"Happy mother fucking birthday to me." I muttered.

"Your birthday is on April Fools?" He asks.

"Yeah, means my whole life is a fucking joke." I laughed. He looks like he doesn't know whether to laugh or comfort me. He decides to change the subject.

"What are you doing out so late?" He asks.

"I could ask you the same thing, bench boy." I say.

I don't understand the big deal about birthdays, it's like celebrating another year closer to the grave. Along the years, my birthday always ended in tears.

Hey, that rhymed.

Read the room.

I hadn't noticed that the boy was still here until he took a seat next to me.

"Well I asked you first." He rebutted.

"I got in a fight with my... family, you?" The word 'family' felt like acid on my tongue. "Same."

We ended up talking for what felt like hours. It was refreshing to talk to someone about your problems who doesn't treat you like a fragile doll. He said he lived in New York when he was younger but he had to keep moving around because of his dad's job, his family settled in Maryland for a few years and he just moved to Virginia less than a year ago; his parents are always arguing but they try to contain it around him.

I didn't tell him my whole life story, just how I moved her about a week ago with my aunt's fiance and his sons. I only included minor details about my life before I moved.

I didn't realize I fell asleep until I woke up with the sun blinding my eyes.

No nightmares.

I looked to the right only to be greeted by an empty bench. I was about to get up but I heard a voice in the distance.

"Wait." I saw a familiar boy. He was carrying a brown bag of food with a drink carrier. His features were easier to see because of the daylight.

Oh my fucking...

"Max?" I cannot believe I had a heart-to-heart with my middle school bully.

He looked at me and his eyes widened as he came to the same realization.

"Stingray... I'm so sorry-"

"Save it, I'm gonna go. Don't you have school or something?" I stood up trying to leave.

"Suspended. Look, I want to apologize for all the trouble I caused you in middle school. I was a douche, I hope you can forgive me in the future." He says, I can tell he is genuinely sorry.

"Aw, is little stingray gonna cry?"

"You're such a loser."

"Daddy can't save you now?"

"You're just a poor little orphan."

I looked back at his pleading eyes, begging me to say something; anything.

"I'll do anything, please forgive me." Who would've thought I would see my middle school bully beg?

That didn't sound right.

"First, tell me what's in the bag." I told him. He looked at me in disbelief and quickly handed me the bag with a drink.

I opened the bag to find two bagels with cream cheese containers. I banged the straw on the bench until the straw popped out of the wrapper. The straw poked through the top as I took a sip of the tart drink. Orange Juice.

"Bagels were always your soft spot." He chuckles.

"Before I consider forgiving you, why?" I question. His smile faltered slowly before he responded.

"I was insecure about my home life; parents were always arguing and shit and it was my fault. They always tried to convince me it wasn't but I knew it was. I made fun of you to make me feel better it didn't work." He tried to joke. Rayland hesitated for a minute than responded.

"I'm not saying I forgive, but I can try." He lifts his head up cautiously and shoots me a goofy grin.

"Can I- never mind." He shuts himself down quickly.

"Go ahead." I say.

"Can I have a hug?" He asks with hesitation. I stare at him for a few seconds before I wrap my arms around him.

I may be making a mistake but I'm not letting him in just yet. When you're so used to disappointment, you tend to give in too easy or not give in at all. Any chance at a friendship for me was rare, I want to have this chance now.

Even if it ends in disappointment.

Saying tension was high in the Brown household was an understatement. Despite the protests, Hayden and Blake were sent to school while two of the boys were going to drive around the neighborhood to see if they could spot their stepsister, Micheal stayed home in case she came back, and two of the other brothers worked on getting the jewelry back. On top of that, Micheal got a call telling him that his father and Linda were coming back today.

Weston spent all night planning a gift for his bestfriend. He finally thought of the perfect gift and began working on it until the crack of dawn. He didn't care, it was worth it. He carefully tucked the gift in his backpack and hopped in his car, excited to give it to Rayland. He expected her to be waiting for him at his locker but what he didn't expect is for her not to show up to school that day.

