Caleb waded through the crowd of teenagers pushing through the doors of the school. The sun hit his face and he closed his eyes, taking a moment to just. . . breathe. He was so tired and stressed that just a brief second of warmth on his face was comforting.

But his fleeting relaxation was interrupted by a familiar ring tone; his phone buzzed in his hand. He shaded his eyes as he glanced down and answered the call. "Mom? What's up?" She rarely called him while she was at work, but when she did it was usually to tell him what to do about dinner or if they'd be late that night.

"Caleb? Are you out of school now?" Her voice sounded strained, like she was trying not to cry. 

"Yeah, I'm out. Is something wrong? You don't sound okay," Caleb realized his bus had pulled into the lot and was waiting for everyone to board. He dashed towards it, still with the phone to his ear. 

"Nothing's wrong, it's just. . . the firm might be in some trouble."

Cale settled into his seat, stuffing his bag between his feet. "Why? Did something happen?"

"We're being sued." His mom said. He heard the desperation in her voice. "I don't know. . . there's no reason to it. . ." 

"Is there something I can do?" Caleb asked, glancing out the window as the bus started to move.

"No, Caleb. I'm sorry, I just wanted to talk to you-- I'm so stressed right now. I wanted to let you know that we have to stay late tonight. Dad and I have to work this out."

"Okay, Mom. Just let me know if I can help in any way. Don't stress too much, okay? Everything will be fine." Caleb reassured his mom, picking at his fingernails. 

"Thanks, sweetheart. I have to go now. Love you, bye."

"Bye Mom."

Caleb sighed as he let his phone fall into his lap. Sued? Why would there be trouble all of a sudden. . ? Caleb froze, his heart nearly leaping out of his chest when something clicked. No way-- they wouldn't have, right? Anger ran through him like hot water, and he tried to keep himself calm. He had no proof. . . but what else could it be? His parents' firm had never had any trouble before; clients always loved them. And his parents hadn't told him about any unhappy clients or cases they'd lost lately, so being sued out of the blue? Unlikely.

Caleb had made up his mind by the time the bus pulled up to his curb. He hopped out and waited for it to pull away, then whipped out his phone. He didn't bother to go inside. He swiped to his recent calls and hit the number from last night, sitting down on the curb as the phone rang in his ear. 

"Ah, so you do want to meet." Oliver's voice sounded from the other end of the line.

"Just tell me where." Caleb growled, his anger only growing at the snarky tone in the man's voice. 

"Of course, Sugar. (x) cafe, in twenty minutes. Can't wait to see you!" 

The line went dead, and Caleb nearly threw his phone in frustration. He looked up the cafe on his phone for directions and noticed that it was, conveniently, twenty minutes away. Damn stalkers. 

* * * 

Caleb glared from his seat in a booth across from the twins. They wore their usual suits and had their dark hair slicked with gel. They smelled like coffee and alcohol and vanilla-- a strange mix. 

"Are you the ones who are suing my parent's law firm?" Caleb asked, his knuckles turning white from how tight his grip on his phone was under the table. 

Griffin laughed, glancing out the window. "So you do care," he said almost to himself. He turned back to Caleb, his vivid green eyes unsettling. "We want you to come live with us."

Caleb felt his mouth fall open. "Are you insane? You think--"

"Well, we didn't expect you to agree without some. . . 'motivation'." Oliver smiled sweetly. "So we thought we encourage you to make the right decision." 

"You guys are psychopaths." Caleb hissed as he stood, ready to storm out of the cafe. "I'm going to call the police and report you for stalking--"

"Then why haven't you?" Griffin asked, glancing up at Caleb. "Why haven't you reported us yet?"

Caleb seethed silently, his phone in a death grip in his right hand. The truth was, he didn't think anyone would believe him. And the twins knew it. 

"We'll give you some time to think about it," Griffin sipped the black coffee he'd ordered before Caleb arrived. "But keep in mind. . . we have the ability to completely ruin your parents' business and reputation. So make sure you make the 'right' decision, okay?"

The twins stood and slipped past Caleb, Oliver brushing his hand across Caleb's cheek as he passed. Caleb was left fuming. 

They had backed him into a corner, and they knew it. Why the hell did these creeps want him to live with them? What would they do to him? No-- he wouldn't go. He'd go to the police, and try to get help-- but again, they wouldn't listen to him. 

Caleb walked home, his mind swirling with contradicting thoughts. Part of him was willing to do anything to keep his parents out of the mess that he'd let get do out of hand, and the other part was screaming danger. He could not, under any circumstance, go live with strangers! What would he even tell his parents? His sister? 

He walked up his porch steps, defeated. How long did he have to make his decision? How long before they would lose patience and go after his parents? 

He unlocked the door and went inside, barely able to shut it behind him before he sank to the floor and buried his face in his hands. 

               Part 12 Coming Soon
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I am changing my schedule. I will be posting every three days. I feel like I can make the chapters better quality if I'm not rushing.

Hope this doesn't bother anyone!

Have a great day, Darlings♥