Safe

When they were just seven years old, Layla and Leo's parents divorced. Leo chose to move with their father to a small town named Porter while Layla stayed with their mom in Chicago. Leo and Layla remained close and called and texted each other frequently even though they grew to be polar opposites. Layla was a straight A student, a classic good girl and Leo barely went to class and followed their father's footsteps to join the local gang called the Watchmen. This went on for nine years.

Layla and Leo still told each other everything, they were twins after all. Leo could tell that something was off with Layla. It was nearing the end of the summer before the start of their junior year and for the last few weeks, Layla was growing quieter and quieter with him.

Leo POV

I woke up Saturday morning with a terrible feeling. I went to talk to my dad about it.

"I don't think that she would outright lie to me, but she's definitely not telling me something and I'm worried." I explained to Dad.

"I just feel like she's in trouble" I went on to say. I had a pit in my stomach for the last few days and I just couldn't ignore it anymore.

"Did you ask her about it?" Dad asked.

"I tried, but you know her. The more I push, the more she will fight." I snapped. Dad nodded. He knew first hand what it was like to try to get Layla to do something she didn't want to do. He had been trying for years for her to come live with us. Mom wasn't the greatest but Layla always refused saying, "Mom needs me. I'm all she has."

"I'll call your Mom tonight and see if she will tell me what's going on." Dad replied.

"Please, just do it now?" I begged and he nodded.

He made the call and he stiffened and said, "Is this Carol's phone?"

He waited a second and said darkly, "I need to speak with her, please. It's her ex-husband regarding OUR children." He waited a few moments and I could hear Mom's voice on the other end but I can't make out what she was saying. All I can hear is Dad.

"Who was that, Carol?"

{Pause}

"Is he living with you?"

{Pause}

"Since when?"

{Pause}

"Let me talk to Layla."

{Pause}

"Hey, honey, are you ok? Do you feel safe with him there?

{Long Pause}

"Layla, pack your things right now, ok? I'll clear it all with your Mom. I love you. Please put your Mom back on."

{Pause}

"Carol, you know that this isn't what we agreed on. I don't feel safe letting Layla live with a man I don't know and it sounds as if you aren't around that much. Let Layla move here. You can have all your freedom then and Leo and I will take care of her."

{Pause}

"Ok, I'll book the flight for tonight. I text you the details. Bye"

I looked at Dad. "Is she really moving here?" I asked, excitedly.

"Yep. We finally convinced her. Evidently your Mom has been dating some guy and he moved in last week. Layla doesn't feel safe with him in the house especially since your Mom is gone all the time. Layla said that she's been practically living at Marissa's this week. I've got to book her flight and you've got to clean this place up." We both got to work.

I cleaned for about an hour when Dad came in and said, "Ok. She will be here in about six hours. I figure that we will pick her up at 4, drop her stuff off here and take her to the Diner for dinner. Sound good?"

I nodded and asked, "Should we invite any one else?"

"Not to dinner but maybe we could take her to the Den afterwards." The Den was the Watchmens hangout. It's Saturday so everyone will be there. I don't want to overwhelm her but I want her to meet my friends so I agreed.

We finished cleaning and cleared out the spare bedroom. My dad was excited and wanted everything to be perfect for Layla.

"Do you think that we should get her some new sheets and blankets. Maybe some girly ones?" he asked me. I looked at the old Superman sheets and nodded.

"Should I ask Sally to run to the store with us? We still have a few hours. She should be able to help us out." Sally was one of my best friends. She and her girlfriend Keri were like family to me along with Tom and Finn.

Dad agreed and I texted Sally and she called right away.

Sally: "So she's actually moving here? We will finally get to meet her?

Me: "Yep. I'm so happy. Hopefully she will feel up to going to the Den tonight to see everybody. Can you do me a favor, though?

Sally: "Sure, what's up?"

Me: "Dad and I need to get some stuff for Layla's bedroom. You know, sheets and stuff but we don't know what she would like. Can you come shop with us?"

Sally: laughed. "How about this? I'm with Keri and Eve at the mall already. We will pick up some bedding and towels and drop them off in a bit? We can help set it all up too."

Me: "That would be great. We will pay you back. You're a lifesaver"

We hung up and I told my Dad.

He smiled and said, "You've got some good friends, there. Hopefully they will get along with Layla, too. I'm going to run to the grocery store, do you want to come?"

