#todd hendricks

---

The two kissed, fighting between them for who was going to be pressed up against the wall. A gasp. A pair of hands on a belt buckle, jangling in the quiet room away from the hustle and bustle of Windsor House.

Dwight broke away, worry mixed in with his usual hint of panic, “This isn’t right, Reed will kill me.”

“He broke up with me.”

“Yeah but-”

“I said, he broke up with me. We’re not together. He doesn’t get to be mad if I get with someone else.” Shane stressed, not letting it bother him. It did. Obviously. Otherwise he and Dwight would not even be having this conversation, let alone be holed up in Shane’s room like they’d be caught any second.

Shane leaned into kiss Dwight again, but he was pushed away.

“His mom is stressing him out and got to him. Give him a week.” Dwight argued. “Just because he’s graduated and he’s not here doesn’t mean we should… fuck, what are we doing?”

“Uh, having fun?” Shane said, grinning wildly.

Dwight bit his tongue, annoyed. He knew it was wrong, even as his stomach turned and he wanted to give into the manic energy Shane was giving off, he had to at least try- even if it was just to assuage his conscious.  

It’d been two weeks since Reed had broken up with Shane; and one week since Shane had relentlessly been pursuing anything that walked into Windsor House as a kind of mourning ritual since Reed was not returning his calls. Anyone with sense could guess Hilde Van Kamp had forced his hand, but Shane wasn’t sharing what was in those emails that had him throwing his phone against the wall. Whatever it was, Shane was broken up enough to be dragging their ignoble prefect into his quest for a rebound.

Shane shrugged. “I’m bored. You’re horny, it’s a perfect match.”

“I am not-”

“Oh fuck off.” Shane said, pressing Dwight back up against the door, hands in his pants. Dwight couldn’t hide the gasp he made. “You’re into this. What was it you said last time we all had a party- ‘oh Shane, if you were a girl’- that’s a lie. I’m fine just as a boy.”

“That was Todd’s scotch talking, not me.” Dwight’s face coloured. Shane took advantage, leaning in further.

“Sure it was. And you haven’t had a giant bon-”

“You’re stupid, that’s what.” Dwight interrupted.

“Then you’re just as dumb as I am.” Shane said, He didn’t have a leg to stand on about the whining given Shane’s hands were already in his pants, but he had to somehow pretend this might not become a thing.

He didn’t let Shane insult him again. He proved Shane’s point though when he flipped them, Shane’s back to the wall; pinning him with height and weight advantage, even if Shane’s wirey dance muscles could have easily sidestepped the move. They both could avoid this obvious dancing around it if they wanted to; token protests aside, it was a bad decision on both ends, one that could only end badly.

Maybe Shane could have called his ex; gone that way. Maybe Dwight could have not stepped in earlier when Shane was hitting on Baldwin excessively. It would have required a little less impulsivity. Neither were really good at decision making.

They didn’t get any comments about Dwight emerging from Shane’s room later; hair tied back and messy. Shane was sprawled across his bed, clothing rumpled; he was more content that he had been in ages. Thin walls didn’t really matter when both had practice getting off quietly, even if it was weird they really shouldn’t be doing that together.

Dwight snuck back to his and Todd’s room; though as prefect he had been entitled to a single, it felt weird with all that empty space. He cracked the door, slipping back inside and checking the padlocks as usual.

A cough sounded from behind him.

“Did I forget something?” Dwight asked, noticing his roommate’s chair turned around with a displeased look.

“Really Dwight?”

“What?” Dwight asked, trying and failing to play it cool.

Todd rolled his eyes, “Shane? Of all people? He has a boyfriend.”

Dwight felt a wave of shame. He’d been saying that himself, but now he found himself echoing Shane’s hurt words. “They broke up.”

“They’re on a break at most until Mrs. Van Kamp gets her head out of her ass.” Todd said. Oh no. Not the disappointed tone.  

Dwight wanted to escape the room; but he couldn’t considering he’d had all the same protests Todd was bringing up. Granted, he did it anyways… did that make him a bad person.

He asked Todd, shame tinging his voice.

Todd frowned. “No. It doesn’t make you a bad person. It’s a bad decision given I thought Reed was your friend, but-”

“Well it was me or Luke Baldwin.” Dwight protested. “You should have seen Shane in the common room, I thought he was about to do some kind of sex demon ritual right there on the carpet!”

“Sure you did.” Todd wasn’t convinced. “I bet you also had to sleep with him for the good of the school or something? That’s not what you’re supposed to do as prefect. Be his friend, don’t fuck him.”

Dwight coloured. “I… It’s not going to be a thing.”

“Dwight, you’re a rebound if anything. This isn’t going to end well.” Todd pointed out. “If it was Luke, I doubt Reed would feel as betrayed. You slept with his boyfriend.”

“Ex-boyfriend. It’s been 3 weeks.”

“So, you’ve been counting?”

“No!” Dwight said. Were his arms itchy? He felt itchy. Was this guilt? Fuck. He didn’t want to go to church; the priest at St. Anthony’s in Westerville was a total creep. He didn’t want that, so he admitted, “Maybe.”

Todd considered this. “I thought you were straight.”

“Kind of.”

“Kind of?”

“I don’t know!” Dwight said, throwing himself down on his side of the room. He’d finally gotten the elaborate four-poster he’d never been allowed in previous years at Dalton to be installed; and it was great for adding to the drama of these moments. He drew the curtains and tried to hide.

Todd pulled the curtains back anyways, crawling in. Buzzkill.

“You don’t know?” Todd ignored his personal space, pushing him to the side to sit cross-legged on the bed. “So you’re trying to figure it out with your friend’s ex who is also your friend, while you’re supposed to be keeping the peace as prefect?”

“I mean, I told him we shouldn’t!”

“But you did anyways.”

Dwight groaned, hiding his face in a pillow. “I get it! I’m a shit person! But like, he’s hot! Okay! Just, all…”

Todd interpreted the wavy-arm gestures Dwight gave him as best he could. “You know, even if you have a thing for him, this isn’t the way to go about it. Do you like him?”

“I! Don’t! Know!” Dwight said into the pillow, “Fricken heck.”

“I think you can use the stronger swears.” Todd said, finding the humour in the moment.

“I already suck… I don’t want to be an even worse person.”

“Well, you gotta deal with the consequences of your actions; I don’t really care if you say fuck, but someone is gonna care if you fucked Shane.” Todd pointed out.

“Is it bad that even though I knew it was bad, I still wanted to do it?”

“Do you really need to ask?”

Dwight rolled over and sighed. “This was so much easier when I thought sex was icky.”

“To be fair, you could have made an excellent travelling monk; if the vow of celibacy had just held.” Todd said, before flipping back to seriousness. “You got to tell Reed.”

“Ugh, I guess.” Dwight sighed, propping himself up on his elbows. “Confession is going to suck next time I’m home.”

“You could just convert; I have to say Wicca is a lot less stressful.” Todd suggested. “At least Trinity’s coven is anyways.”

“Yeah but then Reed, my mom, and God will all be mad at me. That’s not worth it.” Dwight said to the fabric hanging above him.

