Another chapter done! This time with actual plot! Please enjoy!

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I rubbed the space between my brows as Shawn drove us to school. "Okay, so what you're telling me is that you won't let me confront Las Vegas alone in our P.E. class, you won't let me text or call him to set up a time to talk, and that you have to be there."

Shawn leant back in his leather seat with a loud sigh. "Yes. Because I won't let him try anything without me there, and I know that Bobby hacked his phone."

I crossed my arms. "Then what do you suggest?"

"Gee, I don't know—how about we don't give a shit about what a fucker who wants to bone you has to say?" Shawn scowled. "The only reason I won't kill him is because he kind of saved your life."

I rolled my eyes. How could Shawn be a genius and so fucking dumb all at once? "Okay, let me put this into words you might actually listen to. Bobby is a bigger threat than Las Vegas—which I shouldn't have to fucking tell you—and wants you dead. Las Vegas has some kind of close connection to Bobby and could give us information on how to get rid of him." I glared at Shawn. "And here you are; bitching about not liking Las Vegas enough to hear him out."

Shawn frowned at the road. "Fine— I might be acting a little irrationally."

"Only a bit," I grumbled. "I'll ask him if he wants to talk after school."

Shawn put on his turn signal before entering the new school parking lot, or rather, the parking lot's parking lot. Identical beige rectangular buildings were strewn across sea of pavement. There was no seating, no trees, and the whole thing looked like what an uncreative child would make with blocks. I shook my head. "I kind of regret calling our old school ugly so many times."

"No. I'll ask him," Shawn said, ignoring my last comment.

I scoffed. "Why? Are you scared that we'll—" I faltered when Shawn shot a death glare at me from the corner of his eyes. "Fine."

He pulled into a parking space and gave me a sickly sweet smile. "Good boy," he crooned

I grimaced. "Gross."

He grinned, unbuckling his seatbelt to lean towards me. "Oh, I can be grosser, my sexy little—"

"Bye." I slung my bag over my shoulder and exited the car. I wove my way through the cars before he could catch up and grabbed a crumpled map of the new classroom assignments out of my hoodie pocket to make my way to class. The new 'locker rooms' just looked like an especially long rectangular block. Standing in front of the door was a burly woman wearing sunglasses and chewing gum. When she saw me walk up she threw a ball.

When the second bell rang she sighed and eased herself away from the door. "Hey y'all, the name's Janet and I'm you temp-o-rary P.E teacher. Y'all just play catch, or dodge ball, or whatever it is y'all wanna do with balls."

A couple of snickers erupted among the students. The woman rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah I said balls. It ain't like there's much to any of yers— all nestled up high like yer voices." She stuck her gum behind her ear and took out a cigarette. Everyone stared at her silently. She threw up her free arm in exasperation. "What! We ain't indoors! Now go throw those at each other."

One of the boys lobbed a ball at another's head and triggered a lawless game of dodgeball. I stood to the side and dribbled my ball absentmindedly. I could get used to a P.E teacher like this—though there was no way she'd go without being fired within a month.

I scanned the sea of classmates getting nailed in their faces until my eyes met Shawn's. He stood in front of Las Vegas, who looked as if he wanted to be anywhere but with Shawn. He followed Shawn's gaze and gazed at me pleadingly. Shawn rolled his eyes at Las Vegas and nodded his head at me to come over.

I sighed; I was not looking forward to having to stop Shawn from making a threat every other sentence, but at least we'd get information. I navigated

I made my way through the throng of flying balls and bloody-nosed teens. Did they get hit in the face on purpose? Why the hell wouldn't they protect their faces above all? Did they all somehow not see a giant red ball careening towards them? Getting hit in the face full force by a ball interrupted my thoughts.

"Son of a bitch!" I yelled, crouching down to cup my face. Okay. Maybe this was why so many people had bloody noses. I drew my hand away from my face and grimaced. Great, now I had one too. I rose back up to my feet and made my way to Las Vegas and Shawn.

