"He's a keeper," Brandon chuckles.

I pull my bag on properly and head for the door. I guess i'll just walk. I wanted to anyway, but what Zeke said is just annoying. When I get outside, I see Zeke driving off in his car. Asshole.

"Come on," Brandon says. I didn't even realise he was standing beside me. He begins walking though the parking lot.

"Come where?" I follow him.

"On my face, if you'd like."

What?

"What?"

Wait.

Oh.

"Gross," I grimace and he laughs, walking backwards as he looks at me.

"I'm taking you home," he finally says.

I come to a stop. "No, thanks. I'm fine with walking."

He stops too. "Marnie, I ain't gonna rape you. I'm a nice person doing a good deed. Plus, if Blakely knows I drove his baby home, he'll be pissed."

Baby? I'm not his baby. Crap, why am I smiling so big.

"You like him," he smiles at my expression.

"I do not."

"You know, he don't deserve a chick like you, but the dudes changed a lot. Probably because of you. Which people are pissed about, by the way."

I know Zeke has stopped smoking and drinking, but he's still the same person. "Who is people?"

He raises an eyebrow and starts walking again. "Just some dudes; Jordan. Zeke's friends. They're not really friends anymore though."

"Because of me?"

"No, because of some shit that happened."

"What happened?"

"Ask Blakely."

"He won't tell me."

"Then I shouldn't."

He comes to a stop in front of a motorbike. "No way," I shake my head.

"Don't be a little girl," he gets on and hands me a helmet.

"We could die."

"Baby, I've been riding this thing for long enough and i've never died."

It worries me that i've come so used to hearing people call me baby since I started hanging out with Zeke.

"If I go on, will you tell me about Zeke and Jordan?"

He sighs, "Okay. You're so manipulative."

I shrug, not denying it, and climb onto the back of his bike and put the helmet on.

He revs the engine. "You better hold on."

I feel uncomfortable putting my arms around Brandon. As if I'm betraying Zeke.

"Go slow," I tell him.

"I like it fast, baby."

"Shut up." I can't talk to any of these people without them throwing innuendos around.

I tell him my address and as he pulls out of the parking lot, I hold onto him for dear life and close my eyes shut. The wind from the ride is making my hair fly everywhere, and every time we turn a corner I feel like I am going to die. But I make it home alive, and he parks his motorcycle in my driveway.

I get off the bike, stumbling as my legs feel like jelly. Brandon studies the outside of my house and I hand him his helmet back.

"Well, see you later," he checks behind him, ready to drive off.

"No, no, no. You said you'd tell me about Zeke and Jordan."

He runs a hand through his tousled hair, "You're gonna get me in some shit."

"With Jordan? Why?"

"No, with Blakely. He'll kill me for tellin' you."

"Well now I need to know."

"Right. You gonna invite me in then?" He nods towards my house.

I shake my head, "No guys are allowed in my house."

"What'd you wanna do then? Sit at the side of the road?" He jokes.

"Yes, actually," I walk over to the pavement and sit on the curb. Brandon follows and sits beside me, shaking his head while smiling.

"You're weird."

"So are you."

"How does Blakely put up with you?"

"How does your mother put up with you?"

"Touché."

"Tell me what happened," I say, feeling impatient.

"Okay, okay," he lets out a breath. "So you know about Blakely dealing with Jordan, right?"

"What?" My eyes widen and I try to process what Brandon just said. Zeke has dealt drugs. He can't have, I don't believe him. I've heard the rumours about him doing it, but now that I know him I know he'd never do something as bad as that. He must mean he dealt something else. Like potatoes or something.

"Guessing you didn't," Brandon laughs.

"He dealt drugs?"

"Yep."

"Are you sure?"

"Pretty sure since I was one of his best customers," he reaches into his pocket and pulls out a lighter and a cigarette. I watch him light it as I think about Zeke doing that. Why would he? For money? His dad sends him money though and pays for everything, so why would he need it?

"Why would he-" I struggle to come out with the words, as my thoughts are going crazy. "Why? How? He wouldn't do that."

Brandon looks at me with a serious expression, also a look of... pity. "It was a bad time. I don't necessarily like the dude, but don't go makin' him feel like shit for it. He got what he deserved from his mistakes."

"What do you mean?"

He takes a drag from his cigarette and I hold my breath. "He tried to get outa it, the dealing, and Jordan wasn't happy."

"Continue," I push.

"Jordan made him regret it."

"Brandon, just tell me what he did," I moan.

"He convinced Blakely's girlfriend at the time to sleep with him."

Oh God. Why didn't Zeke tell me about this? I told him mostly everything from my past yet when he tells me stuff he leaves out all this important information. It's as if I don't know him at all. He was a drug dealer. A freaking drug dealer. What else has he not told me?

"What do you mean by convinced?"

"You know," he takes a draw from the cigarette and exhales. "Got her high, told her shit about Blakely. The usual."

"The usual? What the hell is wrong with you people?"

