A carton box in his arms, Gabriel closed the door with his foot and walked inside the garage. Although the carton box looked heavy because of its size, it actually wasn't. It only contained a few blankets and sheets that Misha had deemed too ugly or too old to be used, insisting on storing them for the time being. Those things wasted space inside the laundry room, which was already quite cramped and narrow.
Today, after stumbling on a pile of blankets for the nth time, the boy had enough and decided to tidy up the room. He wanted to put in the garage what they seldom used to make more space, and Gabriel was thus tasked with transporting the boxes and piling them up in a corner.
The carton box the young man was holding was the last one, and after putting it away, he stretched his body, knowing that he could finally take a breather. As he leaned against the cold wall, he took out his cell phone from his pocket and dialed Stephan's number, his eyes locked on the closed door.
Lately, Misha had been glued to him like a leech, and it became hard to find some private alone time—meaning that Gabriel had no other choice but to postpone calling his friend until now. He knew that his soon-to-be conversation with Stephan wouldn't be anything pleasing to hear, and he didn't want Misha to listen to it. Considering the boy's explosive temper and wicked tongue….
Better not think about it.
Now that Gabriel had a bit of free time and a certain someone wasn't eavesdropping on him, he took the opportunity to call Stephan. He dialed his friend's number and waited for him to answer.
Soon enough, his childhood friend's voice echoed in his ear. "What took you so long? It has already been four days since you dropped me off at my house! How about sending me a text to let me know you're still alive, huh? Even your fake girlfriend knows how to contact me! You're so cold that my glass heart is about to break, you know?"
What they had to say couldn't be conveyed by text messages, yet Stephan still went ahead and complained, just for the sake of it. It made Gabriel's mouth twitch a little. Couldn't that guy act his age once in a while? Or would it be more realistic to ask for the moon?
"Don't spout nonsense. I don't have much time, so get to the point," Gabriel scolded coldly. "Why did you ask me to pick you up? I'm sure your "hunch" didn't just pop out of nowhere."
"How come you can even spare a bit of your time to chat with me? Why must we get into the heart of the matter right away?"
"I'll hang up if you stray from the subject."
"Oh, well, forget it. We'll chitchat another day then." Stephan let out a snort before adopting a more serious demeanor. "When you came to pick me up, did you notice the footprints around the car?"
"What of it?"
"Some were neither mine nor my father's."
"Are you sure?"
"Yup. They did try to conceal their footprints by walking in the ones my father and I left when we walked from the car to your house, but it seems like they had to go around the hood to do whatever they had to do, and that left traces that weren't there before. Car engines and such aren't my forte, so I couldn't verify if they fiddled with something, but…. Anyway, my gut feeling did tell me that I wouldn't make it home if I got into that car."
A silence fell between them as the words sank in. Because the snow had stopped heavily falling only a few minutes before Stephan reached the Laflamme's property, the driveway was covered in white, even if it had been plowed two hours ago or so. Snow still had the time to pile up again. Anyone who wanted to walk from one point to another would inevitably leave traces in their wake.
That day, someone tried to conceal their footprints as they headed to the car, which was a lot fishier than if they had openly walked to it. It led Stephan to think they wanted to hide something, and when people behaved like criminals, it was rarely for good reasons. Stephan was the kind to trust his judgment and instincts, so he didn't try his luck and directly called Gabriel.
And what happened next told him he had made the right choice.
"After we left, the snowplow came back to clear up the driveway and accidentally bumped into the car, ruining its hood. Later, the driver called to apologize, saying that he hadn't seen it." There was a short silence, then Stephan snorted, "A black car amid a field of white is not visible enough, obviously."
Gabriel closed his eyes for a second, pinching the bridge of his nose under his glasses. What his friend was implying was evident, and he shared the same thought. Someone didn't want them to recuperate the car and discover that something was wrong with it.
Whoever had come up with that twisted idea had planned their move well. It wouldn't have been surprising if Stephan had lost control of the car because of the icy roads, resulting in an accident while he was on his way back home. The police wouldn't think much of it, especially since it wouldn't be the first car accident of the day. Considering the road conditions, if one wasn't careful, they could very well end up crashing into another car and whatnot. Although it was relatively safe if people drove slowly, there would always be a few brazen conductors who didn't take the broadcast warnings seriously, driving crazy fast and stepping on the break at the last minute.
Besides, Stephan was a teenager, and a teenager being reckless on the roads wouldn't shock anyone. However, it'd be another story if he lost control of the car when the weather was mild and sunny. That could arouse suspicion.
