Deadly || Sweet Pea [2]

11

Chapter 11 || On The Road Again

The next morning, a rooster woke Archie and I up. We shared a look of disbelief when we noticed the rooster crowing beside Jughead's snoring form.

"He'll sleep through literally anything." I commented, shaking my head.

"Obviously." Archie said as the rooster crowed right at Jughead. I bit back a laugh as I headed down the barn stairs, Archie following closely behind.

"Morning." Laurie sounded, startling me. I jumped back into Archie, who caught me while smiling over at Laurie.

"Morning." He breathed, steadying me on my feet.

"Good morning." I greeted, fixing my sweatshirt. "You startled me."

"Sorry about that." Laurie laughed, waving for us to follow her. "I made breakfast."

"Cool, thanks." Archie beamed.

"Morning Drew." Gracie greeted from her seat at the already set table outside.

"Good morning, Gracie." I smiled. She smiled back momentarily, before her eyes wandered to Archie.

"Biff." She deadpanned, glaring at the redhead beside me. I snickered at the interaction, sitting beside Archie at the table.

"Where's Cal?" Gracie questioned, looking to me for an answer.

"Sleeping." I sighed. "He can sleep through just about anything. Including your rooster crowing."

"I made eggs and bacon, courtesy of the neighbors pigs and our chickens." Laurie said, handing me a plate. On it was scrambled eggs, bacon, and a piece of toast cut in half.

"Looks great." Archie beamed. I nodded and started eating, ignoring the looks shared between Archie and Laurie.

"So, Drew," Gracie spoke, sipping her orange juice. "Why are you traveling with those two guys?"

"Cal's my brother." I stated. "And Biff is an old family friend. We needed time away from home, so we set off on a little adventure."

The key to lying, especially to a child, was to give them just enough truth to make it believable. Aside from the names, and the specific reason, what I told Gracie was the truth.

"So, you're not on the run from the law?" She asked, her eyebrows raised.

"Not the law, no." I shook my head. "Just from some unsavory characters back home."

Again, not a lie. Archie was running from Hiram, and I was getting away from Sweet Pea. Gracie visibly deflated at my answer, but smiled at me nonetheless.

"Who?" Laurie asked, looking directly at me. "Who are you running from, Drew?"

"Ex-boyfriend." I answered, hardening my features at her accusatory tone.

"So you went on the road with two boys to get away from an ex?" She questioned.

"Yes." I nodded, shoving my empty plate away from me. "Come on, Biff, I'll see if I can help you with those hay bales."

"Uh, sure." Archie nodded, taking in my tense posture. "Let's go."

I followed after the redhead, heading towards a pile of hay bales stacked beside a trailer bed. Archie put on the gloves that were on the trailer and started pulling bales of hay up onto the trailer. I tried to help, but he forced me to sit on a couple of bales he stacked on the trailer, telling me that I didn't need to re-injure my ribs.

"You alright?" Archie asked, pulling his shirt off.

"I'm fine, Red." I sighed. "I just wanted to forget about him for a little longer."