“You’re missing out.” Todd said, rolling off the bed. “Just don’t make me have to force you to own up to this. You won’t like me forcing your hand.”

“I know, I know. You’ll post it on the front page of the paper and make sure even Grandma Houston gets a copy emailed to her.” Dwight waved him off.

“That, and I’ll get quotes from Shane saying your dick is tiny.”

“Fuck off!” Derek yelled, looking across the large, white and glass hallway of the Ohio Brooks Parker Galleria Mall to the Hot Topic.

“What is it?” Bailey asked, not turning from his sink full of dishes. He was up to his elbows in coffee mugs and dessert-stained plates. “Is Sebastian coming up to ask for another job application?”

“Shut up Bailey, you know it’s only because he thinks Julian’s hot, not because he wants to work here. And no; it’s not that asshole.” Derek gestured across the hallway; Bailey couldn’t see it because he still had his back turned, uncaring. “It’s that fucking asshole and his boyfriend!”

“Who?”

“You know, the assistant manager and that hipster guy!”

“Oh Dwight?” Bailey asked. “What’s wrong?”

“They’re fucking again!”

Bailey made an amused noise. “Good for them.”

“Good for them!?” Derek exclaimed, “What the hell does that mean?”

“Well, if you could get laid at work you would.” Bailey said, hiding his laughter. “I’m glad you don’t for the record; I don’t want to clean that up, but it’s a little funny.”

“Exactly- how is it that the goth who isn’t even in charge of that place is getting laid and I’m here in a fucking Starbucks like a loser?”

While Derek was ranting, he was ignoring the girl at the register. Bailey shot her a look, commiserating before drying his hands to take her order.

“And if we’re really splitting hairs here Bailey, shouldn’t he, I don’t know? Be doing his job? Instead of letting his little hipster boyfriend fuck him in the changerooms?”

Bailey rolled his eyes, grabbing a larger sized cup for their customer and waving her panicked look aside. It was the least he could do since she was putting up with Derek’s ranting.

“Jeez, Derek if it bothers you so much, just join in our betting pool and you at least could make some money off it.” Bailey said, steaming the milk like it was just another normal day. Which, working with Derek for at long as he had, it kind of was.

“Betting pool?”

Their customer interjected, “I’m from the Barnes and Noble next door; we’ve got it going with us, Clay and the boys in the store, Bailey and y’all, and then then Chels and the Pet Co. downstairs for how long it’ll take the manager to catch them.”

“All those people know? And Ryan still hasn’t figured it out?” Derek asked, confounded.

She shrugged, “Yeah, well, Pet Co. was waiting for the two month mark to send Ryan upstairs at the right moment; but Todd and Dwight were just talking; I’m thinking Clay ran interference so the bet’s still going.”

Derek looked caught between anger and intrigue. He looked at her with a scowl before, “Put me down for fifty bucks on two weeks from now. Ryan’s not an idiot, he’ll realize.”

“Not if he spends all his time downstairs with the fish tanks.” Bailey pointed out.

“Why is he even managing a Hot Topic if he loved animals so much?”

“He’d never sell anything if he worked downstairs, that’s why.” Their customer pointed out, wandering back to the Barnes and Noble with her drink. “Good luck boys!”

Oh it’s on, Derek thought, not realizing how difficult a task it would actually be to accomplish.

---

Two months of this nonsense aside, Dwight Houston had not set out to completely disregard professionalism and decorum when he got this throwaway job at the mall. His mother raised him better than that- or so she kept saying. He was only here for the sole purpose of keeping his car and proving he was responsible- nothing more. If he had enough knowledge of alternative culture to tell people why Hot Topic was the worst place to shop, that wasn’t his problem. He was merely the solution.

When Todd Hendricks, or “Hipster Guy” as he referred to him for the first two weeks in his head, walked in, there was no master plan to get back at his manager for promoting him in this insanity. No, it was only a short conversation, based around Todd’s utter incompetence.

“If she’s a real goth, she will not want anything we sell here. This is emo shit, New Oracle in Glensdale is the real space for crystals. This is just plastic and Yellow 33!” Dwight shook the fake silver jewellery at the customer and his wide rimmed glasses, plaid shirt, and rough, red scarf. “Your sister will not like this.”

“But that’s why it’s funny. Because it’s not authentic.” The customer (who would be known as Todd) said. “She’ll hate it and it’ll be hilarious.”

“It’s offensive! You say she’s a witch, then it’s doubly offensive.” Dwight said, motioning to put the piece back up on the highest shelf with the pole hook.

“I’m her brother, she’ll know it’s a joke.” He argued. “I’m not here to rock your goth purist boat.”

“I am not a goth,” Dwight said, putting the offending piece out of reach. “I am a post-industrial punk with spiritualist leanings; its completely different.”

“Sure.” Was the response, grinning like he’d not proven anything.

Dwight groaned, “Clay, back me up here; the Vampire Diaries spinoff jewellery is not something we should be promoting to any self-respecting goth.”

His part-timer, Clay Rizzo, poked out from behind the piercing display where he totally wasn’t trying to steal new lip rings. “I don’t know Dwight; I am one of those emo pieces of shit, so maybe I’d recommend it?”

“I get no support around here!” Dwight said, stalking to the back of the store. “Impossible!”

Todd looked over to the part-timer, decked in the unofficial uniform of all black and a hundred emo-band pins. “I think I’m dropping by more often.”

Clay gave him an evil grin. “Pleasure doing business with you.”

---

From there it escalated; Todd coming in multiple times a week just to annoy Dwight. Well, that’s what Dwight assumed until Todd asked for his phone number.

“What? Why’d you want that?”

Todd looked at him like he was an idiot. “Because I’ve been flirting with you this whole time? Were you not…”

Clay, unknown to the two of them, was watching with Robin and Jake from behind the t-shirts. They were supposed to be executing the planogram; but why do that when there was drama to observe?

“I was not.” Dwight said robotically. “Uh, okay, that’s…”

“I literally looped a tie around your neck and pulled you in, and you didn’t realize I was into you?”

Clay, who remembered that exchange, had to be smothered with a Haven shirt but Jake to stop him from making noise.

“In my defence, I’m not used to people flirting with me.”

“If you’re not interested, that’s fine. I just thought-”

“I’m not not interested?” Dwight interjected before Todd turned away and walked out. “I’m just, uh, not used to … this?”

“I can work with that.”

It somehow progressed, in spite of Dwight’s inherent awkwardness. Jake, Robin, Jasper, and Clay respectively waving the pair off whenever Dwight took his lunch break now.

“They grow up so fast.” Clay said dramatically while Dwight gave him the finger. Todd just smiled at his conspirator and told them to take care of the store. Not that he worked there. He was there often enough he’d take to reminding Dwight about stock orders, schedules, and that Jake had a family dinner coming up so someone had to get it covered. The store had never run so well as it did when Todd started dating their assistant manager.

---

“Where did you guys put the Manic Panic?” Ryan Cobb, actual manager of Hot Topic, called out from the stockroom. “There should be a packing slip for a 3 pack of each colour, but all I see is overstock of those short-shorts!”

“I don’t know, ask Jake,” Dwight said, standing on a step ladder with Jasper spotting him. “He was in last night when the delivery came in.”

