Dilemmas

08

Luckily, the weekend followed after that. And so Shaun managed to forget about Kaden, the kissing, and all the other shit that happened in the past few days.

Just for a while anyway.

Now Shaun lay on his bed, looking at the ceiling. He could still feel Ryan's lips pressing his even if it was over. And he could still feel his bare chest.

The memory was coming back to him. "Shit."

Shaun tossed and turned on his bed. "Shit, shit, shit. . .I can't fucking forget it."

He started pulling his hair. "Just forget it already!" he shouted.

Then there was a knock on the door downstairs. Shaun froze for a second.

"Hello?" he heard a familiar voice.

Shaun peered from the window and in front of the house, he saw a boy standing in front of the door.

"Caleb?" he called out.

Caleb looked up and saw Shaun there. "Shaun? What are you doing there?"

"Wait there! I'm going down."

Shaun looked away and got out of the bed. That was when he stepped on something that made him jump in pain.

"Fuck!" he yelled. Shaun looked down and saw a Lego piece. He picked it up and tossed it behind him.

He went downstairs and opened the main door. And there he saw his face.

Caleb was wearing a white shirt with black jogging pants. He wore his black and white Adidas, which Shaun remembered him bragging about it days ago. His hair was neatly trimmed and for some apparent reason, Caleb smelled good.

"Dude," Shaun said. "did you put cologne today?"

"No," he responded. "Why are you asking that?"

Shaun just gestured for him to get in the house. Instantly, Caleb plopped down on the couch. It made a sound. Shaun walked to the kitchen, getting a glass.

"What are you doing here?" Shaun asked as soon as he gave the glass of water.

Caleb drank it. "Thanks," he muttered. "I just wanted to visit you, you know. Just checking on how your new school was and all that."

Shaun got butterflies again. It was like he was talking to Kaden himself.

"It was. . .shitty," he replied. "You know Jason right?"

The atmosphere seemed to become even colder. Shaun dreaded this. "Yes. Why?" Caleb replied.

"Looks like he got a fancy twin," Shaun sighed. "Another Pride."

"Holy shit," Caleb muttered. "True?"

"Yeah," Shaun said. "And he's—actually, he's fine, but—"

"I don't trust Jason," he said coldly. "If he has a twin, then I don't trust him either."

"I mean Kaden's been dormant so far!" Shaun exclaimed. "I talked with him yesterday and he seemed fine." He sighed. "But you have a point at least. I couldn't trust him, especially when he told me that Kaden helped in smuggling the drugs into school last year."

"Then now we can do something about it!" Caleb exclaimed. "We can, um—"

"He's sorry about it," Shaun continued. "which I find very strange."

Caleb paused. "He's sorry?!" Then he laughed. "I don't trust him. Kaden's weak. We can finally get even with him."

"I'm not sure if that's a good idea. . ."

"It is a good idea!" he exclaimed, standing up from his seat. "We can abuse him so that—"

Shaun stood up. "No!"

"Why are you defending him?!"

"Just because one is a bad guy doesn't really mean that the other is also a bad guy! What if this Kaden was good all this time?"

"No one knows what's good and what's bad anymore," Caleb hissed. "The lines in between are blurred. What if Kaden was actually a traitor to you, just like Jason? Could you trust him now?"

Shaun opened his mouth to speak but he pressed on. "Even the most innocent look hides the darkest of secrets, Shaun. So just because Kaden looks innocent doesn't mean he is innocent. Why don't you think about it?"

Then he walked past Shaun, leaving him to stand there. A second later, he heard the door close behind him.

•

Shaun now lay on his bed again. He was shirtless and the sun was starting to burn on his skin. He'd been like that for a few minutes straight, unmoving and not wanting to move.

He thought of the conversation with Caleb a while ago. His words burned in Shaun's head, as if the sun found its way into his brain. What if Kaden was a traitor to you, just like Jason? Could you trust him now? Just because Kaden looks innocent doesn't mean he's innocent.

Shaun groaned and buried his face under the pillow. "He has the point!" he screamed on it, making his voice muffled. "Why the fuck would I think that Kaden's a good guy?! I'm so stupid."

Now his back was exposed to the heat. Shaun stayed in that position for a few more minutes. "Ugh."

Then he sat up and exited the room.

•

Shaun tore open the bag of Lays and plopped down on the couch, the same couch where Caleb sat on. Then he stuffed some in his mouth.

He snickered, remembering the time Caleb would be one snarfing the entire package into shreds, if he gotten his hands on it.

But he wasn't here now. Shaun heaved a sigh. And the snicker melted away quickly.

He thought about the crazy week. Kaden Pride. The kiss. Caleb and his argument. Only one thought plagued him above all others.

Is Kaden on my side, or on his?

Is he really innocent?

Or is he a cunning and manipulative demon like his dead twin?

Shaun lost his appetite. He stopped eating the chips and left them on the table, and went upstairs.

He was sure. He won't be able to sleep tonight.