After Ten Little Roosters

#1 - Friendly Help

“I need a place to hide. The cops are going to be on my back, Please?”

“Uh... Sure, What happened?” The young puerto rican looked hesitant but held open the door to his apartment. “Ryan?” His guest looked over his shoulder before hurrying through the door. 

“Look, Something happened. Remember the banquet thing, well shit went down. Michael tried to blackmail us all and then well, people started dying.” 

The puerto rican started edging towards the door, “No,no it wasn’t me, Ray look it wasn’t me!” flustering now Ryan pulled out a piece of paper. 

“Ryan, er-“ “Look just read it please”

Rays eyes scanned the paper, he paused near the bottom “The killer was killed… whats this mean?” Ryan was gesturing for the paper back “Shit Ryan your arm?” Ray’s eyes caught on to the red marks on Ryan’s arms. “The killer, tied me up and well I got out but it gave me a little friction burn.” Ray looked concerned and moved back to the sofa, more at ease now. “Who was it?” he asked. “Barbs, she well she was trying to frame me as the killer but I got the drop on her, she was wearing that creeper suit for Gavin, you know the explosive one… trouble is I can’t go to the cops its a matter of time before they lock me up she used my heist outfit for most the - yeah - and well all that shit with Edgar. No one would believe me, but I knew you would. I need your help!”

Ray sat in silence for a few minutes. “I believe you.” 

Relief shot across Ryan’s face. “Got anything I can use to clean myself up?” Ray shot up and speed walked into the bathroom. Ryan used this time to steady his breathing and compose himself, thank god Ray believed him. 

Thwack. Ray had thrown a moist flannel and it squelched as it pelted his face. “Er- Thanks” Ryan cleaned off his face. “X-Ray and Vav is over. Mavin gone. Tumblr is going to go crazy.” Ryan just pulled a pained expression. Ray shot off again, opening the door to his bedroom and shouting over his shoulder “Help yourself to the kitchen, you must be starving.” 

Ryan sauntered to the fridge, pulling open the door and grabbing a sandwich. Ray struggled back into the room with a bunch of clothes mismatched in his hands. Flop. The clothes landed in a heap on the arm of the chair. “I can’t believe Vav went out without me, it was supposed to be X-Ray and Vav til the end.” “What are the clothes for?” Ryan looked quizzically at the puerto rican who just flailed his arms “There yours dude, you just leave your shit everywhere I figured you would want to change.” Ryan nodded and took the bundle of clothes into Ray’s bathroom. 

Ray took this time to grab his pipe from the kitchen cupboard and dash into his bedroom. Ryan emerged sporting jeans and a T-shirt, “Shit” Ryan panicked now Ray was nowhere to be seen and one of there colleagues had to have noticed the dead bodies that littered the building. He called out “Ray?” panic only slightly audible in his shout. *Cough* *Cough* the bedroom door swung open and a red eyed, smokey Ray stumbled out towards the door. “Wut?” he mumbled fiddling with the pipe. Ryan looked much more at ease now “You gave me a shock, you just vanished” he tried not to be accusing but it couldn’t be helped Ray fortunately didn’t pick up on it and just had another toke from his pipe. “Isn’t it a little early?” Ryan was used to his friends habit but he usually only blazed late in the afternoon. “Stressful times call for desperate measures, didntcha know its always 4.20” Sass rolled off the puerto rican and Ryan just smiled. 

“Ryan” Ray ran on the sofa gesturing Ryan to do so as well. “What do we do now then?” Ryan sat in thought for a beat or two, Ray had said ‘we’ not me… Ryan finally settled on an answer “You believe me don’t you?”, “Yeah, Barbs always had a god complex and well she just unsettled me. Your a crazy mother fucker but they where your friends. Barbs always seemed pretty distant, anyways I trust you.” Ryan leaned over and lightly punched Ray in the arm. 

“We need to make a plan dude” As much as Ryan hated it the stoner was right.