Chapter two

After thinking to myself for quite some time, I walked back into Shanay's room and sat on the bed. She was no longer going through her magazine; instead she was on the phone, presumably to her boyfriend, Hayden. I flopped onto the bed in a daze while Shanay continued her phone conversation.

"Would you really?" she asked with a seductive smile. She lay back on the bed and twirled her hair around her index finger. I heard Hayden's profound voice on the other end and she giggled. "So where would you put it?" Hayden chuckled through the phone and said something else—probably something dirty—causing Shanay to laugh once more. "Yeah, then I'd lick it off-"

"Okay that's enough," I said loudly. Sometimes I had to remind her that there were others in the room. She was always in her own little world when it came to her boyfriend. That's all well and good, but I'd rather they have their pillow talk when I'm not around.

Shanay rolled her eyes. "I'm gonna go now, babe. We clearly have a hater." I gave her the finger and she laughed before saying bye and hanging up. "How did it go with Leon?"

I shrugged. "He says she was his cousin."

Shanay raised a brow. "Cousins don't kiss on the mouth."

I regarded her silently for a moment. Either Shanay was extremely blind or Leon is lying to me.

"I won't get into it now, Shan. We're gonna talk about it when I see him next."

Shanay looked angry now. "Was he calling me a liar?"

Yes. "No, Shan. I'm just trying to be civil. Thanks for letting me know. I'll be sorting him out soon."

She visibly relaxed and nodded. "I hope so. I know what I saw."

I shrugged and turned back to her computer to log onto her user. Once it loaded I went onto Facebook and accepted a couple friend requests then commented on some pictures. I could hear Shanay talking but I wasn't paying the slightest bit of attention to what she had to say. I would just "hm" and "is it?" whenever I needed to.

"...only if you're sure," she finished off.

"I'm sorry, what?" I replied, turning to her again.

Her eyebrows knitted together. "Were you listening to me?"

"No."

She rolled her eyes. "Forget it, Becc's."

I laughed and faced the screen again. I went onto Leon's page and saw his beautiful display picture staring back at me. Seriously, he was a fine work of art. Leon had smooth chocolate skin, big brown eyes and the thickest lips that I loved to bite on. I couldn't believe he was all mine ... well, I hope.

I looked at his profile and came across a message that caught my eye instantly. I read it over and over again trying to take it in.

Had fun yesterday
Can't wait to see u again
Olivia xx

Had fun yesterday, huh? I pondered on what 'Olivia' might mean by that and began to dread the worst.

"Shan, I'm going. I'll call you yeah?" I announced, standing up and slipping on my Vans.

She raised an eyebrow. "Why, what's wrong?"

"Need to sort something out. I'll fill you in later."

"Alright then." We both left her room and I quickly said my goodbye's, kissing Corey on his chubby cheeks before leaving.

As soon as I got back home I shouted hello to Dad and ran straight upstairs to my room. I plonked down on the bed, my mind and body completely numb. None of this made sense. Leon knew exactly what it was like to get cheated on (that's how his previous relationship ended) so why would he do the same thing to me? Why did he feel the need to lie to me? How did he and Olivia get this close? Was she always around and I just didn't notice?

I just wanted to know the truth.

Not wanting to prolong this any further, I reached for my phone and called him but he busied the call straight away. I screwed immediately. Obviously, I'm a mug for him to treat me this way. I kissed my teeth and gave up after four tries. Opting for the next best thing, I grabbed my laptop from under my bed and went onto Facebook. After clicking on that Olivia's profile and scanning her profile picture, my suspicions grew. She was your ordinary basic girl. Her profile picture consisted of a close-up selfie with her in a bikini and her tongue sticking out. I was getting even more pissed off.

I took it upon myself to check if Leon had commented on any of her pictures. Sure enough, in every album, his name popped up underneath with hearts and the occasional lovestruck face.

So he was being very public about his affection towards her. Yep, I'm definitely a prick.

I sighed and rubbed my temple, trying to remain calm. I was too young for this type of stress; Leon wasn't worth this drama at all. Who would've thought one boy could get me like this?