“I’m asking you. How can you be my assistant manager and not know where the hair dye is? We have that Chang girl coming in later and I promised her we’d have her order in!” Ryan called. “I’m going on break, that dye should be on the shelf when I get back.”

Ryan left, once again for supposedly fifteen minutes- but the entire staff knew he’d be gone for the rest of the day downstairs to play with the parakeets Pet Co. just got in.

“Oh, you’re in trouble.” Robin said, amused.

“Shut up.” Dwight muttered. “I bet Jake just put them somewhere weird. Call him and see what’s going on.”

“I’ll call him. He told me nothing came in last night though.”

“Perfect, just fucking perfect.” Dwight groaned.  

“What’s wrong?” Todd asked, coming in with a cardboard tray of drinks. “I just saw Ryan go by, if he’s actually in the store for any minute I’m scared the place will burst into flames.”

“Once in a blue moon, it happens I guess.” Dwight admitted, climbing down the ladder to receive his kiss on the cheek and the green tea Todd brought for him.

“What’s happening?” Todd asked, taking his own coffee off the tray and pushing the sugar-laden third and fourth cups to the part-timers he’d been subtly converting to his side. Jasper particularly grabbed his eagerly, gushing thank yous.

“Jake might have lost a delivery.” Dwight paused, “Or not? I don’t know about the warehouse, but they’ve been fucking up recently anyways. I swear I can’t find last night’s order but the stockroom does look like shit…”

“You have a computer? There should be a record of orders received and rejected? I know not everyone still does things hard copy.” Todd suggested.

“It’s in the manager’s office!” Robin volunteered. “Not that we’re allowed in there. It’s for Ryan and Dwight only.”

“Well, they can’t fire me so I don’t care about that rule.” Todd said, taking a sip of his coffee and beelining to the back room.

Dwight scrambled to follow him. “No! No! No customers in the back!”

“Oh come on, if Ryan’s going to get mad at you about it then I might as well try to help.” Todd said, finding the tiny room easily and placing himself in the desk chair like he owned the place. “Password’s hottopic123, very creative, not hacking proof at all.”

“It’s a formality, that’s why it’s on the post-it.” Dwight grumbled, reluctant to admit he was grateful for the help.

“Okay, well according to your emails it’s right there. They’re not sending it because of the USPS strike. I don’t know why Ryan didn’t notice that.” Todd said after a few open tabs and a control+f.

“Oh that’s why.” Dwight grumbled, pointing to the open tabs on tanks for tropical fish. “He was distracted.”

“Why is he in charge of a Hot Topic if he doesn’t want to even work here?” Todd asked, looking through the pages. “Like, if you’re desperate you could work for the raptor sanctuary; they’re hiring.”

“Wait, you know the raptor sanctuary?” Dwight asked, intrigued. “I have an owl there.”

“I’m sponsoring Rowena, the prairie-”

“Merlin.” Dwight finished. “Yeah, she’s the one who the workers are teaching how to do the flight tricks right?”

“Yeah.” Todd paused, “You’re Castiel’s sponsor? I thought that name was stupid.”

“It’s not stupid! It’s a good name!” Dwight said before realizing Todd was joking with him. “Oh, okay.”

“So, if Ryan is going to ignore the email in his inbox in favour of spending all his time at Pet Co. I propose we do something to get him back.” Todd said, spinning around in the chair and closing the door to the office. It was more like a cupboard with how much room there was.

Dwight looked at him suspiciously. “What do you mean?”

Todd locked the door, “You’ll see.”

---

Robin wasn’t sure what was happening until he went to knock on the door and heard it. Shit. Maybe Dwight was cool.

First thing he did was tell Jake over the phone, who told Jasper, who told Clay- who told literally the entire mall by the time he’d made it in for his closing shift.

“Who knew the dude had it in him.” Jake said, punching in, careful to give the office door a lot of room. “I mean, I would do that but Dwight’s always struck me as a bit of a-”

“A nerd?” Jasper supplied.

“I’m so proud of my dads.” Clay said, already on the top of a stepladder switching out t-shirts. “Like, I can’t use that office so I don’t give a shit- but it’s also hilarious. How long do you think it takes Ryan to notice?”

“First, they’re not your dads.” Jake said.

“Todd gave me a gold star for my pins last week, they’re my dads.” Clay said, half joking, but mostly trying to annoy Jake.

“Okay, fine. Secondly, Ryan isn’t going to notice shit. If he hasn’t notice you’ve been stealing lip rings to wear while at work he is not going to notice Dwight’s boyfriend fucked him in the office.”

“Or did Dwight fuck him?” Jasper asked.

“I don’t care.” Jake dismissed the comment. “Either way, it’ll be, like a year before Ryan realizes something is up.”

Clay grinned, “Care to put your money where your mouth is?”

“You’re on.”

The pot, by the time Pet Co., Barnes and Noble, Starbucks, and Radio Shack got in on the action, was somewhere around $400. The only ones unaware, were the couple in question and Ryan Cobb.

---

“Shit, Clay! This isn’t what it looks like.” Dwight said hurriedly, Clay pulling open the curtain to the change rooms enough to poke his head in.

“Really? Because it looks like you’re just passionately embracing Todd.” Clay shrugged, “I could be wrong.”  

Todd would have normally made a quip back, but he was too close to reply. “Uh, not a good time.”

“Well, you’ve got almost no time at all for this quickie because Ryan is on his way back. AKA, he’s on the elevator and if you’re here balls deep-“

“I will curse you so hard-”

“You’re already hard, I get it. Put some pants on, wrap it up.” Clay said, flipping the curtain closed. At least the two of them were polite enough to not make any of the part-timers do cleaning duties on these occasions.

Either way, Clay has a vested interest in not alerting Ryan right now. The pot was up to $800 now, and he would need that for next semester’s books. College was expensive.

---

In the end, it wasn’t Ryan who caught them; it was the night security guard who got them outside in Dwight’s ridiculously out of date Chevy. With an ‘indecent exposure’ strike on his record, Ryan had to let Dwight go. The betting pool wasn’t sure if this meant the bet was on, or off.

The next week, when he found Todd wandering past the Hot Topic to the men’s bathrooms with one lanky, gothic boyfriend in tow- he shot Todd a thumbs up and informed the rest of the mall the game was still on.

Prefect Ryan Cobb walks down the halls of Windsor House, intent on doing one last surprise dorm inspection before heading back out to the gardens. Roman and Alexander take the longest time to inspect, their dorm is a spreadsheet meant for sleeping, plastered with barely understandable Ponzi schematics- but if it’s not cocaine, Ryan cannot do much. 

His priorities are more than inspections today. A group of butterflies were making their home in the flowerbeds. His hopeful successor to the prefecthood of the house alerted him to it. One more floor, pick and choose, then wildlife.

Stopping, Ryan thinks he overheard an argument coming from one of the freshman rooms. Black bat stickers, sparkly letters, and a Transformers stick decorate the space surrounding the number. A cracked door betrays the muffled noise of the two roommates’ disagreement.

