Total pages in book: 128
Estimated words: 125020 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 625(@200wpm)___ 500(@250wpm)___ 417(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 125020 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 625(@200wpm)___ 500(@250wpm)___ 417(@300wpm)
His smile grows as he takes it quickly and shoves it into his pocket. He wraps my waist in a quick hug and takes off for home.
“Ignore him. He’s a douche. Mary, the mom, is a nice lady and True and Cat are good kids. Dude is crazy jealous. I think it’s because he’s the one cheating,” Achilles snorts.
I shrug. “I’m not worried about him. Let him fuck around. I’ll have a new pretty wife and kids. I still haven’t found a place to live. That house looks nice.”
“Same old Kelex. You know, I laughed my ass off when I found your profile and saw what name you were going by. Remember homeroom with Miss McGregor?”
“How could I forget? They fucked up all our names that year, but she refused to make them correct mine,” I scoff.
“And you pissed her off every day by crossing the wrong spelling out on her bubble sheet to correct it yourself,” he laughs.
“That’s how I know she made sure they didn’t fix it. I think I fucked her niece or something. That was the one time my dad made me proud,” I muse.
“I heard about that. School’s Open House night, right?”
“Yeah, he blew his lid, seeing our last name spelled K-E-L-E-X. He spent ten minutes berating her. And I quote… ‘How the fuck can you live in this town and not know how to spell my son’s last name? Do you not know who you’re dealing with? I’m one breath from being the one to sign your damn paychecks, you cunt.’”
“I tried to calm him down and tell him she wasn’t more than our homeroom teacher. That didn’t mean shit. I bet my name was right the next day when she handed me my new schedule.”
“Can I get you something to drink?”
“If you have water, that would be great.”
“I was going to order in something to eat. Thai sound good?”
“I’m cool with whatever.”
“I heard what you said about finding a place to stay. My home is your home for as long as you want. Although after we get these docs taken care of, I don’t think you’re going to have a problem finding a place. The advance is going to carry you through more than a few months comfortably,” he says with a proud grin.
I clap my hands together. “Let’s get this show on the road then.”
He heads into the kitchen for a beat. I can hear him calling in our food while I wait. I look around the house. It’s nice. Quickly, I weigh my options.
Not wanting to put Skittles out or drag her into my shit, staying with Achilles might be the right thing to do until I get a place. Staying with Jeff is out. We couldn’t live together.
“Here you go.”
Coming out of my thoughts, I look up as Achilles returns with a glass of water. I’m still in awe of how big this guy has gotten. He’s three years younger than me, but right now, he’s making me feel small.
That’s not easy to do. I may not have as large and bulky a frame as Pit, but I’m no small guy. In high school, Achilles was a lanky kid, barely pushing five-two. Now, he has to be my height, maybe an inch or two taller and he’s built like a linebacker.
“Bro, tell me what’s been going on with you. Where have you been?”
“I thought I’d do some traveling for a bit before going to college,” he starts before taking a seat on the couch next to me. “My first stop was Greece. Mama asked me to go see some friends of hers while there. These guys were some heavy hitters. I decided to hang around and they pulled me in, taught me a few skills and got me into lifting.
“When it came time to decide what was next, I decided to come home. It just felt like it was time,” he says.
I nod and empty my glass. That sounds about right. He’s always been a fast learner. I’m sure Blake had something to do with his return.
We fall into talk of old times and continue to catch up. I’m reminded of our old friendship. I’ve always thought he was cool despite how others felt. Shy, but cool as fuck once you get to know him.
“Hey, I’ve always wanted to ask you something.”
“Go ahead, shoot.”
“Did you know Blake was the one who sent my mom to pay you to be my friend?”
I draw my brow and stare at him as my mouth hangs open. I didn’t think he knew about that. Zoe had wanted me to keep it to myself.
“Come on, bro. I’ve known she paid you for years. One day, you were all I could talk about. The next day, you were talking to me at lunch.”
“Okay, but what makes you think Blake put her up to it?”