I went onto my profile and checked my messages and applications, then I realised my relationship status had changed. It no longer said "In a relationship." It now said "Single." I raised an eyebrow in bewilderment. I don't remember changing it. I quickly went onto Leon's page to see "Leon is now engaged to Olivia Babes."

My eye twitched.

Oh, I see...

I grabbed my phone and called Shanay. After a few rings, she answered.

"That was quick. Everything alright?"

"Listen. I'm on the verge of losing my sanity and killing someone."

"What's up?"

"Facebook. Leon. Relationship status. Olivia. Bitch."

She fell silent and managed to piece it together. "Swear down?"

"Mm. Funny right?"

She sighed. "I did tell you, Becc's. But keep calm. I know how you get when you're angry."

"What do you mean? I'm not angry. I'm fine," I muttered through gritted teeth.

"Are you sure they're not friends?"

"Friends don't get engaged as far as I'm concerned."

She hummed in thought but said nothing.

"You know what's funny about all this? He isn't answering my calls. He keeps sending it to busy, like I'm a prick."

Shanay sighed. "He's definitely mocking it. You spoke to him not long ago so it's not like he doesn't have his phone on him."

I kissed my teeth. "Some heads are gonna start rolling soon."

"But this can't be right though."

I paused at her distant tone. "What?"

"Look at the girl's profile. What's her full name on it?"

I clicked back to the harlot's page. "It just says 'Olivia Babes'."

"What does her profile picture look like?"

With disgust, I analysed her picture once again. "She's in a yellow bikini showing breast and sticking her tongue out."

"What about her hair?"

I raised an eyebrow at the questions. "Detective Shan?"

"Just tell me."

"She's wearing a lace wig." Wouldn't mind dragging it off her head and strangling her with it.

Suddenly Shanay gave a dramatic gasp. "Oh shit, I know her!"

My eyes narrowed. "Who is she?"

"Tyreece's girl."

Tyreece? As in Shanay's own cousin, Tyreece? "So not only is Leon playing me, but she's playing Leon?"

"Looks so."

I laughed abruptly. This was brilliant. "I'll call you back yeah?"

"Okay, bye."

I locked off and stared at the picture some more, hatred brewing in my chest. Thing is, she was really pretty, and probably had a lot going for her, but I don't condone cheating, and she was ruining her own relationship as well as mine. That's something she has to pay for. But first I need to deal with Leon. There was no way he was getting away with this; asking me to trust him when he was carelessly running around with this bitch, and lying about it, no less! I watched Olivia's profile and made my decision: Request as Friend.

*

The following morning I woke up feeling drowsy and worn out. I got out of bed and went straight into the shower before Kieran or Andre could get there first. While scrubbing my body, Leon clouded my thoughts. Surely the situation couldn't be as black and white as him just cheating on me. There had to be more, and I want to get to the bottom of this. I'll crack the case and then crack his skull. I'll be Sherlock Holmes if need be.

I finished up and brushed my teeth before heading back to my room to get changed into comfortable house clothes. I decided I would whip up some breakfast and dug out some bacon, eggs, bread and beans. It was early afternoon. Usually, at these times we would be heading to church, but things have changed over the past few months. Kieran wasn't bothered, Andre became too lazy to wake up on time, and dad was too occupied with work. I didn't mind either way. As long as my faith in the Lord remained strong, nothing else mattered.

I sang quietly to myself as I waited for my food to heat up. In hindsight, I should've asked everyone else in the house if they wanted some food, but no one ever did the same for me, plus everyone in the house is grown; they can look after themselves. I poured some apple juice into a glass and sipped it as I waited patiently. I heard someone enter the kitchen and without turning around, I said: "Hey, Andre."

"How did you know it was me?"

I turned to see how shocked he appeared. I tapped my nose and went back to the food. When you live in a household with the same people for a long time, you get to know their footsteps and the unique sounds they made. Andre still didn't notice this, and he was always scared when I greeted him without looking.

He sat down at the table and rubbed his hands together. "What we having?"

I laughed. "We? You're funny."

He immediately screwed. "That's mad selfish, y'know."

My food was now ready. I dished it onto a plate with my apple juice and walked to the door. Then I slowly turned to him. "Learn to cook then." I grinned at him and went into the living-room, sitting on the sofa and digging into my lunch.