With disappointment, Ryan realizes that it is his most difficult room pairing. Houston has already burnt through two roommates already. If they aren’t getting along, he needs to try and find a new person who can put up with their new occultist.

Stepping towards the door, Ryan listens in.

“You can’t keep a raven in here!” It sounds like Hendricks, he thought to himself.

“She’s my familiar!”

“Seriously Dwight, there’s weird and then there is dangerous. She needs to be outside!”

“I’m handling it, I just need to-”

“At least let Ryan tell you what to feed her.”

Well, if called upon he has to see what is happening now.

Knocking, Ryan called out, “Room inspection!”

He hears Dwight yelping. Todd saying something in hushed tones. A squawk? The window is slamming. Movement. A lot of movement. His wildlife senses are tingling. 

Ryan opens the door, looking at the freshman. Todd looks as bored as ever. He’s on his bed with a book, shooting annoyed glances at his roommate. Dwight, contrastly, is just as steadfast in consistency as he looks as disastrous as always. The claw marks on his hands though, those are new.

“Last surprise inspection of the day, lucky you.” Ryan said with a smile, coming further into the room. He paused, “Dwight, the salt lines? Really? Housekeeping has enough to deal with.”

Dwight starts on a spiel about their necessity. Ryan has heard it three times now. Instead, he turns to Todd, “are you okay with them?”

“When he keeps them to his side.” He says plainly. “Maybe housekeeping should just skip our room? We can keep our own sides clean.”

“This doesn’t look clean.” Ryan says concerned, the randomly coloured stains on Dwight’s side not immediately recognizable.

“We’ll get it cleaned up.” Dwight assures him.

Ryan gives him a look, circling the room. “I know I confiscated some of this stuff last week.”

“Does that stop him?” Todd asks.

Point.

Ryan sees he’s going to have to compromise here. “Is there anything you’d like to declare at least? What was that noise I heard before I came in? Todd, is he smoking again? Wes told me about the incident behind the garden shed.”

“If he needs to be concussed again, just let Charlie know. He stole Wes’ baseball bat after that.”

“Might be because it was the garden shed.” Dwight says sheepishly. “He didn’t like the smell.”

Todd’s side is cleaner, but not spotless. There are some items of altered uniform in the closet, but as long as he doesn’t see them wearing them it is okay. He wants to ask what that squawk was, but if they’re hiding an animal in here, it should be large enough to see. A bird? Out the window? Hopefully it would fly away. He does not trust Houston’s ability to care for an animal, but he can deal with that when he’s certain what it is. 

“The posters can’t be pinned to the wall. Sticky tack or nothing.” Ryan points out, the map on Todd’s side and the sci fi posters on Dwight’s side both being held up with staples.

“Can we get some from the secretary’s supply? I don’t want to order any.” Todd complains, like his desk isn’t already overflowing with raided folders, paperclips, and fine line markers from the Underclass Newspaper Room.

“Order it.” Ryan says, hiding a smile at Todd’s annoyance. “And if you do have anything I can’t find, throw it out. Or come to me. You know I’m here to help.”

“Yes Ryan.” The freshmen chorus.

Unable to figure out what is happening, Ryan leaves. He will figure out what those two are hiding, though he wishes Todd would just tell him outright. The fact they seem to be getting along only hinders attempting to reign in Houston’s more outrageous behaviour. Not that he can say too much being Windsor’s Prefect, but unless the kid mellows it will be hard for Windsor to continue to stay under the administration’s radar- especially with Alfalfa Brightman’s kids destroying the water fountain with dish soap. The sparrow’s drinking water was ruined.

Luke Baldwin, one of his more sedate sophomores skids around the corner. Angry, his face is almost red with how furious he is.

“That freshman and his pet crow killed Yorvik!” Luke shouts without preamble.

“What?”

“That damn freshman is keeping a crow in his room!” Luke shouts, jabbing towards the door Ryan has just left. “And I don’t know if he even feeds it, because all that is left of my tarantula is one leg, and a lot of feathers! If he isn’t punished-”

“Baldwin, calm down.” Ryan puts his hands up. “I was just in there, there was no bird. And you know I would know.”

Luke isn’t deterred. “I know it was his! Who else would be crazy enough-?”

“Hey! Ix-nay on the azy-cray.” Joshua pokes his head out of his own room. “Kid’s got OCD.”

“You’re just saying that cause you’re taking that psychology class.”

“It’s not my fault you don’t know how words work.” Joshua counters.

“He’s going to get more than just that if something isn’t done about-”

“Luke. Enough.” Ryan said. “I’ll talk to him later, but as I said. I just did a room check. There was no bird. I believe you, but I can’t just punish someone without a little more proof.”

He continues down the hall towards the stairs into the main common room. Some of the Juniors are playing Rock Band against the seniors. Right now, Sullivan is the only sophomore so Ryan decides it is okay to leave unattended. Luke follows, still rambling about how the freshmen can’t get away with illegal animals in the dorm.

Ryan sighs. “I can’t bring Yorvik back. You know I feel badly. He was a good spider. But if you want, I can talk to my arachnid guy, maybe we can try fostering in a safer tank? It’s not Yorvik, but there are a lot of spiders who would benefit from a territory of their own.”

Luke didn’t like that idea; but considers the suggestion of perhaps upgrading to a scorpion, which can defend itself much more easily against predators within the dorms.

Perturbed, he wonders how there could be a whole crow (though Ryan does not think Luke could properly identity a corvid without a lineup) loose in Windsor without him knowing about it. There is always a lot going on in Windsor, but animals were supposed to be his thing. He would have to be on the lookout for a black bird on campus. While birds can eat a variety of things, an entire tarantula might make it sick. Great. Now he has a poor corvid to worry about, on top of the warbler the Stuarts were keeping in a tiny cage as a mascot instead of allowing to fly in an enclosure the school could clearly afford for their own caged songbirds.

“Incoming!”

Ryan ducks on instinct from previous incidents. A mop flies over his head, clattering to the ground beside him. He turns to see the Seniors sheepishly trying to hide the bucket. It seems someone spilled a bottle of cola, and bleach was the solution they devised to clean it. Maybe if the common room was smaller he would have noticed this side of the room.

“Keep that away from Van Kamp, he’ll trip.” Ryan says to his fellow seniors, who give him enough platitudes to let him continue unworried out the double doors of Windsor House.

The sun is warm, grass as green as it will be before the winter frost settles across campus. Only a few more days until the cold snap. He’d wanted to get the ducks an indoor shelter earlier, but so far only Mr. Tamerlane is listening to his advice. Ryan keeps warning his boarders to leave the duck alone, but this is a reason they don’t officially have a house pet like Hanover’s ridiculous pony.

Walden, one of the freshmen, wants to bring his dog Cookie to school. The dog is supposedly a therapy dog, but from what Ryan sees of Walden’s understanding of therapy dogs it may just have the right sheet of paper. That kid seems to have more money than sense, and cannot even tell Ryan that his dog is anything beyond ‘white’. With enough training, maybe Ryan could change that status, and educate the owner on behalf of the dog.

