Haze Bois

Chapter 5

“You’ve been busy since I left,” Jay said. He circled the bedroom, picking up the items on the desk and turning them over in his hand. He frowned and placed the box back. It had been Caleb’s reaction too. He didn't understand what half of this stuff was for. 

Luckily, Jay didn’t comment on it. Caleb was willing to bet he had other things on his mind.

“Busier than you know,” Caleb replied honestly. The voice in his head had been making some very strange requests. Some of the stuff it needed was harmless and easy to get hold of, but some of it was proving difficult. He would have to get creative.

"Pretty soon you will have a lovely assistant to help you gather the items," his new friend whispered inside his head. 

“Look, I’m not gonna bullshit you. I want you to leave the Fishers alone,” Jay said, his tone demanding. What right did he honestly think he had to demand anything of Caleb?

“Yeah,” Caleb smirked. “Why?”

“I’m sort of seeing Jade… maybe.”

Jay stared down at his feet. He seemed embarrassed about his feelings for Jade and Caleb had a sneaky suspicion he knew why. Jade's reputation wasn't exactly spotless.

“Oh, didn’t take her long did it? She was all over Steve last week,” Caleb teased him. It was cruel... but truthful. Jade had been flirting with Steve if what his cousin told him was true.

“Well she’s with me now,” Jay retorted after the briefest ripple of anger.

“No,” Caleb said. 

“Pardon?” Jay squinted. “I’ve just had to do nine months inside for you—”

“And I had to brutally torture a man for you. I’d say we were even.” Caleb replied.

Jay stood from the bed and paced. His pose and even his aura reeked of violence, but Caleb knew him well enough to know it was all an act. His brother wouldn’t hurt a fly.

After second of dramatically calming himself down, Jay sat down.

He sighed heavily.

“I like her. I told her I’d sort it.” Jay said, staring at the floor. “It’s a few hundred quid. It’s nothing. Can you not just leave her brother be? As a favor to me?”

“No.”

Jay punched at the bed and shook his head.

“When did you turn into such a little prick?” he seethed.

Caleb ignored the question. “Tell Jade, if she wants a favour from me she can ask me herself.”

“I guess we aren’t keeping up the illusion of me being in charge anymore then?” Jay threatened. “I guess you want to do your own prison time?”

Caleb laughed. Prison. He didn’t have to worry about prison or anything else for that matter.

“What happened to you?” Jay asked, shaking his head. “You used to have my back.”

“I do have your back. That girl is rubbish. She can’t go five minutes without making some sort of backhanded comment.”

“Yeah?” Jay asked after pausing for thought.

“He’s going to act like he’s choosing you over her to save face,” the voice whispered. It sounded amused. Could an AI be amused? 

“Just... don’t f**k her,” Jay asked. He looked up at Caleb, eyes pleading.

Caleb laughed so hard he made a snorting sound. “What difference would it make? Everybody else has f****d her.”

“She’s not...” Jay started to defend her and trailed off. He looked down at his hands. "She's not what everyone thinks."

“You don’t have to worry about that,” Caleb assured. “Unless you honestly think I would force a girl… or that she would want to.”

Jay stared up at again, trying to read his face presumably.

"Remind him about your childhood pranks," the AI advised.

“Do you remember when we used to prank each other?” Caleb asked, smiling. He thought back to the childhood memories with fondness. 

Jay’s face turned a pallid shade of grey.

“W- we’re a bit old for that,” Jay stuttered.

“Older than our years, as we always say” Caleb said, laughing. He placed an arm around his brother to comfort him but felt him jump at the touch.

“You can’t blame him for fearing you, after what he watched you do to your stepfather,” the voice piped up.

The fact his brother feared him did not come as a shock, exactly, but it did make Caleb feel melancholy. Sometimes he wished they were kids again.

“Come on, we have so much to discuss,” the voice urged. Caleb tousled Jay’s hair playfully before leaving him to sulk.