THE WRONG KIND OF TROUBLE

CHAPTER 5

"Please tell me it isn’t true."

The voice was soft but carried a weight that made my chest tighten. I turned my head to find Liz catching up to me, her honey-blonde hair swaying as we walked into the school building.

"What’s true?" I asked, adjusting the strap of my bag as I tried to decipher her serious tone.

She leaned in closer, her eyes darting around to make sure no one was eavesdropping. "You’re living with… King Tom."

I froze mid-step.

For a moment, it felt like my brain short-circuited. How did she know? I hadn’t told anyone—not Liz, not Wes, no one. I’d been so careful to keep that particular detail of my life under wraps.

I blinked at her, completely stunned, but before I could form any sort of response, the school bell rang.

"Well?" she pressed as we resumed walking. "Are you even planning to deny it?"

"How did you find out?" I asked, my voice lower now, though the tension in it was clear.

Liz hesitated for just a second, her lips twitching as though debating whether to lie. Finally, she sighed. "Your brother told me," she admitted.

I raised an eyebrow. "Which brother?"

"Gustin," she mumbled, avoiding my eyes.

Of course, it was Gustin. I let out a sigh, pinching the bridge of my nose. He always had a knack for making things more complicated than they needed to be.

"What were you thinking, Samantha?" Liz hissed, her voice sharp now. "Tom Henderson is King Tom. The King Tom. Everyone knows he’s trouble."

I groaned, rolling my eyes as we made our way up the staircase to the second floor. "Do you think I don’t know that, Liz? I didn’t exactly volunteer for this situation. I just… didn’t have a choice."

She stopped on the landing, forcing me to stop too. "Didn’t have a choice? Sam, he’s got a record. People talk about him like he’s some kind of urban legend. And now you’re sharing a roof with him?"

I lowered my voice. "You don’t think I know how bad this looks? I didn’t wake up one day and think, ‘Hey, you know what sounds like fun? Living with the guy everyone calls King Tom.’ It’s complicated, okay?"

Liz threw her hands up in frustration. "Complicated? That’s an understatement. What if he—" She cut herself off, her eyes wide with exaggerated fear. "What if he kills you?"

I shot her a look. "Really, Liz?"

"I’m serious!" she said, undeterred. "What if he kills you? Or worse—what if he kills the baby and then comes after your family?"

I let out a long breath, trying to tamp down the irritation bubbling inside me. "That’s not going to happen."

"How do you know that? He’s practically a walking red flag!"

"I just know, okay?" I said, my voice a little sharper than I intended.

Liz narrowed her eyes but didn’t push further. We walked the rest of the way in silence, though I could feel her judgment hanging in the air like a storm cloud. When we reached our classroom, I headed straight for my seat, but Liz wasn’t done with me yet. She followed me, leaning against my desk with her arms crossed.

"So, how’d you get him involved?" she asked, her tone softer now but still laced with concern.

I glanced around to make sure no one was listening before answering. "I convinced him."

Liz snorted. "Yeah, right. You convinced King Tom to move in with you? I don’t buy it."

"Fine," I muttered, lowering my voice. "I blackmailed him, okay?"

Her jaw dropped. "You what?"

"Keep it down!" I hissed, glancing nervously at our classmates.

Liz shook her head in disbelief. "You blackmailed him? Sam, what were you thinking?"

"I didn’t have a choice!" I whispered fiercely. "I reminded him of his… history and mentioned that my dad’s a cop. It worked, didn’t it?"

Liz looked at me like I’d grown a second head. "This is insane. So, instead of telling Cameron the truth, you decided to drag King Tom into this mess?"

"I didn’t exactly have better options," I shot back.

She sighed, running a hand through her hair. "I hope you know what you’re doing, Sam."

"Believe me," I said, sinking into my seat. "I hope so too."

By the time lunch rolled around, I was running on fumes. Between dodging Liz’s questions and the sheer exhaustion of pretending everything was fine, I felt like I was about to collapse. Liz and I were heading to the cafeteria when Wes appeared out of nowhere, jumping onto my back like a hyperactive toddler.

"Wes!" Liz shouted, punching his arm as I nearly lost my balance.

"Sorry!" he said, laughing as he hopped off. "Couldn’t resist."

"Next time, resist," Liz snapped.

Wes grinned, running a hand through his messy brown hair. "So, what’s new? You two look like you’ve been keeping secrets."

Liz rolled her eyes. "Oh, you don’t even know the half of it."

I shot her a warning look, but before she could spill anything, Tom walked past us.

Wes froze, his eyes widening as he turned to me. "Did you see that? He looked at you!"

"No, he didn’t," I said quickly, my stomach twisting into knots.

"He totally did," Wes insisted. "Tom Henderson just glanced at you. You."

"Okay, Hawkeye," Liz said, steering him toward the cafeteria. "Let’s get you some food before you start seeing things."

Once we were seated, Wes wasted no time diving into his lunch—and the gossip. "So, what’s the big secret?" he asked between bites of his sandwich.

Liz glanced at me, clearly waiting for permission to speak.

I sighed. "Fine. Go ahead. Tell him."

Liz turned to Wes with a dramatic flourish. "Samantha is living with King Tom."

Wes choked on his soda, coughing loudly enough to turn a few heads.

"You’re WHAT?!" he practically shouted.

"Keep your voice down!" I hissed, sinking lower in my seat.

Wes leaned forward, his eyes wide with disbelief. "Are you insane? King Tom? Do you have any idea who he is?"

"Yes, Wes, I’m aware," I said dryly.

"Then why?!" he demanded.

Liz chimed in before I could answer. "Because she’d rather deal with him than tell Cameron the truth."

Wes stared at me like I’d just announced I was joining a cult. "Sam… this is a terrible idea. Like, catastrophically bad."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence," I muttered, sipping my juice.

"I mean it!" Wes said. "This guy’s reputation isn’t just rumors, Sam. He’s trouble."

"She knows, Wes," Liz said. "We’ve been over this."

"Then why are you going along with it?" Wes asked, throwing his hands up.

Liz shrugged. "Because it’s her life. I don’t agree with it, but it’s not my call."

Wes sighed, shaking his head. "I hope you know what you’re doing, Sam."

"Yeah," I said quietly. "Me too."

After lunch, we headed back to class, dropping Wes off at his room before continuing to ours.

As we rounded the corner near the lockers, we saw them. Cameron and Jennifer. They were leaning against the lockers, lost in their own world as they kissed. My stomach churned. I clenched my fists, nails digging into my palms as anger surged through me.

"Let’s go," Liz whispered, tugging at my sleeve.

I followed her lead, but the image of them stayed burned into my mind. By the time we reached our classroom, I was shaking with rage.

"Those rotten excuses for human beings," I muttered, slamming my books onto my desk.

Liz placed a hand on my shoulder, trying to calm me down, but I could barely hear her over the sound of my own thoughts.

Miss Kelly’s arrival was the only thing that snapped me out of it.

"All right, class," she said, setting her bag down. "Let’s get started. Please pass your written reports to the front."

Panic shot through me as I realized I’d completely forgotten about the assignment. I glanced at Liz, my eyes pleading. She smirked and slid a paper onto my desk.

"Thank you," I mouthed.

She winked before turning her attention to Miss Kelly, and I breathed a sigh of relief. For now, at least, I’d survived. But as Miss Kelly began her lecture, I couldn’t shake the feeling that things were only going to get more complicated from here.