"You fucking tell your boyfriend that if he so much as thinks about coming after Jake or me again that I'll decapitate you and deliver your head to his house on a bed of your intestines," Shawn hissed.

Las Vegas paled, and then let out a relieved sigh when he saw me. "Oh, thank god. Jake, can you please tell—" The corner of his mouth curved up when he saw my bloody nose. "How the hell did you manage to get that fucked up on your way over here?" He put up his hand to hide his smile, shoulders shaking with repressed laughter. I flipped him off.

Shawn's eyes widened when he saw blood dribbling down my face. "Who the fuck did that to you?" he asked, sounding way less amused than Las Vegas.

I shrugged, averting my eyes. Fuck this was embarrassing.

"... Are you alright?" Shawn asked, his earlier anger subsiding.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just keep going with your conversation," I shot Shawn a glare, "minus the death threats."

"Well, there wasn't much of a conversation aside from death threats before you showed up," Las Vegas mumbled, wincing as Shawn glowered at him. "And now I see why Bobby told me not to get within one hundred feet of you."

"Yeah, how do you know Bobby?" I asked.

Las Vegas licked his lips and shifted uneasy eyes between Shawn and I. "We grew up together..."

Las Vegas P.O.V

Rob (aka Robert, Robby, Bob, or Bobby) had always been a weird dude. As a kid, one of his favorite games was to make up horrifying stories and try to convince other kids that it was true. I wouldn't go near the gutter on 6th street due to the fear that a mutant alligator man would grab and eat me. He wouldn't stop making fun of me when he learned that I had actually bought it.

He started puberty earlier than everyone else. Which he used to win as many fights as he could. By the age of 12, he could already take on a grown man. I first witnessed him beating a mugger when I was 10—and I thought that it was the coolest shit ever. I didn't realize that maybe it was a red flag that someone was teaching—no, encouraging—a preteen to beat the shit out of grown adults. It also should have been a red flag that he would grin while literally beating someone's nose to a pulp. But what can I say, I was 10 and violence was cool as shit.

I grew up thinking that his family worked for my family. We owned a casino, and sometimes his father would roll in with a couple of guys and they would all chat in the back rooms. However, once I realized that my parents would always get a little jumpy whenever Rob's dad came around; I began to guess who the real boss was.

Rob's dad liked my parents. Them being loyal cash cows helped with that, but he also gave them extra favors whenever they needed it. No strings attached. He started bringing Rob around to the casino when I was around 5 and he was 7. We'd run around and pull small pranks on the staff and guests, often slipping away from whoever watched over us. He and I became 'blood bothers' on New Year's Eve when I was 7 and he was 9. He used a stolen wine opener to cut open both of our hands.

Of course, small pranks got boring for Bobby fast. He wanted what his dad had: fear, respect, money, and power. His father was more than willing to provide those opportunities. I used to think his dad spoiled and coddled him, but that was before I realized just how remarkable Rob was. From a young age, he showed promise in violence, manipulation, and strategic thinking. All three together made for the perfect mini mob boss that Rob was.

I only learned that Rob's father was a big-time mobster when I first watched the Godfather with Rob when I was 11. In time, I finally discovered just what it was that my parents did for Rob's dad. They gave him our casino's basement to use for whatever he wanted.

As Rob grew older and smarter, he quickly created a mini-gang of his own. His charisma, intelligence, and strength made him the perfect person to manipulate and seduce insecure kids with anger issues to work for him. He would have them mug classmates and even deal drugs for a cut of the profit. And because he had underlings, whenever they got busted he would get off scot free. Sure, sometimes they snitched (and then came back to school missing a few fingers or teeth), but Rob covered his bases well. And usually, his charm and deceit were enough to remove any suspicion from him. He also had above average grades—not that he ever did any of the work himself.

I can't even imagine what my life would have been like if Rob had decided he didn't like me. Life was fucking sweet being his friend. Nobody in school ever fucked with me, and he taught me how to fight just in case anyone ever tried (not to mention he told me that if anyone ever tried he'd stab them in the eye with his pocket knife... which he actually did once). He also gave me way too much money and bought me way too much shit. The dude was loaded, and he loved showing it off. I still don't know what I ever did to deserve it, but I was Rob's favorite person aside from his dad.