"Nah. I'm going to finish up some things here." I replied

After he left I sat and pondered his words. Did I really want my friends to become Layla's? Since they closed South Side High, my friendship circle has become more acceptable but I still had lots of friends that I would rather her not be associated with.

Sally, Keri and Eve would probably be okay. They were all nice and smart and kind. Sally is a Watchman but she's usually safe. I thought about Finn and Tom. Nope she didn't need them in her life, for sure. Vander and Jake? Nope again. Hart should be ok. He's a cop's son and not into girls. I chuckled. Welp. I'll just have to try to keep all the guys in school and the gang away from her. How's that gonna work?

A few hours later, Layla's room was all set up. Eve, Keri and Sally picked out sheets in pale yellow and a white bedspread with green and yellow flowers all over it. I hoped that Layla liked it, I knew that her bedroom in Chicago was all done in pink and white but I always got the impression that Mom picked it out. They got her some matching towels and some mirrors and decorations for her room. My Dad even bought some fresh flowers to put in her room and on our kitchen table. I had cleaned and scrubbed everything.

"Thanks, ladies. What do we owe you?" my Dad asked.

"Nothing. Keri and I pitched in and we want you to consider it a welcome to Porter gift, okay?" Eve said. My dad chuckled and nodded.

I walked the girls out and said, "Thanks again. How can I ever repay you?".

Keri smiled and Sally said, "I'm sure that you'll figure something out." and nodded towards Eve. She and Keri had been trying to set Eve and I up for a few weeks. Don't get me wrong, Eve is the greatest, I'm just not sure if I'm ready to date someone, especially Eve. She's kinda iconic. Of course, I had no idea how sweet she was until today. It was so kind to buy my sister bedroom stuff with out even knowing her.

I shrugged and took a shot, "How about if I take you all out to dinner this week?" I figured that with Keri and Sally there, it would be like a double date.

"Sure. That would be wonderful" Ev e said with a smile.

After they left, Dad and I went to pick up Layla. The airport was a bit of a drive but we still got there early. We stood at the pick up area for what seemed like forever. Finally, I caught sight of her blond ponytail coming down the escalator. She was wearing a pink dress that I knew Mom made her put on. I rushed forward to meet her as she reached the bottom but Dad got to her first.

He picked her up and swung her around as she laughed. When he put her down I scooped her up and did the same thing.

"I can't believe that you are really here" I said. She had never visited Porter, Dad and I went to Chicago at least once a year to see her, though.

"I can't believe it either. It's all so sudden" she smiled and me.

"Well, don't be nervous. I'll be with you. I know that you'll miss Marissa but you can video chat with her lots." I said. Marissa was Layla's best friend since they were babies. To tell the truth, I was always a bit jealous of them.

We went to baggage and Layla grabbed two huge suitcases which she tried to carry along with her purse and her carry on bag. Dad shook his head and I rolled my eyes at her as we each took a suitcase and I took her carry on as well.

She protested, "I can get that all myself, you know?"

I smirked and Dad said, "Nope. You better get used to it, we haven't been able to spoil you in forever."

She rolled her eyes but didn't argue farther and followed us out to the truck. We loaded her bags in the back and I opened the door for her. She rolled her eyes again but got in. She sat in between Dad and I and we kept putting our arms around her. I felt like I had to keep touching her to prove to myself that she was actually there. When we got home, we showed her around.

"This is all so wonderful" she said over and over. We finally showed her room. She literally jumped up and clapped.

"It's beautiful. Thank you, Dad! I can't believe that you went to all this trouble." she cried.

Dad grinned and said, "Leo cleaned most of it and his friends bought you the bed stuff and decorations. We didn't know what to get you." She looked at me and jumped in my arms.

"You are the best brother ever! I love it! Tell your friends, thank you." she yelled.

"You can tell some of them tonight yourself if you are feeling up to it." I told her our plan of the Diner and the Den and she nodded.

"That sounds great. Just let me change, I can't stand this dress. What should I wear?" She asked. Dad and I shrugged. We didn't really pay attention to clothes except to make sure that they were somewhat clean.

"It's just a diner and the Den is a bar and the Watchmen hangout." I said, I didn't want to tell her that girls usually wore really revealing outfits to the Den.

"Okay" she called as we walked out of her room.

Dad and I both changed our shirts and brushed our hair. Then we sat on the couch and waited. Soon Layla came out. We both did a double take. She had on black jeans with a low cut pink tank top on. She even had her hair down. I looked at Dad and he shrugged.

