Capture-Bonding

Chapter 3

The trip to the store is filled with Brad asking Lauren about "the plan". He's been stopping by for the last few days and is just now bringing it all up. Lauren knows her father had filled Brad in on everything, so she isn't sure why he's fucking grilling her.

He wants to know things about Cabello, too—things he has no business asking about. It's off-putting, but Lauren knows it's because he probably feels threatened. He shouldn't though, because it's not like her and Cabello are friends. Yeah, they chat and stuff—well, Cabello chats, mostly—and it's nice to pass the time in that boring fucking house, but she's not fraternizing with her father's enemy's daughter... or whatever the case may be. Lauren is pretty sure Cabello doesn't even know who Lauren actually is, but once she finds out, Lauren's sure she'll regret playing along so nicely.

Brad's just convinced Cabello's friendliness is some ploy to pull the wool over Lauren's head.

Lauren sighs. Brad's her best friend and all, but Jesus Christ he had his moments of pissing Lauren off.

"Look, Brad, can you just shut the fuck up for, like, five minutes, please? You're giving me a headache," she barks, grabbing her backpack from the backseat of Brad's car as they pull up to the market just outside of town.

He immediately snaps his mouth shut after squeaking out, "Sorry, Laur."

Upon entering, they grab a cart, and Brad insists he pushes. Lauren's eyes roll on their own accord. She knows he's been in love with her for a while now—the boy is anything but subtle—and sometimes it gets under Lauren's skin. Most girls fawn all over him, and while Lauren admits he's a handsome guy, he's just always been more of a brother to her.

They shuffle through the aisles, grabbing things to snack on for the next few days, as well as picking up the few items Dal and Desi gave her money for—which was mostly alcohol. Lauren didn't mind them getting drunk because they usually passed out after a few drinks, and Lauren appreciates the two men a lot more when they're unconscious.

Once Lauren checks to make sure they've got everything, she shoos Brad away, taking the cart from him. "Go wait in the car."

He looks at her, puzzled by her actions.

"Why? I'm the only one who can buy the alcohol," he counters, clearly not wanting to be brushed off so nonchalantly.

"I've got it, Brad," she seethes through her teeth.

After another moment of hesitation, Brad relents and stalks off toward the exit.

"Is everyone around me a fucking idiot?" Lauren mumbles to herself as she leads the cart to the bakery section.

She observes her options carefully before picking up a boxed, single slice of chocolate cake. Lauren bites her lip, staring at the cake in her hand.

She's such a fucking idiot. What kind of kidnapper does what their victim asks of them? What kind of twisted fucking world is Lauren living in?

She shakes her head at herself, but places the cake in her cart anyway. Her last stop in the store is in the refrigerated section. Lauren grabs a bottle of whole milk—Cabello looks like a whole-milk-kind-of-girl, right?—and heads for the checkout. Lauren fills the conveyor belt and waits for the cashier to finish scanning everything.

The woman gets to the beer and vodka and raises a brow at Lauren.

"I.D.?" She asks with a raised brow.

Lauren fishes her wallet out of her backpack and produces her fake driver's license. It says she's a year older than her real one, and she's glad she only has a few more months of having to use her fake. Lauren might be a born-and-raised criminal, but lately, she's been trying to live a more honest lifestyle.