The Royal Family

By Real Bureau

It all starts at an alternative school in Lowell, Massachusetts. Three fifth-grade students form a bond that is absolutely unbreakable, and their loyalty will be tested in many different ways.

Royal, who is hands down the worst kid in school, is placed with all of Lowell's worst of the worst under one roof. He begins a friendship with the twins, Gage and Makenna, who are foster children. These two are almost as bad as he is! They start off fighting together, getting into trouble, and selling drugs, then it all quickly escalates to murder! Royal takes the fall for a murder he didn't commit. With a beast for a lawyer and crooked cops, judges, and prosecutors, Royal finds his way out of a life sentence. He gets released while he is still fairly young and comes home with a new, better product, cheaper prices, and a top drug connection.

Royal and the twins blow up in the drug game way past any of their expectations, but their past comes back to haunt them! With an army of loyal soldiers and an unexpected source to help them out, will any one of them make it out of this deadly drug game alive?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Page Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Oct 12, 2023
• ISBN: 9798889607069

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The Royal Family

Real Bureau

Copyright © 2023 Real Bureau

All rights reserved

First Edition

PAGE PUBLISHING

Conneaut Lake, PA

First originally published by Page Publishing 2023

This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons (living or dead), organizations, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

ISBN 979-8-88960-669-7 (pbk)

ISBN 979-8-88960-706-9 (digital)

Printed in the United States of America

Table of Contents

Chapter One

The First Impression

Chapter Two

Love Hurts

Chapter Three

The Plot

Chapter Four

Shots Fired

Chapter Five

The Alibi

Chapter Six

The Come Up

Chapter Seven

Under Suspicion

Chapter Eight

The Hideout

Chapter Nine

Rags 2 Riches

Chapter Ten

Caught Slippin'

Chapter Eleven

Rude Awakening

Chapter Twelve

Prepare for the Worst

Chapter Thirteen

The Plea Agreement

Chapter Fourteen

Deal of a Lifetime

Chapter Fifteen

The Animal Cage

Chapter Sixteen

Next Stop

Chapter Seventeen

The Big House

Chapter Eighteen

Eye for an Eye

Chapter Nineteen

Test of Courage

Chapter Twenty

Welcome to the Jungle

Chapter Twenty-One

Repaying a Debt

Chapter Twenty-Two

The Real Deal

Chapter Twenty-Three

Second Chances

Chapter Twenty-Four

Family Reunion

Chapter Twenty-Five

The Explanation

Chapter Twenty-Six

Crash Course

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Finally Free

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Living Life to the Fullest

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Back to Business

Chapter Thirty

Big Red

Chapter Thirty-One

The Takeover

Chapter Thirty-Two

White Christmas

Chapter Thirty-Three

The Expansion

Chapter Thirty-Four

The Boss Is Back

Chapter Thirty-Five

The Setup

Chapter Thirty-Six

The Wedding Day

Chapter Thirty-Seven

Operation Murder

Chapter Thirty-Eight

The Final Showdown

The Royal Family Trilogy

Books 2 and 3 will be in stores soon.

About the Author

To my beautiful wife, Haley Elizabeth Bureau.

Without her support and inspiration, I would have never written this trilogy.

Acknowledgments

To my wife and my babies, Makenzie, Cameron, Livia, Saydee, Sydney, Brooke, and our baby boy Royal Gage.

To my father, rest in peace.

To all the people I grew up with who died in the opiate struggle on these cruel streets—Daryl Cote, Steven Tyler, Paul Cote, Billy O'Brien, Jennifer Barnes, Jay Glenn, Amanda Belley, and John Soiles.

Hope you guys are all doing good in heaven. The opiate struggle is real, and anyone who is going through it who needs to talk, feel free to reach out to myself or my wife on Facebook. I would like to help out in any way I can before it is too late. If you need to speak with somebody, immediately reach out to one of these resources:

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration National Helpline: 1-800-662-HELP (4357)

www.americanaddictioncenters.org

www.drugfree.org

A dollar from every book sold will be donated to Boston Children's Hospital for the kids who so desperately need our help.

