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This is seriously unbearable.

I can't believe I got myself into this situation.

I'm trapped in here, help.

I could literally feel awkward tingles where I was touching Aaron and Luca either side of me. I wouldn't say my skin was 'crawling' , but it shivered and made me want to fidget around.

I kept on feeling both of their eyes glancing at me every now and again, watching me. I didn't have a window to stare awkwardly out of either, I just stared at my phone, looking at random things because I felt too exposed to talk to Erin.

I heard Chester sigh in irritation at the traffic we'd just driven into before headbutting the steering wheel of the car. It caused the horn to go off making me jump harshly.

Aaron chuckled at me as I took in a nervous breath, making me give him a look.

"You're really jumpy and nervous today." Luca pointed out as Chance mumbled something to  Chester and I huffed.

"I noticed."

"I know where I'm going!" Chester snapped at Chance and they both glared at each other.

"Woah, calm down. No need for negative feelings." Aaron said and Chester scoffed at him.

"Says the one that's made jealous remarks every time somebody's spoken for the past half an hour. " He retorted making me roll my eyes.

"Did you all not get enough sleep or something?" I asked casually, but immediately regretted it as they all turned to glare at me.

"Fuck no did I get enough sleep, worrying about you and this whole entire situation!" Chester snapped and everyone else sighed.

"A situation that could have been avoided if you'd just stayed in Washington." Chance muttered and I bit my lip.

Help.

"Why are you here, anyway? Surely staying at Erin's could have been enough time off from us." Aaron asked and I winced.

"Er...its nothing." I said and Luca gave me a look.

"Really? You expect us to be satisfied with 'its nothing'? That's why we're out here? Nothing?"

"Well if Chance said the things he said to Riley to me I would've left the country too." Chester commented and Chance sighed.

"I'm sorry about that." He said and Aaron scoffed.

"Yeah like that's gunna cut it."

"Guys..." I pleaded uncomfortably but Chance just glared back at Aaron.

"Why were you two arguing so heatedly in the first place?" Luca said with an upset frown and I sighed.

"Riley was being argumentative." Chance muttered and I scoffed.

"Really? It couldn't possibly because you called me a brat, said I'd love working as a prostitute, called me an IMMATURE SLUT AND-...and other things." I opted out of telling them about Chance hitting me, sighing and rubbing my brow instead.

"Jesus fucking Christ Chance." Aaron growled and Chance made a seriously uncomfortable deer in headlights face.

"I didn't mean it, any of it." He defended and I shook my head at him.

"Other things?" Luca said and I looked over to him, he looked down at me with a worried frown.

Damnit Luca.

I looked back to Chance to see him staring at me, pleading with his eyes for me to not say anything.

"We shouldn't be talking about this in the car." I said and stared out of the front window, noticing Chester's knuckles turn pale as he gripped the steering wheel.

"What did you do Chance? What OTHER THINGS?" He glared at him and I started feeling extremely claustrophobic.

"He didn't do anything." I persisted taking a sharp breath in and out and sitting up more.

"As Riley said, we'll talk about this later." Chance tried to brush them off but they didn't seem to want to let it go.

"Why? Talking here is fine? Are you trying to escape what you've done?" Aaron questioned, making Luca sit on the edge of the car seat.

"What did you do?? You didn't...it wasn't..." He worried, looking at me in concern.

"What? NO!" Chance exclaimed when he realised what Luca was implying, and I bit my lip, wishing I could escape this awkward atmosphere.

"Stop doing that." Aaron said as he looked down at my lip, and I awkwardly let it go before smiling sheepishly up at him.

He continued to look down at it, making me feel slightly awkward, until I realised he must have been looking at the feint scars and faded cuts on it.

"Seriously if you hurt him I'm going to-" He suddenly growled while glaring in Chance's direction and I sighed.

"ENOUGH! He didn't hurt me, well, I mean he didn't injure me, at least." I said and took a deep breath in trying to calm myself.

"Wow that seriously makes me feel better-" Luca started sarcastically but Chance interrupted.

"I HIT HIM. Okay? And I'M SO FUCKING SORRY. I was letting my emotions control me and wasn't thinking." He said and they all went silent.