Soon Dad came down the stairs rubbing his eyes and yawning loudly. Jesus, all the males in this house were terrible when they first woke up. I smiled at him regardless and he nodded me a good morning in return before heading to the kitchen. I felt a vibration in my pocket and read the text.

— Afternoon babe,
Is it alright if I come urs?

I narrowed my eyes and took a deep breath before replying.

— Yh sure, come

He replied instantly.

— Cool see u soon

My mood instantly dropped. Now he wanted to play the happy couple when he didn't even answer my calls yesterday? What a wasteman. Even so, my aim was to act like everything was cool, do some thorough investigation, and then when I get enough substantial evidence, I pounce.

I stood up and went to the kitchen to put my plate away. Andre was still sat there at the table focused on his phone. I crept up behind him to see what he was doing. He had just received a text from someone named Jasmine. He opened it and that's when I snatched his phone from him and ran out the room. I ran all the way upstairs with him chasing behind me. I reached my room and quickly shut the door, locking it before he had the chance to get in.

"Give my phone back!"

I laughed evilly and read the text.

— I'll see u at 2. Can't wait x

Well well well! I couldn't help but coo. Andre was always the sibling who kept to himself. He was the quiet type that only spoke when he felt the need to. There was a lot I didn't know about him and what he got up to on a daily basis, which was why I always felt the need to tease him and go through his phone. Privacy didn't exist in this house, especially if you were the youngest. Kieran did the same thing to me when we were little.

"Andre, you little ragamuffin," I cooed through the door. He was so cute with his little relationships that never lasted.

I felt a loud thump that rattled the door as he tried to break it in. This boy was not serious?

"Give me my phone, Rebecca!"

I laughed to piss him off even more and scrolled up in the conversation. They had already exchanged some juicy details to each other but luckily there were no nudes. "So are you and Jasmine serious or is this just a beat?" I asked through the crack of the door.

"Shut up man!"

I slid down the door and continued looking through his phone while he continued to kick at the door. I opened his media and clicked on a folder titled Jasmine. Once again, no nudes, just selfies and different shots of her. There were even pictures of them together, which I found quite cute.

"Wait, so she's your girl?" I casually asked through the door as he hissed insults. "Have you made it official? Like, do your boys know?"

"You're getting me mad now!"

I rolled my eyes and continued. Andre was lucky he found himself such a pretty young thing. She was light-skinned with lovely brown eyes and thick black hair. Hopefully they can treat each other right, but I wasn't sure if it really mattered since 14-year-olds can only be together for a day or two before shit went south.

I noticed the banging had stopped. After a few minutes, I got bored. I stood up and opened the door to see the landing completely clear. As usual, he must've given up to go and play his Playstation 3. I slid his phone out of my room before shutting my door again, opting to relax on my bed instead.

As much as Leon annoyed me, I couldn't wait to see him. With our tight schedules, it was hard to see each other often; maybe two days out of a week. I hoped that, deep down, I was just being paranoid, and Leon was actually the honest and faithful man I've grown to love over the past year.

My phone vibrated. I saw the number was Unknown and sighed. Private and Unknown calls were the bane of my existence. Like a fool, I answered anyway.

"What?"

"Wagwarn b."

My eyes rolled so far into the back of my head, I swear I could see my brain. "I'm gonna say this now, D'Paulo, you're really starting to annoy me."

He paused. "D'Paulo?"

I raised a brow. "Is that not your name?"

"Nah, it's D'Andre."

"Either way, the name is too much. Is this gonna be a thing where you call me every day until I eventually block you? Because I don't have the energy."

He laughed. "There's something about you, Rebecca. I just wanted to have a chat."

"You don't have other girls you can chat to?"

"They're not exciting or peng like you."

I groaned in annoyance and put my phone on loudspeaker before throwing it down on the bed and stuffing my head in the pillow. I've never been the type of girl to swoon at every little thing a guy says. Mostly, I didn't give men the time of day. Leon was lucky he even got a few words in before I decided he was actually worthy of my time. But this guy ... I just wasn't feeling it.

"I have a boyfriend, y'know."

