Chapter Three ~ Party
When I got home that day, Dad told me that he had a couple of things for me to research. I packed up my things in a book bag and headed out to the local library. Dad suggested that I find out more information on The Samuels. I decided to get a copy of a book on the rich family and drove back on the road, not bothering to look at it. Soon enough, I found myself driving down to the beach.
I got out of my car and stood on the sidewalk, overlooking the crowd. There was distant music playing which led me to assume that someone was hosting a beach party.
“Damien!”
I turned around to the sound of the voice to see Melanie waving at me. I waved back and walked towards her, closing the long gap between us. “Hey,” I greeted her.
“I didn’t think I’d see you here again.” Her eyes twinkled with amusement as she spoke. “Oh, this is my boyfriend, Joe.” She looked over to a taller white man who was standing next to her, his bare chest exposed.
“Hello,” I greeted him with a fake smile.
Melanie fiddled with a loose string on her bikini top and sighed. “Hey Damien, you want to join us for a while? You looked a little lost, to be honest.”
“I was on my way home.”
She raised a perfectly plucked brow. “What, you have a curfew or something?”
“No, no,” I couldn’t help but laugh as I stuck my hands into my pockets. “I don’t really know anyone here so I can’t help but feel out of place.”
“Oh, please,” she scoffed, “we’re your friends now!”
Joe, the boyfriend, snaked his arm around Melanie’s bare waist and pulled her closer. “Yeah man, come hang with us.”
“I really shouldn’t,” I told them. Which was true. I wasn’t here to make friends, I was here to dig my way into a rich family’s life and steal their stuff. It wasn’t any harder than that. “Really, I-”
“Hey, you crack heads! What’s taking you guys so long?” A new brunette joined us except she was pale and slightly shorter. Her eyes shot to mine and she scoffed, “Who are you?”
“Uh, I’m Damien.”
The brunette folded her arms across her barely-there chest and shifted her weight to her right leg. “I’m Samantha Samuels but everyone calls me Sam. Yeah, I know. Sam Samuels. So funny, right?” She turned her attention to the couple. “Seriously guys. We don’t have all day, do you want the batch or not?”
I suddenly became interested with Sam. She was the daughter of the rich parents and she could most likely be a helpful asset. “Batch?” I questioned, stepping into the conversation.
Sam looked at me skeptically. “You’re not going to nark us out are you?”
“Not unless you give me a reason to.”
Melanie turned to Sam and touched her arm. “Don’t worry about him, Sam. He’s one of us now.”
Sam glanced over to me and bit down on her bottom lip. “You ever had Murder 8 before?”
“Excuse me, what?”
“It’s a drug,” she laughed at my lack of knowledge, “one of the best ever. We’re about to get turnt up at this little place downtown, you in?” She told me as she chewed her gum. I could almost hear it sloshing around in her mouth and I was about three seconds away from gagging.
“I don’t really do drugs,” I told her. Which was true. Dad always said that drugs made you sloppy. And with our job, we couldn’t afford to be sloppy.
Joe burst out in laughter. “No shit, dude.” He pointed to my attire. “Look at what you’re wearing.”
I looked down at my sweater vest and khakis. “What’s wrong with it?”
“You look like a tool.”
Melanie shot him a look. “Be nice," she said, then turned her attention to me. “You don’t have to come with us if you don’t want to, but you’ll be missing out.”
“Yeah, I think I’ll just go home.”
“It’s all good, Damien.” She gave me a friendly smile then flung her arm around her boyfriend’s shoulder. “See you around.”
As I watched them walk away, I couldn’t help but feel that I was missing out on a great opportunity to get more information on The Samuels. “Hey, wait up!” I called out and ran after the trio. “I’m coming.”
Melanie whipped around and flashed me a devious smile. “I’d knew you give in eventually,”
* * * *
This was definitely not my scene. I knew I shouldn’t have come here but something in the back of mind was telling me I had to. Melanie, Sam and Joe had disappeared shortly after we arrived at this little party, leaving me to fend for myself. Since then, a few girls clung onto my arms and asked me to dance but I wasn’t nearly as high or drunk as they were.
