“For the last time, I’m telling you no.” I closed my locker a little harder than I should have out of annoyance, sending the loud clanging noise through the hallway.

“Oh, come on,” Blake argued. “Don’t you want to see how he reacts when you invade his table filled with those jock followers of his?

I rolled my eyes and turned towards him. “We are not messing with Austin’s social life, all right?”

Blake scoffed and stormed off in the other direction. The lunch room was not where he was headed. His destination seemed to be the front doors of the school as he continued to walk away from me, even after I decided to follow.

“Blake!” I shouted, but he didn’t listen. “Blake, wait a minute!”

All of a sudden, he turned. This time he had none of the usual humor on his face. No smirk was gracing his lips like usual, they were turned down into a distasteful frown. “Wait for what?” His unexpected outburst made me jump back for a second. “I’m not going to waste my time on a guy who is continuously pining after another one who is just looking out for his own social life. You’re worrying constantly about messing up Austin’s life when he’s brought nothing but pain to yours. You think it would make him look bad if you sat at his table. He’s supposed to be your friend, too, you know?” Blake pleaded with me to understand his point, and some sad part of me saw what he was talking about.

Austin would never hurt me on purpose, though. I knew this. He was my friend and even though he was a little arrogant sometimes he would still stand up for his best friend and let him sit with his friends at lunch, right?

“I know he’s supposed to be my friend, but you’re supposed to be my friend too and-”

“Friend?” Blake shook his head and chuckled to himself with no humor. “Wow. Now I see what this is.”

I looked at him, both confused and hurt by his fierce tone.

“I’m just a distraction, aren’t I? I make you feel good for like two seconds and you think you’ve found your scapegoat.” Without another word, he turned back around and continued walking towards the exit.

Without giving it a second thought, I chased after her once again. I grabbed his arm and turned him around and before he could let out one more word of protest, my lips met his. At first, he just stood there, but before it could get any more awkward, his hands cupped my face and he deepened the kiss. I wrapped my hands around his waist and pulled him closer to me. Our bodies both not wanting to pull apart from another. 

Time was lost in this moment. I felt alive.

A hard clang was heard as my back hit the locker behind me and Blake pushed me more into it. His body was a lot more toned than mine, making me feel self conscious, but I knew that he liked me just the way I was, or I wouldn’t be making out with a guy hotter than hell.

His tongue slowly brushed over my lips when the lunch bell rang. Grudgingly, he pulled away. “Saved by the bell,” he joked.

The look in his eyes made me go weak. No one had ever looked at me like that before. No one ever looked at me like they wanted nothing else than to be with me. I was almost scared of the way his eyes penetrated my very being; the way they looked into my soul and screamed for me to be the only one on his mind.

Nothing had ever felt this genuine.

Our eyes finally left each other’s as we noticed people entering the halls. Not many people cared so much anymore about my sexual preference. It was high school, after all. The only person that really still was giving me the stink eyes was the hot shot homofobe himself, Rodney Reid.

He was one of the few people in the world that I hated. Through even middle school, that guy was on my back. Yes, we were somewhat friends then, but he always had to be the one to be better than I was.

In my ‘in crowd’ days freshman and sophomore year, it was almost like a constant competition between the two of us. It may have shocked a lot of people, even me, but I was a ladies man. Like Austin and Whittney, I was big on the girl hunt. Rodney and I were after the same girls most of the time, seeing which one of us could get the girl.

Rodney used the route of brute strength and his model-like looks, while I used my sensitive side. Usually Rodney was the winner, and it only made sense. Teenage girls didn’t really want the sweet and caring guy, but they went for the guys who didn’t give a shit about anything, but what they looked like tumbling around in the covers with them.

“I’ll listen to your lunch idea,” Blake’s eyes brightened for a second. “but, you are not going to start anything with Austin. I’m serious.”

Blake raised his hands up in defense. “I promise, I won’t start a thing.”

“Good.” I turned towards the lunch room and then looked back to see if he was following. “Then let’s go.”

A small smile made it’s way on Blake’s face as he followed me. We got our food and didn’t have to spend much time looking for where Austin and his friends were sitting. They usually sat at the same table every day.

