"Stop looking at me like that."
We're at least five miles out of Ty's house now. I have no idea where we're going. I'm too shocked to even ask.
"Like what?" I can barely hear my own voice.
"Like you're going to piss your pants if I don't pull over right now."
"I might just," I mumble.
I'm not even sure which street we're on, all I know is that it's empty and dark. Grayson abruptly pulls over to the side of the road and puts his car in park.
"Who invited you to that party?" He asks, staring at me from the driver's seat.
I don't answer his question, instead, I press the unlock button and step out of the car.
"Where are you going?" He follows me out of the car.
"I'm going home."
Grayson laughs but it's humorless. "You don't even know where we are."
"What do you want?" I ask, turning around. He stands there by his car with a satisfied look on his face.
He opens his mouth to respond but at the same time a police car speeds by us, sirens ringing loud with flashing lights.
Grayson watches the police car until it's out of our line of vision and I can't help but wonder why that held his attention. Maybe he's used to seeing cop cars. And possibly being inside them.
"Get back inside the car, Layla."
"Why? Where are you taking me?"
Grayson scoffs. "Home. Where the hell else would I be taking you?"
"This isn't the way back home," I say.
"I wasn't aware there was only one way around town."
Grayson Wallace confuses the hell out of me.
"Thanks for ruining my night," I grumble, getting back into the car.
He pulls out of the road, rubbing a hand along his jaw. "I did you a favor."
Layla: Going home. Sorry guys.
I fire off the text to the cousins' group chat and put my phone back in my pocket.
The clouds overhead are heavy, and the night darker than usual. It's going to rain tonight, maybe even pour.
"How do those guys know you?" I find myself asking into the silence. Grayson keeps his eyes on the road but as I'm watching him I notice how his breathing changes ever so slightly.
"I don't know them."
"I feel like you're lying to me," I say. "And you never answered my question this morning either, even though I answered yours, so that's not really fair."
"Do you ever stop talking?"
I cross my arms, satisfied with myself. "No, I don't. And by the way, if you had taken my route home we would have been there like thirty minutes ago."
Grayson turns onto the next street. "If you hadn't gotten out of the car we would have been home a lot sooner. And if you're so eager to be home why did you go to that party in the first place?"
I know the answer to that. The question is if I want to share the answer with Grayson or not. "Someone asked me to come and I didn't want to say no."
"That's pathetic."
I actually laugh. "You're really fucking mean, has anyone ever told you that?"
"I think when people meet me they're too preoccupied with other thoughts than getting a feel for if I'm nice or mean."
That must suck.
"You get used to it after a while."
I've never been good at comforting people, not that I think Grayson needs comforting of any kind, but I just wish I had words for him right now.
Grayson parks in front of my grandparent's home and turns his car off. "Here we are."
We both get out of the vehicle and head up to the house. The closer I get I see someone sitting on the swing on the porch. It's Grandpa. He looks between me and Grayson and slight confusion passes over his face but it's gone quickly.
"Hey, Grandpa," I smile, walking up the steps. I can hear Grayson slowly following me.
"Hi, Laylabug, come sit down," Grandpa requests, patting the spot next to him. When Grayson tries to slip away through the front door Grandpa stops him. "And you, as well, Gray."
"Gray?"
"Don't worry. He's okay with it," Grandpa explains as I sit down next to him. Grayson sits down on the chair next to us. "Would you both like any tea? I have sleepytime or chamomile."
"I'll take a sleepytime," I say.
"Me too," Grayson agrees.
Grandpa gets up to go grab us our teas. Grayson slumps farther down the chair, spreading out his legs and resting his head back. I just sit there in the silence with my hands in my lap hoping Grandpa comes out soon so that I don't have to bear this awkward silence any longer.
"You don't strike me as a guy who drinks tea. Let alone sleepytime tea."
"What do I strike you as?" There isn't an ounce of curiosity in his voice so I don't bother answering. I don't know what he strikes me as, I'm still trying to figure him out. It's so silent now I can hear the wind whistling between us. I give it about half an hour before it starts to rain.
"Are any of your friends coming for the wedding?" I ask, tucking my hair behind my ear.
"I don't know."
Okay. Maybe he doesn't want to have a conversation right now. I welcome the silence this time and sit more comfortably.
Grandpa walks back out of the front door with a tray in his hands. He sets it down on the little patio table he has out here for this exact reason. To drink tea with Grandma.
"How was your night, folks?" Grandpa asks, handing a cup of tea to each of us.
"It was fine," I answer when Grayson doesn't.
Grandpa turns his attention to him. "And you? Sir Grayson."
"Fine."
Grandpa lets out a deep breath. "You know, Gray, my father was a soldier in the US Army and there's only one thing I can say about that man. He was an absolute piece of shit."