Chapter One

The First Impression

The first time I met the twins, Makenna and Gage, we were all in fifth grade at an alternative school for kids with behavioral issues. The city in which we all grew up was Lowell, Massachusetts, which was a very diverse city with many people from different ethnic backgrounds. The school board seemed to think it was a good idea to put all the worst kids from all over the city in the same school, under one roof. All this really was, was a recipe for disaster, if you ask me.

My name is Royal, and back then, I was a chunky little white kid from the Shaughnessy Projects. My name and weight got me into a lot of fights, 'cause at that age, kids were so cruel when they would bully one another. So I learned how to fight pretty fast. I wasn't just gonna sit back and get tortured every day 'cause my name was Royal Adelard Bureau and I was slightly overweight. Usually, people with fucked-up lives would say they came from a horrible upbringing, but I wasn't one of those cases. Even though we started off in the projects, I had a pretty decent childhood. My parents always found a way to make sure I had a huge Christmas and big birthday parties, and they both worked really hard to make sure I wasn't deprived.

My mother, Mary Gene, was a stay-at-home day-care provider, and my stepfather owned his own roofing company. My pops liked to drink, so sometimes there were arguments, but no one is perfect, and they were both good to me. I didn't even know until I was fifteen that he wasn't my real father, but by that time, he was all I ever knew, so to me, he was my real dad. My mom would never tell me about my real father. All she would say was that he was dead before I was born, and she left it at that. For some reason, it was a big secret, and on multiple occasions, when I would bring it up, we would get into blown-out arguments, so I would get frustrated and just storm away, never getting any real answers. I was born on February 12, 1982, at Lowell General Hospital, and right from day 1, my mother said I was a tough kid to handle, and I only got worse as I got older.

I do gotta say that my parents tried everything they could to straighten me out and steer me in the right direction, but I was absolutely out of control and didn't listen to any authority figures in my life. As a troubled kid in the '80s, doctors didn't know what to do with me. They labeled me with ADD, ADHD, then later in life, the final diagnosis was extreme, bipolar. Back then, they were lost with a kid like me; they had no idea how to handle my issues. If you ask me, I was a hyperactive kid who didn't like people telling him what to do! Since preschool, I was repeatedly getting kicked out of school, suspended, and even expelled. Finally, when I was about ten years old, they sent my ass to an alternative school. To be honest, that place made me even worse. By no means did my behavior get any better.

♦♦♦

Doctors tried to pump me with all types of medications, but nothing ever worked for more than a week or so. One day they prescribed me with Ritalin and then Adderall. I found out there were a lot of people who would buy these medications from me, so right away I started selling them, making money. That was the start of my drug-dealing career, I guess you could call it. I got a little taste of the free money, and I wanted more. I was selling it to kids in my neighborhood. The crackheads would call it the poor man's cocaine.

Growing up in the projects, I learned at a young age that if I wanted something, I had to go out and get it myself. Sitting on my ass wishing for something was for suckers, and I wasn't no sucker. At about eight years old, I moved out of the projects, a couple of years before getting sent to the alternative school. My mother moved us into a mostly all-white neighborhood, with all the preppy kids. This part of the city was called Pawtucketville, and I hated it at first. I didn't like anyone from that area. All my friends were across the city, and I stuck out like a sore thumb 'cause I was raised in the hood. This part of the city wasn't ready for a kid like me, and soon the people around this neighborhood would find this out the hard way!

♦♦♦

The first time I met the twins, Makenna and Gage, was during my first year at the alternative school. I was actually fighting a seventh grader, and I was getting the best of him until his buddy decided to jump in to help out his friend. I started getting my ass whipped two on one until, out of nowhere, this mysterious tomboy tackled the second boy off me. She and her twin brother beat up that kid, while I finished off the kid I was originally fighting in the first place. The teachers all ran over to break up the fights, and we were all violently put in arm restraint holds by these adults (which, by the way, was still legal to do back then, believe it or not). Before they could get ahold of this crazy guardian angel of mine, she jumped on the teacher's back trying to get him off me 'cause she could see he was hurting me. At that moment, I knew this girl and I had some type of strong connection to each other. At that age, I didn't know shit about love, but I definitely felt something for this beautiful, long- and blond-haired, icy blue–eyed savior. Back then, she was actually bigger than her brother and me, but not for much longer.

