The next morning, after breakfast, we were allowed outside. Pretty much everyone rushed out.

I, being one of the smallest ones, got lost in the crowd. I was walking with my parents, but we got separated. I didn't even bother trying to get back to them, it wasn't worth a try.

Suddenly, someone bumped into me from behind. I crashed into hard abs, hard abs I might have recognized. Before I could fall forward, warm hands caught me by the waist.

I turned around to face Axl. His brown eyes met mine, and he smiled.

The crowd never stopped moving, so he was forced to release me, so we could keep walking. "Hey Kadence," Axl said, awkwardly.

"Hi Axl," I said, trying to break the tension with a smile.

"You promised to tell me your story today." Axl got right down to the point.

"I will, but only if you tell me yours."

"I don't know if you're ready to hear mine," Axl joked, putting on a thoughtful face.

"Oh, believe me, I'm ready." By now we were stepping outside into the bright sunshine.

I could see my parents on the other side of the fenced in area. "Let's go over here," I said, turning a corner away from my parents, so they couldn't see us.

I lead Axl over to the spot. We took a seat on the floor and leaned our backs against the wall.

We sat in a few moments of awkward silence, just staring at the dirt in front of us. I hoped I looked okay, though I had never really cared before.

"So. How is a seventeen year old in jail?" Axl asked, finally breaking the silence and tension.

I then told him my whole story. He listened intently the whole time, seeming interested in what I had to say.

"Wow. That's pretty cool," Axl said, once I had finished. "Did you like real school?"

"No. It sucked. I loved getting into trouble though, so much fun." I smiled at all my memories.

"I never liked school either, when I even bothered to show up." We both laughed a little at that comment.

I realized I liked his laugh. It was deep and sincere sounding. I wanted to hear it again.

"Now it's time for your story," I said, praying that he would actually uphold his end of the deal.

"Okay fine. Here it goes," Axl said, preparing himself to tell me.

"It was a couple months ago. I was in a bar, illegally drinking. I hadn't had much, only two beers, when three big men sat down next to me. We started up a conversation. I was told their names were Skull Crusher, Bone Breaker, and Kenny. They were covered in muscles and tattoos. I was too drunk to think of a good code name, so I wrongly gave them my real name. They knew right away that they had me right where they wanted me. Soon, I was bargaining for an illegal bomb. I wanted to dissect it, and try to replicate it, then sell the replicates. All of which is very illegal. Anyways, I agreed to pay them 10,00 dollars for it. 10,000 dollars that I didn't have. They said they would drop the bomb off in a dumpster down the road, and I could retrieve it and give them their money. Then they left the bar. The next day, I went to get my bomb. I found it in the dumpster, just like they said. I exited the alley, but they found me before I could leave. They asked for the money, and I told them I didn't have it. They didn't like that answer. I tried to make a break for it, but they caught me. I was still holding the bomb, and I accidentally set it off. Once I knew that it was going to blow, I chucked it away from me. It landed in the street a ways away. It blew up and killed 18 people. Police were on the scene before we could get away. All four of us were arrested, and Skull Crusher, Bone Breaker, and Kenny were furious with me. That is why they beat me up."

"Skull Crusher, Bone Breaker, and Kenny?!" I asked. He nodded in confirmation. "That's hilarious!" Then we both started laughing.

"I guess they had run out of creative nicknames when they reached Kenny," Axl said with a shrug.

We talked the rest of the morning away. I got to know Axl a lot.