Jogging across the campus to the gardens, Ryan sees the greenhouses and some of his Windsors there amongst the gardening club. A row of cracked pots and half-eaten greens are strewn on the ground in front of them. Large bags of supplies are also half full, spilling into the decorative beds and Mr. Tamerlane’s immaculate lawn work.

“Hey, prefect!” The club calls over. Charlie, one of his more reformed Windsors, is among them.

 “What’s up guys?” Ryan asks, diverting his jog to see the butterflies.

“Amos says you’re good with animals.” The Day student in charge of the club says, pointing as the mess. “What kind of rat did this?”

“I keep telling you, it’s a Windsor prank. It doesn’t even look like much is missing.” A Stuart sneers, a foul look on his face. 

“It is field mice, I’m telling you.” Charlie looks close to snapping. Thankfully the group of Seniors who have beaten his delinquency out of him, also stressed the importance of saving your cursing for emphasis alone. “It wasn’t Windsor.”

Ryan shrugs. “I haven’t heard of anything about messing with Gardening Club. Most Windsors don’t find it would give enough of a reaction.”

“So what did it?”                                 

“He’s biased.”

“You wanted a prefect’s opinion.”

Ryan ignores the chattering, kneeling in the grass in front of the ruined supplies. Small holes, certainly rodent sized. Pellet dung mixed in with the bag of grass seed, but oily residue around the holes? Signs in the potted plants of the teeth marks were inconclusive, but he did already know what caused this.

“They’re common brown rats. It’s not a huge problem, but it’s not a prank.” Ryan says, brushing his knees off.

“How do you know that?” The Stuart challenges.

“Simple.” Says the prefect, “Mr. Tamerlane already told me about the infestation he’s fighting off. Haven’t you guys noticed the humane traps around campus?”

The silver boxes scattering the campus are meant to be inconspicuous on purpose. Ryan paid extra for the grounds to have the best versions so he could release them back into the fields where they belonged.

“Were you going to tell us?” The head of the Gardening Club exclaims.

“It’s being handled.”

“So what the hell are we supposed to do?”

Ryan considers it. “If you really want to keep pests away, you can invest in a garden snake. Something large enough to be a good rat catcher, but small enough it shouldn’t cause issues if you do something stupid to provoke it to bite you.”

“Justin mentioned something about that.” Charlie says, cutting off other arguments. “His gardens back home have loads of natural pest control.”

“The warmth of the greenhouses should also allow a year round solution.” Ryan said. “I know a guy who runs a rescue, he has a pair of them he’d love to rehome.”

“And you still say this wasn’t a Windsor prank?” The Gardening Club head asks, suspicious of Ryan’s immediate solution.

“Ask the groundskeeper, or the office admin. She took the order for the traps around campus.” Ryan raises his shoulders, his good nature taking over. They would believe him or not. It did not entirely matter as long as they did not try to kill the rats with poison that may hurt the other local animals on campus.

It does not take long for the club to believe him. A phone number is given and snakes promptly rehomed. Ryan walks away in a good mood. Truth be told, the snakes please him more than the clearing of Windsor’s reputation; but a double win is a good bonus.

Finally he reaches the rose garden. Ryan breathes in the sweet smell of the flowers. Around him the swarm is feasting on nectar, and he is careful not to startle them from their important task. They ravage the carefully manicured briars, returning some of the ridiculous ornamental roses into a more natural state. Ryan thinks the twinkling light of the white, yellow, and oranges on their wings is far more beautiful than the flowers could ever be.

His camera does not do them justice, flitting from flower to flower as he follows with soft steps. He has been to sanctuaries before, but never with this much privacy to observe them. Thankfully, most students do not frequent the rose gardens. Dobry’s rose garden is more of the clandestine spot for lovers; Ryan has found he is far more likely to find his Windsors in the library, the gym locker rooms, or one notable incident behind a curtain outside the entrance hall with David Sullivan and a Dobry girl who should not have been there. It is not of his concern though, he’s got his private time alone with the cloud of glittering wings.

Ryan stops. A black feather is resting on the ground in front of him. Could it be?

Around the corner of the briars he spots her. A juvenile raven, a monarch held between her beak in twitching death throes. Her movements are lazy. Her feathers do not shine, they barely reflect the light at all. The dying butterfly she is trying to eat looks more alive than she is.

Ryan’s heart drops. He cannot rush forward. He will not disturb her. She is in pain. Is this what his freshman was trying to hide?

There are no marks, just an air of sadness around her. She cannot swallow her prize. The butterfly falls to the ground. He’d run and offer her any food he can, his mental stores of knowledge on birds are gone. He cannot think.

The raven gives a sad quork at her lost food, flapping her wings weakly.

“Did someone hurt you?” Ryan approaches, hands up and thinking of what he’d heard last time at the vet for poor Markie when the Brightman twins tried to feed him potato chips. Birds will eat too many things near human dwellings that are not good for them. He had to believe the freshman duo would not intentionally copy such Windsor insanity.

Her inky black eyes met his. She flew off, stumbling in the air. Ryan looks to where she is going, but she ducks behind a building not to be followed.

Its’ looking down near the dead butterfly that Ryan sees it. Exposed piping with dark peck marks in it. The shiny copper paint gives way to a chalky white. He informs Mr. Tamerlane, but it is too late for that raven he will learn later. Ryan’s walk back to Windsor is sombre.

 “When was the last time you saw grey?”

The question took Dwight by surprise. For as long as he could remember, he’d seen in shades of grey. Grey skies with grey clouds; grey houses lining grey streets; grey trees, with grey shadows, underneath which his friend sketched a grey picture. He had known there was colour, his Uncle described it all in lurid details- the blues, the greens, the golds. Dwight knew if he had a favourite colour, maybe it would be red? Or purple? They seemed to have all the good things.

“You said I should use the other one. Dwight, green and red look the same in grey.” His hesitancy gave way to excitement, “This is amazing! I’m so happy for you!”

Reed had been making a still life for art class; Dwight beside him trying not to mess up on his own project. Dwight took a look at the pastels between the two of them; none of them were grey. They hadn’t been grey for ages; but Dwight hadn’t noticed. Muted purples in with a pale green, cut with shades of yellow and peach; Reed’s hands were covered in colours Dwight wouldn’t have been able to distinguish when he was a kid. But today, he could pick out the yellow against Reed’s blazer. When had that happened?

“You met your soulmate!” Reed almost sprang up, but hit his head on the tree trunk. Dwight caught his stumbling friend.

“I must have.” Dwight said cautiously.  

“Must have? You can see colours! I was so overwhelmed when it happened. It was just boom!” Reed gestured, his hands wild. “It was like, bye greyscale. How can you just guess?”

“I don’t know when it happened.” Dwight admitted, staring around them at Dalton’s grounds. He hadn’t noticed. How had he not noticed every fleck and gleam of colour around him? Had it snuck up on him? Every single story he had heard of soulmates described the rush of colour, flooding your vision as you met them, your soulmate. He’d even looked forward to it; he’d wanted to know who it was, the exact moment he’d found that person who would understand him like no one else.

Reed cut through his thoughts. “What do you mean, you don’t know? It’s, it changes everything? I mean, I didn’t think I’d find mine so early, but god Shane practically fainted when he saw colour. I get you may have wanted to keep it private, but, I can tell you the second it happened.”