Like I said, life was sweet being Rob's best friend. But it started getting little more, well, bitter, when I caught my first glimpse of just what went on in the casino basement when I was 14. My parents had asked me to grab an extra box of poker chips, which was kept near one of the entrances to the basement. Even though we owned the property, my family was never allowed to go in. Just as I picked up the box, I heard a muffled shriek coming from behind the basement door—which was uncharacteristically unguarded.

Against my better judgment, I tried to door handle and found that it was unlocked. I stood in the doorway at the top of the stairs and listened. After a moment of silence, I heard multiple running footsteps.

"Help! Somebody help me!" a girl's voice screamed.

Again, against my better judgment, I raced forward to help, my dad's words about being chivalrous and defending women playing in my head. I got to the bottom just in time to see a blonde girl get tackled by none other than Rob. She sobbed pathetically, begging for forgiveness. Her body trembled as she swore that she would never try to escape again and that she would be good.

Rob sighed. "Honey, I love the pitch you're selling—I really do—but I'm just not buying it, you know?" He stroked her along the face, making her flinch violently. He grinned down at her. "Tell you what; if you answer seven out of ten of my questions correctly, I'll let you off with a warning."

My stomach twisted. Rob designed these types of 'games' so that the player was at a disadvantage. If he really didn't like the person, he'd throw around impossible questions just to give them false hope before he destroyed it. A true sadist.

I took a step back, my shoes scraping against the concrete. Rob's eyes shot up to meet mine. I was frozen. I was torn between running back up the stairs and skipping town and demanding answers from my longtime friend.

Rob, on the other hand, seemed much less conflicted. He tilted his head at me. "Roy, you're not supposed to be down here, are you?"

I didn't know how to respond, my eyes flickering from his face to the girl he was straddling.

He followed my gaze down to her and sighed dramatically. "Well, I don't want to get you in trouble, so how about you wait at the top of the stairs and I'll meet you there in a moment?"

"This is... human trafficking," I choked out, shock filling my system.

Rob smiled. "Ding, ding, ding! You've got it! Now be good and go upstairs before anyone else finds you down here, you little rule breaker."

After staring between the upbeat look on Rob's face down to the desperate tear-stained face of the girl, I turned around and went back up the stairs.

Once I got to the top, I shut the door and slumped against the wall. I didn't know what to think. My brain had stopped working. I needed Rob to come up the stairs. I needed him to tell me what to think. I needed his cheerful disposition to help me ignore how completely and unforgivably fucked up what I just saw was. Not to mention what I had just done.

After a couple minutes, the door swung open and Rob strode out, a serious look on his face. I could see his body visibly relax when he saw me, a smile spreading across his face. "Roy! I'm glad that you decided to listen to me!" He slung an arm around my shoulder and pulled me close. "How about you and me go for a drive?"

Anyone's normal reaction would have been to refuse and run away, right? Common sense would be to feel afraid that the person you just saw tackling a crying and screaming woman had invited you for a lovely drive in their car in the middle of the night? Well, apparently common sense didn't apply to me. I felt relieved. I wanted to be as far away from that basement as possible "Yeah, let's do that," I said.

The car ride was the same as most of our rides to school. Roy sang along to pop songs while drumming his hands to the beat on the steering wheel of his new car. Buildings came less and less frequently as we furthered ourselves from the city and into the desert. After about half an hour of driving with the radio blasting full volume, Rob eased to the side of the road and put the car in park.

Alright! As if there weren't already enough red flags—being driven to the desert in the middle of the fucking night should have really made me feel fearful. However, the fear didn't come until Rob pulled a handgun from underneath his seat. I stared at the gun like a deer in the headlights. It had never even occurred to me that Rob might kill me for what I had seen. I felt like kicking myself in the nuts—just because we were friends didn't make him any less terrifying of a person!

