| 03 |

~ Banks Woods ~

This is one of those days where I wished it was humanly possible to dig myself a grave and crawl into it. Never to be seen again.

To keep Kaylee in a good mood, I told her it was alright if she wanted to leave early and leave the locking up and cleaning to me.

She agreed without hesitating, of course. She might be in someone's bed right now, fulfilling her various fantasies and thinking about telling me next in the most horrifyingly R-rated way that'll make parents want to cut off their children's ears.

And where does that leave me? Standing outside in the cold rain while wearing nothing but a plain black t-shirt and jeans.

The weather app is a fucking backstabber.

Grumbling and cursing under my breath, I take off into the rain, feeling the icy droplets hit my head, face and back. I don't wanna break off into a run in case I slip and fall.

It's also because I can't run for dear life. I'm the least athletic person you'll ever meet.

The night sky makes it even harder for me to see while trying my best not to slip over the pavement. Cars whoosh past me, sending in gusts of wind and spraying water that makes me shiver.

Fuck.

Fuck my life.

Caleb is probably sleeping now because the dumbass didn't pick up my phone when I called him a billion times to get the umbrella.

My skin turns to ice as the rain falls faster. My hair sticks to my face and back along with my clothes. I fold my arms across my chest, rubbing my hands on my arms to bring some warmth.

A horn beeps, startling me.

Turning around, I stare in confusion as a flat black car, that looks like it costs a million, slowly pulls up next to me.

Wariness creeps into me. Am I going to be kidnapped? Will I finally die?

Turning back around, I take off in a speed walk.

"Banks!"

I pause at the familiar voice. Turning around with a confused frown, I see the expensive car rolling forward until the driver's seat aligns with my line of vision.

My frown drops when I realize who it is.

Fuck, right. How can I forget his car? I literally drove it last night.

"Do you need a ride?" Lance asks, peering at me from the darkness of his car.

"No, thanks. I can walk." I nod at him before turning back around.

"It's really cold out there!" His car follows me at a slow speed.

No shit, buddy.

"It's fine," I call out.

"You're shivering."

"It's fine," I repeat.

"Come on, Banks!"

"You think I'm gonna get into a stranger's car?"

"Ouch. We're not strangers anymore."

"We are," I say, firmly.

"I'm not gonna kidnap or murder you. You can trust me."

I glance at him. His attention is fully on me, disregarding the road in front of him. The car is moving at the slowest speed so I guess it's alright.

He looks warm and comfortable inside. Even with a foot of distance between us, I can feel the warmth from his heater seeping into my bones. It makes me wanna lean against his car and soak it all up to get rid of the iciness settling in my skin.

Then I notice something on the passenger seat.

It takes me a whole second in the dark to realize what it is.

My eyes widen in horror.

Lance notices my face and glances beside him. "Oh shit."

He quickly sweeps the bundle of ropes, shovel and torchlights down the seat, hiding them.

He looks back at me, alarmed. "That's not what it looks like."

"Seems pretty much what it looked like." I start walking faster.

"Wait, Banks!" He follows with his car. "I promise. It's not for evil purposes. I was taking those things to my friend's house. We're going camping this weekend."

"Sure."

"I promise!" He defends.

"That's what every killer says."

"I'm not going to kill you. I swear those things are for camping. You can ask my friends."

"You mean your partners in crime?" I raise an eyebrow.

"Aren't every best friend like that?"

This time, I raise both my eyebrows. "Not helping."

"Fuck. I swear I'm a nice person."

"Again. That's what every killer says."

"Fuck." He groans.

"Also, are you stalking me?" I frown at him.

He opens his mouth to answer but pauses in thought. "I don't know how to answer that truthfully without seeming like a murderer."

"If you are one, then you're gonna sound like one."

"I'm not stalking you."

"That's what every stalker says."

He throws his hands up in defeat.

I nearly crack a smile.

His face scrunches as he thinks. "Fine. It's alright if you don't want to get in. I understand. But at least have this."

He brings his car to a complete stop on the side of the road then reaches behind with his upper body. His white shirt stretches across his torso, defining how toned his body is. He's missing his suit jacket from this morning.

