Never Too Late

Chapter Twenty Seven

The air was misty from the recent evening rain, and people shuffled down the streets on their way home, which made the atmosphere stuffy, but Johan was walking the other direction with determination, barely noticing the people bumping into him. The directions he was given led him to an unfinished building at the end of a block, and although he hesitated at first, he went inside, unable to hold back his anticipation.

"Asher?" He called and waited. He hadn't told anyone where he was going, and his parents didn't know he had left the house, so he felt a bit of unease because he could tell someone was in the building.

"Hey, long time no see," Asher said, walking out from the doorway behind him.

Johan jumped forward in surprise before greeting his best friend warmly with a hug.

"Looks like I scared you," Asher said before he led him to one of the rooms, which was lightly furnished, before they sat across from each other.

"Where have you been?" Johan said, getting right into what he wanted to ask. "No one has seen you for months, what happened?!"

"I could ask you the same thing," Asher said, sitting and assessing Johan's attire. "I thought you were working in a shipyard somewhere."

"A lot of things have happened since my birthday, you won't believe it!" Johan went on to tell him all the things that transpired since he was away and how life had taken a turn for the better for him.

"I'm happy for you," Asher said as he took a sip from a can of beer. "Thank God, I was so worried about you." Asher released a deep breath, and Johan saw a look of relief wash over his friend's face.

"Is everything okay? What happened to you?" Johan inquired after realizing he still didn't have any answers from Asher.

"Johan," he said in a voice more serious than he was used to. "I'm not planning to stick around for long, but I'm glad I got to see you again," Asher said, getting up and stretching.

"Why? What about your house and your cousin?" Johan recalled and wondered if any of his friends knew of his return.

"Don't worry about it, I have a lot of things to do and stuff going on, that's all," Asher said nonchalantly, but Johan could tell there was a lot on his mind.

"My dad has a company and a lot of friends, I'm sure if I ask him for a favor, he could get you a job." Johan offered. "That way you wouldn't have to move around, and it's the least I could do since, without you helping me, I wouldn't have found my parents."

In that moment, memories from Johan's childhood flashed across his mind. Asher had randomly asked him to play football with him, and although he was three years younger and terrible at it, he kept cheering him on and passing the ball to him. At that point in his life, it was the first time he felt accepted and had someone to call a friend, so he wanted him to meet his new friends, his brother, and the rest of his family.

"Thanks for the offer, but I think it's too late for me," Asher smiled sadly. "I'm just glad fate dealt you a better hand. You know, I was worried that you were working yourself to the bone to survive, so I'm glad to see you're doing okay."

Johan didn't know what to say as, in his excitement, he hadn't realized how haggard his best friend looked. His eyes were puffy, his hair disheveled, and he had stubble on his face. This was not how he usually carried himself, and from the numerous beer cans lying on the ground, it was clear that Asher had more things to worry about than his appearance.

"Hey," Asher said after a moment, locking his brown eyes with Johan's. "Do me a favor, will you?"

"Sure, what is it?" Johan asked curiously.

"Don't tell anybody you saw me," Asher said, smiling sadly.

***
Johan returned home as the evening began drawing to a close. He didn't know what to make of his encounter with Asher, but he didn't want to give up on trying to help him. He had never seen him look so despondent, and he regretted not being able to convince him to take his offer, but he planned on trying again. However, at the back of his mind, he wondered why Asher wanted no one to know where he was.

Upon reaching his driveway, he went around to the back of the house to slip in undetected, but as soon as he went through the door, he saw that his father was waiting for him.

"So I finally caught you in the act," his father said, crossing his arms, and Johan froze, unable to think of a solution that would get him out of trouble.

"I'm sorry," he said, deciding it would be pointless to lie. "I know I should've said something before leaving."

"Really? You haven't been saying anything all those other times you skipped school." His father pressed, and Johan felt instantly mortified.

Had Luke lied about covering for him?

Johan became so mad he wanted to kick his brother's ass as soon as he saw him. The betrayal!

"I believe it has been three times so far, am I right?" His father continued. "If your grades hadn't been so good, the principal would've suspended you. Luckily, he called me first and told me to warn you."

"The principal?" Johan said, breathing a sigh of relief, his brother would live another day, he thought, and smiled to himself.

"Don't look so relieved, you're not out of trouble." His father said before walking into the living room. Johan followed, dreading that he would tell his mother and they would both punish him severely.

"Dad, can we keep Mom out of this? I don't want to upset her." Johan pleaded with his father, and Jacob nodded.

"Sure, but only if you invite her over." His father proposed before smiling mischievously.

"What, who?" Johan asked, confused.

"Your girlfriend; did you think I didn't notice you smelled like women's cologne on those days you were supposed to be at school?" His father laughed, and Johan instantly realized he was talking about Liz.

"It's not like that," Johan tried to cover, but his father saw right through him.

"Your mother and I would love to meet her, so you don't have to run around and hide anymore." His father reassured him.

"Oh, alright. I'll bring her over one of these days." Johan agreed, and his father nodded in approval.

***
~Sorry for the infrequent uploads.