I could see Rob's eyes glint in the dim lighting. He grinned at me. "I have beer cans in the trunk. Want to take turns shooting them?"

I let out a breath I hadn't realized I'd been holding. I let out a small laugh, feeling like an idiot for ever thinking he would shoot me. Then I realized something. "Who the fuck drives someone to the desert and then wordlessly pulls a gun on them!?" I yelled.

Rob burst out into hysterical laughter, slumping back against his seat. "Oh my god! I can't believe it took you this long to realize I was fucking with you!" He ruffled my hair roughly. "Then again, it's nice to know that you trust me so blindly that you'd literally get in the car with me unquestioningly as I drove you to the middle of the desert." He snickered. "I mean, this is where my dad buries people he doesn't want to be found!"

I stomach dropped. Everything that I had ever feared about his father's business was being confirmed.

Rob let out a long sigh before patting me on the shoulder. "Come on Roy. They say ignorance is bliss, but you already knew my family was involved with some shady business."

I bit my lip. He was right. I had always known to some extent. But I never thought it would get this dark... this horrific. "I don't know if I can call what I saw just 'shady'," I muttered. I fixed my gaze out the window.

"What did you think we did?" he asked.

I groaned. "I dunno! I thought maybe you just handled drugs or something. I thought you used my basement to store them."

"And yet you never thought to ask or confirm," Rob pointed out.

I slumped back against my seat. I didn't want to admit the truth, even to myself. "...Like you said, ignorance is bliss." There was a moment of silence before I turned to look towards Rob. He stared at me with curious but calculative eyes. "Rob, what would you have done if I had tried to... get in your way? Or ran to the police?" I was scared to hear the answer.

Rob tilted his head with a dramatic pout. "Hmmm. I probably would've killed you."

My brain short-circuited for a moment before a flood of panicked thoughts filled my brain. They came to a stop when Rob began to cackle with laughter again.

"You should see your face!" he hiccupped. "God, what a fucking idiot! Of course I wouldn't have killed you—aren't we closer than that?" He wiped a tear from his eye as he settled back down. "I mean, sure, my dad likes to waterboard most snitches—he's also a pretty big fan of drawing and quartering."

"What the fuck?" I whispered to myself. I had known Rob and his father for my whole life. I felt like filling my ears with concrete to keep myself from hearing the truth.

"Hey, hey, calm down there, Drama Queen," Roy said. He laid a hand on my shoulder. "I'd never do that to you. I'd never kill you. Maybe knock you around a bit—but not kill"

"Why?" I asked. I couldn't begin to wrap my head around why someone has notoriously violent as him wouldn't respond brutally to such a big betrayal.

"Because I love you," he said point blank.

"Why?" I said again. "No offense, but you're not exactly a loving person."

"Full offense! Who said that I wasn't a loving person? That hooker from earlier?" he joked.

The image of that blonde woman's terrified face flashed into my head. I felt like puking. "I just... I don't get it, man."

He shrugged "I just love you. Like a lot. That's really all there is to it."

I shoved his arm away from my shoulder. "What does that even mean!" I shouted, the stress finally getting to me. "Jesus Christ! Do you love me like family? Because we're 'blood brothers'? Because we grew up together? Because I'm your best friend? And is this shit platonic or romantic? Also, I've never heard of you fucking a girl—or a dude for that matter! I don't even know why you keep me around sometimes since you're so driven by exploiting people! You've never made a friend with someone you couldn't exploit—and last time I checked, the only thing I give you is gratitude after you give me shit! And—"

"Whoa there, slow down," he said. He rubbed the back of his head. "Uh, all of the above?"

"What the hell does that—"

"Shut it, Chatterbox," he said, flicking me hard on the forehead. "Platonic and romantic and familial and whatever other types of love there are out there. All of them. And it's just a fact at this point— some unconditional shit. You're like a part of me at this point, and I'm a bit of a narcissist so you know this love is deep." He patted himself hard on the heart for dramatic emphasis. "And as for wanting to fuck you—"

"I never said—"

"I've never been that interested in fucking! Guess being horny just isn't in my programming," he said with a shrug.

