FrAcTuReD (Part One) (Completed continued in Part Two)

Chapter. 28

"Well you don't have a night job," Will said pointing his finger accusingly at Jason. "You couldn't possibly understand how I feel."

"You're right I can't, you have my sympathies." He responded in a monotone voice.

Alex smiled at her two friends banter back and forth before looking back to Charla who seemed once again lost in thought, her brows drawn together in a frown before grasping the back of her neck and rubbed it. "You okay?" Alex asked again causing Charla to flinch as if she didn't realize the action that she had done.

"Yeah," she said, her arm falling to her side like dead weight as she turned to walk onwards. "I'm fine, we should get going or we'll be late."

Alex merely looked at her, something was wrong, something other then a mere fight that Charla had with her mother.

Mordecai leaned along the railing of the school's roof, watching as students came cluttering in like ants. He had come early to finish something for class but found his way up on the roof instead, the door had been left unlocked, someone had probably forgotten to lock it. Wasn't unusual to happen. From what he had heard, in the past other students would often come up to eat lunch and talk, until an unfortunate accident happened a few years ago, which led to a student's death. Since then, no one came up here. The wind blew as he tapped his fingers long the railing, creating a melody with that of the wind as he watched the students head inside.

"You shouldn't be up here you know,"

Mordecai tilted his head to the side to see a boy of his age standing by the doorway. Mordecai recalled that his name was Erin, same grade different homeroom class. He had seen Erin on multiple occasions but never really talked to him, he did hear that Erin was working in the gas station's convenient store and was saving up to go to college in the city.

"Says someone whose up on the roof as well," Mordecai added before looking back down to watch the students.

Erin gave a short laugh before going over and sitting down next to him, his back against the railing as he looked up at the sky. "I've heard that you and the Liebert girl have gotten close," he said braking the silence. "Apparently, a girl in your class isn't too happy about it."

"Charla and I are merely friends," Mordecai said with a sigh. "I keep telling Stacy that over and over I don't understand why it doesn't get through to her."

"I can't tell you either but the same could be said for us guys too." Erin looked to him. "Though apparently that girl wants to try and be friends with Charla, supposedly to build relations between one family power and another, or so I've heard from other people who are interested in the lives of the rich. How do you deal with that anyway?"

Mordecai glanced at him before looking back to the sky. "If I was my sister, I'd say the only way to solve it was with a ton of alcohol, since she's taking over the family business and all. But I'm not her, and no one really pays all that attention to me, being the third child and all that."

"You hate being third?"

"No, my brother defied our parents' expectations and my sister wanted to take over the family business, so it's a win for them while I'm left to my own devices. Besides, I don't mind being unnoticed."

Erin kept staring at him. "Is it because of Charla?"

Mordecai merely kept looking out at the landscape. "Maybe..." he said. "Though it shouldn't be a surprise since I knew her brother." He paused recalling Carlin for a moment. "Hey, if you were asked to protect someone would you do it?"

"Huh? That's an odd question, but I guess."

"Even if the one who asked you to keep someone safe was no longer alive?"