Page 80 of Organized Chaos

Chris’ eyes widened for a split second before he jolted out of Milo’s grasp and took off at full speed. We stared after him in bewilderment as he managed to skirt past the trash can on the sidewalk and disappear around the corner.

Chapter 18

The reminder of howmy friendship with Chris started only reinforced it was for the best if I put Brandon in the rearview mirror. Personal differences aside, I had no interest in watching him get destroyed by Milo.

Milo shipped off his own mother when her mental health issues threatened my well-being. That’s what he did to the woman who gave him life. The man who defiled me never stood a chance. Milo would surely peg Brandon for a sexual predator and go after him with everything. For God’s sake, Chris was only a kid, and Milo was still ready to inflict pain on him without remorse.

On the other hand, Chris was grateful for my aide on that fateful day. I had initially thought he was a jackass but was swiftly proven wrong. Chris might be the nicest human being I had ever met.

Throughout the years, the church became our stomping ground. Until six months ago, Chris and I were active members of the church and had worked on plenty of fundraisers together.

When I was fourteen, we even shared a kiss at a church dance. It happened a few more times when I was fifteen. However, it never amounted to anything more between my grueling schedule, Paris, and overprotective siblings.

Our friendship had always been contained to the church grounds, another situation I’d like to rectify. I barely had a social circle in New York, and it’d be nice if that were to change.

By the time church let out, Reid had altered our lunch reservations to add a fourth person. The restaurant was around the corner, so Chris insisted on meeting us there as he still had a few people to greet.

As soon as we were seated at the posh Thai restaurant, I informed our server to wait for the fourth person to put in our orders. However, I wondered if my efforts were in vain as Raven had probably scared Chris off. So, I was pleasantly surprised when he strolled through the front door.

“You guys didn’t have to wait for me.” He slid into the tufted grey booth, taking the seat next to me.

“Mia made us,” Raven mumbled grumpily.

My jaw almost dropped open.

What the actual fuck!?

Since when did Raven make snide comments? She was supposed to be the diplomatic one in our family.

Luckily, Reid came to the rescue. He laughed nervously to diffuse the tension. “Of course, we waited for you.” He handed Chris a menu. “Raven’s joking.”

Chris laughed uncomfortably. “I don’t get the joke.”

“That’s because she didn’t tell it right,” I chimed in. “What do you think of the Pad Thai?”

Chris stared blankly between us, but being a nice guy, he let it go. “Looks good.”