Austin was sitting next to Sabrina, which wasn’t much of a surprise in the slightest. They looked to be joking around with each other, the shine in Austin’s eyes as he talked to her sent a jealous feeling through me. I tried to keep it under control as we got closer to the table. My heartbeat was incredibly fast, but somehow Blake being here made me feel a little safer. 

When I sat down across from him and his girlfriend, fear went through me as I saw Austin’s confused face as I sat down. Another questionable glance was sent to Blake who sat across from Sabrina. Austin then smiled, making me suddenly feel a wave of relief flow through me.

“Who’s your friend, Harry?” Austin asked me. 

I looked around the table, which was more like three different rectangle tables connected to each other, and noticed the stares I got from the rest of the people there. Austin tried not to pay attention to it, but he would have had to been stupid not to notice the looks Blake and I were getting from our sudden invasion.

A couple of the girls didn’t mind Blake’s presence as much. Some of them sent their flirtatious smirks at him, and I could feel the heat rise within me. This was a feeling I was all too familiar with: Jealousy.

Before I could say anything, Blake was already on it. “Blake.” I could see the intense look that he was giving Austin, and it wasn’t pretty. There was no way Austin would let him get away with it. No one really ever dared to challenge him at school, besides Whittney of course. “You’re Austin Griffin, right?”

Austin’s defensive side was clearly coming out to play. His jaw tightened as he nodded to Blake’s question and I only feared the worse from there.

“Uh, Blake just moved here from Chicago,” I quickly interjected. “I met him in the, uh, lock- gym class.”

My cheeks started to heat up from the memory of that day and looked to Blake, who returned a smile I didn’t even know I had for a second.

Austin clearly saw something was going on, but luckily he didn’t bring it to attention.

“So I heard you dad is pretty big around here.”

I literally wanted to tackle Blake to keep him quiet in that moment. Bringing up Andrew Griffin in a conversation with Austin was pretty much the worst idea this kid could have ever had. He had no idea about Austin’s hatred for his father, but it was still pissing me off that he did. Even though he didn’t, that statement was clearly meant to get under his skin somehow.

Hoping I could change the subject, I cleared my throat. I was about to say something else, but I was interrupted by the last person I wanted to deal with right now.

“Hey Harry!” Rodney was only a table over, but he yelled it loud enough so his voice could stretch to at least a few tables around us. Austin looked like he was giving a silent warning to his unmutual friend, but Rodney wasn’t one to back down. Rodney picked up a banana from his trey and tore the top and peeled it so the top half was no longer protected by it’s shell. 

My veins ran cold and I could feel blood drain from my face as Rodney brought the banana into his mouth as much as he could and pretended to choke on it.

“Am I making you horny?” Laughter escaped my tormentor as he saw my reaction. His whole table joined him as the blood started running back up and rested in my cheeks.

Blake looked over to Austin for a moment, possibly waiting for him to take the chance to stand up and protect me, but he didn’t. He looked as helpless as I was. Not many were brave enough to stand up to Rodney Reid, not even Austin Griffin himself.

A scowl appeared on Blake’s face as he stood up from the table and moved his attention to Rodney. “Hey, why don't you come over here and do that again? I'll shove that banana right down your throat.” 

Rodney let out a low chuckle as Blake’s show of boldness and didn’t waste time in getting up from his seat and made his way over to his challenger. Once they stood face to face, their body builds weren’t that different. They both had the brooding facial expression that added an intenseness to them, those dark eyes, and a cockyness that couldn’t be matched if they were facing any other opponents. 

“You’d like that, wouldn’t you? Faggot.” I couldn’t see Blake’s face as Rodney told him off, but I knew he wasn’t going to take those words lying down. 

“You gasping for you last breath?” I didn’t have to see Blake’s face to know that he had his smirk plastered on his face as he rebelled. “You know, I would actually love that.” 

The rage that radiated between the two of them was realised through the whole lunchroom. Everyone waited anxiously to see who would make a move, or continue in a battle of words in place of fists. 

Suddenly, an unexpected voice rang out from our table. Amber Reid, Rodney’s younger step-sister was the one to speak up. “Rodney, you’ve made your point. You’re really awesome for making fun of someone because they’re different. Claps for you,” she said sarcastically while she clapped her hands together. “Now sit down.”

It almost looked like Rodney’s anger doubled in that moment as he leant over her lunch table -the one next to ours- and didn’t even hide his distaste for his sister’s commentary. "Do you want to discuss this in the car on the way home, or do you want to stop talking?” 

