Lakewood✔️

Study buddies

I was still mad at the guys for acting like overprotective asses. I had no idea what was wrong with them.

I was in class when I heard the teacher say, "Bennett and Weston, a moment, please."

Wonder what he wants? We both got up and walked to the front of the class. He got up and walked out, of course, and had us follow him.

"Something wrong?" I asked.

"It seems Mr. Bennett needs some help in my class, and I was wondering if you would be willing to tutor him?"

"Me? Why me?" I asked a little surprised.

"Because you are doing well in my class, and I figure you would be a great asset, plus it would look good on your college application," he said to me.

Hmm, that wasn't a half-bad idea, although the jury was out on Luka. Okay, I just needed to remind myself this was for college.

"Sure, why not?" I said casually. Luka looked at me a bit surprised. I turned to him, "Come to my house around three today, and we'll get started." I walked back into the classroom, leaving him stunned.

*****
"What do you mean you have to study?" Niko whined.

"The teacher thinks I need help with Math," he said.

"Well, you are quite dense when it comes to numbers," Niko said, and Luka shot him a glare. "Just saying."

"One of these days, Luka is going to throttle you," Damon said.

"Eh, what else is new?" He shrugged.

"Look, I got to go. Malia is waiting for me," he said.

"Malia?" Damon asked.

"Yeah, my new tutor," he shrugged, taking off.

"That boy has it bad," Damon said.

"Yep. I think Luka did it on purpose so he could be close to her," Niko said.

"Fuck yeah, he did. Luka is one of the smartest kids in this school," Damon said, causing Niko to laugh.

*****

There was a knock at my door, and Luka stood there with his books. I waved him in and had him follow me to my room. We walked into my bedroom, and he took a seat on a chair while I took place on my bed.

"So, where should we start?"

"How about here?" He said, pointing to a problem.

"Let's do this," I said as I started explaining things to him.

After forty-five minutes of going over everything, we took a break. I went downstairs and got some snacks and drinks. I returned shortly with them and handed Luka some stuff.

"So, what's the deal with everything in here?"

"What do you mean?"

"Everything seems perfect and sterile. What gives?"

"I have OCD," I said casually. He gave me a look. "I was diagnosed when I was younger. The doctor put me on medication to help with it, and I had therapy to control the impulse to clean everything. Most of the time, it's not bad, but then there are those few times when I get stressed, and it gets out of control."

"Like the time in the bathroom," he said quietly.

"Can we not talk about that? I'm already embarrassed as it is," I said, rubbing my forehead.

"Yeah, sure," he said, dropping it.

"Well, I think we finished today. We'll pick up tomorrow," I said, standing up. Luka gathered his things, and I walked him out.

After Luka left, mom walked over, "Who's the cute boy?"

"Luka, and he's not cute. He a boy at school who I have to tutor in math."

"Uh, huh, sure," she said, raising an eyebrow.

I gave her a look and said, "When's dad coming home?"

"Not until late. Your dad has a case he's working. Let's go have dinner," she nodded towards the kitchen. I followed as we went and had dinner.

******
Dad shifted through the photos and looked at the reports. Each girl was the same age, height, around the same weight, and hair color.

"So, what do you think?" Charlie asked.

He looked at him, "I think someone had a thing for a girl that is quite similar to the victims. Did you find anything else?"

"You know what they say about small towns. They have big secrets and lots of them. We're still digging," Charlie said.

"Keep digging."

"How are things going with Malia?" Joe asked.

"Better. I think between the stress of the move and a new place with new people kicked up her OCD, but she seems to be calming down."

"Yeah, our boys seem to have taken a liking to her," Joe said.

Dad gave him a look, "Bennett, don't even think about it."

Joe rolled his eyes, "Gabe, if anything is happy. At least they will look out for her."

"Well, can we get back to work so I can see my family at some point?"

They nodded and went back to work.

******
I was walking down the halls when a teacher stopped me. She wanted to know if I would help Luka with English since he was failing it. She wasn't the only one; all the teachers asked. I agreed to help him.

Geez, what was wrong with this guy? It's only been a few weeks into the school year, and he was already failing? Is he that dumb? I kept in mind that this was for college and remembered I had to start my applications soon.

******
He sat in a chair with his books in his lap while I sat on my bed. I helped him with what he was having issues with while doing my homework. After a while, mom called us down for dinner.

As we ate, she decided to make small talk with him.

"So, Luka, how do you like Lakewood so far?"

"Eh, it's okay. Nothing like Chicago," he said as he took a bite.

"Why did you move here?"

"Dad met a woman, they got married, and he transferred to be closer."

"What does your dad do?"

"He's a cop. He works for the State Police. Detective Joe Bennett," he announced.

"That must be the guy that works with Gabe," she said.

As she started another question, I yelled, "Mom!"

They both looked at me, and I immediately shrunk in my chair. Then Luka chuckled.

"What's so funny?" I asked.

"The fact that you'll be seeing a lot more of us," he arched an eyebrow and smirked. My eyes widened. Great, just great.

He left after dinner and mom looked at me, "I like him."

I gave her a look and ran upstairs. I didn't want to tell her that they scared me, especially after what Luka and Damon did.

******
With dad tied up with some case, that meant we wouldn't be seeing him as much. I continued to help Luka with his school work. That also led to me around the guys more. At some point, I soften towards them.

I also wanted to know why Niko wasn't in school those few days, but I figured when I got a chance, I would ask Niko himself. I needed to wait for the right opportunity.

I figure in due time.