Caught by the Bad Boys Box Set

by Raathi Chota

  “Damn, these are amazing,” Blake moaned as we ate the hot cinnamon rolls that I reheated in the oven.

  “Dude, you should taste the caramel ones,” Levi said as I joined everyone in the living room. I sat next to Benny, and he wrapped an arm around my shoulder. We shared a cinnamon roll since they were big and I helped everyone else. From the corner of my eye, I saw Aidan. I turned to him and Liam and noticed that Levi whispered to them. Suddenly they turned to me then laughed.

  “Lana, don’t chew like a camel or else,” Aidan said as he and Liam ate like a horse. Their jaws went around and round that made me squirm. I shrugged them off when Dad and Mom walked in. Dad saw the last cinnamon roll on the table and quickly snatched it before anyone else could.

  “Hey, Mr. Willson.” Marcus greeted.

  “Hey, it’s Lana and Levi’s friends in my living room…as always.” He muttered the last part as I laughed.

  “At least it’s better than the jail cell,” Aidan said, and Ethan nudged him. Dad took a bite out of the roll then turned to me with a blank look.

  “What happened to you?” he asked, glancing around the room for the culprit.

  “Madam Saga predicted danger,” Liam answered as everyone laughed.

  “Should we be worried?” Mom asked as she literally lifted my face and examined my cut.

  “Not at all, Bobby. She’s in safe hands,” Levi said.

  “Who’s Bobby?” Ethan asked. Levi pointed to my father as the guys laughed.

  “I like that…Bobby.” Carter beamed as he chewed his food.

  “Bobby,” Liam sang. I let out a sigh as I got up to refill the empty plate. The doorbell rang as I entered the kitchen. I put a few cinnamon rolls onto the plate then walked back to the living room. Blake leaned against the door as I raised a brow. His jaw clenched as his eyes squinted. I followed his gaze to see Axel on our sofa.

  “What is he doing here?” I whispered as Levi and Keene joined him on the couch.

  “I don’t kn—”

  “Lana, let Axel try your cinnamon rolls,” Jade said as she gestured to the plate. I walked to the coffee table and placed the dish on the table. I backed away and stood next to Blake. Out the corner of my eye, I saw Richard enter the room. A baffled look filled my face as Richard smiled at Axel.

  “Hey, Mr. Radcliff,” Axel greeted as Richard leaned against one of the sofas. I raised a brow and tried to fit the pieces together of the adults’ weird behavior toward Axel. Suddenly they looked at me with blank expressions. I squinted my eyes as I watched Axel and Levi turn to Keene. He shook his head, and Axel and Levi shook their heads at the adults.

  “Something’s going on,” I whispered to Blake as we watched the adults’ weird behavior.

  “Yep.” Blake sighed as my mom offered Axel another cinnamon roll. “Tonight should be interesting.”

  Chapter Nine

  Lana

  I stared at the last cinnamon rolls because I had to make more in the next few days. I placed them in a container as the laughter from the living room disturbed my thoughts. Everyone was still here, and the adults even treated Axel like a freaking king. The curiosity killed me, and I mentally reminded myself to ask them about it later. I placed the container in the fridge then shut it. Our double door fridge had many things on it, pictures of when I was young, my parents on their wedding day, Levi and I when we were little, a grocery list, and a calendar. The thing that caught my eye was the small mirror held up with a magnet. I took off my glasses as I stared at myself in the mirror. Even though it was a bit blurry, I still saw the stitches on my chin. I slowly traced the stitches with my thumb. The sound of crockery being placed in the sink brought me back to reality as I spun around. A tall figure stood by the sink and stared at me. I slowly put on my glasses to see Blake.

  “These are really good.” He pointed to the cinnamon rolls.

  “Thanks,” I mumbled. I watched as Blake’s gaze suddenly dropped. I followed his gaze to see that he stopped by my neck. My eyes widened in embarrassment as I thought of the hickey. I tied my hair up earlier but only took my scarf off when I entered the kitchen. I grabbed my scarf and slowly put it on. I packed the other cinnamon rolls and took out another container. I felt his eyes burn the back of my skull as I stacked the rolls into the container. Multiple footsteps entered the kitchen as I packed away the second to last container. I spun around and leaned on the fridge to see Axel, Keene, and Levi. I watched as Keene swiftly put on his jacket while Levi rummaged through the drawers. “What are you looking for?”