That actually explained a lot. Sometimes I would try to goad him into talking about how hot certain men and women were—sometimes just to see what his type was (from cougars to twinks). I never got a lot of response. "So you're... asexual?"

He shrugged. "Probably." He looked at me thoughtfully for a moment. "Can I try something?"

I frowned. "Sure?" I said after a moment's hesitation.

I hadn't even finished my response before his lips were pressed against mine. It was a chaste kiss, neither of us moving. He pulled away slowly, studying my wide-eyed expression. He broke into a grin. "That was nice!"

I began to sputter incoherently. Rob told me he was going to get the beer cans out of the trunk and left the car. His reaction to our first kiss was similar to someone playing a fun but quick arcade game and then just moving on with their day. When he climbed back into the car with a six-pack, I asked, "are you fucking with me?"

"Oh, totally," he responded while analyzing the beer cans.

"Why the hell did you kiss me?" I snapped. What kind of asshole planted a kiss on someone and then pretended it didn't happen!?

Rob turned to me with a patronizing smile. "Roy, I know you're not the sharpest knife in the drawer, but even you know that people kiss when they love each other."

"People kiss people that they're dating... or fucking. And last I checked we weren't doing either."

Rob rolled his eyes. "Look, sweetie, I'll try my best to drill this into your dumb little head." He cupped my face between his hands. "I'm not going to put a label on my love for you. We aren't brothers. We aren't friends. We aren't dating. But at the same time, we're all three! You could get a husband or a wife and I won't care. You can fuck half the city and I won't care." He squeezed my cheeks together a little harder and looked me dead in the eye. "However. If you betray me or try to cut me off go, I'll fuck you up and make it so that you can never do it again. Capiche? You're with me for the long haul."

The longer he spoke, the more confused I got. I guessed that I loved him too in a way— as most people love those they grew alongside with. However, it definitely wasn't the same way that he loved me. Also, half of what he said clashed with the other half! I didn't get it! "I didn't understand a word you just said, but okay?" I mumbled, struggling to speak while my cheeks were pressed together.

Rob snorted in laughter. "Well, that's better than nothing," he said. He gave me another peck on the lips before grabbing the beer cans and kicking the door open. "Now, let's shoot some cans and help you clear your head—it seems like it's at max capacity."

I was all too ready to momentarily forget what I had seen in the basement in order to shoot at the beer cans with Rob. We had fun. We both laughed as I missed almost every shot and clapped as he made every one of his. It was easy to clear my head for just a few hours. It didn't last.

Following that night, I couldn't step a foot inside the casino without feeling sick to my stomach. When I tried to tell my parents that they should have boundaries around what they allowed to happen on our property, they scolded me and said they had no control over the matter. They also told me that I would put us all in danger if I tried to fight it.

My relationship with Rob showed no change aside from the occasional peck on the lips—which almost made everything worse. Everything was normal. Everything except that I knew about the human trafficking that happened in our basement. If I could do it over again, I would have never taken a step down those stairs. When my parents asked if I wanted to move in with my aunt in Arizona, I couldn't get out fast enough. Rob wasn't all too happy about me wanting to leave, but said that he would give me until high school graduation before he wanted me to come back. Apparently, he left Las Vegas shortly after I did. He dropped out of high school and all put totally dropped off the map. I didn't see him for over a year. My aunt and I had moved us to California to open up a restaurant, which he showed up at out of the blue one day. He told me that he had climbed the ranks and wanted to invite me to some fancy party in the city, where he would have a 'treat' waiting for me.



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Thanks everyone for hanging in there until I got the next chapter out! Again, I can't beleive I still see so many familiar commenters from back when I first started writing this. Thank you all for sticking around.

Sidenote; why the fuck did I have Las Vegas call Smiles Rob? Rob and Roy are literally one letter away from each other and I struggled with it.