Ray lives out of town a little along the river in a small run down house. We get there and he puts me in a new shirt.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
My phone starts ringing and it's Jacob. We both look down at my ringing phone. He picks up my phone and puts in on silent.
"I should let him know I'm ok" Ray looks annoyed for a minute, but picks up the phone again and starts typing.
"There, he thinks you got sick and got a ride home" I nod in thanks'. He gives me his bed and he sleeps on the floor next to me. I don't close my eyes. I just lay there. I can see him on his phone when he finally speaks.
"Instinct is on" He says, he must know I am still awake.
"What happened" I ask
"Just a spray painted wall that said, "10 pm, Saturday, do you have a survivors Instinct?"
"Hmm" I hum in response,
"You doing it?" He asks me once again.
"No" I finally make my decision, "I don't have a survivors instinct"
"How do you know, you could win"
"Tonight, when Ethan-" I skip that, "I started to fight, but when it got bad my first instinct was to go blank, I shut down, there were a few minutes where I did nothing, but go still. If you wouldn't have come when you did, I would still be frozen there." I am almost whispering now.
"What about the money?" He asks, he knows I need it, but I don't really
"I have been saving for years now, I think I have enough to pay for a year or two of tuition."
"Of course you have been" I can't read his tone but I choose to ignore it and I fall asleep.
I wake up the next morning and Ray is gone. I get up and throw on my shorts. I need to get to school. I leave and I don't see Ray for the rest of the week. I might be avoiding him, but it doesn't matter. We have known each other since birth, but I have always hated him and found him annoying. He loves to bug me and he hates Jacob, but that has been the extent to our relationship for a long time. This changes everything. So I am going to ignore him.
On the other hand I have run into Ethan to many times and the other day he gave me a warning. It scared me a little, but he is also dumb so I don't know how serious to take it. He wrote me a note saying if I told anyone he would come to my trailer and kill me. I know it sounds crazy, but he has always been one to say stupid things that mean nothing.
Today is graduation and me and Hannah have been getting ready and hanging out all day. Hannah has been my best friends for as long as I can remember.
"I am so excited for tonight" She sequels a little
"Hannah just-" I sigh, "Be careful please, remember the game is dangerous"
She laughs, "Says you, your boyfriend is playing" I come up and hug her in a joking way,