She glared at him intensely for a few moments, but she backed down.

 A sick smile covered his face when she stopped retaliating and looked back at Blake once again.

“I want you to apologize.”

Rodney burst into laughter from Blake’s command, along with a few of his friends. “Not happening, fag.”

Before either of them could say another word, Blake decided the next step of action. His fist collided with Rodney’s stomach. “I said apologize.”

Of course he still wouldn’t listen and now he was rolling on the floor, holding onto his stomach like his insides would fall out if he let go.

After Rodney retaliated and punched Blake in the face, Austin got up and ran towards the commotion. “Stop, Rodney! Stop!” Austin tried grabbing his arm, but he shook him off. One more punch connected with Rodney’s face before security pushed Austin out of the way and separated the two boys.

When I ran towards Blake and helped him get up, the Vice Principal came in the lunch room. He pointed at four people: Rodney, then Blake, Austin, and then me. That’s what I get for helping my friend who just got beat up by a bully. Yes, he threw the first punch, but Rodney was the one who started it all.

Now, for the first time in years I was going to the principal’s office.

That’s just great. 

***

Blake and Rodney were brought into the principal’s office and Austin and I were left in the waiting area. We could hear the anger from Mr. Masterson in the other room. It was obvious that the two of them would be suspended, so when he said they couldn’t come back for two days, it didn’t surprise me.

I was a little upset that I wouldn’t see Blake in school since he was the only person I could really talk to besides Austin. Obviously I wasn’t going to be accepted by his crowd of friends ever, but the year was almost half over. There was just a little bit of suffering left and then I would be able to use my GPA (which has gotten better over the past couple months) to get into a good college. My life would turn out just fine.

Austin and I didn’t get suspended since we weren’t really involved, but we were told to not get involved when our friends were in a fight. Then we were told we could go back to class.

“I’m sorry I didn’t stand up for you like I should have.” Austin walked down the hall with me since we had the same class.

“It’s really fine, Austin.” It was. It wasn’t his fault that Rodney was a jerk and Blake was overprotective. 

“No it’s really not. I’m a horrible friend and I always have been.” 

“That’s not true.”

Austin only scoffed, but he obviously didn’t feel like digging deeper since he changed the subject. “So, um . . . Blake, huh?”

I didn’t really know how to react to that. My face scrunched up for a second in thought. “He's just someone who's gotten my mind off of things for the past few days."

“I’m sorry Whittney told everyone.” Again, there was something he apologized for that wasn’t even his fault. Whittney was a dick, he couldn’t be responsible for everything his friends do. 

"No, it's okay," I said. "It was going to come out sometime. No matter when I would come out, people would still treat me the same. I just wish it wasn't in high school." 

He shook his head in disbelief. "I wish I was more like you." 

I smiled, but I didn’t really understand why he would say that. "What's so great about me? 

“You’re just-” paused for a second, like he was looking for the right word. 

“Real.”

Whether he realized it or not, that was probably the best thing I had heard all day.

After my last class, I left for the parking lot and waited for Charlette. I finally spotted her as she walked over with Blake. Confusion came over me as I wondered what he was doing here, but another weird feeling was there. I could feel jealousy rising in me for some reason. Just the way he was smiling with her as they got closer. 

He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and I automatically could feel myself turn bright red. "What are you still doing here?"

Blake noticed my tone of voice and automatically noticed what got me in my mood. He separated himself from my sister and said, "Car won't start. I've been waiting here for the last couple of hours until you came out to ask, but Charlette found me and offered me a ride. That cool with you?" 

I rolled my eyes. "Get in." 

Charlette got into the passener's seat right away, but Blake waiting before getting in the back. "Listen, I wasn't hitting on your sister, okay?"

"You don't have to explain yourself," I clearly lied as I crossed my arms over my chest. "We never said we were exclusive or anything."

"I want to be."

This statement caught my attention right away. I looked into his eyes as he looked into mine and I couldn't help but smile. "Really?"

A low chuckle escaped him as his smile grew wide. "Yeah."

"Are you being serious right now?"

"Yes!" Blake laughed before grabbing my hand. "Is it so hard to believe that someone could like you?"

