never be the same | grayson dolan

twenty four

"You've got to be kidding me." Grayson angrily runs his hands through his hair.

"What are we supposed to do?" I turn back to Anthony.

"Nothing, there's nothing we can do." He sighs with defeat. "It's a good thing you're leaving in a few weeks, you actually get away from him."

"Yeah but you guys won't." I turn back to Grayson. You can practically see the steam emerging from his face.

"There's no way I'm going to be able to see him around town knowing what he did." Grayson begins to pace around the kitchen.

"Let's tell his parents." I suggest.

"They aren't going to believe him, they're clueless and would need proof. It's his word against ours." Anthony crosses his arms over his chest.

"He drugged me and forced himself onto me, he can't get away with that!" My voice booms with anger as I protest the idea.

"Who found roofies in his backpack?" Grayson looks back at Anthony.

"I have no idea, but it won't matter now. That happened a year ago. He's going to deny it."

"Why did his brother press charges on him? What did he do?" I forcefully ask.

"Apparently it involved drugs but I don't know the full story." Anthony shrugs.

"This is just great." I mumble and bury my face into my hands.

"Where does he live?" Grayson aggressively asks.

"A few blocks over, toward the end of town." Anthony states.

"Why can't he just stay away from us?" Grayson leans his back against the fridge.

"Cause he thinks everything is a sick game to him. I don't know what caused him to act this way, he never used to be like this." Anthony's voice is filled with hurt and humiliation.

Everything was fine when Ben was around last summer. We all got along really well and he never seemed creepy around me. I have no idea what caused him to change.

"He's obsessed with Madison." Grayson motions toward me. "He's not going to leave her alone."

"We saw him today." I close my eyes as the memory.

"Where?" I hear Anthony ask.

"At the grocery store, he was talking on the phone with somebody." I open my eyes and place my hand to my forehead. I have a massive headache. "He's planning on doing something but I don't know what."

Anthony shakes his head with a disapproving laugh. "Of course he is. He can never leave it alone."

"I called him out on stalking me last summer." I blurt out with a sigh.

"What!" Grayson exclaims. "Why would you do that?"

"Cause he needed to know he didn't get away with taking pictures of me." My skin crawls at the thought.

"Shit. What did he say after that?" Anthony glances over to me.

"He said he didn't know what I was talking about. He also said that I can't ignore him forever." My head reels with this information.

"See? He's already denying everything." Anthony exhales a sharp breath.

"Am I gonna see this asshole in school?" Grayson looks directly at Anthony who laughs in his face.

"Of course not, he graduated like three years ago."

I completely forgot that Anthony and Grayson are in school together.