Penance - Uncovering the truth, Secrets and confessions, and Twisted pasts

Chapter 26

It was late—way too late for whatever they were doing to make any sense. 

The four of them were squished into the car, speeding nowhere fast, windows down, music blasting. 

Xander was in the backseat next to Grayson, balancing a wobbly tower of empty soda cans on his knee. Nash leaned over from the front seat, trying to help.

"Hold it steady!" Xander managed to stack the cans in a way that defied gravity.

"Steady ain't the problem," Nash drawled, tilting his hat up.

Jameson took a sharp, too-tight turn on purpose, sending the cans tumbling to the floor. "Oops."

Xander groaned like the world had ended. "You're sabotaging me! You can't handle my genius!"

Grayson didn't say a word, not until Xander elbowed him hard in the ribs. "You could try smiling, you know. Just once. Just to see if it kills you."

Jameson smirked at Grayson in the rearview mirror. "He's got a point. You're killin' the vibe."

"This isn't a vibe," Grayson said flatly. "It's a lawsuit waiting to happen."

"Same thing," Jameson shot back, laughing as he slammed on the brakes at the edge of some random field. Without saying anything, he grabbed Xander and dragged him out of the car.

"What now?" Grayson muttered as Nash climbed out, looking way too chill.

"You know how this goes," Nash said with a shrug. "Ain't my first rodeo."

Five minutes later, they were in the middle of the field under a sky full of stars. Jameson had dug out a beat-up frisbee from the trunk and was using it as an excuse to tackle Xander to the ground.

"Stop cheating!" Xander shouted, laughing so hard he could barely breathe.

"It's not cheating. It's strategy," Jameson said, grinning like a maniac.

"You don't even know what that word means!"

Grayson stood by the car, arms crossed, pretending not to enjoy it. But Nash had other plans. He threw the frisbee at Grayson, forcing him to catch it.

"C'mon, Grayson," Nash said, his grin wide.

Grayson sighed but didn't argue. A minute later, he found himself running across the field, dodging Jameson's tackles and Xander's terrible aim.

For a little while, it was just them—four brothers messing around like nothing else mattered. No money, no expectations, no Hawthorne name hanging over their heads. For that one night, they were just kids—normal kids. And it was everything; and it felt pretty damn good.

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"You're smiling."

Grayson blinked, the memory fading as Alison's voice pulled him back.

"I'm not."

She just smiled, like she'd learned something about him without him saying a word. And maybe she had.  "Whatever you were thinking about—it was good. Really good."

Grayson shifted in his seat, straightening his posture like it could erase whatever she thought she saw.

"Now," Alison said, still smiling, "think of a bad memory. One you'd rather forget."

She said it like she already knew she'd get what she wanted. It annoyed him. And maybe that annoyed him most of all. But not as much as the fact that she was right. Because before he could stop himself, he thought of one.