DANGER WARNING ;;

one

Auden had never been a wild child.

    She was tame. Too tame, her sister would often proclaim. Izzy was as wild as a hyena, with bright eyes that burned brighter than the sun on its hottest day.

    But Auden had never been like that. Auden walked firmly on the line of rules with a high chin and eyes focused only forward. She was a straight A student, she did her chores, and she was never late for curfew.

Izzy was none of those things. Izzy gave their father headaches. They both knew that, for whenever Izzy broke a rule, their father would sigh and rub his temples. Auden had never made their father rub his temples. Izzy's face would form a sort of sneer at their father whenever he grounded her. Her world eyes would blaze with the intensity of a thousand suns. Izzy was as relentless as a hurricane, as unforgiving as a tornado.

And yet, even still, the two had a relation closer than sisterhood. They were 'soul sisters', as Izzy had once proclaimed. They didn't even each other out, nor try to persuade the other to come to the other side. They walked along the line of rules, side by side; Auden walked directly on the line, and Izzy walked beside it.

The line became dangerous when Izzy brought home a boy more handsome than any boy Auden had ever seen.

Ben was his name. It was a usual name, but there was nothing 'usual' about him. Ben had dark brown hair, curly and unruly on the top. His eyes were dark. If she hadn't once seen them up close, she would have assumed that they were just brown. But they were not 'just brown'. They were caramel. Auden was sitting on the living room floor when he first walked in, his hand tight in Izzy's as she led him through. There was a smile on her face as she led him in, as if she were a cat bringing in a dead bird just to piss off the owner.

Oh, their father would most certainly be angry about this particular dead bird.

Beyond his boyish beauty, there was a darkness about Ben. He wore tight black jeans and a faded black t-shirt--though he occasionally wore a white t-shirt when he felt like it. His trademark black boots were scuffed and old, but he wore them relentlessly.

Auden remembered watching in surprise as Izzy dragged him through the front door... not that she was too surprised. It wasn't unusual for Izzy to bring boys home just to piss off their father, but Ben was on an entirely new level. No longer were the boys scrappy-looking fifteen year olds who would eventually grow out of the stage. Ben was bad to the bone. There would be no drawing the bad out of him.

"Auden, this is Ben. Ben, Auden." Izzy introduced them swiftly, half-heartedly. That was indication enough that Ben wouldn't be sticking around for long. "Dad!" Izzy called, dropping Ben's hand as she walked to the kitchen. He strolled over to where Auden was sitting, a dark brow lifted over his eye as he looked at the homework she was working on with a less-than-impressed gaze.

Auden cleared her throat, shifting uncomfortably, "You go to Saint High, right?"

"Right." Ben's voice was gruff and almost sounded annoyed.

"You're a senior, right?" Auden pressed. There was still a scowl on his expression.

"Right."

"And you are aware that Izzy is only sixteen, right?" Auden pressed, thumbing the mechanical pencil in her hand.

At last, Ben lifted his gaze to Auden's eyes. At last, he gave a small smile, "Are you aware that you're a seventeen-year-old grandma?"

Auden jerked as if he'd struck her, blinking in clear surprise at his retort. She looked down, feeling her face going red. "Rude."

"Get used to it, angel."

"Don't call me that." Auden frowned as Izzy walked back into the room, with their father following closely behind. His eyes immediately narrowed at the sight of Ben in our living room.

Ben gave a smile that looked a lot like Izzy's... though Auden had a vague sense that Ben's sly smirk was a complete original. There was nothing about him that was a copy. He was cool, calm, and arrogantly bad.