The courtyard erupted into chaos.
Louis' voice cracked as he screamed, "No!"
Omar staggered back, hands covering his mouth. "Oh, my God!"
"Shit!" I gasped, my stomach twisting as Marlon's body crumpled to the ground.
Ruby was already moving, her voice frantic. "We could get medicine... from the nurse's office!"
Mitch's face was pale. "He's dead! The kid blew his brains out!"
Louis whirled on AJ, his expression shattered. "You shot him! He's dead. You're a murderer!"
Before anyone could react, Rhett lunged forward, kicking the revolver from AJ's small hands with enough force to send the kid sprawling. He snatched up the gun in one fluid motion and leveled it at AJ—only for Clementine to throw herself between them.
Rhett was trembling with rage, his grip white-knuckled around the revolver. "I knew this kid was a fucking psychopath!" he roared. "I told everyone! And now one of our own is fucking dead!"
Clementine's voice was steel. "Put that down, or you'll regret it."
Rhett barked out a laugh, wild and humorless. "What're you gonna do? Whoop me?" He adjusted his grip. "No—in fact, I'm just gonna shoot you along with your psychotic kid."
I grabbed his arm. "Rhett—"
He didn't even look at me. "Why are you defending them? You've known them for two days. Just 'cause she figured out Marlon's secret? Shit, if I'd sniffed around enough, I would've figured it out too!" His voice cracked, the gun lowering slightly as he turned to me.
Clementine took advantage of the moment, grabbing AJ's hand. "Come on, let's go."
Louis threw his hands up. "Oh, just let them go back to the dorms?! What happens the next time one of us does something this kid doesn't like? Should we expect a bullet, too?"
"That's not what happened," I snapped.
"It's exactly what happened!" Louis shouted. "It was over, 'til little Mr. Trigger-Happy decided otherwise!"
Clementine pulled AJ closer. "No, he wouldn't do that! He'd never hurt any of you! It was... Marlon threatened us!"
Rhett's laugh was venomous. "Marlon wasn't even a threat anymore! He dropped his gun! He gave up! Then your kid just went and fucking murdered him!"
Louis nodded furiously. "And AJ pointed the gun first!"
I stepped between them. "We get it, Louis. Just back off, okay?"
"Back off?!" Louis' voice broke. "Seriously?!"
Clementine didn't engage further. "Let's go."
As she led AJ toward the dorms, Rhett shot me a look—disappointment, sharp enough to make my chest ache.
Behind us, Ruby sobbed over Marlon's body. "For God's sake, someone help me with this!"
Mitch rounded on Clementine, his face twisted in grief. "Saved you from that car wreck, and you fucking murdered him?!"
Clementine didn't flinch. "Get back, Mitch."
AJ echoed her, his voice eerily calm. "Get back."
Mitch drew his knife. "Or what? You gonna let him kill me, too? Then who's next? Aasim? Willy?"
In one swift motion, Clementine disarmed him, dropping the knife to the ground. "Haven't enough people died tonight? Brody, Marlon. We can't keep killing each other."
Mitch scoffed. "How the fuck are you saying that to me after what he did?"
Aasim grabbed his arm. "Stop, Mitch! This isn't helping."
Mitch yanked free. "Screw both of you." He stormed off, leaving the rest of us in suffocating silence.
As Clementine and AJ disappeared into the dorms, Rhett muttered, "Unbelievable. We're just letting them stay? And she's not even mad at the kid?" He dragged a hand through his hair. "Louis, Marlon, and I saved their asses after that car crash. Marlon wasn't perfect—fuck, I never even liked him—but he kept us alive."
I crossed my arms. "He gave the twins away."
Rhett paused. Then shook his head. "He didn't want to. You heard him. The people he gave them to? There were probably a ton of them. What other choice did he have?"
I didn't answer. I couldn't. Because part of me knew he was right.
Rhett sighed, tucking the revolver into his waistband. "I just... can't believe Brody and Marlon are dead. We just talked to them."