It takes me two seconds to realize my feet stopped too, and I'm staring at his torso as he looks for something in the back seat. I quickly avert my eyes before he catches me.

"You better not be taking out a chainsaw now," I say, impatiently.

He gives a muffled response.

Finally, he pulls himself back, blowing out a breath. He holds something out to me and my eyes fall on it. An umbrella.

"Oh." I blink.

"Here."

There's no point in resisting an umbrella when I desperately want to get away from the rain, so I reach out and accept it, wrapping my cold fingers around it.

A sigh of relief comes out of my mouth when the icy droplets stop pounding on my head.

"You can have this too." I look up to see him holding out his suit jacket. "You're shivering like crazy."

I shake my head. "That's alright. The umbrella's fine."

"Take it."

"No, it's–"

"Banks." The sound of my name makes me stop talking altogether. Lance gives me a determined look. "Take it."

I hesitate. His expression shows no room for argument so I take it.

It feels weird wearing someone else's clothes as I put my arm through the sleeves. Another sigh is on my lips at the warmth that his fairly large jacket gives me. I wrap it tighter around my waist and fold an arm across it to keep it from opening.

My hair is all wet, framing my face in dripping strands. My face is probably flushed red because of the cold. I adjust the sleeves so they come over my hands and I can wrap them in it.

I look back up at Lance and pause when I catch him staring at me with a parted mouth.

"What?"

It takes him a moment to realize I asked him something. He snaps out it, shaking his head.

"You're just..." He looks away from me, clutching the steering wheel tightly. "You're just so beautiful."

My face instantly turns hot. He said that before too. Something flutters in my stomach and I force myself to not let his words get in my head. Pressure builds in my chest and I realize my heart's beating fast again.

Some sort of panic takes over me and I don't know if I should reply or flee away.

Managing to get my throat working after a couple of beats, I stammer, "I–I'll get going. Thanks for the...the umbrella, and this."

I don't wait for a reply from his side before scampering away.

Fuck me, why am I freaking out?

●・○・●・○・●

~ Lance Astor ~  

The restaurant always smells like spices and citrus whenever I enter. My friends are always keen on keeping the place tidy. Well, only one of them is. The others are forced to keep it clean.

Theo meets my eyes from where he's standing at the register. He nods his head at me in a sup before frowning.

"What happened to your nose?"

A grin spreads across my face. "Guess who I met."

"Elon Musk?"

"Nope."

"Good. Keep it that way." He nods before humming in thought, tapping his fingers on the counter. "Hmm...a stripper you fucked at the club then found out she's your mom?"

My grin widens. "Even better."

He looks concerned now. "A stripper you fucked at the club then found out that he's your dad?"

"What? Fuck, no." I give him a similar concerned look.

"I give up." He throws his hands up. "Who did you meet?"

"The one."

He looks confused. "The one?"

"The one." I nod.

"The one...eyed monster?"

"Dumbass. The one. The one-one. You know?"

"Oh. You could've just said—wait what? What do you mean you found the one?" His eyes bug out of his sockets.

I grin. "Yup."

"Yup?"

"Yup. Yup."

"Bitch, explain." He gives me an impatient look.

The door to the kitchen opens and Xander, Theo's twin, walks out while wiping his hands with a rag. He looks at me and nods in greeting.

"Lance's saying that he found the one."

Xander pauses, raising an eyebrow. "The one?"

"The one-one."

He tilts his head. "Eleven?"

"The life partner one, dumbass!" Theo says.

"Oh." Xander looks at me, then a frown appears on his face. "What happened to your nose?"

"She broke it!" I grin.

A similar look of confusion appears on Theo's and Xander's face. Well, they're similar because they are identical.

"Uh...what?" Theo voices out.

The door to the kitchen opens again as my other friend walks out, tying an apron around his waist. He looks at me and nods in greeting before his feet halt after noticing the band-aid on my nose.

"What happened?" He frowns. 

"Lance's one-one broke his nose," Theo says.

Castle blinks. "I'm sorry, what?"

"She's amazing." I blurt, before realizing my voice sounds like the cheesiest thing ever. I clear my throat. "I mean, she's just...wow."

"Who is she?" Theo asks, eagerly.

"Her name's Banks."

