Chapter 23

West hurried through corridor after corridor, searching for the food stand Finn had mentioned in his text. This place was a labyrinth, being as luxurious as it was. He felt lost the moment he stepped off the field. If this was one of the reasons Isaak's college hated this Humberston, then he understood that now. It felt like hours had passed when he found a black metal rack that could pass of as a food stand. His eyes inspected its surroundings, void of people with only the sounds of the party coming in from a mile away, but found no sign of a bathroom.

"Christ, Finn," he muttered to himself before digging inside his pocket.

"West."

It was a faint whisper, but he heard it. The blond looked up to find the wooden door next to the stand slightly ajar. Because of that, he could barely make out the features of the person calling him, but he didn't need to. He knew it was Finn.

"Dude-"

"Shh! Get in here, man. You need to hear this," Finn waved inside.

Why they had to stand in a bathroom for that, West didn't know, but he moved forward anyway.

"Dude. Is everything okay?" he asked once he stepped inside, looking around. "Where's Justin?"

Even the restrooms were pristine, white and gleaming as if they've been cleaned yesterday.

Finn, who seemed exhausted, ignored him, lifting a finger to his lips, and shoved him past the stalls to the end of the room. Despite being told to be quiet, he opened his mouth to interrogate his friend further when he heard another set of voices. They were muffled, but not to the point of being inaudible. In fact, West could make out clear sentences as if they were standing right against the other side of the wall.

"…just at the edge of town. I have all kinds of shit and we can just hit it up. As much as you guys want."

West's eyes widened as he gazed back at Finn, who shook his head and put a finger to his mouth once more. The smooth tone accented by New York Spanish that belonged to six people.

It was male – five.

There were no twinges of anger in it – four.

It wasn't baritone – three.

And it had a Latino inflection to it – two.

It was one of the Rabellino brothers. They sounded so alike just as siblings were expected to, but it made more sense for Javier to be here than Jorge. The former actually worked here. But what was he doing on the outside of a restroom, so far from the party?

"No joke? You've got your own trap house?" This one was younger. Nasally.

"Well, it's more like a cabin in the woods, but the only big bad wolf you need to be afraid of is me."

"I dunno, Mason," another young voice piped up. "I'm all for a good time, but I don't want to get hooked on drugs. I'm an athlete."

"Yeah, same with us here," a third one spoke. "We don't want to risk it."

"You guys don't have anything hardcore, right?"

West felt his stomach drop into a vat of ice.

That was Justin. He spun to Finn again, but the ebony-haired boy shook his head more urgently, a desperate plea to stay silent and hidden on his face.

"'Course not!" Javier was upbeat. "I keep my shit legal. I do bend the law here and there with my products, but I totally get where you guys are coming from with school. My first-timers get free beer and pussy."

"You got girls?" The nasal voice named "Mason" asked.

"Fucking professionals, my man. They'll have you blowing five or six loads every half an hour. Just like my bitch here."

There was a loud smack and a brief, feminine whimper, making West flinch back from the wall. There was a girl there, and by the sound of it, a young one, too. And there was a horde of guys out there, including his Justin. What the hell was he doing with them? Were they going to hurt her?

West tried to move away from the wall, but Finn kept a tight grip on his shoulder. He realized now that the shorter boy's breathing was heavy and shaking. Something about this was terrifying him. It scared West, too, but not enough to not do anything about it.

"Quinn, bro. We gotta go! Not for the drugs but for the pussy, at least," Mason begged.

The "Quinn" guy sighed. "Hm. Alright, but that's it. Nothing else. Soccer season's just starting up, you know."

More and more voices spoke over each other, guys mumbling their skepticism and decisions. West tried to single out Justin, but either he was speaking too low, or he just wasn't talking at all. After a while, Javier popped in again, sounding distant.

"If you guys change your mind, I work here as a football coach. Hit me up and I'll tell you where to meet, yeah?"

A course of eager whoops resounded, bouncing off the walls and chilling West to the bone. He hoped to God Justin wasn't a part of that. The only excuse he could scrounge up was that he was too drunk to be aware of anything.

"You guys didn't hear shit today," a rough, cavernous voice suddenly threatened. "I got all o' ya on camera. And you knows what they says about snitches, yeah?"

A round of yeses went by before footsteps either got fainter or louder, the group scattering in the conclusion to their secret gathering. Finally, Finn let West go, hurrying for the restroom exit on wobbly legs. West quickly followed after, his mind spinning with dread. Glancing to the left, he saw three older guys skip back toward the stadium. One of them had a sweatshirt that read "Hawk" down the sleeve. An athlete, no doubt. And he guessed the other two were as well.

"Justin?" Finn called to the stumbling form up ahead. "Justin!"

Justin slowly turned, his face sickly pale. "Hey. Did you-"

Finn nodded as his eyes perused his tall friend. "Yeah. We heard. The wall was paper-thin. I think the bathroom's in the middle of refurbishing or whatever."

West stepped forward with a hard but wary glare, wanting nothing but the truth. "Justin. Bro. What the fuck did we just hear, though? I… we heard a smack and…"

He was sputtering, his head rotating back and forth between the bathroom and the brunette.

