WILL POV-

Reluctantly, the small boy looked out the window as Mike drove; the atmosphere felt tense, and Will couldn't help but feel a mix of anxiety and apprehension about what's to come.

"Listen up!" The ravenette broke the silence, his voice filled with authority, "You better not mess this up. My parents are expecting us to be lovey-dovey, so you better play the part." tightening his grip on the steering wheel.

Will rolled his eyes, replying in a sarcastic tone, "Oh I can't wait to shower you with affection. I'll be the most loving boyfriend you'll ever have." he chuckled, unable to contain himself.

"You better behave yourself when we get there," Mike warned, passing a stern look, "My parents are old-fashioned, and they'll be able to tell if you're not putting in enough effort."

"Yeah, I know!" The small boy retorted, fidgeting his fingers, worried he might not be able to hold up to what the ravenette wanted from him; not because he wanted to impress him or anything, more because he was scared of Mike's parents; how would they act considering their son is a full-blown criminal who was kidnapping someone. Would they be just as crazy? What would they make him do at the lunch party? Would he have to take a blood oath?

"And drop the attitude!" the tall boy commanded, "You better act like you're head over heels in love with me; smile, laugh and hold my hand in front of my parents!"

"Oh, sure thing; I'll tell them that I Love you so much that sometimes I feel like cutting open your skin and crawling inside of you, just so I can be close to you!" Will allowed a fake grin to be plastered on his face, trying to steady his nerves with some witty sarcasm.

Mike glared at him, a look that said to shut up or their will be consequences, clearly not amused by the remark. "Oh, cut the crap! I'm serious. I won't let you ruin it"

"Fine! I'll be the doting boyfriend" Will smirked, unfazed by the threat.

"Just don't do anything stupid!" the ravenette clenched his jaw, his frustrations evident on his face.

The brunette leaned back in his seat crossing his arms defiantly, "Fine, I won't flirt with your mum..." he chuckled,

"What did I just say, for fuck's sake?" Mike sighed; exhaling deep

"Sorry..." Will mumbled, not wanting the ravenette to get any ideas, but the car ride remained tense as the brunette occasionally threw sarcastic remarks. Mike's patience wore thin with each comment, but remained focused on impressing his parents by being in a committed relationship as he explained the different members of the family to Will.

---- 12:21 PM ----

Arriving at the house, Mike parked the car in the garage outside. Wasting no time, he sighed, turning the key and removing it from the ignition; the car engine no longer running as the vehicle became hushed. The tall boy glared at the brunette with a determined glint in his eyes, "Listen, my parents are important to me, and they are expecting to meet a serious boyfriend, not some sarcastic smart-mouthed bitch."

The small boy rolled his eyes playfully, trying to put on a brave front, but the fear is evident on his eyebrows. "Oh, don't worry, Mikey," he replied sarcastically, "I'll put on my best performance just for you,"

The ravenette tensed, as he refrained from hurting him, "You might think you're clever, but don't push me, you have no idea what I'm capable of,"

Will's bravado faltered for a moment, but swallowed it down hard, "Yeah, yeah, I know! You'll shoot me and hide my body in the creek."

"That's right! Good boy! You're learning!" the ravenette teased patting the brunette on the head, seeing him wince at the nickname; it filled Mike with joy to get some sort of reaction from the smart-mouthed boy.

The ravenette retreated his hand jumping out the car and to the other side, opening the passenger side door. Unlocking the handcuffs, Will rubbed his aching wrist, feeling relieved, yet irritated; shooting Mike a powerful glance as the ravenette grabbed his hand tight. The brunette scrunched his face annoyed, there was no way he was going to be holding hands with his captor; he was not some sort of possession to be thrown around.

"Let go!" the small boy muttered, pulling his hand away but only causing Mike's grip to tighten, the pain intensified.

"Don't talk back!" the tall boy warned, gritting through his teeth, "Remember what I said!" he ordered, digging his fingernails into the aching bruise where the handcuffs were.

Will moaned from the pain, "Okay, okay." he nodded, the sensation too much for him.

"Good!" Mike seethed, pulling the brunette out the car, but not allowing the small boy to move freely. He growled in annoyance, scrunching his face in frustration as he dragged the boy who was being very difficult at this moment; he would smack him if he wasn't at his parents' house.

As they approached the lawn of the large house that loomed ahead, Will's mind raced with conflicted thoughts, and despite the surging pain in his wrist, he couldn't help but be slightly taken aback by the sight of the large house before him. It was an impressive sight, with a well-manicured lawn and even a small bird-well; absolutely captivating. But overall, it was just a typical middle-class family house; not what he expected.

The brunette approached the front door as Mike tugged him along, not allowing him to be out of his sight for even a single moment; like a hawk stalking its prey creating underlying danger and sense of discomfort.

He took a deep breath, trying to keep up his façade of being a normal boyfriend, but this charade was being forced upon him; he was terrified of screwing up but not because of Mike but because of his parents. If they could raise such a criminal son, he shuddered to think of how they were...

The ravenette pressed the doorbell, then ducking to Will's ear, blasting one last threat, "Remember to behave yourself," he said, retreating to his standing position.

The front door swung open in a matter of a few moments, revealing a warm and comforting atmosphere inside. The old couple stood there, beaming with joy, their arms outstretched to meet their son and his boyfriend. Will scrunched his face, already annoyed by the pretences of which he had to be here, but sighed, following Mike inside, biting his tongue in case he revealed his true thoughts.

The ravenette's mother enveloped both Mike and Will into a tight hug, refusing to let go as she expressed how thrilled she was to see them. "Oh, it's so wonderful to have you both here!" she exclaimed with genuine excitement.

