His Effect [h.s] AU

𝐈 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐬𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭, 𝐉𝐨

"I'm fine, I promise." I say for what felt like the hundredth time. My parents were both currently home, checking up on me any chance that they could. They were still pretty much working from home but they still made the time in their busy schedule to come home.

It had been three days since the robbery and after Harry went with the police to the station, he didn't come back but I'm sure he wanted to give me some space.

Or maybe they found out about his involvement and is currently sitting in prison. A convict for an ex-boyfriend, I sure do know how to pick them.

I don't know if he was being truthful to me about how much he was involved but he most definitely knew about it and I had absolutely no idea on what to feel. Everything was sort of becoming a mess around me and this time, I couldn't control it.

My mind kept replaying Harry's words about Jaque getting drugs from Zach on loans. But if that's true, what kind of idiotic dealer gives out drugs out on a loan. What is he, a bank?

That might be a possibility because my parents had taken Jaque's credit card away after the whole rehab situation so there was no way he would've taken money out without my parents knowing about it.

"Jaque was behind this, Jo. Not me. Think about it, where is Jaque?"

As I lay my head back, I see Jaque pass through my open door probably to get to his room. "Jaque?" I call out and he stops. "Can you come in here?"

He seems to look around before coming inside and closing the door behind him. "What's up? How are you feeling?" He asks, taking a seat by my feet on my bed.

"Fine," I say. "Where were you Friday night?" I ask, jumping straight to the point. I watch as he looks at me and furrows his eyebrows in confusion but I know he knows what I was talking about.

"I was at Aubrey's, why?" His eyes look elsewhere but at me, and his fingers play with the strings of his hoodie, confirming to me that he was lying.

"Because you weren't here, and I could've sworn I heard you walking out a few minutes before everything happened." I say, remembering the event clearly. The police are still looking around the house for clues as to who might've done this.

"Are you saying I did this?" he looks as if I had just offended him.

I shrug. "I wouldn't put it past you." at this, his face turns from hurt to angry in a split second.

"So you rather believe some guy you met no less than three months ago, as opposed to your own brother?"

"Four went to testify at the police station the day of, after he came to check on me. Where were you that day? The camera's were off, that along with the security locks need a code to deactivate and no one else but you and I know them. And I sure as hell didn't do it." I bite back and he shakes his head as if he can't believe I was even considering him. "Four said you were involved in this, that this was your idea."

"Yeah? Well Four is a fucking con. He made you believe that he actually liked you to distract you and you believed him! And now you're blaming everyone else but yourself for your fucking mistakes." he spits, his eyes angry.

"Why don't you go down to the police station and give them your alibi?" I challenge. "Maybe then I'll see who to believe."

"I wasn't going to say anything," Jaque starts. "But the cops found something that belongs to Four, so I think you might want to go and see for yourself." He says and stands up making my eyebrows furrow. "You believe he's incapable of hurting you just because you caught feelings for each other? I thought you were smarter than that, Jo." he says and with that, he's out of my room.

I quickly get out of bed and rush downstairs, not caring that my head was pounding from the slight pain of my wound. When I reach the kitchen, there are cops talking to my parents and others moving back a plant where some kind of rag hid behind it.

When I took a closer look, it was Harry's navy blue bandana, the one he uses all the time at the gym.

I stop, trying to put my head around it. It couldn't be. Four must've been telling the truth, at least he seemed so convinced that he was. "Does this belong to anyone here in the house?" one asks and my parents shake their head no. I stop myself from saying a word, in fact I couldn't find the words to speak from the shock.

I watch as they place it inside a bag, probably to test it for DNA, and then that would lead to Four, and then he would be arrested, and what if he really wasn't a part of this? What if he was framed? When he was here that day he was wearing a faded red bandana, not the navy blue one.

What if that day when Thomas showed up, he took his phone and the used bandana to frame him? My mind goes back to that day, and I remember seeing a small dark cloth coming out of his jeans pocket.

Without much thought, I grab my keys and run outside, ignoring my parents asking me to go back. I quickly get in my car and drive to Four's apartment, thankful that the stop lights were almost always green and yellow.

I was relieved to see his car in it's usual parking space, and as I was parking beside it, I see him coming outside with duffel bags and putting them in his car. He notices me and furrows his eyebrows. "Jo?" He asks, surprised at my presence.

Without much thought, I run up to him, he seems to flinch a bit but recovers when I wrap my arms around his neck in an embrace, his arms soon wrap around my waist and relief washes over him. "I'm sorry I didn't believe you." I breathe out.

Four breaks the hug and looks at me. "You believe me?" he questions and I nod.

"I put everything together in my head," I say. Jaque really was a part of this, he owed Zach money, Four was supposed to be distracting me but he kept putting it off. Jaque always hated Four around me so that must've motivated him to stage the robbery while I was in the house. Jaque must've deactivated the alarms and the camera's while they were in there, and Thomas set the bandana. "They're trying to frame you."

"I know," he says and backs away from me. When I look inside his car, I see it's full of his bags. "This is all a big fucking mess, Jo. I swear I didn't mean for any of this to happen." he says, sadness evident in his tone. "They told me not to leave the country for as long as this investigation is still open, but if I don't go now, I don't think I'll ever have the chance to."

My eyes begin to pool with hot tears, everything was a mess. I just can't believe my own brother was behind this, it'll only be a matter of time until they find out and my parents try to cover it up and wipe him out of ever being a suspect. In fact, he's probably telling them about Four being involved.

"I would still love it if you came a long." Four adds and I look up to him, his eyes filled with hope. If I stay, my life would go back to it's usual normal boring self. I would go back to school, having people whisper and murmur about me and Four and if Thomas and Zach don't get arrested, I'd have to deal with them.

But if I go I'd be leaving my parents behind, but if I don't I'll be stuck babysitting the new baby and Jaque. I'll miss Madi, but maybe I can still stay in touch wherever we go.

I don't have to think of it much, I know it'd be much better with Four. I know what he did, but it all doesn't matter to me now if I get the opportunity of being free. "Okay." I say with a smile, wiping away my tears and watching as Four's face lights up in joy. He goes to hug me again, his lips pressing to mine in a kiss.

Everything made sense for once, I finally knew what I wanted. I wanted to start new with Four wherever it may be, and make a life for ourselves, I wanted to live in a small apartment, eat junk food and work shitty jobs, just as long as it was with him.

Everything was perfect, until it wasn't.

Just as he was pulling away, the sounds of a car speeding up made him look up and lose his smile.

Everything from there on was slow motion, I saw the panic in Four's eyes as this car drove by and in a matter of seconds, loud noises blared through the air, my eyes never leaving Four's face that turned into one of sorrow.

When the loud noises subdued, I felt warmth wash over me, I heard ringing in my ears and when I look down to where Four was looking at with such fear, I noticed my t-shirt soaked in blood.