Page 76 of Filthy Liar

“Wait, back up. Beckett got arrested? Is Mikey okay?”

“You’ll probably see it on the news. Beckett shot a gun in front of a bunch of cops and reporters this morning so we could leave without reporters following us,” I scoffed, looking around with a scowl. “Where’s your locker?”

He motioned for me to follow him, his voice quieter. “And Mikey?”

“He’s fine. Just a bullet to the leg. Talk to me, dude. You’re acting cagey all the time, from what I’ve heard, or you’re being a prick. If something’s bothering you, tell someone. Are you being bullied? I can scare them right now for you if you want.”

He chuckled, leading me into a building and through some hallways. “Nah, it’s fine. I can handle myself.”

“Clearly,” I said dryly, motioning to the blood on his shirt. “Who’d you fight with?”

“Matt.”

“Isn’t he your friend?”

I didn’t know a lot about Noah, but I heard shit. Matt and Noah regularly got into trouble together.

“Was,” he grunted, stopping in front of a locker and opening it.

“Let me guess. This is about a girl?”

“No. This is about the fact the fucker owes me money. Why would we fight about girls?” he snorted.

“Usually, when guys fight, there’s a girl involved,” I replied, and he slammed his locker and slipped his bag over one shoulder.

“Well, not us.”

He didn’t talk as he stalked ahead of me back towards the administration building, almost cracking the damn iPad as he signed out. I eyed him as I signed to state I’d left too, not talking to him until we were both in the car.

“How much money does he owe you?” I asked as I started the car, keeping my eyes on the rearview as I reversed out of my parking space.

“A couple grand,” he mumbled, his face in his phone. “Do you follow Ry or Tempest on their Onlyfans? She did this really skilled?—”

I snatched his phone and tossed it gently onto the floor at his feet, trying not to lose my temper. This kid just wanted people to react, and I had no idea why.

“Stop watching your foster brother fuck his girlfriend on the internet. It’s weird,” I grunted, making sure it was safe before pulling out onto the road. “And secondly, drop the bullshit. You want me to take you seriously? Then stop dancing around the conversation and just talk to me. You’re so lucky, you know? You’ve been placed in a family that genuinely loves you. You’re stressing them out on purpose, and they have so much going on right now. If you’re feeling lonely, tell them. Being a menace and acting out for their attention isn’t the way to go about it. Rory would drop everything for you if you said you needed her. So would the guys. Hell, if you want company, we can game or something. What the hell is eating at you?”

He winced as sounds of Tempest moaning filled the car, and he bent forward to grab his phone and turn the video off.

“I can’t talk about it.”

At least I knew something was going on.

“Why not?”

“People will get hurt,” he answered tightly, putting me on high alert.

“Someone’s threatening you?”

“Not me. I’ve got it handled,” he snapped, but his voice cracked and his concern shone through. He was terrified of whoever this person was.

“You don’t think your family could handle some bully at school? You know your foster mom is a fucking psychopath with a hobby of scaring people, right?” I asked slowly, his face falling.

“It’s not some kid, Zavier.”

I went to reply, but the back window suddenly shattered, and I wanted to curse at myself for not being more aware of our surroundings. I should’ve seen someone creep up on us.

Noah practically curled into a ball in his seat, a startled noise leaving him as he covered his head with his arms on instinct.

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