Page 6 of Little Devil

I laugh and continue unpacking my shit, chewing the inside of my cheek when my aunt’s raised voice rings out in the distance. She’s arguing with my uncle, and I don’t miss the words your delinquent nephew and disaster waiting to happen leaving his mouth. An awkward silence stretches between us and Travis clears his throat, shrugging it off like it’s nothing.

“It’s not you, man,” he says, sighing while he runs a hand through his dark brown hair. “Last night they had a bust up over a broken lightbulb. I swear they pick fights out of thin air just to get a rise out of each other.”

Their screaming match gets louder and I close the doors, moving for the fridge beside him to grab a couple bottles of water. “At least your parents still care enough to argue,” I mutter, passing him one before I sit down to uncap my own. “Mine don’t even talk to each other anymore.”

He nods, looking over at the picture on my nightstand, and I can tell he wants to say something about Nik. He doesn’t, of course, but fuck, I wish he would. I wish people would grow some fucking balls and stop treating my brother’s name like it’s a dirty curse word set out to offend, but I’m not naïve enough to believe that’s about to happen any time soon.

Death makes people uncomfortable.

That’s just the way it is.

“You wanna stay in and order a pizza?” he asks, tipping his chin at the big screen in the corner. “Grab some beers and watch a movie or some shit?”

I frown at that, pulling my head back to emphasise my outrage. “It’s Saturday, Trav.”

“Yeah, so?”

“So where’s the party at?”

h

I pull up outside some big ass mansion a little while later and Travis releases the breath he’s been holding, only just letting go of the oh shit handle to drop his head back on the seat. “I’m never getting in a car with you again.”

I laugh at him and kill the ignition, jumping out of the driver’s seat to fall in line beside him. “Who the hell lives here?” I ask, side eyeing the six square shaped pillars out front and the full on water fountain set up in the middle of the driveway. “The president?”

“Don’t be a dick,” he chuckles, pushing the front door open to let himself inside. “Her name’s Jordyn but we call her JJ. She’s Elizabeth James’ daughter.”

I nod and look around, frowning when he eyes me like he’s expecting a bigger reaction than my non existent one. “What?”

“Elizabeth James, Xan,” he draws out, walking me across the massive entryway and through to the kitchen. “The designer chick with all the fur coats and the dresses and the shoes? That’s who lives here.”

“Fuck off.”

“I’m dead serious,” he laughs, grabbing two shot glasses and a bottle of vodka from the island. “I’ve known them since kindergarten.”

Well, shit.

He pours our drinks and I look around again, confused and a little put out by the vibe in here. The high school kids where I’m from spend their weekends on stained couches in grungy basements, smoking weed and licking cocaine from their fingertips while getting their dicks sucked by hot girls who have no problem getting their tits out for all to see.

These people don’t play like that.

This house is immaculate and white and.. sterile. No one’s smoking inside or yelling or breaking shit. No one’s throwing punches in a fit of drunken rage or fucking on the staircase. Instead they’re all wearing designer dresses and clean shirts, drinking expensive liquor from pink plastic cups and grinding on each other in a way that’s more hot than disgusting.

“Is it always like this?”

“Pretty much, yeah.” Travis nods, passing me a shot glass to knock it with his.

We throw them back and he tilts his head for me to follow him, easily moving through this maze of a house like he’s been here a thousand times before. He introduces me to a colourful looking guy with blonde hair and I bump his fist, raising a brow when he moves his eyes over my form like he’s fixing to eat me.

“Kian,” Travis says, speaking through his teeth.

“What?”

“He’s not gay.”

“Really?” He frowns, looking genuinely confused by that. “Honey, you look a little gay.”

“Yeah, I get that a lot.”

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