“First things first, I’m the realist,” I chanted as I dashed through the hallways of my small high-school, looking for a certain someone. “Talk to Peter ‘bout his secrets, make ‘im spill it.”
George, I remembered that although the air is significantly clearer between Peter and I, I still need to have a chat with him about any secrets he may still be hiding. Such as the secret of his father, Scary Voice Man.
Day 24. Mission: Talk to Peter about his dad.
Finally, I spotted my prey. Peter was standing next to his locker, putting books away. ‘Haha, that rhymed!’ I thought. ‘Okay Georgie, now remember to approach this subject gently.’
“Hey Peter, is your dad a murderer? Is he trying to kill Breton? Ooh, is he a mafia boss, or a crime lord?” I asked loudly as I leaned against the locker next to his. Since I’m assuming he knowns about my operation to save Breton, I didn’t have any explaining to do about my questions. Except for maybe explaining why I suspect his dad, but Peter doesn’t really need to know that.
“Gah!” he cried, dropping one of his books on the ground. As he stood up, he asked, “Why are you here so early?”
“Breton gave me a ride again. We’re early because he wanted to hang with his homies.”
“His friends, you mean,” Peter laughed.
“Yeah. His friends, homies, peeps, amigos, same thing!”
“Oh, cool. So… are going to go hang out with them too?” Peter asked me.
“Sure. After you tell me about your dad, and what he has to do with Breton.” ‘Point to me for staying on task,’ I added mentally.
“Fine. My dad is involved in some…illegal sales. I’m not sure what. Last year, Breton and I wanted some money to spend. So we worked for my dad for a little bit. Mostly loading up shipments, he kept us away from the really illegal stuff. The thing is, we didn’t realize his business was illegal. As soon as we found out, we quit. He’s been trying to get Breton back to work for him. Apparently, he doesn’t want me, in order to keep me out of jail,” Peter explained reluctantly.
“Why would your dad be calling Breton?” I demanded to know.
“Brett refuses to go back to work. My dad has taken to calling him,” sighed Peter. “Is that all? This isn’t a topic I like.”
“Sorry, Pete. I just needed to know. Assess potential threats and all that,” I apologized.
“What’ve you got so far?” he asked.
“Let me write it down for you,” I said. “I’ve got to get to class, so I’ll see you at lunch, okay?” He nodded, and we parted ways.
“Here’s what I’ve got so far,” I began later that day, handing Peter a piece of paper over the table.
Today was a Wednesday, meaning almost everyone was eating off campus at some fast-food restaurant or another. Breton and Hayley invited us out to eat with them and the rest of the squad, but Peter and I declined.
Meanwhile, Dallas and Lucas were going out on a lunch date. I had asked Dallas earlier how his talk with his parents went. He shrugged, said it was good, and hugged me. I think that means everything is okay.
I looked at Peter, who was looking at the paper.
Georgie’s Operation Notes (the important ones, anyway):
Mr. Joel asked me to “save” Breton
I met Breton when he saved me
Tried to befriend Breton, got there eventually
Looked for threats to Breton, didn’t find any
Heard him talking with Scary Voice Man (Peter’s dad)
Later found out SVM is Peter’s dad
Peter explained that whole thing, possible threat still?
Breton kissed me, maybe likes me, will this be a cliche “I need to save him from me and my train wreck of a life” thing?
(I hope not)
Made this list and gave it to Peter
Wondered if Peter knew anything that I was missing? (Hint, hint)
Thoughtfully, Peter looked up at me.
“I think, maybe, there is one thing we were both missing,” he said, folding up my notes and putting them in his pocket. “And it’s a cliche. Just not the one you’re thinking of.”
I felt very confused. “What?”
“It’s a thing,” Peter said, “that I thought of while reading your ideas.”
“Well? Do share!” I urged.
“When we were younger, Breton was playful, loud, and outgoing. He would greet strangers with a smile, and would have whole conversations with people he didn’t know. As we got older, he became quieter and more shy. He avoids eye contact with people who doesn’t know,” Peter began. “Normally, people would mark this down as the result of a traumatic event. But I was with him everyday, practically 24/7/365 with all the sleepovers and play days. Nothing happened to make him shy, he just grew out of his loud phase.
“But as time grew on, his shyness got worse. He wouldn’t talk to anyone, resorted to near-violence to avoid people. His group of friends that surround him are there due to hard work on their part, as they took time to get to know him. Breton’s really a nice guy, you know that. But not everyone sees him that way, and his reputation of being a ‘bad-boy’ didn’t improve his social skills.
“Honestly, as strange as it sounds, I think we have to save Breton from himself.”