“I didn’t notice.” Dwight admitted.

He hadn’t noticed. Oh god he hadn’t noticed. What kind of soulmate was he?

“So, you don’t even know who it is?” It dawned on Reed, with a soft look of pity. Dwight didn’t want that. Not from his friend.

“I, I have to go.”

Now that he was aware of it, Dwight couldn’t unsee it. Even his own clothes, purchased by his mother specifically so her son would never look like a mess; black came in so many shades. The shirt was slightly purple, a black verging on green, and grey laces that looked blue in comparison to that grey he had just assumed everything was.

How had he not seen it? When did it change? What changed? Who?

Who was it? Who was it that brightened a world without him even realizing it? No. He couldn’t have one. Not like this.

God it was a trick. It had to be. Some creature that could make it seem like he could see colours. He couldn’t have met his soulmate yet. They’d have mentioned it. It had to be like, a demon, or a fae- oh god what had he done to piss off a fae? Where was his iron? Where was the salt?

His jog turned into a run, scared as he hopped a hedge back to Windsor’s back door. He had to get to safety. There was something out there. His instincts must be so dulled from this spell. What else were they making him see? What else were they trying to fool him into believing?

The inside of Windsor was blue. So blue it hurt his eyes. He had to have noticed how blue it was. It was like a paint bomb went off. Maybe it did and it was another thing he didn’t notice- or was noticing only because of the fae. Shit. Shit!

Dwight sprayed his hand with holy water. Did that help? He threw some of the rock salt from his pocket over his shoulder. That didn’t help either. The rest of his supplies were in his room. He’d be safe there until he could figure this out.

Without a doubt, Dwight knew the world was grey that summer. Sadie’s tears, Lucas’s freckled arms, Morgan’s glasses- all stoney, clear grey when they enveloped him into the warmest hug when he made it back to them alive. Sadie had brushed his hair back, kissing his cheek. Lucas kept holding him when Morgan rambled on, more than he’d ever heard him speak at once. He couldn’t imagine what colours they all were. They’d been grey. What changed?

The stairs flew by, two at a time in a blur of blue and brown. He almost tripped staring at the colours beneath his feet. Why were things they walked on so bright? Who decided to make it all so loud and distracting?

David nearly slammed into him, Dwight had to throw himself against the wall before he bowled the other boy over. He could hear Wes yelling things at him as he rolled and continued; he had to get back to the room. He could figure things out back there. It was safe there.

Padlocks. He had padlocks. Oh iron ones even! Thank you Morgan, you mad genius. The door was unlocked when he got there, but he got to work immediately, diving into the closet to grab the box of locks and incense (labelled by creature it repelled). The lighter was out of his pocket as he started to wrestle with the bolts- no- no wait.

“Hi, what’s wrong this time?” Todd asked from behind him, barely fazed by the armful of supplies. He was leaning back on his chair- his… his grey chair.

“Was that chair always grey?” Dwight asked cautiously.  

Todd caught where he was staring, gaze travelling down then back up to Dwight. He couldn’t interpret what his roommate was thinking. He couldn’t usually though.

“Yes it was. I thought it looked good.”

“So you can see colour?” Dwight asked, clutching the padlocks to his chest. His hands were shaking. Maybe Todd could help. He could help him figure this all out.

Todd nodded slowly, expression unreadable. “For a while now.”

Dwight held his thoughts together. Okay. Okay. Padlocks first. Got to get this figured out. Todd already had a soulmate. Good. Maybe they’d be able to help break this curse. A tricky fae was the last thing he needed right now.

He felt Todd’s eyes on his back as he bolted the door closed. He took the lack of argument as acceptance they’d be locked in at least for the rest of the night. He had told his roommate to keep a supply of food in case of emergencies; he could only hope out of all the advice he’d given Todd, this would have stuck. He felt like he was the only one trying to keep people safe here. His advice wasn’t annoying! It was practical.

“Nails?” Todd asked, opening the window to disperse the strong smell of incense. It was fine for it to go outside; let the fae know he would not be intimidated.

Dwight turned, the iron nails nearly all lined up at the foot of the door. “I think a fae’s cursed me.”

“Really?” Todd sat back down. The window helped, but there was no crosswind to help it along. The writer’s expression was pensive. Dwight assumed that meant explain.

“Yeah.” Dwight set the last nail in place, lining the whole thing with salt. He was nearly out of his supply. Oh what a time! “I can see colours. I think a fae is messing with my perceptions; its either that or a demon, but a demon would have clearer motives.”

“You found your soulmate?” Todd sounded worried.

“No.” Dwight said firmly, standing up and closing the door to the closet. “They’re messing with my mind. I would know if I met them; I wouldn’t just, not?”

The last bit was bitter in his mouth. Because what if he didn’t? No! Besides, the only new people he’d met that term were the freshmen. And they all treated him the same as any other upperclassmen. You’d think if it was one of them the gossip would have spread. They were the worst secret keepers ever. Not a single prank on Stuart had gone right since they started babbling to anyone who’d listen. It was a trick. A nasty trick.

“So it just happened today?” Todd asked.

Dwight shook his head. “I can’t remember when it started. But, I know for sure when I was home in the summer it was all grey.”

“Huh.” Todd said, arms slumped over the armrests of his chair. “Weird.”

Dwight looked around the room; chair aside, everything was still kind of grey in the room. His own side was more colourful than Todd’s for godssake or else he’d suddenly think the curse had lifted. He could see the brightness of the plaid on his Supernatural poster; the jewel colours of his books; the little rainbows that the crystals threw from the daylight on them. Todd’s side in contrast was dull; muted hues with barely a shade to them. Maybe he’d just not changed it up since he found his soulmate; but, he’d had this stuff for ages. Morgan always vowed he’d dress like a clown as soon as he found his soulmate- why only use greys if you could appreciate so much more?  

He heard himself speaking, “When did you start seeing in colour?”

Todd smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. They were a hazel-green. He’d known that. How did he know that? “That’s a rather personal question, don’t you think?”

“I’m trying to figure it out.” Dwight said, sitting down on his bed with the incense burner, holding it out like the teak would protect him. “Everyone says you see your soulmate, and everything is suddenly focused. That’s how it was for Reed and Shane- they knew right away.”

“It’s a little more complex than that.” Todd said, turning back to his laptop.

“Are you talking about broken connections?” Dwight asked. He’d heard about one-way connections. People shrieking in delight as colour flooded their vision, only to have the other stare at them confused. That had happened to his Uncle Ford. He’d gotten over it, but there was a reason he’d never married. There were a lot of exceptions, like three-way connections, potential connections, or the complication of natural colour-blindness; but his mother said he would never have to worry about it because he and his soulmate would know the moment they laid eyes on each other. But, a broken connection… did that happen to Todd?

“Maybe.” Todd admitted. “It might have happened to you.”

“I’m under a curse. At least since the start of term.” He said, pensive over the possible fae candidates.

“Then I’ve been under a curse since freshman year.” Todd said, starting to type; like he wasn’t really interested in the conversation. He couldn’t hide the regret in his voice, creeping through the nonchalance. “I saw… I saw him when he arrived at Windsor, and I have to say I didn’t expect it. But, well, even after getting to know him he still saw grey.”