"Was there… Was there a girl? Was she hurt?"

At that, Justin's face crumbled, his eyes becoming glassy and his hands clutching at his bed head. "Shit. Shit! Fuck!"

The tall boy freaking out made West swallow. Finn was still trembling.

"Justin?"

Justin flung his arms down and blew out a breath, his attempt in calming down. "Not here, man. I think they're still nearby. We need to go somewhere else."

West was about to demand he spill the answers now, but the frightened expression on Justin's face had him nodding and following along back inside the football stadium. They trudged down the empty walkway, Justin's panicked face swiveling from right to left. If someone as so much as poked him, even knowing his two closest friends were right behind him, he'd jump a yard into the air.

West directed his worried gaze to Finn, still a quivering mess.

"You okay, buddy?" West wrapped an arm around him.

Finn winced at the contact but relaxed into the blond's hold.

"I-I just…" he stumbled through his words. "That guy back there. I… I hid in the bathroom before they saw me, but… that guy…"

"What is it, man?"

When he looked like he wasn't about to go on, West forced himself not to prod. However, Justin chose to speak for him.

"A gun, man. Javier had that girl he brought to Cyn's wedding and a guy with one of those purple diamond jackets, and he had a fucking gun."

The team captain felt lightheaded as he walked. Now, he didn't know if he was still holding his shorter friend, or if the latter was keeping him propped up. He knew Finn's past. The reason why he and his family moved to Tuct Side. He was seriously close to having a panic attack. Although looking at him now, Finn was doing all he could to keep it together. West held his shivering teammate tighter against him, aiding in keeping him out of his memories. Meanwhile, Justin led them into one of the entrance tunnels, stopping just a few feet into the inside with the party crowd just a hall away.

"And… he forced you guys to gather up there?" West continued the talk.

Justin's head blurred when he shook his head. "No, no. Javier… showed up out of fucking nowhere and caught me while I was waiting for Finn to use the bathroom. Finn was just getting out when I signaled for him to stay in. I don't think he would have if he hadn't seen the gun the other guy had strapped to his belt."

Finn, whose trembling finally began to diminish, grimaced apologetically. "I'm sorry, man. I shouldn't have let you go alone. I-"

He was cut off by the tall brunette enveloping him in a warm hug, burrowing his head against the shorter boy's shoulder. West promptly joined in, shrouding his two friends in relief and love.

"No, dude," Justin muttered, cheeks red and wet. "I'm glad you weren't there. Like hell I wanted them to see you. If you'd gotten hurt…"

"I'm glad you're both okay," West backed up to wipe at his eyes. "They must be gone now, yeah? What about the girl?"

Justin's face scrunched as if he was in pain. "That's just it, bro. Fuck! It was that girl from Cyn's wedding. Javier's date. She… she…"

"What? Is she alright?"

"I don't think so, man. She was fucked up. Looking like a zombie. Not only that but she was fucking battered to all hell. Black and blue everywhere, but it was like… like she couldn't even feel it."

Holy shit.

Holy shit. Oh, God. Holy fuck.

West's hand was instantly inside his jeans' pocket. "We need to call the cops."

However, Justin was suddenly in front of him, grabbing his arm in a painful hold. His horrified face gave the blond pause, staring back blankly at his teammate.

"No! Dude! They- I fucked up, man!" he sniffed as more tears cascaded down his face. "They got my face on camera! My face, West! They'll know who I am! Honestly, if I was drunk enough, I wouldn't care, but that whole shit with the surveillance rumors and being watched at the playground!? I have sisters, man! I can't let anything happen to them!"

And West understood that decision more than anyone. Despite not seeing them for a while, the twins were like his little sisters, too. Justin, along with Finn and Kaspar, might as well be his brother. There was no way he was going to possibly put them in danger. There had to be another way.

"No, it's… it's okay," he lifted his hands, calling law enforcement no longer an option in his mind. "You're right. You're right. Fuck, I-"

It went silent between them, the noises of Isaak's birthday party barely penetrating their solemn bubble. Finn slid down the wall to sit, recovering from his near panic attack while Justin kneeled beside him for comfort. West stood still next to them, another idea beginning to form in his head the more he gazed out the tunnel.

Neil was still singing his heart out, a different rock song more upbeat than the last.

Your wisdom,

Your rule your kingdom,

Trapped inside her.

Show me some reason

I'll wake up, I'll need some answers.

Silent curtain show me some reason

Once the band was finished for the night, West knew he had to get to him. It was a risky plan. Who knew how involved his crush was in this whole mess? How much did he know? Hopefully, Neil would sympathize enough to help out.

It was his cousin, and judging by previous interactions and arguments, Neil didn't like them all that much.

"Kas is gonna shit bricks hearing this," Finn joked lightly.

West coughed out a laugh, already having a clear idea of what Kaspar's reaction to this will be. The blond prepared himself for a scolding of epic proportions.

"I hope you know what you're doing, stupid."

Nope. Not anymore.