What started with a random number (BXB) (GAY)

Familiar faces

Sitting in the backseat of the quiet car--the silence only ever being broken by the occasional 'wow' from Adeline when a relatively cool car drove by--Emory had only two things on his mind. 

First and foremost, he needed to make sure Adeline got a good home. Not just a safe place for her to reside but a real home with a family who cared about her and loved her like a real daughter. 

Although he didn't personally know the girl, and he had just met her roughly an hour ago, he still felt for her and knew what it was like to go through such things with someone who's supposed to provide you comfort and care. 

Secondly, however, Red was on his mind. Specifically, the incident following the makeshift 'proposal,' including the ring. 

It wasn't something Emory wanted on his mind, the closeness and supposed romanticness of it all. 

He hated every second of it.

At least, that's what he told himself. 

For as long as he lived, he would deny having any attraction toward Red, even though some parts of him may say the opposite, such as his thoughts often having to do with Red. Or how he often gets flustered when there's any sort of intimacy--although he'd never admit it, even with how obvious it is. 

He glanced over at Adeline, who had her head resting against the window with a blank expression plastered across her face. 

She seemed tired and was no longer watching the cars zoom by. Her eyes closed every so often, but she immediately opened them again, glancing around after she did so, almost in a way that suggested she was afraid to fall asleep in the car. 

"You tired?" Emory asked lowly to Adeline, whose eyes frantically shot over to him as she shook her head quickly. 

"No, I'm just- I'm not tired," She responded hastily, instantly sitting up straighter in her seat, still staring at Emory. 

Emory nodded his head slowly and sighed slightly before speaking again. "If you're tired, you can take a nap, though." 

Adeline paused for a second, lowering her brows into a calmer expression. "I can?" 

Nodding once more, Emory looked at the time on his phone. "We'll be at the station in 10 minutes. If you want, you can try to get some sleep, and I'll wake you up when we get there." 

Without another word, the girl laid her head against the window again, this time deliberately closing her eyes. She seemed to fall asleep almost instantly, leaving the car quieter than before now that Adeline was out cold. 

Red looked through his rearview mirror at Adeline, then let his eyes travel over to Emory, who was staring at her. 

"I'll make sure she gets a good place to stay. I'll run a background check on the family she gets assigned," Red offered as he turned his attention back to the road.

Changing his attention from Adeline to Red, Emory responded with, "Yeah, um, thanks, I guess," 

"You guess? Do I not just get a full 'thank you'?" Red scoffed, shaking his head slightly as he rolled down the window and flipped off the person behind him for honking. 

Why they honked? Because Red almost hit a pedestrian crossing the road when he was going 60 MPH on a 30 MPH road. 

"No, you don't get a full 'thank you.'" Emory replied, rolling his eyes as he leaned his head back against the headrest of his seat. 

"Oh, yeah, and how about the 50 grand I spent on you today? Do I get a thanks for that?" 

"Well, I didn't want any of the shit you bought me." 

"You gonna speak like that in front of the girl? With that foul mouth?" 

Emory glanced at the girl quickly before responding, "She's asleep. Obviously, I won't talk like that when she wakes up." 

"You really change your attitude around her. I wouldn't expect you to be good with kids." 

"I just feel bad for her," Emory started, sighing before he continued. "It sucks having a dad like that, and apparently, her mom's on vacation or some shit. It's obviously some stupid ass lie told by her father, but she's seven, she doesn't know that." 

Red nodded, sliding his hand up and down the steering wheel. "Well, my mother left when I was four, so," He simply stated.

Emory opened and closed his mouth, looking for words. "You don't have to be so fucking blunt about it. Damn, you say it as if it was just a random woman." 

"She basically was a random woman. I barely have any memories of her. I don't know where she went, and she was ugly anyway. I don't need her in my life, and she obviously didn't want me in hers, so there's no reason for me to be upset about it or anything." 

With a roll of his eyes, Emory responded, "I didn't know we were trauma dumping." 

"What's the deal with you and your parents?" 

Emory paused. He looked down at his lap and ran a hand over his scarred knuckles, feeling them for a second before glancing back up. "Um," He paused again. He saw through the windshield that they had arrived at the station, so he took that as an opportunity to withhold information about his mom and father. "Oh, we're here, looks like we don't have enough time for that story." 

He got out of the car after tapping Adeline on the shoulder lightly and leading her out. She stood by Emory nervously, hesitant to start walking in. 

Glancing down to her, he reassuringly told her, "They're gonna help you, and then they'll find your daddy and make sure he doesn't hurt you again." 

She nodded, holding her hand out for Emory to hold. He took her hand in his and turned to look at Red, waiting for him to get out of the car.

"Em, I can't go in there. Have you forgotten that I'm currently a fugitive?" Red stated, waving Emory off with his hand, simultaneously gesturing for him to go inside. 

Emory rolled his eyes in response but soon led the girl inside the police station. He walked her up to the front desk and explained to the lady that he had found this girl after she had been abused by her father. 

The woman called paramedics to come to check up on the girl for injuries and then brought Emory to a different room for a statement. 

He was sat in the dimly lit room with a small couch and a large desk in front of it. He sat on the couch, leaning back as he put an arm along the backside of it. 

Running a hand through his hair, he exhaled slowly as he stared at the door, waiting for someone to enter. He swallowed roughly and moved his hand to run over his chest before placing it on his lap. 

After what felt like an hour, a man finally walked in. He was tall, probably around 6'2", and had a blonde buzzcut. 

Emory immediately slumped down against the sofa, dragging both of his hands down his face. 

"Rosewood?" The officer immediately questioned, his dark brown eyes narrowing instantly as he stopped short, directly in front of Emory. 

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AUTHOR'S NOTE: Can't stop the streak now. What is it? Seven days? Let me cook this shit up, ya'll. But once I lose the streak, I will probably not post again for at least a month... but that's okay! (No, it's not.) 

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