"Sounds awesome, man. I'm happy for you. Maybe that's why you're interested in her. You know?" He wiggles his eyebrows at me. When my face remains blank, he continues, "You know, her name is Banks. So you're interested in her."

Xander rolls his eyes while Theo giggles at his own pun.

"But wait. When did you meet her?" Castle asks.

"Last night in this dark alley."

Xander furrows his eyebrows. "In a dark alley? What was she doing there?"

"I was there. She stormed in later on."

"What were you doing there?" Theo asks.

"I was trying to stop this guy from robbing me."

"You were being robbed?" Castle's eyes widen.

I nod. "Yup. And guess what?"

"You stopped the robber?" Xander asks.

"No, he still robbed me."

All of them frown at me.

"Did he punch your nose too?" Castle asks.

"No, Banks punched my nose."

"She...was also robbing you?" Theo furrows his eyebrows in confusion.

"No, dumbass. She was there to save her brother."

"Where the fuck did her brother come from?" Xander grumbles.

"He was helping me against the robber." 

"But...you still got robbed," Castle states, looking lost.

"Yeah, because Banks distracted me when she punched me."

"Why did she punch you?" Theo asks.

"Because she thought I was with the robber and was harassing her brother and tried reaching for her."

"Ohhh!" All of them chorus in realization.

"I can't stop thinking about her." I blurt again. Fuck. It's like my mouth's on autopilot. "After last night, all I can think about was how she stormed into the alley to save her brother—she actually cussed at him first, but later she tried saving him."

"Sounds like a dream woman." Theo nods, grabbing my shoulder and giving it a shake.

"This afternoon, one of her customers was being such a prick. I swear to God, I was about to punch the fucker's head off. Racist son of a bitch. But then Banks," The image of her furious face flashes in my mind. "She told him off and—she's just so amazing."

"So did you ask her out?" Theo asks.

I nod. "Yup."

"And?" He gives me an eager look.

I deflate. "She declined."

"Aww." He winces. 

"She said we could be friends."

This time, all of them wince.

"Yeah, I know," I grumble.

"Why did she decline?" Castle asks while Xander walks away to wipe the counters. The restaurant is empty of customers because it's their closing time.

"I don't know. She said she wasn't ready for a relationship yet."

Castle gives me an apologetic look, nodding. "Been there."

"Oh right, weren't you all emo before you met Holly?" Theo grins, poking Castle's side.

Castle swats his hand away, rolling his eyes. "I wasn't emo. I was just...alone." He shrugs.

"Holly said you were pretty emo. She said you coloured your hair red and had piercings all over."

"That little shit." Castle grumbles under his breath, walking off to wipe the tables.

Castle definitely did not have piercings, and he definitely did not colour his hair. He's too uninterested to do all that. He's more of a moody, shy and hesitant guy. His fiancée, Holly, is the complete opposite with a bubbling personality and eyes full of sharp wickedness.

Theo is your guy whenever you want comfort or reassurance. He can be pretty dumb and straightforward, but he's someone I can always talk to when I need someone to cheer me up.

His twin brother, Xander, is a complete moody bitch. Even though they're twins, the difference between Theo and Xander is easily understandable. Xander is the big guy with dark hair and the whole 'come near me and I'll kill you' persona.

I have no idea where I would've been without these guys if I hadn't come to this restaurant that one night. 

"Here. Since you graced us with your majestic presence, help out." Theo launches a rag that hits my face. "Help Castle wipe the tables."

"Fucker." I move to hit him back, but he quickly grabs a broom, holding it out like a kung-fu master.

"Come near me and I'll slice you in half."

"That's not even sharp." Xander retorts.

"I never said I was weak." Theo gives me a challenging look.

"I bet I can take your eyes out with this rag like how they do in those cowboys movies." I slap the rag twice on my thigh for effect, before spinning it in the air.

"Game on, Cocksucker." Theo narrows his eyes.

We get into position but before any one of us could attack, Castle slaps us both on the back of our heads.

"If any of you fuckers ruin my restaurant, I'll make sure you both can't get out of bed for a whole week." He glares at us.

Theo and I rub the back of our heads.

"We weren't actually gonna fight." He drawls.

"Sure," Castle says, then narrows his eyes. "Get cleaning."