I walked over to a man who sat in the corner of the kitchen handing out red cups to anyone who asked. “Do you have Scotch?” I asked him with genuine curiosity.
The man was a little younger than me, if not, the same age. It was apparent that he had been drinking a few of his drinks as well. He looked up at me with an amused grin, “Scotch?” he questioned, “What the fuck do I look like?”
I sighed to myself, realizing that there were a bunch of irresponsible imbeciles at this party. “Beer,” I said, “I would like a beer.”
“Now you’re speaking my language,” He grinned widely before pouring a bottle of an unknown substance in a red plastic cup. “Here you go, man. Enjoy.” He handed the cup to me and began to assist someone else.
I sniffed the liquid before I actually brought it to my lips to taste. It was slightly bitter with a tangy taste, a taste that beer shouldn’t have. Knowing that there was another substance in the drink other than what I had asked for, I ditched the cup and walked outside of the house to get some fresh air.
I must have been standing outside for a few minutes before I was joined by another person. “Peaceful, isn’t it?” a man’s voice asked. I could even hear the hint of sarcasm in his voice.
I turned and saw the local I had run into a couple times before. I sighed inwardly and turned back around, not wanting to waste my time talking to him.
“You look lonely,” he said, shoving his hands into his pockets. “Parties aren’t your scene?”
I ignored his question and turned to him with a confused look appearing on my face. “Why are you following me everywhere?”
“Following you?” he scoffed. “You think I’m following you?”
“Yes,” I said, sticking to my assumption. “You’re everywhere I go and it’s growing to be quite annoying, actually.”
"Maybe it's just a coincidence."
"I wouldn't call me minding my own business and you following me a coincidence."
“This is practically my party,” he told me with a grin on his face. “This is my home away from home and I need to be present when my sister throws these parties. They get out of hand sometimes and there has to be someone to clean up the mess.”
“Really?” I asked him, not because I was interested, but because it didn’t look like he would leave me alone unless I tried to have a conversation with him.
“Yeah.” He moved closer to me until he was only a couple inches away. “So, are you going to tell me your name now?”
“Bob.”
"Bob?”
“Bob.”
“Well, Bob.” The local grinned. “It’s nice to finally know your name. I’m Levi, but of course you already knew that.”
“How would I know that?”
“I told you before but you probably weren’t listening, and because I saw you come here with my sister so I assumed you would know who I was.”
“Your sister?
“Sam.”
“Sam,” I repeated, suddenly realizing. “You said your name is Levi?”
“Yep.”
“Levi Samuels,” I said. It finally hit me that I was talking to the son of the family Dad and I were trying to rob. “I’m sorry, I didn’t make the connection.”
“What?” he asked, “You’re not going to ask me for money or cling onto me until you can meet Taylor Swift or something?”
“Why would I do that?”
“Because most people do.” He shrugged as he met his hazel eyes to my bright blue ones.
I don’t know why, but I laughed. “In case you haven’t noticed, I’m not most people.”
Levi didn’t respond, instead he smiled. A real smile.
“I’m going to go,” I told him. “I don’t really go to parties and I’m not having much fun but it was nice meeting you.”
“You too, Bob.”
“My name’s Damien.”
“What?”
“My name,” I told him, “my real name is Damien.”
He quirked a brow. “I had a feeling you were lying about your name being Bob. Tell me when’s the last time you’ve seen a Bob?”
“Sponge…bob.”
Levi’s eyes lit up with excitement, apparently amused by my joke. “You’re funny," he commented, “I like that.”
I bit down on my bottom lip. No one had ever called me funny before. It wasn’t like I actually tried to humor anyone. “Thanks, I guess.”
“See you around, Damien.”
“See you around, Levi.” And with that, I turned on my heel and walked to my car. For some odd reason, I really wanted to get to know him better. I never really had time for friendships nor did I ever want one but Levi was starting to change that. And I didn’t like that, at all.
~*~*~*~
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