"No, but-" I stopped talking for a moment, trying to find the right words to say. "It's just, I don't want any labels. I don't want to define the way I feel, or talk about anything. I feel like if I do, then I'd talk myself out of whatever it is I am feeling, and I don't want to do that."

"Then we take it however way you want. We don't define what we are or worry about labels. We feel what we feel and don't question a thing about it. Okay?" 

"Okay." A huge grin spread across my face as I got in the car. 

Blake followed shortly after, making himself comfortable in the back seat. "Do you remember the way to my apartment?"

"Yeah."

The ride to Blake's house was honestly a little bit awkward. Charlette couldn't have heard anything we talked about, but it sure was clear that she knew what was going on. She decided to keep quiet and just scroll through whatever on her phone while she made small talk.

Pretty much only one worded answers were exchanged.

When she couldn't take not knowing what was going on, she finally spoke. "Okay, so are you two like, going out?"

"Whoa, calm down, Blondie." He smirked in the cocky manner he always does as he spoke. "Don't have to go getting all jealous.

Charlette scoffed. "Jealousy implies caring.

"Oh so you care about me? How sweet."

"Blake, stop patronizing my sister."

He raised his hands in surrender as amusement shone off his face. "Hey, I'm pretty sure he was my friend before our encounter in the locker room."

That seemed to have gotten my sister's attention. "And what encounter might that be?"

I groaned as Blake told her about how we shared the first out of three kisses we've ever had with each other. When he brought up the part about how he stood up to Rodney twice, Charlette quickly changed from interested to upset.

"You didn't tell me Rodney was starting up again," said Charlette. 

"Did you also forget to tell her that Austin isn't doing jack shit about it?" Blake butted in. 

Charlette groaned, showing her distaste for Austin yet again. "I don't like that kid."

"Come on, guys. Can't we have a conversation that doesn't lead to how you two feel about him, please?" I knew they had their opinions about him, and even though Austin could be better, they didn't have to pick at every flaw. 

Everyone has flaws, you just need to bring out the better to outshine the bad.

“You used to love him, Char. You said he was like your second older brother.” I really missed those days when Charlette would hang out with Austin. They shared that kind of friendship where lots of people thought they’d end up dating, but they were just amazing friends.

Charlette was always an overprotective sister so right when Austin hurt my feelings by telling me he would never love me, she couldn’t see past it. Some friendships were just not meant to last. 

“He shouldn’t have messed with you.” She shrugged and continued texting whatever guy had her attention at the moment.

It wasn’t fair of me to think that way of her while she did nothing but accept the way I am, but it would be worse if I didn’t care how she spent her free time. That was the price to pay, I guess, for having a beautiful sister. Guys would always be guys, and girls love it when those guys pay attention to them.

That didn’t mean she had to lead them on though, or participate in the activities they so much enjoy.

“What do you mean messed with him?” Blake asked suddenly, anger rising in his voice.

I internally groaned. “He told me that him and I would never happen.”

“See?” Blake scoffed. “Don’t fall in love with homophobes. They’re pieces of shit.”

My foot slammed on the breaks and the car stopped right in the middle of the road. Quickly, I turned around and faced the guy who, once again, insulted the person I loved. “Say that again and I’ll make you get out and walk the rest of the way!” 

Charlette almost jumped out of her seat in fear as Blake sat wide-eyed and completely still. “Ok, I’m sorry,” he told me quietly. His shocked expression turned into rage mixed in with jealousy soon after, but he didn’t say anything more.

It was obvious that I hurt him right there and then, but even though I knew what kind of person Austin was, I still didn’t want people to talk badly about him. Deep down, Austin really cared for me. Not in the way I wanted, but he cared in a way bound by friendship, and I couldn’t love him more for it. It wasn’t his fault that he wasn’t gay too.

“He’s not a homophobe,” I muttered as I turned back around in my seat, starting up the car again.

The rest of the ride was a bit awkward, but we made it to Blake’s apartment without another mishap along the way. Before he got out of the car he asked if I could step out of the car for a second. 

With a sigh, I unbuckled and got out of the car. 

Once he saw that I closed the door to keep a certain nosy sister from overhearing, he spoke. “I’m sorry that I always talk badly about Austin. I know you care about him a lot and I just get a little jealous about how much more you like him than me.” 

“It’s okay, Blake,” I told him. “Just stop talking about him like he’s the enemy. Could you do that for me? Please?” 