"Fucking hell Chance, this isn't some kind of twisted abusive relationship movie, control yourself!" Chester was the first one to speak, and Chance just looked down at his feet.

"Where?" Luca asked quietly and I sighed.

"It doesn't matter, it hardly bruised anyway." I tried to brush it off and Chance honest to god looked like he was going to cry.

"It bruised?" He asked and I gave him a small smile.

"Where??" Luca demanded this time and I gave him a sharp glare.

"I'm fine, its just a little mark on my waist! It's practically gone now anyway, no one even notices it." I said, then regretted the last part of that sentence when Chester raised one of his brows suggestively.

"Nothing like that!" I said and rolled my eyes.

"Let me see." Aaron demanded and tried to pull my top up making me move away from him and push against Luca.

"No way leave me alone!"

"Riley!" Luca tsked as I half scrambled over his lap.

"Stop it all of you! It's hard enough driving on the wrong side of the road as it is!" Chester complained and I scoffed.

"This side of the road came first, Americans drive on the wrong side of the road!" I argued making him snicker.

"It's still there!" Aaron stated as he looked down at the smallish bruise on my waist and I flinched when he touched it.

"Your hands are cold! Can you stop this, look at what you're doing!" I complained and he blushed when he noticed the strange position we were in.

He sat back in his seat and I sighed before looking up to Luca, who was looking down at me pressed against his chest awkwardly.

"Ugh." I grumbled, fighting the urge to facepalm at this situation before sitting back properly again, ignoring the blush on my cheeks.

"If it's still there, it must have been pretty big." Aaron said and I growled at the fact they wouldn't leave this subject alone.

"Did he hit you with something?" Chester questioned, his serious expression back. I looked to Chance who had been sitting there in silence all this time.

"He hit you with a belt, didn't he?" Luca asked with a flat expression, and I recalled him looking at the belt Chance placed on his desk the day it happened.

"That's some Victorian twisted shit right there." Aaron commented and Chester looked at Chance.

"Or BDSM, just saying." He added and I huffed.

"Okay, you know what happened now, its over. Are we nearly there?" I asked impatiently and Chester nodded.

"But, traffic exists." He said, making Chance sigh.

"I wouldn't have accepted that apology..." Aaron commented after a few moments of blissful silence and I growled.

"Seriously! It's fine! I forgave him ages ago! Jesus christ, that's not the worst thing someone has done to me when they're angry! No big deal!" I exclaimed and sighed when I realised what I had just said.  "Did I just say that out loud..."

"Worse things...?" Luca said quietly and I gave him a sad smile.

"Some people are assholes, you guys are nothing compared to the people I've met. But that's in the past, and I don't care about it anymore. And I don't care that he hit me with a fucking belt, I almost hit him back worse, so we're even." I said and Chance blinked at me.

"You've seriously forgiven him? Damn, he hardly even apologised." Aaron protested and Chance sighed.

"That's something for us to discuss further in private." He said and Aaron scoffed.

"No way am I trusting you in private with him, neither of you three should be alone with him, this whole car ride just proves that!" Aaron fumed and sat up more, I turned to him and just looked at him, hoping he would get the message.

He stared back for several moments before sighing and sitting back in the seat again.

"Okay, I get it. It's none of my business, I shouldn't be a hypocrite." He grumbled and stared out of the car window, making me smile.

Damn, call me the Aaron whisperer or something.

"Fucking finally." Chester exclaimed, pulling into a parking lot.

The car had hardly even stopped when Chance jumped out, walking a few metres away from it before bending over like he was going to throw up or something.

Luca and I shared a look in which I then shrugged to and he sighed before stepping out himself.

The tension only lifted slightly, and I sighed as I looked up to the large fancy looking building in front of us.

"This is going to take a long time isn't it." I grumbled to myself.

"Not if Chance get's his way, that guy doesn't mess around." Aaron commented and I raised a brow at him.

"That wasn't a compliment. I mean, I guess it was...but that doesn't make him a good person." He fumbled around and I rolled my eyes.

"He's not a bad person, at least he cares." I defended and he blinked at me.

