I Still Need ✓

34. I wish for us all to get what we all wish for

Floyd ushered me out of the house before I could go crazy Hulk on Dylan's father and we went home about as angry as raging bulls. We were dangerously close to the point of explosion, but somehow, it felt good. I hadn't felt this alive in weeks. We were going to fix this, one way or another. No matter what, we were going to get Dylan back where he belonged. With us.

Unfortunately, this was not only up to us. We could wish whatever we wanted, but it took three people to decide and make this possible, but Dylan... was not exactly cooperating. It made sense, of course. He didn't know we'd talked to his father and we hadn't tried to get Dylan to talk since the first week after our break-up. (We'd kind of given up after he kept brushing us off with his awkward smiles.) Of course he would continue avoiding us. All our conversations went a little like this:

"Can we talk?"

"I don't think that's a good idea."

"Please? We only want to—"

"No."

And every time, Floyd and I decided we'd try again later. And later. And later. This went on for about a week. That's when we got sick of it and came to the conclusion that we needed a new tactic. Dylan might refuse to listen to Floyd and me, but that left many, many other options. Naturally, those came in the form of our friends. More specifically Rafael, since he was the one Dylan was closest with besides me and Floyd—at least, that's how it once was...

Luckily for us, Rafael was more than willing to aid us in this noble cause. You can probably guess how he reacted to our cry for help.

"I am just the right man for this task!"

I rolled my eyes.

"You only have to get—" Floyd started.

"Yes, yes!" Rafael waved him off. "Invite him and wait for you guys to show up, yes, I know. I won't improvise. Although, I do have some great ideas."

Floyd opened his mouth the protest again.

"We'll do it your way! I promise."

I nodded, but I was not surprised when things went differently by the time we were supposed to execute our plan anyway. Floyd and I had arrived at a mall with no Rafael or Dylan everywhere we looked. Not at the place we'd agreed to meet up. Not at any of the other possible places nearby. Not anywhere in the whole damn mall.

We'd already gone inside a dozen of cafés and the like, when I got a message from Rafael in which he said he'd gone somewhere else... Upon reading the text, I almost walked into a sign standing outside a store. "What the fuck?"

Floyd pulled me aside and reached for my phone, before letting out a deep sigh. "Yes, because why the hell not, right?"

"Because we'd agreed to meet here!" I cried.

"I know." He handed me my phone back. "I get to kill him first."

"Hell no!"

Floyd grinned and started running to the exit of the mall, making me speed off after him, even though I knew it was pointless, since Floyd was way faster than me. I didn't know why, but apparently, long legs meant nothing in my universe.

When he got to the place Rafael had said he and Dylan were, Floyd waited for me by the door with a smug grin. He leaned forward and whispered, "I won."

"I'll get you later," I panted, trying to catch my breath.

He pushed the door open and glanced across the room.

I caught the exact moment we all crossed gazes and the moment Dylan realized it wasn't a mere coincidence that we were all there, his eyes flicking from Floyd to me, back to Floyd, onto Rafael, who shrugged, as if he was clueless. This didn't stop Dylan from glaring at him, though.