Total pages in book: 93
Estimated words: 90672 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 453(@200wpm)___ 363(@250wpm)___ 302(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 90672 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 453(@200wpm)___ 363(@250wpm)___ 302(@300wpm)
My eyes widen. “Cop situation?”
Seth winces. “You didn’t think they were just going to be totally chill about the naked guy covered in goo in a pile of ashes in the middle of the night, did you?”
“We’ll figure that out,” Brad snaps. “You’ll sit in while they talk to Luke and help them along, right? Didn’t have any problem doing it last night with a friend you vowed never to use it on, so should be easy with them.”
Seth and I exchange a glance. His expression’s rife with guilt.
“Brad, I told him to do that. If you had intervened, you would have died senselessly and I would’ve been fine.”
Brad blinks a few times. “Sorry, Seth. I just… That situation messed with my head. I know you were only trying to keep me from…” He doesn’t finish, doesn’t acknowledge that he was willing to die to save me.
“I am sorry,” Seth says, and it’s one of the few times I’ve seen him when he’s let his guard down, shown something other than being a total dick around me.
“I know you are,” Brad says.
Seth nods. “I can figure out the cop thing.”
“And there’s one more thing,” Brad tells me.
“More?”
“Your uncle’s on the way here.”
“What? Why?”
“The cops wanted to contact your parents, and I mentioned you had a guardian and that I’ll let him know. So I found him online and sent him an email. He called me, and we’ve gone back and forth. He’s on a flight from Maui now.”
“Fuck…” Of all the people I would rather not have to worry about this, he’s top of the list. “I need to call him.”
“He’s on a plane, Luke. He won’t be in for another three hours.”
“I’ll send him a text, then. He can get it through the Wi-Fi.”
But fuck, I hate that he dropped his Maui trip just to come make sure I was okay.
“Fuck, is my phone even—”
“Incinerated,” Cody says.
“Of course it is. Brad, can I—” But he’s already passing me his phone.
“They’re gonna want to keep you here for observation,” Brad says, “do you want me to run by the dorm and grab some things? Clothes, your laptop maybe?”
As much as I want him to stay here with me, I could use a little time to myself to digest everything.
“Honestly, before you go, I could use some water.”
“I’ll get that,” Cody says.
“And I’ll check with the nurse,” Brad says, “and then maybe pick up some food on my way back.”
We coordinate plans before he and Cody head out, leaving Seth and me alone together, Seth avoiding eye contact as I text Dan.
My uncle is worried, I can tell by the half words and no punctuation in his reply, but I assure him I’m all right.
Dan: be there soon love you.
Me: I love you too.
With that out of the way, I relax against my pillow, noticing Seth lingering awkwardly near the bed.
As much as he’s pissed me off since we’ve met, something changed last night. And I know I asked a lot of him.
“Thank you, Seth.”
“Huh?”
“For stopping Brad. You didn’t have to do that, but you knew it was right.”
His gaze meets mine briefly before he nods. “No problem. Guy would have thrown himself on that fire to save you.”
I knew it too. I saw the determination in his gaze as he started toward the fire. We both would have died to save the other.
Seth’s quiet for a few moments before he adds, “I’ve been a dick to you since you got here. But what you did…that was really noble. If I’d been in that situation, I doubt I’d have been able to sacrifice myself like that.”
It’s a sincere remark, a rare occasion for him. At least with me.
“I guess you don’t know until it happens, right?”
“I think you’re the only one between us who’d know the answer to that. It was just a fucked-up situation. I’ve never betrayed him before. I would do anything for these guys, so it was a mindfuck for both of us. Seeing him hurting, knowing I was the one doing it… I don’t think Brad hates me, but it must be hard for him to reconcile what happened with the fact that I’m his friend. Just like it’s hard for me not to feel guilty, despite telling myself I was doing the right thing.”
Like most of this shit, and like life in general, it’s complicated.
“I don’t know that any of us will ever be the same after last night,” I say.
And that seems like a massive understatement.
28
BRAD
The following evening, after Luke is released from the hospital, we return to the dorms. I’m wondering if we’ll encounter Alexei, but he’s not here.
Luke steps into the room, glancing around, not like he’s looking at anything in particular, but at something in his mind’s eye. It reminds me of how he stared out the window on the drive back. He has plenty to think about, so I’m not surprised he’s out of it.