He laughs, "That's what us people wonder about you people."

"So what happened after that?"

"Blakely was mad."

"And?" Brandon is worse than Zeke when he's high.

"And nothing. Jordan told his mom that he'd been doing drugs. Seems stupid, but apparently his family is the way to hit him. No one thought he'd care about what happened to Rachel, his girlfriend, because they were really just fuck friends. But he cared about her, I guess."

"What did Zeke do to Jordan?"

"Nothin'. He did nothin'."

"Why?" That's weird. Zeke has anger issues, if he cared about the girl and found out what happened, why would he just let it go?

"No idea. He just forgot about it. He still hated Jordan though, but they stayed away from each other."

"Did him and Rachel get back together when she found out the truth?"

"She never found out."

This doesn't make any sense. Zeke would never let something like that go, unless he really didn't care about her. "Jordan and Zeke talk sometimes," I remember seeing them talking at the party.

Brandon shrugs, "Shit happened, they both got over it. Blakely didn't want to deal but he still wanted to buy the shit. Jordan still gave him it cheaper."

"Why?"

"Knew you'd ask that," Brandon smiles. "And I think it's 'cause Jordan wants Blakely to be doing drugs. Don't know why. Maybe he wants him to get back into dealing."

My thoughts are running wild from everything i've just heard. All I want to do right now is go to Zeke's house and make him tell me everything about his life, and his past. I've never found anything more annoying than not knowing absolutely everything about the asshole. I also want to ask him why he was with Aubrey, and why he's been talking to her. This is all driving me crazy. I wonder how many cigarettes he's had without me knowing, if he's had any. He may not care about his health, but I sure as hell do.

+++

The permanent frown rests on his face as he searches through his locker, probably angry at himself for letting it be so messy in the first place, and he wouldn't be having this problem. I watch him from along the corridor, frozen in my tracks from the sight of him, wondering what to say.

Part of me is sad, part is excited, and another part angry. I can't understand why i'm exactly having these feeling though. My head has been a mess these past thew days.

Before I can get my thoughts together and decide whether or not to talk to him, and what to say, he closes his locker and walks in the opposite direction.

By the time lunch comes around, I still haven't thought of what to say. I feel like he's a different person since the last time we spoke, but he's not. He dealt drugs, it's not that bad. It's really bad.

I don't even know if I should mention any of this, in case he gets mad and Brandon and this would all turn into a big mess.

Speak of the devil, Brandon is leaning against the wall next to the cafeteria doors.

"Hey, Jones," he smiles.

Oh God.

"Hey, whatever your last name is."

"Grayson."

"So I'm assuming you want something?"

"You assume correctly."

I sigh, "What is it?"

"Let me walk into the cafeteria with you."

"What? Why?"

"To piss Zeke off."

"It won't piss him off, and you shouldn't do things just to make him mad. It's mean."

He puts a hand on his heart. "I promise I won't do it again after this."

"Fine. Walking in with you isn't that bad," I say this but when we go through the doors, he puts an arm around my waist.

My eyes go to Zeke straight away, he's sitting at our usual table, innocently eating his food. I feel bad that people like Brandon love to make him mad for their entertainment, and that Jordan has done those things to him. I wish I could take away everything bad that's ever happened to him.

Brandon leads me to our table and it's then that Zeke looks up. A crease forms between his eyebrows and his fists clench on the table. He looks at Brandon's hand on me and his eyes turn to splints.

"See you later, Jones," Brandon smirks and walks away.

Zeke stays quiet, his hands clenched so hard that his knuckles have turned white. I sit beside Isaac, directly across from Zeke.

"Are you only attracted to assholes or something?" Zeke asks in an angry tone that throws me back.

"Are you only attracted to bitches or something?"

"Seems like it," he mumbles and focusses back on his food.

"Why were you with Brandon?" Isaac asks. "When did you even meet?"

"We met in detention, and he drove me home-" Zeke's fist slams on the table, making lots of people fall silent and look over at him.

"Are you fucking stupid?" He spits.

"Dude, calm down," Cole says. "Grayson's chill; he won't tell Jordan anything about talking to Marnie."

Zeke's eyes avert somewhere, and I follow his gaze to a table of guys. Brandon's there, and some other guys I've seen around, and Jordan. Jordan's staring right back at Zeke.

"I know what you did," I say without thinking.

Zeke's gaze immediately falls on me, his eyes wide. "What do you mean?"

"You..." I trail off. I don't know what to say. I don't even want to say the words here where people are listening.

Zeke looks at the table, frowning. He must know what I'm talking about. Isaac's hand touches my arm under the table, and I look at him. He's giving me one of those looks where he's trying to tell me something. I suspect he's warning me.

I hear the scrape of a chair and look back to Zeke. He's walking out of the cafeteria, without another word.

+++

what do you think about Zeke dealing drugs? do you think Marnie will be able to look past it?

teaser: satan Zeke gone hardcore

please remember to vote ⇙

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