“Who was it? Do I have to kick their ass?” Dwight sprang up, “I bet they’re the fae! No way you don’t have a two-way bond! You’re awesome!”

Todd paused, looking away. “Yeah, no. I don’t think it’s them.”

“Well then, I’ll get Sadie to curse them! Or I’ll find the real fae; they’re probably holding your soulmate’s colour hostage.” Dwight declared. “It’s probably something like that.”

Todd shook his head. “It’s fine. I’ve got everything under control. I’ve got these contacts; they make it all-”

“No! It’s not fair.” Dwight knelt down next to Todd’s desk. “Whoever is doing this to you, I promise I’ll figure it out. Because I refuse to believe you have a broken connection. It’s not right! You deserve someone who cares about you; who gets you like a soulmate is supposed to. That’s the whole point! So whenever you’re lonely, there’s someone you can go to. Or whenever you’re happy, there’s someone who can make you laugh even louder. Or whenever you’re scared, they’re there to make you feel brave. And like, you do that all for me and you’re just my roommate- whoever they are, they’re missing out!”

Todd stared at him. “You’re an idiot.”

“What?” What. What?

Todd looked between mad and frustrated, raising his hands from the keyboard before closing the lid. “Just, ah, just leave me alone okay? I don’t want to talk about it. If you’re convinced this is a fae, you have Trinny’s email. I don’t want to talk about it.”

“But-”

“I don’t want to talk!” Todd snapped, grabbing his laptop and going into the washroom. “If you want to pee, go out the window for all I care.”

The lock clicked. Dwight looked between the open window and the two locked doors. What had he said?

David spent most nights studying these days. Between checking in on Katherine’s recovery, beating Siegerson’s GPA, and his extra-curriculars, he couldn’t really participate in Windsor shenanigans anymore. It made him sad to see his housemates off having fun, but it was Senior Year, he couldn’t mess around.

What hurt him the most was that even in his studying blitzes before, he had Wes by his side as a good natured distraction. They’d bounce ideas off each other, throw trivia, and toss ideas for editing notes. Now? Wes had early acceptance to ASA College, and David was still trying to get Harvard, Yale, and Princeton to respond to his letters. But that’s what David got for shooting high he guessed.

Now, whenever he saw Wes, his best friend would wave in passing before heading out with his motorbike club. Yeah, they hung out on weekends, but it still felt like he was being replaced. Why did Wes even own a motorbike? Yeah his dad had taught him to ride a vespa on family trips to Naples, but they lived in Ohio right now- it wasn’t exactly cosmopolitan.

David sighed, he shouldn’t be so harsh. Maybe it was good they spend time apart; after all, they wouldn’t be going to the same college, let along even in the same part of the country. It stung though. He missed his friend. If only he wasn’t so busy.

Buzz buzz. David’s cellphone went off from its spot on the shelf. He’d put it away to limit distractions. Why wasn’t it off? Oh, wait, all calls except his parents, Katherine, and Wes were sent to voicemail.

He stood up, reaching and unplugging his phone. The caller ID said Wes.

“Hello?” David asked. He checked the time. It was 10pm, why was Wes calling him now? He was supposed to stay at the Blakes after their day of riding. Maybe he needed a ride back? Typical of the Day Students to just assume boarders could sleep wherever because they typically had two homes.

“David? It’s David right?” A girl answered.

“Who is this?” Was this a new girlfriend? Had Wes not told him? He felt his heart sink. Wouldn’t have Wes told him.

“Jackie Blake. We’re at the hospital with Wes.”

No.

“What!” He didn’t even ask, just exclaimed; jumping up out of his seat and looking for his car keys. “Is he hurt? Which hospital? How far is it from Dalton?”

She sounded relieved. “We’re at Mansfield Hospital, it’s an hour north from where you are. I’m glad you picked up. Todd said you’re the only one who’d have his parent’s numbers.”

“Is he okay?” David repeated, throwing his coat on as he struggled to keep his phone to his ear.

“Yes and no.” Jackie’s tone was more cautious this time. “We were on our way back from the ride when a pickup truck decided they’d cut our lead on the pack; Wes’d decided to set the pace, and I guess? They just didn’t like motorbikes?”

David swallowed. A third time: “Is he…?”

“We need his parent’s permission to get him into surgery. They think a rib punctured his lung when he was knocked off the road.” Jackie’s voice stuttered. “They just kept going. Like they hadn’t throw him across the freeway.”

“Surgery?” David swore to himself. He knew the motorcycle club was a bad idea. Shit. Wes’ parents would die of heartbreak if this was how their boy went out. “I’ll text you their numbers. But, introduce yourself first. They need to know who’s telling them Wes is hurt.”

“Okay…” Jackie said slowly. There was a ping from her end of the phone as David sent it. He was at his car now, ready to hang up and put in the directions to Mansfield.

She spoke again, quieter. “I’m sorry we didn’t get the licence plate. Colby stopped us all and had us put out flares so we could get him off the road. Dustin wanted to chase after them but-”

“Don’t worry.” David said, “just tell his parents. It will all be okay.”

“Okay.” She said quietly.

“I’m getting in the car now. I’ll talk to you soon.” David said, hanging up before she could say something else that would make him madder at the situation.

It wasn’t Jackie Blake’s fault. It wasn’t her brother Colby’s fault. Most of the Motorcycle Bros (as they called themselves) were fairly good people from what Wes described to him. It didn’t mean he couldn’t feel guilty he let Wes go out there. He’d already seen Katherine in the hospital because of one foolish driver; to see Wes? A target of a hit and run because of some stupidity about bikers? No. He didn’t want to accept it.

The road opened up before him, darkening fast in the early evening sunset. The lights were coming on one by one, making the road feel quieter than it was. He didn’t want to play the radio in case he got a call from Wes’ phone again, or from the Hughes, or anyone. He had to stay alert in case speakerphone went on.

It didn’t though. He made it to the hospital, probably passing the place the driver ran Wes off the road. He didn’t want to think about it, but he was.

David found the front desk, trying to look presentable, and not like he’d just sped an hour up the I-71. He approached the desk, ready to ask about a Hughes, Wes please- but a familiar face caught him by the arm.

“Hey, David. Are you alright?” Todd asked, still wearing the ridiculous jacket Wes commissioned for their little club. It was scuffed, covered in mud, but the smear of brown against Todd’s gloves made David swallow any jealousy he felt.

“I’m fine.” Of course he was. He wasn’t the one in hospital.

“He’s still in surgery, but the hospital isn’t busy tonight so they let us into the cafeteria even though its closed. We’re waiting for someone from the Hughes to show up; they said it will still eb a couple hours, but I guess,” Todd paused. He was leaning David off the entrance, presumably towards the sitting area. “None of us could just go home. Not, well… his motorcycle is still in the ditch and, it wouldn’t feel right riding without him.”

“This wouldn’t have happened if he hadn’t gone out with you guys.” David found himself saying bitterly.

Todd eyed him. He didn’t say anything for a moment; their footsteps echoing in the empty hallway. “I’m sorry you feel this way. But statistically, you know without us this just would have happened sooner.”