The old man joined in, although he merely patted the pair on the back before letting go, "Welcome, welcome! We've been looking forward to this visit for so long," he said warm.

The small boy tried to put on a polite smile, even if the air was being knocked out his lungs. His discomfort was evident, feeling like an intruder in this picturesque family home; his parents seemed nice, well, not the type to be criminals themselves so he couldn't help but wonder if they knew about Mike's criminal activities, or if they were simply oblivious to it all; just assuming their son had a normal job and life.

As the old woman let go from her warmth, a sudden presence appeared in the hallway; a boy; the spitting image of Mike but with glasses; it was uncanny and scary. At first the small boy thought he was hallucinating, all this stress with the kidnapping convinced him he was seeing double. But upon hearing a scoff, the boy walked straight over to the scene, his demeanour more intimidating than cheerful. This boy was probably Richie, Mike's twin brother, the one the tall boy had warned him about.

Richie marched straight up to the small boy, invading his personal space as he asked in a probing tone, "So, you're the boyfriend, huh? What's your deal with my brother?"

The brunette felt a surge of panic course through his veins, unsure of how to handle this direct approach. He couldn't reveal the true nature of the agreement but also knew he needed to be careful with his words.

"Yeah... I guess I am." Will replied, trying to sound casual despite this interrogation, "We've known each other for a while and we just clicked, you know?"

The glasses boy raised an eyebrow, clearly not buying the explanation, "Clicked? You don't seem like Mike's type,"

"Oh well... they say opposites attract!" the small boy retorted, feeling pressure under scrutiny.

Richie scoffed, folding his arms across his chest. "Opposites, huh? I suppose, but let me tell you something, I've known my brother my whole life, and never had he brought someone home... and all of a sudden, you turn up."

Will swallowed hard, feeling Richie's doubt; it was clear he was sensing something iffy about the situation as he looked the brunette up and down, furrowing his brows at the odd fitting clothes and beige colour scheme; asking questions until he caught the pair in a lie.

"So?" the glasses boy spat, crossing his arms with a challenging gaze.

"Uh... umm." Will took a deep breath, trying to maintain composure as he exchanged a glance with Mike, begging him to say something but he did nothing, almost as though he enjoyed seeing the small boy flustered and embarrassed.

Before Richie could ask another question, Karen responded, coming to the brunette's rescue upon seeing his confused face, "Now Richie, honey, that's enough interrogating for one day," she said firmly, giving her son a warning look. "Let's not ruin lunch with all these questions."

The glasses boy glanced at his mother then back at Will, still not entirely convinced, but backing down slightly upon his mother's request, "Fine, but I'm keeping an eye on you... both of you," he grumbled quietly to Will and Mike before retreating to the kitchen.

Karen placed a reassuring hand on the brunette's shoulder. "I apologise for Richie's behaviour; he's just curious about his brother's first boyfriend." she said with a comforting smile, not realising the impact of her words.

"Mum! Come on!" Mike protested, his eyes widening upon hearing that; not wanting his mother to tell his literal captive about his dating life as his cheeks flushed a bright red.

"Sorry honey!" Karen smiled, a soft chuckle escaping her lips using a hand to cover her mouth,

Will couldn't help but giggle at the unexpected turn of events, almost seeming as though Mike's family was catching him off guard. But one look at Mike and he saw the tall boy shoot him a warning glance, silently telling him to behave and not make things complicated.

Knowing he couldn't enjoy this moment without further confrontation, Will decided to attempt to diffuse the awkwardness. "Well, your son managed to sweep me off my feet!" he lied, placing a fake smile on his face.

Ted, being quiet this whole conversation chirped in, "Well I for one am glad my boy has found his special someone!" walking over and patting his son on the back.

Mike oddly smiled, retaining composure, annoyed of the information his mother slipped, "Yeah special..." he mumbled, still feeling flustered,

Ted turned his attention to Will, "You seem like a lovely young man," he said kindly, "I hope you two are happy together."

The brunette cast a lopsided smile on his face, "Yeah... thank you Mr Wheeler, Mrs Wheeler," he said, casting a glance between the older pair; addressing them both.

"Well, enough chitchat," Karen joked, "Let's go have some lunch!" she smiled gesturing them to the dining room; leading the group as her husband followed close behind. Although Mike grabbed Will's aching wrist, pulling him back slightly to speak privately. The pain shot through the small boy's wrist as he winced, but he knew better than complain.

The ravenette leaned close, his eyes flashing with a warning glare. "I told you to behave, didn't I?" he hissed in a low voice.

Will forced himself to make eye contact, his sarcastic persona returning, "I didn't do shit!" he retorted, not showing any discomfort he was feeling, "I'm playing along... like you said." he deadpanned.

The ravenette tightened his grip on Will's wrist again hearing the small boy yelp; Mike liked hearing Will's weak spot. "You better remember that." He growled, his intimidating demeanour a stark contrast to the preppy, put-together adult he was in front of his parents, "This is my family, and if you mess this up for me, you'll regret it."

"Got it!" Will said gritting through his teeth, refraining from spouting another sarcastic comment as his arm was fully in pain and Mike refused to let go, "I'll be the perfect boyfriend... maybe by the end you'll actually want to date me!" he joked

Mike returned the sarcasm, "I'd rather die alone!" he spat, but let go of Will's arm, seemingly satisfied that the brunette understood the consequences of his actions but determined to keep a watchful eye on him.

"Boys!" Karen called, popping her head from around the corner,

"Coming mum!" the ravenette yelled back, causing the brunette to cover his ears from the sound. Mike didn't care, placing an arm around Will dragging him to the dining room; the small boy followed his lead without objection,

This was officially going to be the lunch date from hell... 

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2276 Words

Stay Safe <3