I almost choke on my tea. I've never heard Grandpa talk about his father like this. Or his prior family at all.
"He started beating my mother when I was only six. When I turned twelve, his attention turned to me."
"I'm sorry," Grayson says, his voice croaky.
"I wanted to hurt the world the way the world hurt me. How is someone who's supposed to protect you go and do the exact opposite? It never made any sense to me."
A tear slips down my cheek and I have to look up at the sky to see if the rain has started to fall. Nope. Just my tears.
Grayson sits up straighter, sipping his tea. "My father never hurt me," he says in a way that makes the hair on my arms stand on end. It almost feels like he's going to say more, but of course, he doesn't.
"Who was there to protect you after everything?" Grandpa asks so softly as if Grayson is a fragile thing to handle with care when really he's probably the farthest thing from that.
"Myself."
Grandpa lets out a deep sigh. Grayson finishes his tea, the cup clanking on the tray as he sets it back down. Then he's gone and this time Grandpa doesn't stop him.
I also get up to go, eager to change into the most comfortable attire I own, grab a handful of snacks, and watch a horror movie in my room.
"Layla?" Grandpa holds onto my hand as I get up from the swing.
"Yeah?"
"Watch out for him. He seems like he's going through a hard time right now."
I think about that for a moment. "I was told to stay out of his way."
A knowing look passes over his face. "If you were staying out of his way he wouldn't have been the one to bring you home tonight."
I don't know how to respond so I don't. Ever since Grayson showed up it feels like words are lost on me. It feels like he's changing things around here. And why has my Grandpa suddenly taken an interest in his life?
Before I have the chance to head inside, Brett's Jeep pulls in next door. Iris jumps out of the car.
"Layla!" She calls over the lawn. "Come here."
I say goodbye to Grandpa and walk across the lawn quickly, the urgency in Iris's expression propelling me to move faster.
"What's going on?" I ask, a little bit breathless. Brett gets out of the driver's seat and approaches us.
"You won't believe what happened. The cops came and busted everything."
A weird feeling settles in the pit of my stomach. "Seriously?"
"Yeah, you're lucky you left. The whole party got shut down. People were running like their lives depended on it. And that's not even the craziest part ... Noah Anderson got arrested tonight, it was insane."
My heart picks up a pace.
"What for?"
"We don't know," Brett answers, tucking his hands into his pockets. "But I'm sure we'll find out soon enough."
Now it's your turn to watch yourself. Grayson's words repeat in my head over and over again like a broken record as I head upstairs to my room. Did he know? Is that why he wanted me out of there?
What the hell is going on?
I try to lay down with my snacks and watch my movie but my brain just won't shut up. Naturally, I find myself heading over to Grayson's room for some answers. Although, I walk extremely slow and almost turn back around five times before I actually make it there.
When I do his door is closed. I almost turn back around again, thinking he might be asleep but I notice that his light is still on. I knock.
What I don't expect to find is a shirtless Grayson. I stop at his bare chest and force myself not to look lower.
"Hi," he says.
I gulp before speaking. "Hey." And then I stand there staring at him like a complete idiot.
He leaves his door open and heads inside his room, throwing a T-shirt over his back. I have to force myself not to gawk.
"Well ... Do you need something?" He's clothed now and my eyes land on his crossed arms.
I clear my throat, meeting his eyes again, hoping he didn't notice where my eyes just wandered. "No. Nothing like that."
He laughs slightly, and now he's right in front of me with his hands on each side of the door frame and I have no idea how or when that happened. "Why are you here, Layla?"
"Did you hear?"
He turns his face down towards me, putting his eyes in mine and I wish he wouldn't because I just lost my train of thought. "Did I hear what?"
"About the party," I answer, regaining my composure. "The cops came and shut it down."
"Oh, yeah? Anything else?"
"Noah Anderson got arrested."
"Hm," Grayson smiles but it's not genuine. It's full of bitterness. "Did he? That's interesting." His eyes tell me everything I need to know. He's behind it and now this weird night is starting to make sense.
"Why'd you do it?"
"Oh, Layla," he whispers inches from my face. "I don't know what you're talking about. But if Noah Anderson got arrested he probably did something bad enough to deserve it."
I break my eyes away, unable to go on any longer. Grayson moves back slightly. "Do you want to come in?" He asks, forcing me to look back at him.
I raise my eyebrows. "And do what?"
He shrugs with a lazy smile on his face. "Anything."
I bite the inside of my cheek, trying not to laugh. "Goodnight, Grayson."
When I turn around to leave I hear him whisper "Goodnight, Laylabug." I cover my face and laugh all the way back to my room.