I stared at Peter, then tilted my head to the side and began to think about what he said. In a weird way, it makes sense. It explains why Mr. Joel would ask a random girl for help. It tells me why Breton saved me from the basement closet that fateful day. I’m sure if I thought hard enough, it would explain everything else too.
“Well, you could be wrong, but I’ll take that explanation!” I announced at last. “So now the hard part is… where do we begin?”
We both looked at each other in silence, then simultaneously decided, “We’ll figure that out tomorrow.”
After school, I met Breton at his car.
“Hey Breton, how was your day?” I greeted as he unlocked the doors and moved aside so I could climb in.
“It was great actually. We went out to a little malt shop for lunch, and then I had a free period right after lunch because the teacher was gone. And I was prepared for my pop quiz in English.”
“Awesome!” I replied as we buckled ourselves in and he started to drive. “I usually rock at pop quizzes, but recently I haven’t been as good. Mr. Toms gave us a pop quiz today too, but he doesn’t really grade them, he just likes to watch us panic. So I’m not really worried.”
We laughed and then chatted the whole ride home. Eventually, he pulled into his driveway and I climbed out.
“Thanks for the ride!” I said. “See you tomorrow!”
“Bye Georgie,” he replied, and we both walked into our houses.
That night my mom and I had dinner together and I filled her in on all the gossip over a baked spaghetti dish. Then I got ready for bed, scrolled through my twitter feed for an hour.
That’s when I made a difficult decision, and deleted my twitter account. And made a tumblr instead. Because, on twitter no one was following me and I was following my favorite authors and singers, and actors/actresses. But on tumblr, no one knew me, and I could find so much more on my favorite people, while following random people who also love my favorite people.
When my laptop died, I finally slept. Scrolling through pictures of celebrities really makes me tired.
Day 25.
Peter and Georgie’s Ideas to Save Breton from Himself:
Try talking to him about his childhood
Show him that people aren’t bad
Dare him to smile at everyone he passes, maybe he’ll get in the habit again
Bring out his inner child
Don’t let him listen to Peter, who’s an anti-social grump (Hurtful!)
Have him list his positive qualities (maybe he’s insecure)
Teach him to be genuine
Offer and accept more invitations on his behalf
Take him out in public and introduce him to people
We looked over our list of ideas, and I nodded happily.
“We’ve got our work cut out for us,” Peter said.
“I still don’t get why your name is first in the title,” I said, ignoring his statement.
“Because I’m Breton’s cousin and you’re his friend. I’m closer to him. We’re related by blood, you aren’t. So my name goes first,” Peter answered.
“That’s dumb and unfair. We wrote this in my notebook-slash-diary, my name should be first,” I argued.
“Too late, you wrote it in pen and it can’t be erased,” he replied, sticking out his tongue.
“You two are so immature,” Dallas said, sitting next to us in the cafeteria.
“Like little kids,” Lucas added, sliding next to his boyfriend.
“We’re not immature!” I cried.
“Yes, you are,” insisted Lucas.
“Nuh-uh,” Peter said.
Dallas and Lucas rolled their eyes in unison as Breton sat down next to me.
“Are they being immature again?” Breton asked the couple.
“Yes,” Lucas and Dallas said at the same time as Peter and I said, “No.”
Breton exchanged a knowing look with Lucas and Dallas, then leaned closer to me.
“What’s that?” he asked.
Peter slammed George shut before Breton could see our list.
“Nothing,” we both said, and went back to eating.
Breton didn’t seem too suspicious as he opened his lunch bag, took out a sandwich, and began to eat. So far, so good.
Before lunch ended, Peter leaned over to whisper in my ear.
“We start with the list tomorrow.” I nodded, and we all enjoyed our lunch.
~~
First thing's first... lipgloss! It was said in chapter twenty-one 10 times (not counting the author's note). @UndercoverLunarRebel was the first one to guess 10 so he/she gets the dedication, although several others did get the right answer. They get an honorable mention!
@ImSeeingStars_98
@Dark_Comeback
@disney_loverXsimba
@_me_here
@JulesNicole
@NadiaChrissie
Thank you everyone for guessing! :D You were all so close, which was interesting, but only these people had the correct answer!
Second thing is second... I hope you all liked this chapter! It will probably be the last one for a while, while I write my NaNoWriMo novel, which I will be posting after 45 Days to Save the Bad Boy is finished. Also, my NaNoWriMo username is KaylaSmiles, so if any of you are doing NaNoWriMo, you should add me as a writing buddy!
Don't forget to comment and vote on this chapter!! Thank you all for reading, and I'll be seeing you...probably around December!