"Where would you have me go?"
Craig queried, fiddling with his large knuckles, staring right ahead at Raye.
She was naturally phlegmatic he'd noticed and very beautiful. To himself, he thought that Brie scored big in terms of bagging someone like her and as a sibling, he was lowkey proud of her accomplishment but Raye was a weird one. She seldom spoke with any facial expressions he also managed to heed, it was either that or a constant scowl and there seemed to be no in-between really and it was scary.
Right there when he looked at her the only indicator that she was not an inanimate object was the way she twirled her silver ring around her pinky finger. She was quite good at keeping her emotions and expression under a tight leash and it was something he admired.
"Somewhere that's safer than your apartment, or anywhere else. You'll be around people who will have your best interest at heart." Luca answered some seconds, saying.
"Okay,"
"In the meantime as well we'll do some digging around to see who this guy really was." She chimed.
"Thank you a whole lot, for saving my life."
"Don't thank us just yet, the worse is yet to come and believe me when I say there is still worse to come," Luca responded.
"Try your best to stay out of trouble and not just with those that are looking for you, but with the guys. After a few drinks, they tend not to care about anything or anyone. It's worse knowing you'll be considered as an acquaintance to them." Said Raye, the guy before her simply nodded
"Everyone believes that you've given up your place here," Craig stated rather than ask and Raye smirked to herself, adding a light chuckle. She didn't know why but she did. Maybe it was his raw honesty that amused her, it could've been that.
"I'd like for everyone to keep thinking that. Although I'm not as involved with it as I was two years ago, I can have that position back whenever I want but I don't. I'm just around because one can never wholly leave from a life such as this. I will always be dragged back in somehow until I blow my last breath."
"Doesn't it scare you?"
"Yes, but I'm not scared for myself." She replied with a terse statement and Craig grew quiet.
"I see," He knew exactly what she meant.
In the room, silence had fallen among the three, Raye taking it as a sign to get things rolling, she stood up. Walking over to her uncle's desk, she took the little phone from off of the table before heading over to Craig. Extending it out to him she narrowed her gaze just a bit,
"Let your family know, so they won't be worried. Tell them this time that you'll be going away for a while."
Taking the phone softly from her grip, Craig started dialling his parent's number and then placing the phone to his head. This was it. He was going to let them know although vaguely that he wasn't going to be around. Normally he would've just disappeared but under this circumstance, things had to be done differently and he really didn't have a say.
* * * *
"Craig, w-wait, what are you saying? please just talk to me, you're scaring me."
"I'm sorry, but I'll call you again soon but not right now. I promise I'm okay. Bye Cas." He hung up dramatically, leaving Cassie still clutching the phone to her ear. She was confused and suddenly thrown into a fearful state of mind. She'd just gotten a call from Craig explaining to her that he wasn't going to be around for a while and when she'd tried to probe to get more information as to why he refused to crack. She had to admit it was unlike him to call whenever he was about to disappear off the face of the earth. Commonly, he would just go ahead and do his thing only to return weeks, months after at either her job or place.
His behaviour was becoming more bizarre as time went by and it left her wondering if he was either doing drugs again or in trouble.
Ever since childhood, they have incessantly been each other's confidant and best friend and it was probably why Cassie was the only one who saw Craig often and also why he told her things that not even their parents knew, like his drug abuse era.
She'd managed to be the one to help her brother out of his mess without ever causing their parents or other siblings to suspect a thing, but now she felt like Craig was either doing it again and hanging around the same shitty friends or just needed even more space.
Why he would need more space than he already had was a mystery and that probably that even it but she gave him the benefit of the doubt.
Sighing while placing her phone back into her purse, Cassie tried to clear her mind for a few seconds before going back to work. It was a busy one around the office but she had time for brother, she would always have time for him which was why she ended up taking a few good minutes to gather her composure before being able to do anything.
Just shortly after the somewhat disturbing phone call, Cassie felt a headache coming on simply because she had started worrying over her brother. What had Craig gotten himself into she questioned, a frown beginning to form on her face?
Throughout the hours she spent at her desk in work Cassie contemplated her brother's strange behaviour. She wanted to tell someone but didn't quite know who. She couldn't tell their parents, no; they would both probably die from heart attacks if she were to mention why she was concerned for Craig. Then she nor her brother would never ever able to hear the end of it and despite their parents being very laid back and genuinely tolerable, there were some things that didn't quite cut the list and drugs was one of them.
She also couldn't tell Bran because he simply wouldn't care. He was always wrapped up in his own little world to care much about anything unless it was food. The only other person that came to mind that Cassie knew she could trust and that they wouldn't say anything was Brie. Quite like the relationship she had with Craig, Brie was very trustworthy and easy talk too which made her the perfect candidate to express her concerns too but she was sceptical. She didn't think Craig would want her telling their little sister about his dilemmas, because if he did he probably would've allowed Brienna to know the more important things.
Most of the day in the office went by in a blur for Cassie. Her mind was in the gutters, she felt lethargic and out of it and desperately needed her bed so as soon as she left work, Cassie headed straight for her apartment.
On the way there she tried ringing Craig back to have a better conversation with him where he wouldn't be forced to lie. All she wanted was to have him express how he felt and if he was hiding anything but he never answered his phone. She grew even more anxious and worried and her earlier thought about making Brie aware came flooding back and she finally made up her mind to do it but she needed to see her sister in order too. Cassie didn't want to talk about it over the phone because there were some things that she needed to explain to Brie that might have taken a while.
It wasn't the best thing to do though, telling Brie but it was better than keeping the whole thing bottled up eating her away inside. Cassie needed to vent and she acknowledged it. The more she contemplated the conversation she had with Craig the stronger that urge was.
