Devil's Backbone (Muke)

19

Michael is on the phone for several minutes. I don't hear the entire conversation, but catch a few words such as my name and explain.

When he comes back in, he looks at me and puts his shoes on.

"Come on," he tells me. "We're going over there."

I get up and slip some old Vans on. Grabbing my wallet and phone, I follow Michael out to the car. There's a lot of tension between us as he unlocks the car and we get in. It gets even worse as he starts to drive.

What am I about to find out? It could be absolutely terrible, but it could also be not that bad. Then again, he wouldn't keep it from me if it wasn't bad. Plus, he did say it wasn't ethically or morally right.

I'm scared. All I feel is anxiety as we drive along the dark road to my best friend's house. The drive seems to last years, but we eventually pull up.

Michael gets out first and I follow. We walk up to the door and he knocks.

Calum opens it and greets us with a grin.

"Hey, guys. Come on in."

We walk in and I hold onto Michael's hand. Ashton is sitting in a recliner in the living room, and Calum skips over to him. He claims a seat in Ashton's lap.

Michael and I sit on the couch and I look at Ashton expectantly.

"You're going to hate us, Luke," Ashton says.

That's impossible. He must know that.

I shake my head. "I could never."

He sighs and takes a minute to either hesitate or think.

"Alright, here goes. It sounds crazy," he stops to laugh. "We, um, handle the illegal side of society. You know, like... drugs and such."

My eyes widen, then I'm confused. "What? You guys are... drug dealers?"

Michael and Ashton exchange a look and Ashton bites his lip.

"Yeah, basically," Michael states.

I take a couple of minutes to absorb this. I've been suspicious about their job several times, but never would have considered this.

"Baby, it isn't as bad as you think. We're always careful with it and it could be a lot worse," Michael tells me.

Memories hit me. All the times he's come home with bruises, the nights he's stayed out late, all the lies I've been told...

I turn to Michael. "You've been lying to me."

He frowns and looks at Calum and Ashton.

"We're going to head home, guys. Thank you, Ashton," he says.

Ashton nods and Michael leads me out. We get in the car and I cross my arms over my chest, glaring at my fiance.

"You lied to me. A lot," I accuse.

"Baby, I had to," he sighs.

I shake my head. That's not true.

"Did you guys hide it from Calum, too? Because he didn't seem too surprised back there!" I raise and eyebrow as Michael starts to pull out of the driveway.

"He found out on his own."

I'm silent for the rest of the drive. There's a flood of different emotions going through me. Anger, hurt, fear...

When we get home, I take a long shower. Despite everything that happened, I'm exhausted. I curl up in bed and stare up at the ceiling. I think of Calm and Ashton.

It's June now, and they're expecting a baby in four months. They'll be married in nine. Will it be safe to have a family with Ashton working as a drug dealer? Will my family be safe, when it comes to that?

I don't know. As I'm thinking about it, I drift off to sleep.

When I wake up, I smell cinnamon. I get dressed and go downstairs. Michael is standing at the stove, a pan of fresh cinnamon rolls in front of him. He's just finishing drizzling the icing on them when I walk over and wrap my arms around him.

"Good morning, honey," he says.

"Morning," I mutter. He turns around and kisses me softly.

I get some food and a glass of juice. Just a few bites in, though, I start to feel sick. I take a sip of juice and chew my food slower, hoping the nausea will pass.

After trying to push the feeling away for a few minutes, I get up and head to the bathroom. There, I slam the door and clamber to the ground, leaning over the toilet seat as the vomit comes.

I've always despised throwing up. It's horrible, and I almost always cry.

As I'm finishing up and brushing my teeth, Michael comes in. He watches as I rinse my face with cold water and pat it dry with a soft hand towel.

"It was that bad, huh?" He chuckles.

I shake my head.

"No! It was delicious. This has just been happening a lot lately."

It clicks.

"Oh, god," I mutter.

I put my toothbrush down and look in the mirror for a minute.

"Luke? What's wrong, honey?" Michael questions.

It takes a few seconds for me to gather my thoughts. Once I think everything through, I'm happy and excited.

"Luke?"

I turn around and look at him.

"Are you going to the store any time soon?" I wonder.

He thinks for a second. "Yeah. Pepperoni needs more food and we're almost out of butter. Why?"

I step closer and pull his hands into mine. Can this be happening? We've been waiting for so long, and it might finally be here. I'm trying not to get my hopes up, but the possibilities seem high at the moment.

"Could you pick something up for me?" I ask him.

Hopefully, he doesn't freak out. I bite my lip and look down at the tile floor.

He nods. "Of course. What do you need, love?"

His green eyes are wide with worry as he studies my face. I smile and look up at him, making eye contact. His eyebrows furrow then, and he pulls me closer to him.

"What is it, sweetie?"

"A pregnancy test."