'Maybe her family took her for a trip?' He scoffed at the thought, her 'family' probably doesn't know her birthday. He knew something was wrong.

His friends noticed something was wrong as well, not with Rayland but with their friend. Weston had always been laid back at school, but never this laid back, it was clear something was bothering him. They also noticed the absence of their new friend, was that the reason for their close friend's quietness? His friends had been checking up on Weston the whole day, he either ignored them or told them to fuck off. They kept a close eye on him the remainder of the day.

As the final bell rang, Weston jumped out of his chair. He decided at the end of school, he would go to the Brown house. If they had done anything to Rayland, they would pay. He set up the GPS to the address saved on his phone and started to drive. He pulled up to the giant house, practically sprinting out of his car before it came to a full stop. He rapped on the door waiting for an answer. Micheal ran to the door, hopeful his stepsister had returned but there stood a dark-brown haired boy, worry written all over his face.

"Look if you're selling som-" Micheal said, annoyance lacing in his tone.

"I'm looking for Rayland." The boy at the doorstep rushed out. He was worried about the well-being of his bestfriend.

"She's... she's at a friend's house. Yeah, a friend's house. Wait, who are you?" Micheal tried reassuring himself.

"Yeah, she doesn't have any other friends so I'll ask again, where is Rayland?" He said the last part of the sentence slower. Micheal internally gulped at his tone but didn't show fear.

"She's not here right now." Micheal sighed, he could tell the teen really cared for Rayland but he couldn't exactly tell him that he framed her and she ran away.

"There's something you're not telling me." The sixteen year old said with his arms crossed, voice booming with authority even if he was talking to someone seven years older.

"What the hell is Alonso doing here?" A voice popped out from behind Micheal. There stood Jayden and Jaylen, arms crossed glaring at the visitor.

"I was just leaving. I can't believe they pulled this shit on her birthday." Weston huffed out the last part, not expecting Micheal to hear it before slamming the door. Micheal felt even worse if that was even possible. This was supposed to help his brothers but he ended up hurting them in process. He thought he knew what was best for them, not taking into consideration the girl's feelings who he hurt worse than anybody else. He only cared about protecting his family, his blood. All he wanted to do was protect his family. Right?

Jayden and Jaylen spent hours trying to come in contact with the buyer of the jewelry, they ended up paying double for what they sold it for but it was worth it. Right?

Jaylen felt guilty for how he treated Rayland, whether she trashed their room or not. He agreed to the plan, knowing it was wrong. He didn't want to put his feelings over his brothers'. He always followed in his brothers' footsteps, whether they were wrong or right. He wasn't going to put Rayland's feelings over his family. Right?

On the other hand, Jayden didn't feel an ounce of remorse. It was just a piece of silver that could be replaced, it wasn't a big deal. Right?

Liam and Jaxon had been driving around for a while, no sign of the 14-year old - now 15 year old. Liam felt immense guilt for framing Rayland, a girl who was innocent, a girl who was misunderstood. If he wasn't so quick to jump to conclusions, his brothers' rooms wouldn't have been trashed, Rayland's jewelry wouldn't have been sold, and Rayland wouldn't be missing. But he had good intentions. Right?

Jaxon may not have contributed to the trashing, but he knew about it and encouraged the behavior of his brothers. He knew it was wrong but he did it because he didn't want her to follow in his path. Right?

Hayden was hopeful that Rayland be safe wherever she was. She didn't blame her for running away hell, she should've done it sooner. He wasn't as oblivious as everyone thought he was; he saw the glares and heard the insults but he never thought it would go to this extent. All Hayden wanted was a big sister. Maybe if he would've intervened, Rayland would still be here. Right?

Blake thought about Rayland the whole day at school. He didn't know how to feel about the situation. Did he feel bad? Yes. Did he regret it? No. He felt she deserved way worse for what she did and the fact that she didn't remember hurt him even more. She didn't remember she broke every ounce of trust he ever had. She walked out on him when he needed her most. Right?

Wrong.

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1766 Words

Any thoughts?

Do you guys like when I write in third person?