  “The lighter fluid that I bought. Have you seen it?” Levi asked. I walked to the island and reached over by the fruit bowl. Dad barely ate fruit, so it was the perfect place to hide it. I snatched the bottle out and tossed it to Levi. We watched as he whipped out his Zippo and refilled it with the lighter fluid. Out the corner of my eye, Miranda and Benny entered the room.

  “Pumpkin’s dating a jock now?” Axel piped up as Benny stood next to me. I gave a curt nod as Axel smirked. “Didn’t see that coming.” He sighed then glanced at his brother. “But hey…you know what they say. Expect the unexpected.” Axel winked at Blake as I raised a brow. I wearily rested my head on Benny’s shoulder as I watched Levi. Once he was done, he put the bottle back between the fruits.

  “Thanks, Prin—Lana,” he mumbled.

  “Where are you guys going?” Miranda asked as they walked out the back door.

  “Out. Come on, Carter!” Keene yelled as he grabbed Levi’s keys. We watched as the blond boy skipped into the kitchen and put on his beanie. With one last wink, he walked out the door then shut it. I let out a sigh as I took a seat on the island. Miranda grabbed another cinnamon roll, and I groaned as Benny sat opposite me.

  “You okay?” he asked, then placed his hands over mine. I nodded yet gave him a sleepy smile as he took my hands in his then raised them. Our elbows rested on the table as he left a gentle kiss on my knuckles. “Liam apologizes again for what happened earlier.”

  “It’s okay…accidents happen.” I chuckled. “Remember when you got stitches in ninth grade?”

  “How could I forget? She was out of the class for one minute then came back to the whole class talking, leading to all of us to stay during lunch to clean the storeroom.”

  “Yeah. Remember the dead bird we found in the cage?”

  “Yeah, then Nick and Tyler took out all the fish tanks, which I didn’t see.”

  “How did you not see a gigantic fish tank on the table?”

  “Not my fault the table was right behind me! They took the lid off, and I cut my arm on the freaking sharp edge,” he muttered, then pulled up his sleeve. I stared at the large scar on his forearm where six stitches were once put in. “It’s not a nice thing to have.”

  “But it’s a good memory and funny story to tell,” I said as he glanced at me. His brown eyes locked with mine as the corners wrinkled up to form a smile. I gave a smile back as he took his thumb and rubbed circles on my palm. The doorbell rang as we turned our heads toward the living room. We saw Dad walk to the front door and open it. Two men stood by the door that I didn’t know. Dad must’ve known them since they spoke. Benny and I exchanged a few looks, then walked toward my father. Dad let out a sigh as he ran a hand through his hair.

  “Marcus, someone’s here to see you,” Dad said as he stepped aside. My eyes squinted as I took in the appearance of the man in a suit and the police officer beside him. Marcus stood in the hall with Miranda beside him as they stared in confusion. The two men stepped out of the cold and into the house as we went into the living room.

  “Marcus Sanders,” the man in the suit said as we took our seats except for the two men and Marcus. “I’m Detective Kale, and this is officer Owen. I’d like to ask you a few questions.”

  “Err…sure.”

  “This is related to the case of Mr. August, who went missing on October 1, 2016. We’d just like to know where were you last night?” he asked as the officer took out a notepad. I glanced at Nick and
Benny and noticed their stares on the detective. The room suddenly went quiet as everyone listened.

  “I was at a party,” Marcus said in an ominous tone.

  “How far was this party from the industrial area…the crime scene?” Detective Kale asked.

  “I-I don’t know it was at Tyler’s hou—” Marcus said as he looked at Liam.

  “Tyler lives in the suburbs, probably about half an hour from there.”

  “Were you anywhere near the crime scene, boy?” Detective Kale asked as he raised a brow. Marcus shook his head, and the Detective laughed. “You better not be lying, Sanders, we have evidence, and he can take you in.” He pointed to the officer.

  “Whoa, whoa, Kale. Nobody’s getti—”

  “Wait. I remember going there the other day…” Marcus cut off my father.

