Dying Man || j.b.

chapter two

I choked on the mouthful of coffee I had just ingested "Wait, who?" I stopped it from coming out of my nose any more.

"Shut up, Paisley! I don't know!"

"I thought Ethan, maybe Mark, even Dylan was a possibility but the absolute last person I thought you were about to say was -"

"I know!" Carson panicked.

"Oh my god, what the hell happened last night!?"

"I don't know!" She screamed.

"You guys are being loud again!" Nicole yelled.

"Nicole, I swear to god!" Carson hollered.

"Okay, okay." I walked around the island and sat beside her. "Deep breaths. What happened this morning?"

"I told him I didn't remember what happened." Carson said. "I lied, I do remember. He didn't take advantage of me or anything."

"Well that wasn't my thought but thank you. Why did you lie?"

"Cause it was a drunken mistake that will never happen again. I made that clear, and told him I didn't remember it so he wouldn't think there was a chance of repetition." She explained.

"Ah, you were bored so it wasn't memorable."

"That's what I need him to think." Carson said calmly, taking a swig from my coffee.

"Oh god please tell me you brushed your teeth before you stuck your mouth in my coffee?"

Silence over took the room.

"That's yours now." I pushed it toward her and stood to make a new one. "You do know we have to go meet up with Dylan in an hour for our financial literacy project."

"Oh god I forgot!" Carson dropped her head in her hands. "Oh man he is totally gonna know."

"We don't know that for sure. Let's see how it goes."

~

Well, he knew. We have been sitting in complete silence in a study room for 15 minutes and Dylan has yet to make eye contact with Carson.

"Dyl, are you alive in there?" I asked him.

"Yes, of course I am. Obviously alive. Why? What's up?" He spewed.

"Oh, cut the shit Duker. He told you." I said.

"Paisley!" Carson smacked me.

"Who? What? I don't know about that or whatever that may be." Dylan said averting eye contact.

"Dylan, look at Carson." I said.

"I am looking at Carson." He said.

"No you're looking at the wall behind Carson. Look at her."

Dylan slowly shifted his gaze toward Carson, as a high pitched whistle like a ready tea kettle escaped his lips and his eye physically began to twitch. "See, I'm looking at her."

"You look like you're about to explode." I stated.

"Maybe I'm constipated." He looked at me sternly.

"You're full of shit that's for damn sure." I replied.

"He told you." Carson chimed in.

"Okay yes but only me and only because I thought he was dead in a ditch." Dylan rattled.

"I wish I were dead in a ditch." Carson flopped her head on to her folded arms on the table.

I rubbed her back slowly and stiffled a laugh.