homegrown 》v. hacker

I Always Am

Sorry for the late upload. Last week I was in Washington DC for a school trip (way fun, 10/10) and I didn't have enough energy to get something out early. Again this is kinda a filler chapter but it sets the stage and Yada Yada. It'll all come together, pinky promise.

Enjoy and don't forget to vote and comment.

Going back to the Hype House was one of the hardest things I've had to do in a while. I could've stayed in New York. Stayed with Drew and forgotten about LA. I really don't know if I should stay out there.

This is the second time I've seriously debated on not going home. Just saying.

I sat in the back of Thomas' car watching the scenery pass me by. I was soaking in the peace, knowing I'd have none as soon as I come back.

Vinnie took my hand in his and gave it a encouraging squeeze as we pulled up to the house.

"It feels like someone died." I muttered, causing Vinnie to smile. I carried my bags into the house and set them by the stairs.

I entered the kitchen and opened the cabinets, searching for something to eat. It was a long flight and I can't survive off peanuts.

"Max!" I turned and saw Jack with an grin on his face. I gave him a hug and we spun around.

"Dude! It's been too long."

"For sure. How was your holidays?"

I shrugged, grabbing my plate out of the microwave. "Too short."

I offered him a Hot Pocket off my plate and he took one. "I feel ya. I need at least another week without you." I lightly hit Jack and he laughed. "Kidding. I missed you very much. Renata's been off and its messing with my vibe."

"What do you mean?"

Jack laughed. "Girl is definitely plotting someone's murder. She's sneaking around during the night and I saw her in your room once."

I froze. "You're kidding?"

"No. She came out empty handed but you should invest in a lock."

I sighed. "I really regret coming back."

"Yea but if you didn't, you never see me again."

"True."

I looked at the time on the oven and took a deep breath. "I'm going to go unpack and see if anything was taken."

"Call me if you need help." I nodded and went to go retrieve my bag from the stairs.

I glanced around and trudged up the stairs. Maybe Vinnie took my bag up. I knocked on Vinnie's cracked door and pushed it open. Vinnie was laying on his bed, face buried in his pillows.

I smiled and called Bear over. I picked him up and went back to my room. I saw my bag on my bed and set Bear down next to it. I dug through it, looking for my pink cotton shorts.

I could've sworn they were on top but I found them in the bottom of my bag. I sighed and blamed the jet lag.

A few days later I was at BOA Steakhouse celebrating hitting 250 thousand fans when I saw the raven haired girl again. This time she didn't bother to be subtle.

She followed me to the bathroom and pounced as soon as the door was closed.

"Having fun living a lie?" I sighed and ignored her. "Do you steal people's dream for fun or for a living?"

"What do you want?"

"I want you to go away. Stop tiktok. Move out of LA. Go back to your old, boring, worthless life."

"And why should I?"

"Do you really want me to answer that?"

I nodded. "I'm curious to see what you got."

"I know where you live."

"So does anyone who tries hard enough."

"I know about your brother."

"So do million if others."

"I know about everything you've ever tired to hide."

I laughed. "Like what?"

"I know you've been fucking Vinnie Hacker since June."

"And that's so world ending?" I scoffed. "If you want to threaten me, try harder." I shoulder checked her on the way out and went back to sit with my friends.

The whole thing left me more annoyed than scared. Who did this chick think she was?

The paparazzi were ready for us when we left but Thomas had already told me what to say.

"Max! Max! How are you tonight?" Fletcher got to me first which didn't surprise me.

"I'm doing great. Out to celebrate 250 thousand."

"How do you feel about that?"

"Pretty excited. Only a fourth of the way there."

"To a million?"

"To a million." I nodded.

"So are you officially part of the hype house now?"

"Yup. I've been living there a while and we decided to finally make it official."

"And you're happy?"

"Of course. I'm right where I want to be."

I said goodnight and went over to Zoey. I said hello  and we spoke about a few things before I went home.

I laid on Vinnie's chest as we watched another movie. It was almost 2 am and I felt like I could run a marathon.

"It's funny. I came back for New York ready to sleep for three days straight and now I could run a marathon."

"You have a weird sleep schedule."

"Tell me about it."

"So any new drama? Jack was telling me about Renata."

"Eh. Haven't spoken to her. Don't plan on it either."

"She scares me. Not in the way like murder me but like she's going to cut my hair and clone me."

"She probably will." Vinnie laughed and kissed my head.

It took a few days to get back into my normal routine but afterwards I was back to my normal self.

"Max, package." Thomas set a box on the island and slid it over to me. I thanked him and used my nails to open it up.

It was a package from a fan. I opened it farther and pulled out some candy and a pair of shoes.

"What's that?"

I shrugged and tossed a bag of candy to Jack. "A care package."

"Yea? Since when do you have a PO box?"

"I don't. I assume someone just looked up our address and sent it, no balls." I opened it further and saw a pair of green converse sitting at the bottom. "Bro that's fucking sick."

"Is it your size?"

"Yea." Jack hesitated and I raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"Are you concerned someone knows your shoe size?"

"No. Should I?"

Jack shrugged. "No but just be careful."

"I always am."