"Yes, Mom." Theo rolls his eyes.

"Sour ass," I mutter, before moving towards the tables to wipe down the food crumbs and baby vomit.

"So are you gonna ask your One out again?" Theo asks after a while.

I shrug. Hopefully, I'll get to.

"So she tried saving her brother and stood up for herself. That's what's making you fucking nuts after her?" Xander squints at me.

"I don't know, man. I really don't. You'll know when you meet her."

"We get to meet her?" A look of excitement comes on Theo's face.

"No," I immediately catch myself.

My friends share an amused look with each other.

"Why not? I thought she was your One." Theo waggles his eyebrows at me.

My shoulders stiffen. Oh fuck. If I let these fuckers meet Banks, I'm gonna be embarrassed for the rest of my life.

"Xander, don't you wanna know who Lance's One is?"

A smirk crosses Xander's usually brooding face. "Of course, I do."

"Castle—"

"Not really interested." He dismisses Theo.

"Fuck him. He's irrelevant. We're going to see Lance's One tomorrow!"

"The fuck you will!" I grumble before I can help myself.

"If you don't wanna come, you can just say so. Me, Castle and Xander will be fine just on our own."

I groan, looking heavenward. "Fine. Whatever."

"You sure you wanna let us meet her when she rejected you?" Theo waggles his eyebrows again.

I pick a chair up to throw it at him.

Castle glares at me. I put the chair down with a scowl.

Banks did say we could be friends, so I'm not giving up on that.

There are certain moments when you meet people, and you just know that there's something bigger ahead in your life with them. The same feeling washed over me when I met my friends. But with Banks, it's an even stronger feeling.

My sister always told me to trust my gut and never hold back. She regretted a lot in her life because she was hesitant and scared. That's why she always encouraged me to go for it.

So, I'll be a good little brother and listen to her.

●・○・●・○・●

~ Banks Woods ~

I mix a spoon of cheap chocolate powder into my hot milk. Yes, chocolate milk can be for adults too. The hot shower helped relieve the chill from my bones, but I made myself a cup in case I got a cold.

Still mixing, I walk over to the couch and sink into it, bringing the steaming drink to my lips.

My eyes automatically fall shut at the taste of sweetness. I groan in pleasure. "This feels so much better."

"I would've woken up if you called once again," Caleb says, sitting on the carpet at the foot of the couch, watching TV.

I swat his head. "I called you fourteen times."

"Fifteenth time is the lucky charm."

"Shut up."

I sip my chocolate milk. Another groan falls from my lips.

"Stop it." Caleb cringes. "You sound like a stripper."

My mouth drops open.

He realizes what he said after a beat and tries to scramble away. It's too late though. My hand swings in his direction, giving him a good slap to the back of his head.

He scowls at me, rubbing the spot. I glare back.

He gives me another look before looking back at the TV.

I watch with him for a while. He's taken an interest in watching car racing videos recently. Not only just cars but violent motorcycle fights that are definitely illegal. I swear to god, if he starts doing any of those behind my back, I'm gonna disown him.

While watching a bulky man ram into a car with his motorcycle, my mind flickers to a voice.

'You're just so beautiful.'

Heat crawls up my skin. I quickly try to forget the way he sounded while saying those words.

The moment I reached home, I took a look at myself in the mirror and nearly fainted. I looked horrible. My hair stuck in clumps to my face and clothes. My face looked flushed and red as if it was bruised. I looked like a mess. A completely drenched mess who didn't come anywhere near the word beautiful.

He might need glasses. That's the only conclusion I can come up with.

'You just look so...pretty.'

I shift uneasily on the couch, fighting another blush.

That's the thing about compliments. When someone gives you one, you can't help but remember it for the rest of your life.

It's not just remembering though. It's holding on to it, thinking, 'at least someone finds something good in me.' The compliment becomes your source of comfort and you don't even realize when you let it get to your heart, holding it there forever.

It makes you want to attach yourself to the person because it feels like they're the only one who sees something good about you when you can't address the same thing about yourself.

Even after knowing this, Lance's words still sneak through the barriers of my brain, making a place for themselves in my head when I swore I wouldn't let anyone get in there anymore.

