Something Bad

Chapter Seventeen: You Probably Won’t Get Shot

As I walked through the threshold of the home, I was surprised that my nostrils weren’t immersed in an overpowering smell of sorts. When one entered my house, they couldn’t help but smell the fresh scent of sanitized apples that my mother had made it her life mission to spread throughout the entire structure, for she had a slight fixation with it. When I went into the Kent’s house, I immediately perceived this sugary-vanilla aroma that Kara had found years ago and was called “Cupcake Commotion.” If the color pink had a smell, Kara Kent’s house would be it. When I came into Luke Daniels’ house, however, there wasn’t this overwhelming smell that I could pair with Luke’s home. There was nothing Now, the place probably did smell like something, but that “something” was indistinct and indiscernible. So, basically, “nothing.”

      “I promise that you probably won’t get shot,” Luke told me as I took a wavering step inside. His assurance—that wasn’t really an assurance at all due to the improbable word of “probably”—hadn’t really even been a thought in my mind until he brought it up. I was 92.01% sure that he was kidding, but there was always that 7.99% that made me unsure. It was Luke Daniels’ house, so anything could happen, really.

      “Considering that I wasn’t really planning on going home with a gaping hole in my body, I guess that that’s a good thing,” I mumbled. He grinned at me, not saying anything else as he led me through the small and dimly lit home. It was already getting darker outside, so the lack of light inside made everything appear gloomier.

      Suddenly, the silhouette of new figure emerged before us, only marginally startling me. I wasn’t sure who the person was, but I knew that they were taller than both Luke and I, and were of the male gender. Luke left my side for a fleeting moment, abandoning me as I squinted at the guy opposite me. A brighter light then came on, courtesy of one Luke Daniels, allowing me to see who was in front of me.

      As suspected, it was a guy. But it wasn’t just any guy—no, this particular guy could’ve posed as a double for Luke, though he was taller and slight more attractive (okay, so maybe he was model attractive, but that was beside the point) with a thin layer of stubble and shorter hair. Like Luke, he had gray eyes, though they looked darker and bluer. He had on a white T-shirt, sweats, and seemed to be holding a drink of sorts—most likely beer. Unlike me, he wasn’t alarmed and retained this impassively calm expression that wasn’t fleeing his face any time soon.

      Taking one last look at me, he finally spoke. “You’re wearing Luke’s jacket. And Luke, how many times have I told you not to bring girls into the house?” the mystery boy questioned Luke with a sigh. I glanced down at my torso, and sure enough, Luke’s leather jacket still hung around my smallish frame, practically swallowing me up. Since I happened to be cold and liked the feeling of it, I made no move to change the state of Luke Daniels’ leather jacket. It stayed where it was—on me.

      “Like, twice,” Luke rolled his eyes at the other boy. “But that doesn’t matter now, because this is Olivia Ross and we’re here to get buzzed. Olivia, this is my older brother, Ben Daniels.”

      I glanced back at the gorgeous being standing by me, something inside me clicking into place with the new knowledge that he was Luke’s older brother. It made sense. I could more than see the genetic resemblance. It was as if Luke had a twin who was slightly more attractive, taller, and even more impassive than he, which wasn’t particularly challenging, for Luke was a pretty expressive individual when he wanted to be. Ben Daniels. It was a nice name, though I preferred the way that Luke Daniels sounded.

      “So you’re Olivia,” Ben said slowly, taking time to scrutinize every visible inch of my form. “Wow. Well, it’s a pleasure to you, Olivia. I’ve heard a lot about you. You’re not quite what I expected.”