Page 19 of Bad Behavior

“This neighborhood is stupid,” I mutter. “Here, let’s cross the street. Asher’s family lives on the next block.”

Owns the next blockis closer to the truth. A high fence rises, blocking my view. All I can see is palm trees. We walk past the driveway, where the gate allows us a view of the house. It’s definitely fancy as shit, made of light stone, and branching out dramatically.

We keep moving, per Asher’s instructions. The fence pops back up, and I walk along it. Eventually we come up on the corner of the fence, where a space is defined between the fence and a cluster of palm trees.

Sitting in the space is Asher, looking comfortable as ever. He looks up from a book that he’s been reading. “Hey.”

“Hey,” I say.

“Hey!” Gunnar shouts. He scowls. “You didn’t say Asher was gonna be here.”

I give him side eye. “Yeah, I definitely did. Anyway, Asher… what’s the big surprise?”

Asher grins, running a hand through his short blonde hair. He stands up, then leads me a few feet away from my brothers.

“You’re gonna love this.” He digs in his pocket, producing a key. “I have a place for you guys to stay for a few months. It’s a hell of a lot nicer than the most recent place you’ve been in.”

I’m immediately suspicious. “Where is it?”

“It’s right around the corner, in my guest house. My father is out of town for the next three months, and I don’t think my mom has even been out to the guest house since I was a kid. Long story short, I asked if I can set up my band stuff there, and she said yes.” He looks extremely pleased with himself.

I am sure that I heard wrong. Life hasn’t exactly been rewarding to me.

“I… what?” I ask.

Asher reaches out and claps my on the shoulder. “Dude, I’m telling you that you have a place to stay. Until my father comes back, at the very least. It’s a palace, compared to that place you’re staying.”

For a second, I just blink at him. I’m expecting that he will start laughing and say it’s all some sort of joke, even though Asher isn’t really like that. I stare him down until he gets uncomfortable.

“Do you want to come check out the bungalow or not?” he asks.

“Are you sure you’re serious?” If he is, that would mean that I can spend this month’s rent money on food and school supplies. Hell, if we can get a break from some expenses for a little while, I could save enough for a real apartment. My eyes begin to sting

“Dead serious. Come on,” Asher says, turning toward the space in-between the fence and the palm trees. “There’s a shortcut just through here.”

I glance at Gunnar and Forest, then motion for them to follow me. I try not to let the smile show, but I can feel it stretching my face.

We just got ourselves somewhere to stay for a while.

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