  “Uh huh.” Detective Kale smirked as he pulled out a bag that had the word EVIDENCE written on it. My eyes widened as everyone stared at Marcus than the Detective. “Now explain why this was found in the alley that is under investigation and has your prints all over it.” Detective Kale held up the bag. I never thought I’d see it again. However, Blake and Aidan flushed down the last two bottles that I ever had.

  “I—I—” Marcus stuttered as he looked at the bag then Detective Kale.

  “He needs a lawyer!” Aidan blurted out. We turned to Aidan and stared. “Sorry…I’ve always wanted to say that.”

  “Come on, Sanders, I haven’t got all day. The prints on the bottle match yours precisely,” Detective Kale growled. I raised a brow as I thought how they had his prints. Marcus was eighteen but still, the only time he had my bottle was when he walked to the trashcan and threw it away. I glanced at the pills inside and how ironic that there were fourteen in there.

  “Well, the, err…my friend was taking those, and I wanted him to stop, so I grabbed them from him and ran down the street,” Marcus began. “He followed, and I tossed it somewhere…that must’ve been the place where it landed.”

  There was absolute silence as Detective Kale stared at Marcus. I barely knew Marcus, only the things Miranda had told me. Other than that, we barely spoke.

  “All right,” the detective said as he turned to my dad. “Sorry to bother your little party, Willson.”

  Dad gave a short nod in return as we followed them to the door. I leaned against the staircase as Dad opened the door for them.

  “Any leads yet?” Dad piped up as the police officer walked out the door.

  “Not really. With scarce evidence and a clueless family, it’ll take a while to find him,” Detective Kale answered as the lump grew in my throat.

  “What do you mean by clueless?” Nick asked.

  “That’s classified information, boy,” Kale said as he eyed Nick. Dad let out a sigh as he watched Detective Kale walk out into the snow. Everyone else returned to the living room, but Nick, Benny, and I stayed in the hall.

  “Dad, what happened to Jack’s family?” I asked as Dad shut the door. Dad let out a deep sigh as he spun around and looked at us. Benny stuffed his hands in his pockets while Nick folded his arms, apparently not going anywhere until my dad gave an answer.

  “Saw Kale questioning them in the interrogation room the other day. They didn’t know where he was, and it’s like they barely knew him, considering he’s an alcoholic,” Dad answered.

  “Thanks, Dad,” I mumbled. Dad gave us a skeptical look as he walked to his office to join Richard as they continued the game in there. Benny stood next to me as Nick stood in front of us. I looked up to see his eyes squinted as he stared at the ground. “Maybe I should just tell,” I murmured. From the corner of my eye, I noticed how Benny looked at me as if I’d grown a second head.

  “We can’t; we don’t even know where he is,” Nick said. Benny intertwined his hand in mine as I rested my head on his shoulder. He left a gentle a kiss on my forehead as Nick tugged on his hair.

  “It’s just weird that his family doesn’t know anything,” Benny said.

  “Let’s just see how the rest of the week plays out. If nothing comes up after Christmas…” Nick trailed off as he looked at the living room.

  “Then what?” I asked.

  “I-I don’t know.” He shrugged, then joined everyone in the living room. I stared at the floor in guilt because I didn’t want anything to come until Christmas. I wanted to have a typical Christmas like every year.

  “Hey, don’t worry,” Benny whispered as he brought me in for a hug. I wrapped my arms around his torso and gently placed my chin on his shoulder. He rubbed circles on my back as he brought me closer to him. “Everything’s gonna be okay.”

  ***

  Blake

  Using Levi’s Zippo lighter, I lit my cigarette and put it between my lips. I tossed it in the back where Carter, Axel, and Keene sat. Green Day blared through Levi’s car as he drove.

  “Where’s this lame-ass party?” Levi asked as he drove with one hand on the wheel and the other to dump the ash out the window of his cigarette.

  “Dude, do you remember that frat party last year? Jaden’s house,” Keene replied from the back. I turned to Levi and noticed how the corner of his mouth rose. I glanced up into the rearview mirror and saw the looks my brother and Keene exchanged. Earlier when he decided to join us, I didn’t take note, but Lana got suspicious, and I understood why. Axel bonded with Keene and Levi way better than I ever had. It was as if he knew them already.