"Caleb?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you think I'm pretty?"

He slowly turns his head towards me with an eyebrow so high up his forehead as if I asked him if he wanted to get a third nipple. "What?"

I immediately regret my question. "Just answer me."

His eyebrows scrunch together, assessing my face. He looks me up and down

"Are you asking me because you want to become a stripper?"

"What? No!"

"Then why are you asking me that?"

"It's just a question, dumbass."

He looks me over again, taking his time on my face. "I think your nose is too round."

"Too round?"

"Your hair is all over the place too. It's really thick and messy. Not in a pretty way."

I narrow my eyes at him. "My hair is gorgeous."

"It looks like Hagrid's. Not even his hair. It looks like his beard."

I chuck a pillow at his face.

"What? You asked me!" He defends, catching the pillow before it hits his face.

"Answer properly." I glare.

"I did!"

"Fuck off."

"It's not my fault that you're ugly."

My face heats for the third time this day and it's not because I'm blushing. I look back at the TV screen with a glare, sipping on my chocolate milk to calm myself.

At least now I know Lance does need glasses.

If my own parents found me the "ugliest child," then Lance definitely can't find me pretty.

It might be one of his tricks to get women into bed. I've met a lot of guys like those and they're all the same. They use pretty words to make you fall for their pretty faces, and then they take advantage of you and leave you in the dust.

Are you sure Lance is like that?

I have no idea. I have absolutely no clue at all.

I don't know why I'm thinking about him so much. He definitely didn't strike me as a player no matter how hard I try to think about him that way.

A small curiosity takes over me.

"Caleb?"

"I already told you you're ugly."

I hit the back of his head with my foot. "I was going to ask you something else."

"What?"

"Do you know Lance's last name?"

"I do."

"What is it?"

He turns around to furrow his eyebrows at me. "Why do you wanna know?"

"No reason."

"It's Astor."

I nod, looking back at the TV screen.

When Caleb turns around, I pull out my phone, typing his name on Instagram.

His name is on the first. I tap on it and skim through his business bio and links. Scrolling down, my eyes spot a recent picture he took of himself standing under the sun. He's seated on a chair with his head tipped back. The first two buttons of his shirt are open, showing the smooth, defined column of his neck and collarbone.

The caption says 'Enjoying the sun while it lasts'.

Just that single picture of his has a couple of thousand comments and a hell lot of likes.

I move to another picture. This time it's a picture of a gray wall with a plain blue scenery hung up on it. The caption says, 'Boring day at work'.

I scroll down to find a picture of him with his friends. They're all seated on pool lounges in their swimming shorts and sunglasses. One of them and Lance pout at the screen, making weird faces, while the others seem to be engrossed in a conversation in the background.

I don't even realize I'm scrolling through all his pictures, taking my time on each one to analyze him as if I can get his whole life story through the bits he posts.

Somewhere in between Caleb climbs up on the couch and before I get to hide my phone, he catches a picture of Lance where he's at the beach, submerged halfway in the water, leaving his torso out. Droplets stick to his defined muscles, and his hair has that sexy wet look.

"Stalking someone, huh?" Caleb grins, waggling his eyebrows.

I open my mouth to argue but find that it's no use. I am stalking him. There's no point in trying to hide my phone too so I let Caleb join me and together we go through Lance's Instagram.

"Ugh, he's a cat person." Caleb winces, looking at the picture of a black and white feline, sleeping on a bed.

"I know." I scroll to another picture.

It's mostly pictures of himself, his friends, business events and colleagues.

Me and Caleb are still scrolling when one particular picture makes me pause.

There's a blonde girl, grinning while pointing her pink, manicured, middle finger at the camera. Lance has his arm wrapped around her shoulder. He's grinning too, wearing a huge ridiculous pink hat on his head. The caption reads 'Making Tuesdays our Pink Days' with a pink heart emoji.

My gaze flicks back to the girl. She's stunning. Like absolutely gorgeous. Lance's arm around her shoulder looks comfortable enough to tell me they're close. The picture was posted a month ago.

Is she his girlfriend? Did Lance ask me out while he was dating another girl?