"Wow you really have forgiven him." He said and I rolled my eyes.

"I don't hold grudges." I explained and he smiled at me.

"So fucking cute." He muttered to himself while looking away from me but I raised a brow at him when I heard it easily.

I don't want to be 'cute', damn it!

"Hurry up you two!" Chester snapped as he walked past us and I jumped slightly.

I bit my lip anxiously as we walked into the reception. It was obviously a very prestigious law firm.

Chance was already at one of the lifts, crossing his arms and looking back at us impatiently.

I looked into the lift anxiously before getting pushed forwards by Aaron behind me.

Yay stuck in another confined space with them.

I frowned at the posters on the wall. There was a large union jack in the middle with writing saying 'British values' around the outside. I snorted at it as I read it, all simple human logic to be honest.

"Do you consider yourself British?" Aaron asked curiously as he looked at what I was reading.

"Sure, my parents are British, and I've lived in England the longest."

"Plus that accent." Chester commented with an amused grin.

"You don't seem very patriotic." Aaron said and I made a face.

"Being patriotic is a waste of time, we're all just human, in the end." I replied and he frowned.

"I see..."

Chance quickly left us in the dust as the doors opened, and I struggled to follow him when he disappeared around a few corners.

"Damn, he needs to chill." I commented to myself as we walked, eventually reaching where he stood at another desk.

The girl at the desk seemed overwhelmed as we all stood there looking at her.

"I'll call her now, sir." She seemingly replied to something Chance had said, and picked up an office phone.

"Yes, m'lady....I understand...no they're here Ms....yes...right now?...I see..." I sighed and started looking around the room while she spoke with someone. I walked over to a large window and looked out of it, observing the busy cityscape.

Cities aren't attractive to me, I prefer the green countryside.

Although, I do like the potential living in a city has, always new places to go, different people to meet.

"Do you prefer the city or the country?" I asked Aaron, whose reflection I could see standing behind me.

"The country, always. I hate the idea of cities." He replied after a moment, and I turned round to look at him.

"Really? Oh, yeah, hippie." I teased and he rolled his eyes.

"I'm an environmentalist,  actually." He said and I smiled.

"Is that your major?"

"Yes."

"Hmm, bet that's pretty interesting."

"It is."

"Chance Stevens, my god!" An older woman suddenly exclaimed as she walked down the hall. Her voice was posh and sophisticated, and so was her hair and fashion sense.

"Bella Downey, its good to see you again." Chance greeted with a friendly smile, one I hadn't seen before.

"Deary me Chance, I  looked into that case, and one of our lawyers is on the opposing side! I'm afraid there's nothing my firm can do lawyer wise, but I may have something we can sort out. Let's have a chat in my office." She said quickly, not giving anyone else a chance to speak.

"Oh, where's the child?" She asked, making me cringe.

"I wouldn't call him a child." He said, before gesturing to me. She followed his motion and blinked at me for a moment. I felt a bead of sweat travel down my forehead as she stared, then narrowed her eyes.

"Hmm, I can see why this is a problem." She commented and I made a confused and slightly concerned face.

"Well, lets get going! Oh, you four can stay here for now while I talk with Chance for a moment, I'm sure Grace will keep you company!" She beamed, and then took one more calculating glance at me before storming off down the hall to a large door. Chance looked back at us for a second before following her.

"So, Grace, is it?" I smiled politely at the receptionist as I approached, leaning on the counter slightly.

She smiled bashfully at me. "Yes, that is me. Are you all American?" She asked with a bright and friendly smile.

"They are." I said and she nodded.

"Ah, I hear it now." She said and I blinked at her. "Oh, your accent I mean, it's not American."

"What brings you all here?" She asked the room, but Chester was too busy reading something on his phone, and Luca was too busy anxiously siting there tapping his foot.

Aaron saved the awkward silence though as he came to stand beside me.

"Long story actually, which mostly is also why we're in this building." He said, and then looked to me.

"We're having some legal troubles with the other half of my family." I smiled and she nodded, seeming interested.

"Ohh, you're a bit old for a custody battle, is it a divorce or something?" She asked and I smirked.

