The bad and the broken

chapter 10

*Justin's POV*

Sweating. Why were my palms so sweaty? We hadn't even left yet. I needed to man up. I was waiting at the front door. Drea had promised we didn't have to stay at the event long, but my stomach was still churning at the thought of being there. There would be so many people, people who were smarter than me. People who could do much better things for Drea's future. All I was was a trouble maker, and that's all I'd ever be. Earlier, Drea showed me the list of colleges she'd already been accepted to. Princeton was on that list. Goddamn Princeton! I'd be lucky if a community college accepted me. Even though it hurt, I had to face the fact that Drea wouldn't always be part of my life. In two months, I'd have a court date , where I'd be tried as a legal adult. I'd probably never even see her again.

Just then, my phone buzzed. I instantly got a bad feeling about it. I had never responded to my mother's earlier text, but I read it.

Hey Justin! It's mommy. I'm in the area, meet up?

This recent one was more straight forward.

I'm only here for two days, I really want to see you.

I realized that it was time to handle the situation. I wasn't a little kid anymore. I wasn't afraid of her. So I wrote my response quickly, trying to finish because Drea would be ready soon.

Hey. Can't meet up. Please stop contacting me.

I sighed, grateful to have it off my chest. Hopefully she would listen, and not try and track me down. Most guys actually want their mother to meet the girl in their life, but not me. Not when my mom was like this. She probably only wanted to see me so she could get more money for drugs.

I began to wonder how she even got my number in the first place. Then remembered. When I went into the system, my mother technically wasn't deemed unfit to take care of me. It was my father. My mother had a steady job, even though it was as a stripper, and a shitty apartment with only one general living space, but it was still a place to call home. So after they arrested my father on battery and assault charges, I lived with my mom for a few months. Then she just decided that she was a bad influence or whatever, and she wanted me to grow up in a steady environment. So she still had my contact information, and was probably notified when it changed. Whoever had that dumb idea deserved to rot.

"Justin?"

Startled, I looked up at the staircase. Drea was standing there, in a floor length evening gown that was the color of soft champagne. It was strapless and form-fitting, accentuating her curves nicely. Her gorgeous hair was pulled over to one side, the dramatic movie star curls framing her face elegantly. She was wearing eyeliner and a nude lipstick, which really brought out her eyes. I stared up at her, speechless.

"Do you like it?" she asked nervously. "I don't want to look like I'm trying to hard." She gave that adorable, dorky smile i noticed she did when she felt embarrassed.

"Of course, Drea, it's gorgeous. You look absolutely stunning." I winked at her. She rolled her eyes at me, and started down the stairs.

"Thanks, Justin. But we have to go. The limo is outside waiting."

"Limo? We get our own limo?"

"Not exactly. It'll be us and most of the kids attending from this part of town." She had made it down the stairs, and was putting on her wrap.

"Drea, you never said we had to share a ride with a bunch of stuck up smart kids." I complained, adjusting my tux.

"They're not stuck up. They're intellectuals." Drea giggled. "Now lets go, we don't want to keep them waiting. She grabbed my arm and pulled me out into the cool Oakland evening.

*Andrea's POV*

Riding in the limo with Justin had been kinda nice. I held his hand to keep him calm, and there were so many kids that we were practically sitting on top of each other. I loved the feel of his flexed muscles, and the way he was stoking my hand. He subconsciously did a lot of things that I found cute. Like when I was looking out the window, I noticed him staring at me, for the second time, and I just about melted. Then, he moved a stray hair from my face. His long, artistic, fingers brushing my skin gave me shivers.

But now, we were at the event. It was going to be a long night. I had to touch face with a lot of people, and still manage to get out before Justin had a panic attack. I decided it would be best to leave after the keynote speaker's speech.

As Justin helped me out of the limo, I started up at the venue. It was being held at some place called Avalon Manor, and it was super fancy. I straightened my outfit and gave Justin's hand a squeeze. He looked down at me (Even in heels, he was still about two inches taller than me) and tried to smile, but I saw right through it. The look in his eyes was one of pure terror. I instantly felt guilty for making him come. I had to keep an eye on him. If he started getting nervous, we were leaving. The professors, students, and mentors could suck it.

Inside, the time passed quickly. Justin manged to keep himself composed, as long as I was with him. I never let go of his hand. We danced together, even to the slow songs. Until we faced our first problem that night. Ricky Matthews.

"Hey, buddy, mind if I cut in?" Ricky said with a confident smile. Justin and I had been dancing to 'Stay With Me'. "Andrea and I have a special friendship."

I felt Justin's grip on my hips tighten. His muscles flexed. This wasn't good. Justin had been a fighter in other homes, and I knew from the night with Nacho that the term wasn't to be taken lightly. Beating up a white rich kid definitely wasn't going to help his trial. Justin turned to face Ricky, his arms still around me. His face was unexpectedly calm.

"Special friendship? Would you care to elaborate on the extent of this friendship?"

"Well," Ricky began, his face twisting into a grimace, '' we were together. We kissed a lot. Maybe did a little more." Ricky gave a cocky smile.

Oh god. Justin thought he knew everything about me, my whole past. He was going to be pissed. I looked up at him, but he avoided looking back. His expression was hard as nails. shit. I fucked up. He pulled his arms from around me, and started for the exit.

" Damn, Andrea, didn't tell your boyfriend about us? "Ricky looked at me, reaching out to finger one of my curls.

"Fuck off, Ricky. That was a dick move." I pulled away. "Justin, wait! Can we talk about this?" I ran after him.

He was about to reach the door, when two guards closed it and blocked his path. I heard them murmur something about keynote. At least Justin wasn't going anywhere anytime soon. The founder of the ball announced the speaker, but I missed the name. A woman in a sparkling green cocktail dress was making her way over to the podium. She had long brown hair and dazzling eyes. She was really, really short, even in heels.

"Hello. As you already know, my name is Pattie Mallete. I am a representative from the Bay Area Rescue Foundation. I know it isn't very common for someone like me to be the keynote for an event like this, but I'd like to share my story with all of you here tonight. When I was seventeen years old, I became a teen mother to a beautiful baby boy I named Justin. And I'm here to tell you that that little boy is no longer in my care. Because I was too afraid to get help when I needed it. I wan't you to know that it is never to late."

Pattie continued her speech, but I scanned the crowd for Justin. It was unsettling that he shared a name with this woman's son. Then I saw him. His face was absolutely awestruck. And just as I made the connection, I saw him mouth the word "Mommy." Oh, Fuck. This was Justin's mother, in the flesh. At least I'd finally get to meet her.

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Extra long chapter, I hope you enjoyed! Drama, all the way. Justin's pissed, and Andrea will probably be pissed when she finds out Justin didn't say anything about talking to his mom.

Also, I'm working on another story, but it probably won't be ready for a while.  Oh, and the photos above are basically what they were both wearing to the ball. :)

Don't forget to comment, vote, and follow!!1!1!

K bye,

Shaienne