Rooming With a Delinquent

Chapter 2

Chapter 2

"What do you mean he's gone?" Liam races to glance into the empty room. Panic wells up at the bottom of my throat. How could he be gone already?

"What are we gonna do?" I start pacing around the room, tugging a hand through my hair. 

"We're gonna find him. That's what we're gonna do," Liam grabs my hands from my hair and gives them a little squeeze. "Payton's coming in an hour so we better speed this search up." 

I nod and take a deep breath. In a situation like this, it's better to stay calm. Besides, it's only Ace. A delinquent I only just met a couple hours ago. 

Liam and I head towards the front door and each grab our light jackets. "You circle the block and I'll drive around town." With that, he briskly walks down the steps and to his car. As he drives off, he gives a wave and a pointed look.

I start to walk down the street, my eyes scanning for Ace's dark head of hair. The streets are empty, the air growing slightly colder. The sky turns a dark navy, with a few white stars speckled here and there. 

I turn at the end of the street, leading to the beach. The waves lap onto the shore, then rolling shyly away. A few sea gulls peck at the sand and sqwuak loudly to one another. 

I kick off my shoes and walk along the beach, kicking my feet through the water. A figure sitting on the dock catches my eye. Squinting, I rush over and relief pours through my body.

Ace sits on the wooden dock, his bare feet dangling into the water. One arm is behind him, supporting him as he's leaning back, while the other holds a cigarette. He takes a long drag before flicking the remains into the ocean. 

I take a seat beside him. He doesn't even look up. Instead, he closes his eyes and breathes in the salty air. 

"You could have told us you were leaving," I say. Ace doesn't answer although his eyes do open. "Liam and I were getting worried." 

"Don't act as if you care. I see the way you look at me. You're terrified of me so don't act as if you give a rat's ass about my whereabouts." he says, his tone icy. 

"Even if I seem terrified of you, you're living in our home and when someone lives under our roof, we immediately care about the person," I say, not letting his harshness get to me. "Whether or not they have a criminal record," I mutter the last part quietly. 

Ace finally lets his eyes slide over to meet mine. He holds my gaze for a while. The longer he watches me, the harder it is for me to breathe. 

"i think we should go," I tell him, quickly getting up and sliding my phone out of my pocket, sending a quick text to Liam. Ace nods and gets up, his pace a little quicker than mine. His hands are stuffed in his pockets, with his head ducked low. 

When I catch up to him, he clears his throat. "That's pretty cool that your backyard's a beach," he says. A grin twitches at the corner of my lips but I surpress it down. 

"I guess," we make our way back home in silence. In the distance I see Payton's car idling by the curb, with Liam grabbing boxes from the back. Payton steps out of the car, and flips her hair over one shoulder before helping him. 

Beside me, Ace sucks in a breath. "Damn, who's she?" 

I roll my eyes. "That's Payton. Liam's girlfriend. She's off limits." 

"Are you?" Ace asks, a smirk appearing on his face. 

"Am I what?" I ask, confused. 

"Are you off limits?" he clarifies, the smirk growing. My face reddens slightly.