gonna think it was by me."I gasped and blushed. I'd forgotten about that.Oh my god, if I'd walked into that house again and he saw those hickey's all over my neck, god, embarrassing."Can you borrow a sweater?" He asked.I nodded.I laughed as he passed me a large black sweater with a tall collar. "Now I've got your shirt and you're sweater! No one's going to believe I didn't sleep with you!"I paused. Suddenly I felt regret in my words. Shit I knew he wasn't going to lash out on me like he might have once done but I still didn't want to make him uncomfortable.Yeah the people at school would be doing enough of that when that photo got around to everyone, if it hadn't done so already.Darren however, just chuckled lightly as he took me by the fabric on my arm and pulled me out of the house and into his moms car.It was a green one. That's pretty much all I knew. There was a silver wring that looked a lot like a grey version of the London underground logo with the word 'Nissan' on it. I'm guessing that was the make."Your mom won't mind?" I asked as I slid into the seat beside him, buckling up my seat belt."She'll be asleep till late evening. If she does wake up early she won't be out driving, she'll be on the floor scrambling for an overdose on ibuprofen and wine."He said this all in a monotone voice but for whatever reason it sounded a little sad to me.I simply nodded.I knew he didn't like talking about his parents. There wasn't anything seriously wrong with them. His mother wasn't as bad as he made her out to be, I'd had enough sleepovers to be sure of that, but I could tell her absence affected him more than he'd dare to admit.His dad had walked out on his mom. He'd caught her selling his laptop for money to invest in a bar night or something along those lines.Me and Darren had still been tight friends at the time and after following him around for nearly a week I finally managed to force him to tell me what was on his mind. Which he did, slowly, a very filtered version in which the pebbles finally came through.It had been the opposite for me.My mom had walked out on my dad.So far as I know there wasn't a steady reason for it. My dad said she kept starting fights before she left. Then after she left when they where busy filing divorce papers and talking to lawyers she would change her reason for filing a divorce every once in a while.Still I didn't know much about why. It hadn't really affected me, as cold as it sounds. She was strict, she used to spank me, and she used to send me up to my room a lot during dinner for silly things, and then she was gone most of the rest of the time.And when she suddenly left for good the only thing that changed was the lack of incessant arguing. In fact, ever since she left my dad's been a lot calmer.Still, I couldn't say I was glad she left, I just didn't really get over emotional about the whole thing.I think she's in Africa now, or Japan, or maybe.. Like.. Germany or something. One of those countries with an 'a' in the name.Sure we'd talked over email some times, and she obviously wanted more to do with me at certain moments. But man she was awkward. I hated to say it. But we were pretty much strangers at this point.When we got there it was late afternoon. I had to let Darren guide me to the house because I really couldn't recognize it along the street. It looked a lot different than it had the previous night.I felt stupid when he pulled me towards the most obvious had-a-party looking house in the street.Damn, the front window was smashed in and glass glimmer in over the front yard. It made me wonder why no one had cleared it up yet. I mean if you where expecting your parents to come home soon, wouldn't you tidy the front of your house and then go down to the back?

I watched as Darren knocked on the door and nearly swallowed my tongue along with my guts.I shouldn't be so nervous. Chance's where he was probably just a drunk looking to pass out in one of the rooms.But he wasn't.And I was aware of that. I would have noticed if he was drunk. I would have tasted the alcohol on his tongue or smelt it on his breath.But I didn't.Maybe he was high?Darren had told me a group of them had gone into the garden messing up shit because they smoked a tone shit of weed outside, obviously Nathan had been a part of that small segregated party.But something in me denied it, like I was trying to protect the integrity of a man I'd barely met who groped me in the dark.A handsome man.The literal definition of a sex god.I pushed my now souring thoughts from my mind as the door finally opened and a little girl with ginger curls looked up at us expectantly."Hello?" She asked.For a second I thought we'd come to the wrong house and I could see Darren's own confusion flit across his eyes."Is Mae in?" He asked.The girl nodded, her ginger curls flying up and down as she bobbed her head.She looked sweet.She ducked her head behind the door as she closed it a centimeter. "MAE! SOMEONE'S AT THE DOOR FOR YOU AGAIN" She screamed.Uh... Never mind about the sweet thing."I'M COMING!" I heard a girl yell back.There was the sound of rushed footsteps as a tall girl with long black hair, a wide chest and long legs came to greet us at the door.She was Asian, like the boy I'd encountered before."You lost something?"Darren stared."Huh?" "Did you loose something? What do you want?"He stopped, a look of concentration crossed his features. He looked like he was trying to find his tongue."Yes. I mean no. He did!" He pointed to me. "Mylo- I mean that's his name! I'm Darren!" "Oh... Hi..." She gave him a shy smile that seemed more than suggestive to me and beckoned for us to enter.We took a couple steps into the house before she stopped us."Oh can you take your shoes off? We just cleaned the floor."We nodded and removed our shoes, placing them with all the others behind the step that took you away from the front door."Shit. I was supposed to tell you that it's probably stolen and you shouldn't bother!"Darren laughed. "We know that. Only we have a pretty much solid idea who took it."Mae stared at him. Her eyes widened slowly with realization."Oh shit. Was it expensive?"We shook our heads."Nope, and my friend probably just dropped it, but we think he might have picked it up." Darren replied. "We do need it though." He added.I nodded at that."If it even was in his room." "His?" She asked.I blushed.Shit she probably doesn't even have a brother. I'm an idiot, I just assumed they where related because they where both Asian."Does the guy not live here?" Darren asked. "Mylo describe him."I fidgeted nervously with the hem of Darren's sweater."Uhh, s-s-strong looking, scary e-eyes, broad... broad shoulders?" I fought the ever strengthening urge to just scream. HE LOOKED LIKE AN ASIAN VERSION OF EROS.I did not however, and you may pat me on my back for that.She stared at me.I began to feel disheartened.So he didn't live here.Shoot I shouldn't be feeling sad about that!In fact, I wasn't feeling sad about that, I decided. I was annoyed that he'd taken my id with him! Yeah... That was it..."Does he not-" Darren began."No- no he does. He just hasn't come out of his room since he arrived. I think you're talking about my brother right?"Darren nodded. "Probably." "Yeah I thought so cause your description sounded pretty spot on. He's been cooped up in his room since he arrived. How'd you meet him?"I blushed a deep red."Wow you're so cute, was it embarrassing? Why are you blushing?" "U-u-uh" I stuttered, not sure how to respond to that. "I-I-I w-was just looking for my friends and I walked in on accident! A-a-and then I think I left my id card in there somewhere..."She nodded.Then turned to Darren."You want me to take you to him?"Darren nodded. "Yes please." "Okay, but I warn you, he hates company, better come in one at a time."We nodded and she signaled for us to follow her up the stairs.Better come in one at a time.Why did those words sound so intimidating to me.I paused on the top step.Shit, I was going in alone.