"Will this be alright?" She asked. My dad nodded but I shook my head. She frowned at me.

"That's too tight and too low cut" I said.

Dad chuckled and said, "You know that she will be one of the most covered girls at the Den, the Diner probably too. Stop"

I sighed in defeat. He was right, she would fit in but you could still tell that she was a good girl.

"Fine but promise to stay close to me, okay?" I said. Layla rolled her eyes yet again but nodded.

"Do you mind if we take the bikes? It will be easier to find parking." Dad asked.

Layla smiled and said, "Of course"

"Come on, La. Ride with me." I said as I handed her a helmet. We all put our helmets and climbed on. I loved having her ride with me. It was like my missing piece was finally back with me. When we pulled up to the Diner I groaned. It looked packed and I could already see a few guys checking her out through the window.

I spotted Sally, Keri, Eve and Vander in a booth watching us. When La took off her helmet and flipped her hair out, Vander looked like his eyes were going to pop out. I glared at him and he finally noticed and looked away. We all walked to the door and I opened it for Layla and my Dad.

"Thanks, Le" Layla smiled but looked nervous.

"Don't be worried. You are too good for all my friends" I whispered to her and she giggled.

"Aren't you supposed to be afraid that your sister will embarrass you in front of your friends?" she asked.

"You know that's not how we work. Besides, we're twins so those rules don't apply" I said as we sat down in a booth. Layla sat by the window and I sat next to her. Dad sat across from us. After we ordered, I looked up to see Sally's table staring at us. I made eye contact with Sally and shrugged.

"Would you like to meet the girls who helped with your bedroom?" I asked Layla and she nodded excitedly.

"Come on. We will be back in a second, Dad " I said and pulled her out of the seat. We walked over to the booth and it seemed like everyone in the diner stopped talking.

When we got to the booth I made the introductions, "La, this is one of my best friends, Sally, her girlfriend, Keri and our friend Eve. They are the one's who got all your bedroom stuff. This is our other friend Vander. Everyone, this is my twin sister, Layla."

"I'm so glad to meet all of you. I really appreciate the bedroom. It's so lovely. Thank you all." La said.

Eve smiled and replied, "It was our pleasure. We love to shop." Keri looked at both of us.

"I can't believe that you two are twins. You look nothing alike. I know that Ken and I aren't identical but we at least have the same coloring." Keri commented.

Layla looked at me confused and I explained, "Keri has a twin brother too, named Ken." She nodded. Keri was right, La was fair and blond with green eyes while I had dark hair and eyes.

"When Le was mad at me when we were kids, he used to tell me that I was adopted and the twin thing was just a lie our parents told us." Layla said and everyone laughed.

"I'm happy to finally meet you, I've heard all about you."Sally laughed.

"It's nice to meet you, Layla. Will you be going to Porter high?" Vander asked. Layla looked at me and I nodded.

"I guess so." she replied and Eve squealed

"Perfect. We were just saying that we need some new kids for the cheer squad. Do you want to join?" Eve asked.

I frowned, "I'm not sure if that's Las scene. She's pretty into academics..."

"Hush, Lee. I'd love to! I was on the dance squad at my old school." Layla cut me off.

"Perfect" Keri said.

"We better head back, we will see you later!" I said pulling Layla away.

"Bye. It was nice meeting you." she called.

Our food had arrived by the time we got back to the table. We ate and talked about everything. We relaxed for a bit. I looked up to see Keri and her table stand up and pay for their food.

They walked over to us and Keri said, "We are heading over to the Den. Everyone else is already there. Are you coming?"

"Only if Layla feels up to it. She's had a really long day" I said, hoping that she would say no.

"Of course, We will be there." Layla said with a smile and I sighed.

As they all left, Layla turned to me and said, "I thought that you wanted me to meet your friends? What's wrong? Do I look bad?". She had tears in her eyes and I felt awful.

"No Layla if anything you look too good." I said quickly and my Dad nodded but Layla looked confused.

"I think that Leo is just worried that some of his friends might like you a little too much. He's being an overprotective ass." Dad clarified

"Seriously, Leo? We're the same age and I can take care of myself" she snapped.

"I know but I run with a rougher crowd than you're used to" I explained.

"I lived in Chicago. I think that I can handle it" she said and I nodded. Dad paid for dinner and we went outside. I noticed Layla shivering and made her wear my jacket which made me feel better since it was big on her and covered her. We put our helmets on and took off towards the Den.