After the teachers finally got us all under control, we were all suspended. Everyone got three days, except Makenna. She got seven days since she jumped onto the teacher's back. From that day forth, all three of us were inseparable. I found out later that day that the twins lived around the corner from my house, in a foster home. From what they told me, their mother died when they were babies and their father was doing life in prison. They didn't elaborate any further, and I didn't inquire anymore 'cause it seemed like a touchy subject.

Gage and Makenna were fraternal twins. They looked nothing alike, and they had totally different personalities also. Gage was a very quiet kid; he kept to himself and has a very calm demeanor. He was kinda scrawny back then, but from what I witnessed, he could definitely hold his own in a fight. He had jet-black hair and emerald-green eyes and always had a serious look on his face. Now Makenna was the total opposite. She was very outgoing and talkative just like me, which was another reason we both clicked with each other instantly. She is what you would call an alpha and was like no other girl I ever met before in my life. And even in her awkward years as a tomboy, before all the curves and other phenomenal body parts developed, she was a natural beauty, no makeup necessary.

Gage followed her around everywhere; they were fiercely loyal and protective of each other. I assumed that was because they were the only real family each other had, until I came around anyways. I became like a brother to them, and my mom treated them as if they were her own kids. Makenna, whom we call Mak, was actually the only female my mother ever let sleep over my house. Even with all the trouble we would get into, she never held them accountable for their actions, only me.

As kids, we did all types of reckless shit to pass the time together. Terrorizing our neighborhood was an everyday occurrence. We went from little kids throwing snowballs and rocks at cars to breaking into practically every car and house within a two-mile radius over a couple of years' time. We got so good at what we did that the adrenaline rush was fading, so we would actually wait till the cops got on the scene before we would run. We knew every backyard, street, shortcut, and alley there was, and very rarely were we ever caught. We all were regularly suspended from school, so we had a lot of free time on our hands, like the saying goes, Idle hands are the devil's playground. Boy, were they right about that.

♦♦♦

Around the age of ten, we all experimented with cigarettes. Makenna didn't like the taste, so she didn't continue smoking, but Gage and I did. By the age of twelve, we started smoking weed, and almost right away, that became our daily habit. Even Makenna loved weed. I decided that not only was I gonna sell my pills but that I would also sell joints so we all could smoke weed for free. It was kinda hard to find a drug dealer who would supply a few twelve-year-olds, but I was a natural at navigating the streets, and in no time, I found different dealers to take a chance with me. Since I was a very young kid, I was told that I have the gift of gab, meaning I was a smooth talker. I could usually talk my way out of any situation that I got myself into, and if I couldn't talk my way out of it, I would just fight my way out of it! To be honest, it was usually my mouth that got me into trouble in the first place. It was like a double-edged sword having the gift of gab.

When I was about fifteen years old, I found someone who would supply me regularly. He had all types of different drugs, and he always was in stock. He wasn't really concerned with my age. As long as the money continued to flow, so did the drugs. He was making a killing off me, especially at first when I didn't know much about prices and weight. When I realized he was shorting my bags and overcharging me, I confronted him, and after that, he was always straight up with me. I started to get bigger and bigger every day. Not only were we all smoking for free, now we were all making money too. The twins helped me with everything. We were up to about a pound a week. I had a stash spot in my mother's basement. Only the twins knew about it and had access to it.

We never kept any secrets from one another, and we never did anything alone; we were together practically twenty-four seven. By the time we were sixteen, my dealer (whose name was Dean by the way) introduced us to all types of drugs besides weed. He would front me any drug I wanted. He was giving me weed, magic mushrooms, liquid acid, and ecstasy, and we even tried cocaine once. None of us liked the feeling from the coke. I felt like my heart was gonna explode, so we didn't touch that shit again. When my customers started asking me to get them other drugs, I did anything we could to make money. We were all about it. Like I said, the twins were with me the whole way, rolling in the money the same as I was, but they had strict, Bible-thumping foster parents, so they couldn't leave any drugs at their house. We all had dabbled in the different drugs I had gotten my hands on, but we were more the keg-party, weed-smoking types, so we stuck to pretty much just drinking and smoking weed.