For a second I didn’t think he was going to comply, but after a few moments, he nodded. “Yeah. I can try.”

 “I’m serious, Blake. If you want whatever we are to keep happening, I’d suggest getting used to the fact that Austin is still my best friend. How long have I known you now, a week? You have to understand that he comes first. I’ve known him since middle school and I don’t want to lose him.” The more I explained, the more upset Blake seemed to look. “Don’t get mad, okay? You just have to understand that you are important to me too, even though I haven’t known you long, but no more trash talking Austin, or you will lose me.”

“There’s nothing I want to do more than to keep you from getting hurt,” Blake promised while looking me right in the eyes. “and if talking about Austin hurts you so much that you’ll be willing to push me away, I don’t want to utter one more word.” 

“Good,” was all I could say before Blake’s lips captured mine. It didn’t matter that this was our fourth time kissing, it still felt as new and totally mind absorbing as the first time. 

When our lips separated, I wanted nothing more than to take away the distance between us, but I didn’t want Charlette to feel awkward, so I pulled away. “I’ll text you tonight.”

“You better,” Blake joked. He opened the car door for me and gestured for me to get in. Once I got in he shut the door and waved before making his way to the apartment entrance.

“I guess I’m going to cross off the mysterious new kid on my crush list,” Charlette said as I started the car engine.

I let a laugh escape me as I drove towards home.

“So are you going to tell Austin about your totally sister approved boyfriend?”

“He’s not my boyfriend,” I said. That was something that didn’t even come across my mind, though. Telling Austin would be a good idea since he was my best friend and I was going to be spending a lot of time with Blake. He had the right to know. 

It was obvious that I would have to give Austin a similar talk that I gave Blake. They were both hard headed people who wouldn’t mind putting each other in their place if given the chance. I was more worried about Blake, but Austin had his anger issues. Something told me putting those two together was a chemical mixture that didn’t go well together. 

Maybe me telling him would even make him feel more comfortable around me. Even though he was okay with who I was, didn’t mean he didn’t look like he was uneasy about the whole situation sometimes. Being with Blake might help Austin and I return to the way we once were. If he thought I was completely over him by being with someone else, maybe he wouldn’t keep his distance as much.

“From the way you two look at each other, that’s hard to believe.” Charlette raised an eyebrow at me knowingly and I just shrugged her statement off. “Oh my gosh, you really don’t like commitment, do you?” 

“No,” I disagreed. “I just have a certain person I’m committed to.”

“Yeah,” she let out a humorless laugh as she thought it over. “A guy who doesn’t like you in the same way you like him. Don’t let a guy that is in love with someone else keep you from finding your own love. You fall in love more than once. Who you might have thought was the one at one point, isn’t. The world is full of disappointment, but that doesn’t mean you can’t find a spark and ignite it, making something more beautiful than you ever thought possible.”

“Uh oh. Someone’s been reading one too many Nicholas Sparks novels.”

“Shut up,” she said before cracking up. “You aren’t supposed to be making jokes while I’m trying to help you.”

“You’re right, I’m sorry,” I said as I pulled into the driveway. When I didn’t shut off the car, Charlette looked at me puzzled. “I’m stopping by Austin’s, don’t wait up for me. I don’t know how long I’ll be gone.” 

“Okay.” She clearly didn’t want to have any more of our Austin talk as she closed the door and let me head over to my friend’s house without a fight.

The ride to Austin’s house didn’t take long. Mostly because I was engulfed with my thoughts, but it wasn’t exactly a long ride to begin with. Pulling into his extensive driveway, I noticed something was off. 

Austin’s car was parked perfectly outside the parking garage, but a black SUV was parked in his perfectly mowed lawn, leaving some torn up grass in it’s wake. Clearly this was some sort of rous, a way to show disrespect in any way they could. Something was going on inside, and whether it was dangerous, or not, I didn’t care. 

The door was still unlocked, mostly because the lock on it was broken. Entering his house -more of a mansion considering how big it really was- I didn’t see anything so far. Whatever was happening wasn’t taking place on this floor.

His room was in the basement, so I quietly made my way down there. I was cautious with the steps I took to get down the stairs, trying not to make any noises that would get me noticed. 