“You guys make it easy with your little bike gang.” David said, fiddling with the keys in his pocket. Wes was in surgery, and he was out here, chatting. It didn’t feel right. There had to be something he could do.

“Wes can have more than two groups of friends.” Todd said quietly, checking the door before opening it. “But now is not the time to fight. Sadie and Colby know more about the medical situation because they had to relay information to the doctors and the Hughes. We all care about Wes, but think about it- only you have his parent’s number. Don’t be mean because he’s not devoting his life to you.”

David kept quiet, the door opened to the large hospital cafeteria. The whole group was there, sans Wes. Some still had their jackets on; others like honorary member Casey Lambert, had taken it off in a haze of frantic pacing. Colby, Dustin, and Jackie were whispering between each other, while Sadie comforted a crying Allison.

“It’s okay, he’ll be fine.” Sadie said, loud enough for David to hear as they came in. She was holding Allison against her chest. David had seen Allison enough in passing while visiting Katherine at Royal to know she was a loud, confident girl. She didn’t seem like the type who cried much.

“I- I was supposed to ride with him. This is my fault.” Allison cried, sniffing between words into Sadie’s t-shirt. “Maybe he wouldn’t have been hit if I was on the back of his b-b-bike.”

Sadie petted her hair, “Allie, honey, you know he would have just sped faster. You two are speed demons. Shh, shh, this is no one’s fault except that evil truck who hit him.”

“I should have go-gotten the plate, or I could have-”

“Allie, honey don’t do that. No, no. Come on sweetie.” Sadie said, holding her tighter. “We’ll be back on the road soon, don’t worry. He’ll get out of surgery and everything will be fine.”

Sadie looked up, meeting David’s eyes. She pressed her mouth together and averted her gaze. Colby noticed the company Todd brought and got up quickly. He dodged around the table to hold his hand out to David, an awkward greeting.

“Hey, I’m sorry we gotta meet all proper like this- but, uh, I’m Colby from Lancaster?”

“I know who you are.” David said quickly. “Todd said you know what’s going on with Wes?”

Colby scratched the back of his neck nervously, “Yeah, uh. Shit. I. Okay. So his parents okayed the surgery, after that I was cut out of the conversation because of confidentiality; but before that I saw the whole thing. Fucking car comes out of the left lane, clips Wes’ wheel and sends him into the ditch. It was mostly a skid, but he flipped once so between the road burn and the fall I think he’s got a broken leg, a couple ribs, and like… there was a lot of blood along his whole? Side? I guess?”

Todd nodded, “Yeah his side. We’re usually in full protective gear, so if anything his face is the one thing that’s fine. The chin strap didn’t budge thank any gods who were listening. But, well, padding only does so much against gravel.”

“The doctors say he should be fine. But its his lung they’re worried about. He’s got two, but like? Internal bleeding… fuck.” Colby didn’t seem to know how to order his thoughts. “It was deliberate. And, his parents said something weird, like, ‘we’ll take care of it’, like they would just be able to pick out of hundreds of fucking pickup trucks which one got Wes on a random road in Ohio. They must know some cops or something….”

“Or something.” David said solemnly. So they didn’t know; or they didn’t know David knew, so they were pretending. Colby seemed like he couldn’t keep a secret though; so, maybe Wes didn’t trust them with that kind of information.

“Is he going to be out soon?” David asked.

“Not sure.” Colby said. “Sit down, its going to be a while.”

---

It was a while. Four hours in fact. One to take him apart, and three to put him back together. The group was told they wouldn’t be able to stay at the hospital overnight, but Victoria Hughes arrived banked by two large, bulked up men, all except David were told to leave.

He was grateful, he was. He promised to keep the Motorcycle Bros in the loop, but right now Wes was his priority. Answering confirmation texts from Casey Lambert were not going to be on his to-do list.

Wes didn’t wake up that night. Or the next morning. Victoria left for a few hours, switching off with David at his bedside. The large men by his doorway stood silent watch. It was a long time before David felt safe enough to let himself sleep.

He was shaken awake sometime in the evening; a fragile grip tugging at his pant leg. “Davey?”

“Wessy.” David smiled sleepily before he even opened his eyes.

Wes groaned. David couldn’t help but laugh. “You called me Davey, fair is fair,”

“I’m high on painkillers, let me live.”

David opened his eyes to his best friend, tired and exhausted, but alive. Thank you, God; he was alive. He resisted the urge to hug him, conscious that underneath the hospital gown was probably a whole mummy’s worth of bandages. Instead, he gripped the hand on his trousers tightly. He wasn’t going to let go until Wes asked.

“I’m so glad you’re okay.” David said, weight behind his words.

“Yeah, bit gnarly.” Wes smiled.

“You’re a dork.”

“Yeah, and?” Wes rolled his head against the pillow, scraped scabs visible under his neckline. “How long have you been here?”

“Last night. Victoria is here too. She brought the goons.”

“Probably Alejandro and Pino; they’re nice guys.” Wes said, stifling a yawn. “Sorry to keep you up, it wasn’t even the fun kind.”

“I don’t mind, you’d do the same for me.” David squeezed his hand. Wes squeezed back.

“You know it.” Wes said, tiredness seeping into his voice.

David couldn’t help it though, his next words just came out. “What were you thinking? Going out riding? Leading the pack? They’re…”

“They’re the only reason I’m alive.” Wes corrected. “If I’d been alone? Shit.”

“I know, but you’re on the road with-”

“David not every traffic accident is Katherine!” Wes said, sitting up and wincing. “God. You remember when I skidded off the road in sophomore year; that was my own stupidity. This time? I could have just stayed in that ditch for a week and no one would have found me. It’s the side of the I-71 on a weekday, no one cares. Besides, its not like you’d come out riding with me.”

“Its dangerous Wes.” David insisted.

“God, David; is this about me spending time with them and not you?” Wes asked, nailing the issue on its head.

“It’s not.” David lied.

“I’m not stupid. I know you.”

He did.

“I just-”

“I’m sorry I haven’t been spending time with you; but have you considered you haven’t made it easy?”

“I-“

“I know, you want to get into a good school. I don’t care because I’m running the family business no matter what my grades are.” Wes sighed, “David. Has it occurred to you I miss you too?”

“But you spend all your time with-”

“Only when you blow me off to study!”

“We used to study together.”

“We used to have all our classes together.” Wes pointed out. “I’m going business, you’re going medical. Why would I still be in Biology or Physics? Why would you be in Accounting?”

David said nothing.

“For someone so smart you can be a real idiot.” Wes said, pulling David’s hand closer. “But okay, if you promise to stop being just a territorial idiot, I’ll make a special David Only Day- not just movie nights, but just us.”

David snorted, “You’re just saying that cause you’ll be on bedrest until you’re better.”

“You saw through my evil plan! Oh no!” Wes said dramatically, raiding his hand as many degrees it could go until it hurt.

They would be fine. But it would take work. Luckily, both of them knew how to make the impossible out of probabilities.

David then realized, “Hey wait are you dating-”

“They’re all taken and it’s unfair.” Wes said. “I know!”