Even though Makenna and I had a deep connection, we never openly spoke about our feelings. We both knew secretly how each other felt. Well, I think she knew anyways. I just never wanted to disrespect Gage; he was like a brother to me, so I just kept my feelings to myself. It was kinda hard to do that, especially when Makenna grew up into the most beautiful girl in our area. My personal opinion was, she was the most beautiful girl I ever laid eyes on, but still I didn't pursue her on a romantic tip, even though secretly my heart was solely hers.

As my reputation on the streets started to grow, so did my popularity with females. I wasn't the best-looking kid in our neighborhood, but I had baby-blue eyes that girls loved. As I grew taller, I actually thinned out, no more fat kid. My blond hair turned into light brown, and I always had a fresh fade. I was clean-cut. I even did my eyebrows when I got a lineup. I stayed rocking designer clothes, smelling like Armani cologne, which was all I ever wore. With my cockiness and my gift of gab, it wasn't hard for me to pull the prettiest girls in my neighborhood. I guess it didn't hurt that I was good in the bedroom and becoming like a boss around our neck of the woods. I never took any girl seriously. I always dated multiple girls at one time openly. To me and everyone around me, that became my normal way of life. Girls I fucked with didn't like it but learned to deal with it, or they would get tossed to the side, and it was on to the next one. I never dared give my heart to another woman, because another woman already owned it, and she was off-limits unfortunately!

I didn't even realize how bad it hurt Mak to see me coming and going every day with a different female. Over the years, she even beat up a few but never admitted it was out of jealousy. I came to find out later on down the road that Gage knew how we both felt all along, but he never said anything about it to either one of us. He was naturally a quiet kid anyways, and even though he was a good-looking kid, he wasn't too popular with women for some reason. He was six foot one, taller than Mak and me. I was five foot eleven, and Mak was five foot eight, which was kinda tall for a girl. But by the time she was sixteen, she was fully developed with a 36 double C, about 125 pounds in all the right places, and a voluptuous ass that had grown men breaking their necks. To have men of all ages drooling over you at the age of sixteen gives you an idea of how drop-dead gorgeous she was. The fucked-up thing was, she had no idea how beautiful she was. She wasn't stuck up like most girls who were superhot; she was like one of the guys. Don't let those good looks fool you though. She was more gangsta than most guys from the hood, with a temper that wasn't nothing nice.

♦♦♦

It wasn't until the first time I saw Makenna holding a guy's hand that I experienced what jealousy felt like. She was walking into the Father Maguire Park, where we hang out and sell drugs from, holding another guy's hand. I tried to keep my emotions in check, but seeing her arm in arm with this clown had my blood boiling inside. Now I know what she must have felt like every time I come around her with another female; it definitely didn't feel good. I was thinking to myself, It's time to have a talk with Gage. I can't stomach seeing her with other guys, so this secret has to be put out in the open now. I tried to be the bigger man and asked Makenna who her new friend was. You could tell Gage was shocked too since he'd never seen his sister with any other guy ever. She wouldn't look me or her brother in the eye, then this stupid, fucking fake, thug-looking wannabe gangster said, Who the fuck are you?

Before I even had a chance to form words into my mouth, Gage hooked off on this kid with a haymaker that sent this clown flying backward on his ass! Gage jumped on this kid and beat him so bad I'm pretty sure he pissed his pants. Mak was trying to pull her brother off her new little friend, but she couldn't. He was way too strong and in the zone. I actually forgot how mad I was and started laughing at the scene unfolding in front of me. After about a good minute of beating on this kid, Gage let him get up. The kid scrambled to his feet and took off running for dear life. Makenna was so pissed off at her brother, but he didn't care. When he blacks out like that, it takes him a minute to come back down to reality. It was what he said next that took us both by surprise.

He looked Makenna in her eyes and said, It's obvious how you and Royal feel about each other. I'm not blind. Remember, I'm your twin brother. I feel what you feel. Since day 1, you both have had a connection and haven't acted on it out of respect for me. At first, I was glad 'cause I didn't want to see any man with my sister. I love both of you guys. You're the only family I have in this world, and we would all kill for each other.

(At the time, we didn't know how true that statement really was, but soon we would find out.)

