Ā Kat laughed a little when Dylan started snacking on the stale chips he found, crushed and half-eaten, haphazardly tossed on the ground. āThose arenāt mine,ā she giggled as he stuffed a few more into his mouth. āOne of the roommates brought them from home⦠I tried one; theyāre so gross!ā She laughed and sipped from a can of flat Mountain Dew, her smile fading as Dylan brought up the incident. āOh yeah, thatā¦ā She shook the now-empty can and bent the aluminum between her thumb and fingers before watching it drop to the floor to join its comrades. She sighed and tapped her bottom lip in apprehension, unsure as to where to begin. āAh⦠Look, Dylan,ā she began, biting her thumbnail. āI overreacted, and I was stupid, and Iām sorry.ā She positioned herself closer to the edge of the bed. āI just⦠didnāt really appreciate what Iām sure was meant to be a kind gesture on your part,ā she conceded. āBut you were way out of line. Picking me up?ā She threw back a piece of hair with her hand. āIf thereās one thing you need to know about me, itās that Iām one hard-ass. I donāt give a shit if you care about my safety or not. Iām a stubborn bitch. But I need you to respect that. Thatās how I learn. And I get it.ā Her hands tapped on her sweatpants. āYou cared about me. I know that now. But⦠Iām strong enough to take care of myself,ā she said with a smile. āI justā¦ā Sigh. āIām sorry, I guess Iām saying.ā She furrowed her brow and looked off, puzzled, searching for confirmation, and, finding it somewhere, nodded. Her eyes returned to Dylanās, uncertain. āIām sorry.ā And, for once, she actually meant it.