On the other hand, maybe Stephan didn't even plan to drive the car again, thinking of directly sending it to the garage for a check-up, or else why would he ask someone to come pick him up?
The one who fiddled with the car was probably the careful kind. Instead of taking a gamble, they directly decided to get rid of the evidence of their crime, just in case.
The excuse the snowplow driver gave might sound ridiculous, but that kind of thing did happen. It wasn't the first time a snowplow collided with a car, and it wouldn't be the last time either. In any case, Gabriel and Stephan had no concrete proof to justify their suspicions, and it'd be useless to reach out to the police. Their theory sounded too far-fetched, and if one considered their young age, it would also lose credibility, even more so after being slandered by Gabriel's family.
And most of all, they knew that if someone from that house had indeed messed with the car, they weren't stupid enough to leave evidence that would lead to them, and the police couldn't arrest someone based only on conjectures. All that would do was make the culprit's guard go up; they would realize that the two young men weren't as brainless as they had always pretended to be, making them much more dangerous.
"Gab, whoever came to fiddle with my car wasn't a mere passerby. The keys were in my coat, and my coat was inside the closet in the house. If they wanted to gain access to the hood, they had to unlock it first."
"I know."
"But, well, I don't think anyone in your family did it themselves. I was with Angela and Jake most of the time, whereas my father was with yours. Still, the household staff can't be excluded, and they could very well have acted on their behalf. Seriously, whenever I go to your house, it feels like I'm stepping on a viper's nest. No wonder your personality became so twisted."
"You can talk."
"Anyway, I think…." Stephan paused, letting out a long sigh that carried a hint of sorrow. "I think my father probably found out about something he shouldn't have. His friendship with Matthew had always blinded him, but maybe he fell upon something he just couldn't ignore this time. I don't know if it's about Angela, your mother, Matthew's personal life, or the company, but in any case, it's something that someone doesn't want others to know."
"I guessed as much," Gabriel agreed, a cold light flashing in his emerald eyes. "Your father will have to be careful from now on. He probably won't tell you a thing, but watch over him."
"No need to tell me, dear. I was already planning to do so."
"You—" the door suddenly flung open, cutting Gabriel off mid-sentence.
"What is taking you so long? Did you fall asleep or something?" Misha complained, a trace of impatience tainting his soft voice.
In the doorway stood the little boy, a cute apron tied around his waist. He suspiciously eyed the young man, whose cold expression had warmed up the moment the door opened. The gentle eyes were the same as ever, making Misha wonder if he had seen wrong. Just now, a murderous light seemed to be shining in Gabriel's eyes, but it had vanished as soon as he noticed it.
"Sorry, Stephan called, and I got caught up in the conversation."
"What does he want this time? Another ride? If so, say no! That guy has two legs, let him walk!"
"Don't worry, he just wanted to check on me."
"Hmph," Misha snorted before seemingly remembering something.
A sly smile stretched his lips as he swiftly ran to Gabriel, jumping to snatch his cell phone. He then brought it close to his ear, asking in a somewhat excited voice, "Say, when are you coming over for dinner?"
"Well, how about this Friday?"
"This Friday it is then! Don't forget to bring the photo albums, okay?"
"Yes, yes, I won't forget, I promise. And as for you, don't forget your part of the bargain. I want to eat beef stew with a chocolate cake for dessert!"
"Perfect! See you then!"
Once Misha said his piece, he hung up before happily walking back to the kitchen, keeping the cell phone with him. He didn't seem about to give it back any time soon, and Gabriel thus had no other choice but to follow behind him, helplessly shaking his head.
Really, that child couldn't leave him alone for more than a dozen minutes, wanting him to stay by his side all the time. Misha seemed to become insecure whenever he was out of sight for too long. And whenever the boy caught a glimpse of him again, a broad smile bloomed on his face, which he quickly hid beneath a pout or a tantrum, when it wasn't an outburst of anger.
Truthfully, Gabriel didn't know what to think of this.
Sometimes, it was hard to say whether Misha hated him, loved him, or couldn't care less about his well-being. But at the same time, it also felt as if he was afraid to get too close to him, like a wounded animal that had long lost faith in people, fearing that if it were to believe in their words again, they would betray its trust once more and crush what little was left of its heart.
Yet, it also longed for their affection and couldn't help but be drawn to them, reaching for their hands a bit more with each passing day.
__________________________
Chapter revised on 2022-05-28
Edited by Clozed! ♥
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