Makenna, I see how you act around Royal's play toys. You have even beaten up a few in the past for obvious reasons. I'm not stupid. Then today, when Royal saw you holding that bitch-ass clown's hand, I could honestly see the pain in his eyes. Then your, whatever he was, had the balls to give Royal a disrespectful comment, being rude to my brother. I couldn't hold back. You need to understand, Mak, I've never seen you with another guy before, especially holding his hand, and even though you're my big sister, by only ten minutes might I add, I'm still protective of you. Whether you like it or not, that will never change, and I'm sorry, but that wannabe gangster is nowhere near good enough for my sister. And honestly, if I didn't wipe that kid down, Royal was gonna seriously hurt that kid. I could see it in the expression on his face. So that kid should be thanking me for saving him from a worse beating than he got. I've been waiting for you two to make a move on each other, but still neither of you has. You both just ignore the subject, bury your feelings, and try to act like the love you have will just disappear one day, but it's not gonna! It's time for me to intervene and tell you both how I feel. Royal, I know you love my sister, and I'm not talking about as a friend either. I know you would never hurt her and would always be there to protect her, not that she needs protecting. She will probably be the one protecting you.

We all got a good laugh out of that, but Makenna and I didn't say a word during his speech.

And, sis, you're the most important person to me on this earth. You deserve the very best, to be treated as a queen, and you deserve to be happy. It just so happens that the person who can give you all those things is your best friend! It's not fair to either of you to hide your feelings because you love and respect me. Honestly, I don't ever want to see my sister with another man as long as I live unless it's my best friend.

We both were absolutely shocked, not only 'cause the quiet one just gave a long speech but also because he gave us his blessing. And to think that we waited this whole time thinking we would be disrespecting him when the opposite was how he felt. When I looked over at Mak, she had tears in her eyes as she gave her brother a big hug, quietly thanking him in his ear. Then she broke off from her brother and ran over to me with the biggest smile I had ever seen grace her beautiful face. Her dimples were so sexy it was ridiculous. She jumped into my arms, and after six years of dreaming of this moment, I finally had my dream come true. She kissed me so hard and with a hunger and passion I had never felt before, making my lip swell immediately. Not that I cared. There was this electric tingling sensation that engulfed my entire body, and at that point, I knew that I would never be with another woman ever again. My playa days were over. I finally have my beautiful guardian angel in my arms, and I was never gonna let her go. I was head over heels in love with my best friend.

I looked into her eyes, and for the first time, I said, I will always love you, forever and a day.

She looked up at me. Forever and a day ain't long enough!

Chapter Two

Love Hurts

I didn't realize it then, but a lot of shit happened on our sixteenth year that would change all our lives forever. It was an eventful year, to say the least, but I was finally with my soulmate, so as long as she was by my side, I was happy. It didn't hurt that she was the hottest woman on the planet, well, in my eyes anyways. Another good thing about my girl that made her different from mostly all the other hot girls I'd ever met was, she wasn't passed around the hood like a slut. A lot of girls her age had already been passed around the city, from friend to friend and even to your enemy in some cases. So if having the baddest chick wasn't good enough, add the fact that she was a virgin, and that made her completely priceless! Hot virgins her age were a myth in my hood, but Makenna's virgin status was about to change the first night we were officially a couple. God had answered my prayers finally. Thank you, God! After the summer of '98 was over, nothing would ever be the same for any of us.

♦♦♦

After Gage gave us his blessing, Makenna and I had so much shit to finally get off our chests; feelings that had been buried for so long somehow now needed to be put into words. The first night I rented a hotel, it was nothing too fancy, but it did have a heart-shaped Jacuzzi inside the room. I felt like a little schoolkid, all giddy inside. We could finally get to act on all our built-up, pent-up sexual frustrations and release them on each other. At first, it was kinda awkward holding her in my arms. I kept getting caught staring into her beautiful blue eyes. I loved kissing her soft, juicy lips that perfectly interlocked with mine, almost like she was the missing puzzle piece to every part of my body. Everything about this girl drove me crazy, from the way her hair smelled like a tropical fruit from the shampoo she used to the perfume she wore on the nape of her neck. I could honestly go on for hours on how much I love this girl. That night, I felt like the luckiest kid in the world! We explored each other's body for hours, not rushing one second. I had only gone down on a few girls at that time 'cause that wasn't my thing, but I was looking forward to doing dirty things to this girl with my tongue throughout her entire body.

