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Jared and I both ju on his bedroom door

"Jared, you ready yet?" ato kill hirowled quietly "Go downstairs!" He shouted at the door but stayed on o!"

And then it hitbefore One of the friends he had over took the car to get gas, and Jared stayed behind to get cleaned up

"I said wait downstairs, Sa the towel around his waist as he got up off the bed

"Alright!" Sam must’ve taken the hint, because I heard his footsteps fade away

I grabbed my tank top and covered

"No, don’t get dressed," Jared co this" He bent down to kiss ht?"

"Not anymore" He slipped on some jeans underneath his towel

I slipped the top over my head and stood up to slip on o It’s fine" My detective work tonight took an unexpected turn, and his "birthday kiss" turned into h I did feel guilty about leaving hih He lifted e of his dresser taking s, and he pulled me to him with the slow, deep kiss

"Races aren’t iainst my lips "There’s nowhere else I want to be than with you"

I think my heart skipped a beat, and a lump formed in my throat I felt the exact sas moved too fast, and I still didn’t trust hiested I loved the thrill of the races, and we could be together in a public setting, sure to keep us fro each other The only downside was I wouldn’t be able to search his rooht about that anymore

"Take you with htful "Alright, go get soet you e’re ready" He moved towards the door, but stopped "And after the race, we’ll come back here and finish this" His promise made me smile despite myself

I hopped off the dresser after he walked out, deciding it would be easier to clih the tree than face the walk of shame in front of his friend, but I stopped short when I noticed soraph near the bed, and my heart sped up when I realized that I h that box

Shit!

As I took a quick look at it, bile rose inman, but the skin was bloodied and bruised Blue and purple marks covered the chest and ribs, while cuts spanned the entire area from his stomach to his neck

Oh, my God

Someone didn’t just hurt this kid They tried to kill him

Chapter 30

The far the road for Jared’s car, we’d arrived just in ti Jared and ht Jared hated me, so they must be pretty confused I didn’t care

The car vibrated under me, and I tapped y and a little residual nervousness

I’d stuffed the picture I found in Jared’s room into the front pocket ofto put it back in the box under his bed I wasn’t sure if it was Jared in the picture, but I guessed it was Why else would he have it? Unless…unless he did that to a kid

My teeth clenched together I didn’t like that thought one bit

"Hey!" People, mostly female, shouted at the car I took a deep breath and didn’t even try to hide reet them back, and my shoulders relaxed His face was stone as Sick by Adelita’s Way pounded out of the speakers

As Jared pulled into position next to an ‘80’s Canize, I unfastened rabbed my hand

"Hey," he spoke softly, and I turned to look at hia to do with you, okay?"

Translation: I don’t do the girlfriend thing, especially in public Not that Jared and I were together, but I knehat he was trying to say