  By the time we arrived at the party, it was already packed. The house was located on top of a hill, and I heard the music from the bottom. Wasn’t really in the party mood since Levi, Carter, and I were already at a party last night.

  “Levi Radcliff!” a guy exclaimed as we entered the house. A dark-skinned guy who wasn’t the tallest approached us, dressed in a muscle tee, black sweats, and Nike shoes. He held a drink in one hand as he hugged Levi with the other.

  “Jaden, long time no see,” Levi said as Jaden hugged Keene.

  “I know…I’ll visit soon,” Jaden said as he looked at Axel, Carter, and me.

  “This is Blake, Axel, and Carter,” Keene stated. We greeted Jaden as he gave us a once over. He then looked at the door, then back at Levi.

  “Where’re those little girlfriends of yours?” Jaden asked as my eyebrows rose.

  “Err…they couldn’t make it,” Levi mumbled as he avoided eye contact. Keene shook his head as I folded my arms.

  “Ugh, what a shame. Last year she blew the fucking roof off!” Jaden laughed. “Ain’t that right, Keene?” he added as we turned to Keene. A puzzled look filled my face as I stared at Keene. What I’d heard from Keene was Levi didn’t date. So there could be only one person Jaden referred to. Yet I didn’t understand how it affected Keene. “Enjoy the party, gentlemen, and if you need something, hit me up,” Jaden said, then disappeared into the crowd with Keene behind.

  “All right, see you guys later.” Carter smirked as a girl approached him. I let out a sigh since we’d be here for a while. Axel and Levi disappeared, and I suddenly felt thirsty. I walked through the full house to find a drink. The living room seemed to be the spot for dancing, yet it was the only way to get to the kitchen. Ten minutes later, I was finally in the kitchen where people did beer pong, body shots, and made out. I scanned the different types of bottles until I found a pack of beer.

  As I drank, I glanced around and took in the party atmosphere. Opposite me was a couple doing a body shot. I mentally cringed at the thought of Benny and Lana doing it a few months ago.

  “Hey,” someone said beside me. I turned my head to see a brunette with a bright smile on her face. I glanced down to see her in a yellow neon tank top and her underwear. I raised a brow at her as I looked straight and took another sip of my drink. “Dope party, right?” she asked. I turned to her again, stared her dead in the eye, then turned away. She groaned as I took another sip. “Are you one of those smirky-ass bad boys who’re looking for his good girl?” she asked as I rolled my eyes. I stayed silent as I continued to
drink my beer, hoping that she’d get the message and go away. “Look, dude, you’re hot. My friends over there dared me to kiss someone.” She pointed to her group of friends. I gave a fake smile as I waved at them. The girls squealed as the one in front of me jumped. Her boobs bounced as she twirled her hair. “So?” She stepped closer and rested her palm on my chest.

  “This house is packed with perverted guys looking for a girl in her panties, yet you decide to come and disturb me?”

  “You weren’t even doing anything.” She stepped back and folded her arms.

  “I am now,” I said, then took another sip. Sudden wetness was felt on my jacket as I glanced to the side to see someone messed their drink on me. “Fuck,” I muttered as I put my beer down.

  “So sorry, Blake!” someone said. I looked up to see Erwin. We were usually lab partners, but other than that, I rarely spoke to him. I realized what an outcast he was at the party since he was too dressy and didn’t even wear his glasses.

  “Erwin, why aren’t you wearing your glasses?” I groaned, then took off my jacket, which left me in my Blink 182 tank top.

  “Tattoos,” the girl on my right whispered. Shit, she’s still here.

  “I’m wearing contacts,” Erwin mumbled, then looked at the girl. “Did I interrupt you guys?”

  “Yes!” the girl said as she glared at Erwin.

  “Nope,” I replied as I gave Erwin my jacket. I turned to the girl, who gave me an irritated look. I fake smiled in return. “Now if you don’t mind, my buddy Erwin and I are gonna go get high.” I swung my arm around Erwin’s shoulder.

  “You’d rather hang out with a loser than with me?” the girl demanded as we walked away.

  “I know this loser!” I said, then showed her the middle finger. We continued to walk through the crowd until we found an open space by a window. The window was smashed open as I moved all the broken glass then took a seat. Erwin leaned against the wall as he handed me my jacket. I thanked him for taking care of it for me.