I took time kissing, biting gently, and licking everywhere on her body. Just the thought of her juices on my tongue got my dick rock-hard. She was obviously very inexperienced being a virgin when we started, but I was patient with her, walking her through what I liked and what I didn't like. She was a fast learner. In no time, she mastered my body and knew exactly how to tease me and get me aroused continuously. I guess it wasn't too hard to get me going, seeing as she had a body that put Playboy models to shame at the age of sixteen. I was already experienced in the bedroom, so I showed her things she never even knew her body could do. Full-body orgasms and getting her pussy to squirt were all new to her. She was amazed at what I was able to accomplish with just two fingers. Never mind what my dick and tongue did to her.

The first time we had sex, I explained to her that she would bleed, so we decided to have sex in the heart-shaped Jacuzzi, a romantic setting. At least that way, it wouldn't look like a murder scene when we were done. She was naked and straddled on top of me in the Jacuzzi, licking and kissing my neck, driving me insane with lust. While we kissed, I was so turned on, my dick hurt 'cause it was so hard. I was playing with her extremely tight pussy. Her moans in my ear were too much to hold back, so I took control of the situation. I gently lowered her onto my dick. This was gonna be fun trying to get inside. I was average in length but very thick, so getting all the way inside was definitely gonna hurt her. As I started to enter her, she bucked like I was hurting her, so I stopped to make sure she was okay. She told me to try again, just to go slow. I told her, The pain will turn to pleasure, I promise! She had already experienced multiple orgasms from hours of foreplay, so she was extremely sensitive and on the verge of another orgasm even though it was hurting. As I was guiding myself in again, I could tell it was hurting her, but she didn't complain. She was taking it this time like a trooper. She actually surprised me by taking control of the situation, reaching into the water between her legs, grabbing my dick, and forcing herself down onto it.

I saw her wince, so I went to stop again, but she whispered, Now that the hard part is done, I want you to fuck me like a bad girl.

Immediately I felt like I wanted to come inside of her. Not only was her tight pussy choking my dick but she was also already talking dirty to me. I love this girl. We started off slow up and down my shaft. As she would start going down, I would arch my back so my pelvic bone rubbed into her clit. I moved faster as we got in sync, and her moans turned into lustful screams. She was biting my neck and clawing my back so hard, but at the time, it felt amazing. I was trying to fight the urge of getting off, and believe me, it wasn't easy. Her pussy muscles were contracting tighter around my dick almost like she was doing it on purpose. Some girls can control that muscle, and I later found out she was one of those girls. I couldn't hold back anymore, so I started fucking her like the bad girl she wanted to be. We started off making love and ending up fucking like wild animals by the time it was all over. As I drove my dick harder into her pussy walls, her screaming intensified. I was grinding into her clit while hitting her G-spot. It was my signature move that I called the three-wheel motion. It worked like a charm every time, causing a regular orgasm and a full-body orgasm simultaneously. I felt the sensation coming on, and I went as hard as I could until we both exploded at the same time. It was absolutely the best orgasm I had ever had, and trust me, I have had a lot at this point, but nothing compared to the one I had the first time I had sex with my soulmate. And to think that this girl was a virgin before this sex session. Well, not anymore!

As she was getting off, her eyes were rolling in the back of her head, and then she collapsed on top of me. She hugged me tight as she lay on my chest, shaking uncontrollably. She whispered, What the fuck was that? That wasn't a regular orgasm. I felt like I was about to have a seizure. It felt incredible. How did you do that?

I smiled and said, That's my little secret. The euphoric feeling that shot through your whole body is called a full-body orgasm. When you have an orgasm from your clit and from inside your pussy at the same time, that's what happens. Not every guy can pull it off, so I guess you're one of the lucky ones!

Hours after we had sex, her foot was still twitching. I told her that her new nickname was Twitch. She playfully slapped my arm, smiling, and said, Whatever, asshole. I looked down at this beautiful girl—or, should I say, woman now—and thought to myself, This is the happiest day of my life.

Little did we know, while we were having our amazing night together, her brother Gage was in the hospital! He was jumped by three kids that night. They beat him pretty bad. We didn't find out what had happened until the next day, after we left the hotel. When we found out, we both felt guilty for leaving him by himself, almost like it was our fault. We didn't have a car at this point, so I was