𝐏𝐈𝐄𝐑𝐂𝐄𝐃 // 𝐇.𝐒.

54.

Kissing him once more, I then slide my hands off him. I adjust myself in my seat and I bury my hands into the front pocket of his hoodie on my body. I then look out the window, watching him pull out of the parallel park.

____

Endless music and countless stops as we drive down the I-5. It's sometime in the afternoon as I sip on my refreshment and wait for Harry to return. I look around the gas station and through the mirror, I see Harry making his way back to me.

Getting into the car, he pulls the beanie off his head since the weather is beginning to grow a bit warmer. He then lifts a plastic bag that he brought with him from the convenience store. Digging his hand into it, he tells me, "I got us prepaid phones to use."

Watching him then use a pocket knife to take the phones out of the thick plastic wrap, he hands them to me. I then set my refreshment in the cupholder.

"You want to dial Finn's number for me?"

"Yeah, what is it?" I ask after dropping the spare phone in my tote. I turn on the one I have in my hand.

He starts the engine, telling me the number he's memorized to dial. Inputting the numbers, I then put the call on speaker.

As Harry drives off from the gas station, the phone rings several times before I hear, "Hello?"

"It's Harry," he answers beside me as I hold the phone up.

"Oh, hey! Is everything alright? What can I do for you?"

Glancing over at me, Harry then looks at the road when merging back onto the highway. "There's been a minor setback. We're heading back to LA because we have unfinished business."

"Okay," Finny says, but in a confused tone. "What kind of unfinished business? Harry, this doesn't sound like a good idea."

"I'm not searching for your opinion on this... We need your help, though. Will you help us?"

Sighing through the line, Finny whispers for us to hold. After a few seconds of ruffle noise, he then says, "I'm back... What do you need help with?"

Harry looks at me, silently urging me to talk to Finny and tell him myself. Nervously, I clear my throat then speak up, "Hi, Finny, it's Jo... First, how was your flight? Did you make it home alright?" I anxiously rub the back of my neck.

"Hi, I did make it home just fine. Thanks for asking."

"Good... Listen, it was my idea to head back to LA. I know it's a risk when we're trying to flee, but I learned some things and now I can't avoid it."

"Talk to me, Jo. Tell me what you need," Finny assures and I feel a level of comfort by the way he's open to hearing me out.

"I need to know everything there is to know about my grandpa and his gang. To my knowledge, the Infernos wiped out the Angelos when my grandpa had died, but they're back and I don't know who is running them. Harry says you can help me?"

"I can see what I can find," he tells me, but he doesn't sound confident in his words. "What's your grandpa's name?"

"Angelo Veca."

Taking note of his name, Finny doesn't say anything else. I lower my hand onto my lap, fiddling with the drawstring of my sweatpants. He then asks me, "Do you have any other family, Jo? You see, usually, when the leader of a gang dies, close kin or a second-hand man takes over."

I shrug. "That's the thing, I have no clue. I didn't know my grandpa was running a gang. He did very well in keeping it hidden from me. My mom's an only child and so am I."