The line went silent for a while. It was his time to sigh. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I didn't think I'd need an excuse to reject you, and I didn't expect you to call me every five minutes."

"Why wouldn't I? You're buff."

"It can be seen as harassment, especially if a girl doesn't show interest. Anyway, I'm going now. Delete my number."

"Nah, I think I'll keep it."

I almost threw my phone. Instead, I bit the inside of my cheek to stop myself from cursing at him. "You're sad."

He chuckled. "I'll be here when you and your man are finished."

I scoffed and hung up, feeling sick to my stomach. This is exactly why I don't give guys a chance. Who even says shit like that? Only demons.

Just then I saw a text from Leon that was sent a few seconds ago.

— I'm outside

I huffed and left my room, trudging downstairs to open the door. Leon stood leaning against the door frame wearing his favourite black Nike tracksuit, Airmax 95's and a backward Nike cap. I caught the shine of the gold chain I had bought him for his 18th birthday. He flashed a smile when our eyes locked, and I sucked in a deep breath at the sight of him.

He was so fine.

"You alright?" he asked.

I nodded, stepping aside to let him in. I shut the door behind him and gasped when he pulled me into a tight hug, his solid chest pressing against my back. His cologne made me melt; I was ready to just eat him up. Without warning, he spun me around and kissed me softly on the lips, still carrying that confident smile. His kisses were so sweet and tender, my anger and resentment were slowly washing away.

"Where are you coming from?" I asked.

He shrugged. "Work. Thought I'd pass through."

Our eyes locked once again and I looked to the floor, not wanting to get caught up in that ardent gaze of his. I was supposed to be angry! I was meant to be firm! Why was my heart racing?

Just then Andre descended the stairs, his precious phone clutched tightly to his chest. He spotted us and his eyes narrowed as he scowled at me. I smiled back at him sweetly, not even the least bit remorseful about stealing his phone earlier.

Leon greeted him regardless. "Cool Andre?"

Andre nodded before glaring at me once more and disappearing into the kitchen.

Leon turned to me. "What was that about?"

I shrugged. "No clue. Maybe puberty."

He laughed. "Are Kieran and your dad in?"

"Kieran's at his friends and Dad's gone work."

"Oh, seen."

I led him upstairs to my room and sat on the bed. Leon gave me a long, vivid stare before closing the door with his foot. He joined me on the bed and practically speared me into the mattress, climbing on top of me in an instant. I smiled weakly and looked to the side. We haven't had sex. We haven't even done foreplay in all of these months. One thing I could say about Leon was that he was so patient with me. I wasn't ready for anything sexual, and he respected that. Not to say there wasn't always a temptation, but I would always stop before things got any deeper. My issues with trust and my general apathy for life were probably the main cause of my apprehension, but for now, I wasn't ready to do anything with Leon. Especially today.

He rested between my legs and kicked his trainers off, gazing down at me with an unreadable expression. "Why do you keep looking away?"

I shrugged.

He gently held my chin and pulled it so that I could face him. "Is this about yesterday?"

"Yeah."

He released a heavy breath and played with my hair. "You said you believed me."

"I do. I think."

Leon's brows crinkled as he frowned. "I already told you what happened. When will you trust me?"

"When you unfriend Olivia on Facebook."

He paused and his body stiffened. I watched to see any nervous signs on his face. The stiff lip, the widened eyes with dilated pupils, the ragged breath ... but there was none of that. Instead, he was smirking.

"You saw that?"

I raised a brow at the question. Did he think his blatant cheating was banter? "Are you trying to piss me off? You're engaged on Facebook, of course I fucking saw."

The smirk was still there. "Are you angry?"

I kissed my teeth and used my hands to shove at his hard chest. "Get off me, Leon." His body was heavy, but that didn't stop me from trying to pry him off me. "I'm not playing, I'll actually fight you."

He gripped my wrists and pinned them down on either side of my head. Then he leaned closer and breathed hotly in my ear, "Do you hate me?"

His lips latched onto my neck and I squirmed. "I do," I muttered.

"How much?" he whispered before sucking on my neck. He rested his full weight on me now, his hips and hands keeping me in place while he took time kissing my skin.