Never in my life had I ever been in a basement so big. It wasn’t just his room down here, but also a home theater, along with their own training and work out area, a master bathroom with both a tub and shower, and then there was his room filled with whatever else extremely wealthy people ‘need’ to make themselves happy. 

I didn’t really have much room to talk, considering I had many luxuries during my time of high middle class.

Commotion coming from Austin’s room brought me back to reality. First I heard some guy’s voice that was too deep to be Austin’s, and then I could hear his voice. “Take my car and leave.” 

Once I got to his doorway, I saw the guy who was talking to him. He stood maybe an inch or two taller than Austin, but it wasn’t his height that made him intimidating, it was his build. If he wasn’t looking at Austin as if he was the dirt underneath his food, I would say he was hot.

It was clear that he was Mexican, his black hair stuck up in the front. Looking at his muscles, they were so toned that it was obvious he was big on exercising, or a roid junkie. 

When he noticed my presence and looked at me, I remembered that I wasn’t invisible. I guess being unnoticeable so much everywhere else made me forget that I was indeed part of the real world. 

“Oh, who do we have here?” When the guy turned to me, I didn’t seem to really recognize me, but it was clear that he knew who I was.

Austin was at first squeezing his eyes shut like he was in pain, but when he looked over and saw that it was me he looked almost relieved. I could only assume that at first he thought it was Sabrina who interrupted this littler talk, but it was me instead.

“Well if it isn’t the emo queer.” I didn’t know how to react to this statement so I just stood there in the doorway, hoping things wouldn’t get any worse. The guy was now facing me and now that I could see his whole face, I realized exactly who he was. 

Edwardo Torres, one of Austin’s many tormentors a few years back. 

For the longest time I thought he was done with all the gambling, and hanging out with the wrong crowd. Now he was apparently being dragged back into it all over again. From how badly things happened the last time, my blood boiled at the thought of Austin being pulled back into something that he tried so hard to forget.

It wasn’t just Eddie and Austin in the room, though. I didn’t noticed this until Eddie grabbed a young italian girl who couldn’t be much older than me and pulled her towards the door. I stepped out of the way before he could get to me.

“We’re not finished here.” His words were pointed towards Austin, but I couldn’t help but feel threatened as well. 

Once he was gone I could almost feel Austin relax.

“What was that?” I asked Austin urgently, grabbing his arm as I did so. 

“I-” he stammered. “That was Eddie. You remember Eddie?” 

I nodded. After seeing his face, a guy like that is hard to forget. When Austin used to throw his parties whenever his parents were out of town, Eddie would be seen as well as his buddy Dax. They usually supplied the drugs and alcohol. I used to always wonder how he’d pay them back, but later I realized it was because he was helping them do all these other things. 

They used to be friends, until of course they screwed him over.

“And Dax,” Austin said, his voice shook a little as he spoke. “They want me to come back. After all the shit they put me through, they expect me to come back."

"Don't do it." My eyes bore into his as I said this. "Going back just means they'll win. They will have you right where they want you and then not even fighting back will be enough. You would have already lost the moment you let them control you. There's no coming back from that."

"I don't know what else to do." Even though he had been doing it a lot lately, whenever Austin would break down in front of me, it was always surprising. I had always thought of him as so strong and untouchable, but lately, all I’ve wanted to do was just holding him until all his pain just went away. "Dammit," he cursed as he wipe his face of the tears he hated so much to shed.

"Austin, you don't have to hate yourself for getting upset." I sat next to him on his bed, but kept my distance so I wouldn’t freak him out.

"Yes I do. I'm being weak!" His tears disappeared faster than they came when anger replaced his sadness. "There's nothing I can do, but let them win and it's destroying me. I can't be a disappointment, I've been nothing but a failure to my friends, my girlfriend, and my father. I just can't take it anymore, I really can't."

I didn’t say anything. I couldn’t think of anything that would make him feel better. All I could do was watch helplessly as the person I loved destroyed himself with his own words.

"You've told me before that I'm just too hard on myself, that everything will end up being okay. Do you want the truth though? It won't be okay! Too many people have been hurt because of me, and now when I have finally gotten Sabrina back, and my life is somewhat looking up, Dax comes back to take it away from me! If I don't go with him, it won't just be me who will be fucked, don't you understand that? Sabrina will suffer, they'll come after her to hurt me, they'll go after everyone they think will matter anything to me! 

“They'll come after you."