"No, I'm still seventeen, for a few days." I said and she frowned.

"Huh, usually they don't last only a few days. And that sounds a bit pointless.." she said and I sighed.

"My father is a rich brat that's just trying to be an asshole I guess." I said and she gave me a sad smile.

"Are you testifying yourself?" She asked and I stepped back awkwardly.

"Er...."

"That's something that should be discussed later." Chester finally joined the conversation, and looked at me with a serious expression.

"I see, well, I understand, even for an eighteen year old, testifying is a bit....stressful." She reassured and I smiled at her.

"Riley can you come in here please?" Chance suddenly asked after opening the door, and I sighed before walking up to him.

He looked down at me for a few moments, before giving a small smile and walking fully into the room. The office was kind of intimidating, and old looking, despite this obviously being a new building.

I crossed my arms and stood there nervously as the woman just typed on her computer.

"Right, Riley. So, obviously this is a very unique case, I can't even begin to fathom why your father is bothering for child custody at this late stage, I mean at the earliest this trial could finish just a day or two before your eighteenth. Honestly I don't even want to know what is going through rich men's minds, abusing their money in the most ridiculous of ways." She semi-ranted and I just smiled at her awkwardly.

"Seems like some kind of alpha dog fight to me, he's really pissed my father off, and he doesn't even know Riley." Chance commented, making me frown.

"There is literally no benefit for custody after the age of 18, a few names in a few records, but that's it." She said with a roll of her eyes, and I sighed.

"Wouldn't it mean Riley is no longer considered a part of our step-family?" Chance asked, and she paused.

"Well, maybe, but he wouldn't automatically get a name change. His mother would have had to have applied for the name change to Stevens in the first place, which would have had to have been agreed upon by both parents a few weeks ago." She said, making me smirk.

"So he agreed on letting my last name be changed, then applied for child custody a few weeks later?"

The fuck?

"He must have changed his mind, maybe her applying for a name change reminded him that you existed?" Chance smirked and I made a face.

"I wouldn't put that below him, to be honest."

"Well, what's done is done. Your father is being slightly strange, let's all agree on that fact. But, even if he does win custody, it won't do that much harm. He can still live with you." She reassured but Chance shook his head.

"We want him to stay in our family, and he can't do that fully if his mother doesn't even have parental custody of him, he's trying to alienate Riley from us, I can tell." Chance fumed, and she frowned.

"Okay, I see this has personal value to you. You might want to discuss with Mr. Marston why he values custody of his son so much, he must want something from him?"

"Something petty probably" I muttered then sighed. Why must everything be so stressful and complicated?

"Well, I've contacted the lawyers from the other firm, I'm sure they'll be happy to work with you. It's a shame one of our lawyers is already working on the case, bit of an unlucky coincidence. You don't have to go see them, they should be giving you a call in a bit. But, while we're in here, Riley, is there anything you know that could help us in our case against him?" The lady looked at me seriously and I frowned.

"No, I don't really know my father. Is being in a gay relationship still a thing that bothers people?" I suggested and she snorted.

"Yes, but that's the only thing we've got against him at that moment. Which really pisses me off, don't get me wrong." She gave Chance a reassuring shake of her head, in which he responded by rolling his eyes.

"Well, is there anything on the other side I should know about?" She asked and Chance sighed.

"Yes, plenty. My father's been convicted once, although he was later found not-guilty, its still on his record" He said and I raised a brow.

Damn...

"I'm pretty sure my mother has a kinda dodgy background as well, she's been involved with drugs before, and once married a criminal? Does that count?" I said and Chance sighed.

"Great, well let's just hope the judge is super homophobic." The woman said and I made an uncomfortable face.

"Well, from what Matías said, she didn't seem to be."

"Well, you should get some people to try dig something up, although most things of note would already be on public record. For the moment, I'm unsure if there is anything else I can do."

"That's fine Bella, you've done enough. Thank you." Chance smiled and she nodded.

"Just make sure you testify against him, Riley dear." She said and I bit my lip. Chance narrowed his eyes at my reaction.

"You will testify, won't you?" He

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