I swallowed hard and twisted my head, trying to get away from those soft lips. Leon and I rarely argued, but whenever we did, he would always try to win me over with his kisses. Sometimes it worked, and other times it didn't. Right now, though, I was feeling heated from yesterday's events, and my body was reacting in ways I didn't want it to.

"Stop," I mumbled. raising my knees to try and shove him from below. It didn't stop him. In fact, he became more forceful, dragging his teeth along my throat and licking my collar bone.

"Why?" he asked.

"Fuck you," I grit out, shutting my eyes. "I'll kill her, y'know."

He chuckled. "You're not killing anyone, Becc's." His mouth pressed against mine and my body shuddered at the soft lips. Before I could retaliate, his warm tounge slithered in, rolling against mine. I groaned and bit his tongue, making him pull back. He glared down at me with dangerous eyes, but his smile never wavered. "Did you just try to bite my tongue off?"

I struggled against his hold on my wrists. "Next is your dick."

He started laughing and released his hold. Then he rested back on his knees, completely setting me free. I glared at him suspiciously.

"Olivia's an old family friend," he explained. "I saw her on road one day on my way home from uni. We caught up and exchanged numbers. Our mum's haven't seen each other for time so we were planning to meet up for their sake."

I hummed in thought. "Was this before or after you saw your cousin?"

He raised a brow. "What do you mean?"

"What do you think I mean? Am I speaking Sudanese? Shanay saw you with your cousin two days ago, right? But Olivia messaged you on Facebook saying she had a nice time with you that same day. What's the fucking truth?"

He sighed with a roll of his eyes. "I didn't spend time with Olivia, I only bumped into her. We were chatting for, what, five minutes? After that, I met up with my cousin."

I glanced away again, angry that my suspicions were wrong. It wasn't a bad thing, but now I just looked obsessive and stupid. "Whatever."

Leon sighed, running a hand over the waves of his hair. He rested on me again, kissing my lips softly and nudging his nose against mine. "You're sexy when you're jealous."

"I'm not jealous. I'm just..." I lost my train of thought when he bit onto my bottom lip, yanking gently. I moved my head again. "Stop. Why are you two engaged on Facebook?"

He shrugged. "I'm not sure why she sent the request. Probably as a joke to her friends."

"So why accept it?"

Leon cooed. "It doesn't make a difference, babe. Calm down, yeah?"

"Look at me. I'm calm. I just don't want to be taken for a prick."

His hand ran over my arm, making me shudder. "I wouldn't do that to you." Then he leaned in for another kiss, and this time, I reciprocated.

As we lay there with our mouths all over each other, I thought of how I could make it up to Leon. There was a very low percentage that he was actually cheating. For starters, he wouldn't make it so painfully obvious on social media. I decided that for now, I would believe this story of his about Olivia and his cousin. Hopefully, nothing else surfaces, otherwise our relationship will just be full of conspiracies.

Leon pulled away and looked me in the eye. His hand rested on my breast and squeezed gently. I raised a brow.

"You're horny already?"

He rested his face in the crook of my neck and hummed. "Maybe. I think your breasts are growing again."

I rolled my eyes and stroked his hair as he kissed my neck. "I was gonna tell you I got moved to yesterday."

Leon's head jerked up and he snarled. "By who?"

I shrugged. "Some random guy. Gave him my number, though. He's so desperate, bless him."

He slowly reclined off my body, his brows furrowed as he stared me down. "Why did you give him your number?"

"Why not? Nothing's gonna happen."

"Are you stupid, Becc's?"

I smiled. "Are you angry?"

He froze when I said his exact words from before. Then he tutted and laid beside me. "You're annoying, y'know. I'm not stooping to your level."

I laughed. "Then don't, just chill. I blocked his number," I lied.

Leon grumbled something incoherent, grabbing my waist and pulling me close to him before nuzzling his face in my chest. "I'll kill him, y'know," he whispered, copying my words like I had done to him.

I flicked his forehead and he laughed. "You're annoying."

"And you're sexy." He pecked me on the lips. "I love you, Becc's."

The sweet confession made my chest feel heavy. I shut my eyes, reveling in his warm embrace. "Me too."