I scroll through a few more posts before pausing at another one with the same girl in it. It's a silly picture with Lance and her striking a pose with their hands on their hips, with matching pouting expressions. While Lance looks playful, the girl looks effortlessly striking.

I tell my mind to not jump to assumptions, but it's hard to do that when I barely know Lance. Is he really one of those guys who cheat on their girlfriends? Wait, no. I don't even know if she's his girlfriend. They could be siblings with their matching blonde hair. She isn't tagged in any of the photos.

"Why are we staring at the girl?"

Caleb's question brings me out of my thoughts.

"Who do you think she is?" I ask.

"His girlfriend, duh." At my expression, he continues, "I mean, they look good together. So, I guess. I don't know."

They do look good together. If they really are a couple, then they'd put every other couple to shame.

"Again, why are we staring at them?"

A sigh comes out of my mouth. Gritting my teeth I say, "Lance asked me out this morning."

His eyes widen immediately, staring at me in disbelief. "What?"

"Yeah, he—"

"What did he see in you?"

I punch his side. "Shut up."

"Is that why you were being so weird? Asking me if you were pretty or not?"

My eyes fall shut and I nod once.

"So? Then?" Caleb looks at me eagerly, nudging my elbow. "What happened? Did he change his mind in the end?"

"I told him no."

"You told him what!"

"I told him—"

"Banks, are you stupid?"

"What?"

"You turned him down?" Caleb's eyes are wide as saucers.

"Yeah, I—"

"Banks!" He snatches my phone from my hand, scrolling through a few pics before shoving the screen at my face. I catch a glimpse of a muscled half-naked Lance before Caleb yells, "You turned him down? This guy?"

I snatch my phone back, grumbling. "It's not that big of a deal."

"You're fucking blind."

"Mind your language."

"You swear all the time!"

"That's because I'm an adult. Also, what else did you expect me to do? Accept his date?"

"Uh, yeah!"

"Caleb." I grab his attention. "You wanted me to date someone? Me?"

He opens his mouth but falls silent when he realizes what I meant.

"I...Shit. I'm sorry, I forgot."

I settle back onto the couch, clicking my phone shut and dropping it somewhere beside me.

"I just got excited because Lance is really cool, you know?" Caleb nestles beside me, his way of trying to comfort me.

"I know."

"When you said he asked you out, I was thinking about his car and more things like that."

My heart sinks at that. "Are you not happy?"

His eyes snap to mine. "I didn't say that."

"You keep pointing out Lance's car, and Lance's coolness, and Lance since the moment you met him."

"Banks, it's not like that."

"You're making me feel like that. I know I can't give you everything you want but I'm trying."

"I know that." He says quickly. "I'm not saying I want those things. I'm just...admiring them. I know we can't have those kinds of things. I just got excited for a minute."

It feels good to get it off my chest at least, but it doesn't help entirely. My heart still has a sinking, dull feeling. Caleb's face is honest but his eyes are masked with something else.

There's something, something, he's not telling me. I don't know how I can tell, but I can. I can't even figure out how to ask him without making him feel cornered.

He must've sensed my thoughts, because he scoots closer to me, slowly laying his head on my arm. "I know you're trying hard. I didn't mean to make you feel bad."

Now, I feel bad. "It's alright."

Silence falls on us for a few minutes.

"At least we're not living with Sour Bitch anymore."

"Yeah." I breathe out. Memories of our time with my aunt flood my mind. Irritation sparks in me. "God, she was the worst."

"Yeah."

"I literally wanted to stab her sometimes."

"She was probably having the same thoughts too when we "bothered" her."

"She definitely was." I nod.

"The stupid cat, Shit, probably wanted to grow a pair of hands to stab us too."

"I wouldn't be surprised if it did."

"Dog people for life." He holds out a fist to me.

"Even if we can't afford one." I fist-bump him.

"But that's alright because we have each other." He looks up at me.

"Yeah." A small, tired, smile appears on my face. "We do."

✄┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈

Feel free to correct me on any grammar mistakes, and any other mistakes in general.

One thing about writing a book is that I absolutely despise editing. Editing is probably the bane of my existence when it comes to writing books.

Hopefully, you guys will be much more invested in the story throughout the coming chapters! <3

Words: 4,800

Date of publishing: 20th May 2024