The morning air was heavy as we gathered in front of the two fresh graves. Rhett, surprisingly, had taken charge - arranging flowers, carving names into wooden crosses with steady hands. The scent of damp earth mixed with the faint metallic tang of blood still lingering in the air.
Clementine and AJ approached just as we finished.
"I did that," AJ announced, staring at Marlon's grave.
Clementine tugged his hand. "Come on."
Louis scoffed. "They're not gonna be here, are they?"
Tenn wiped his nose. "Marlon and Brody were their friends too."
"Fuck's sake," Louis muttered.
I stepped between them. "Right now, let's just focus on what we're here to do. Okay?"
Rhett suddenly snapped his fingers. "Shut up." To everyone's surprise, he pulled out a battered Bible from his jacket. The pages rustled as he found his place, his voice steady as he read:
"The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures:
he leadeth me beside the still waters.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil: for thou art with me..."
The words hung in the air as Clementine and AJ joined the circle. Aasim tensed. "Oh God, they're here."
"So what?" I said sharply. "They knew Brody, didn't they?"
Omar shifted uncomfortably. "Yeah, but Marlon—"
"Just leave them alone," I snapped.
Rhett finished reading and snapped the Bible shut, shooting Clem and AJ a look that could curdle milk.
AJ tugged Clementine's sleeve. "Why do people have funerals? Tenn said they used to have them more. But I don't get it."
"Well, to remember people we loved," Clementine answered softly.
"They loved Marlon," AJ observed.
"Yeah, they did."
"I didn't love Marlon."
Rhett leaned toward me, his whisper venomous. "Hear that? They don't even wanna be here. Can't even pretend to care."
I cleared my throat. "Shit. Brody... she was real sweet. Had big dreams. We all knew they wouldn't come true, but when she talked, anything seemed possible."
AJ piped up again. "Does everyone get a funeral?"
"People do," Clementine answered. "Some animals too."
"Even monsters?"
Rhett's jaw clenched so tight I heard his teeth grind.
Omar placed a hand on Brody's cross. "We'll miss you, Brody."
"Don't know if she found that place she dreamed about," I added, "but I'm gonna miss her."
Louis nodded. "We all will."
Tenn stepped forward, placing a drawing on Brody's grave. "Brody. You always said you wanted to go to the beach, so I drew it for you."
Rhett exhaled sharply, then turned to Marlon's grave. "He wasn't... He kept us alive. That counts for something."
Mitch suddenly trembled with barely-contained rage. "He wasn't perfect, but he deserved better than to get gunned down by that kid. AJ killed him like it was nothing."
Clementine's voice turned hard. "After what he did to Brody, Marlon deserved exactly what he got."
"Yeah," AJ agreed.
Mitch's face twisted. "I wouldn't stand in front of him like that. Sometimes he shoots."
"I... I was justified!" AJ insisted. "Clem told me!"
Louis turned and walked away without a word.
Aasim rubbed his face. "Damn, that's... shit."
Ruby whirled on Clementine. "That's what you told him? That what he did was okay?!"
Omar raised his hands. "We can't—"
"Wait," Aasim tried, "we should talk this out."
Willy scoffed. "Talk about what? He murdered our friend!"
"Marlon was a threat to everybody," Clementine countered. "By killing him, AJ protected all of you."
I stepped forward. "How can you all forget what Marlon did to Brody?"
"Shut up, Vi," Rhett snapped. Then he turned on Clementine, his voice dangerous. "This what you teach your little psychopath? That killing unarmed people is okay? That murdering the guy who saved your life is justified?" He addressed the group. "They can't stay. How long 'til the brat comes for me? Or Louis? Or Mitch?"
Clementine crossed her arms. "You all need to grow the hell up. People die. It happens all the time. And the rest? They move on."
Ruby gaped. "Move on? And just let you get away with what AJ did?"
Rhett barked a laugh. "'Grow up.' Good one."
Mitch clenched his fists. "We take a vote. Majority decides: they stay or leave. Today."
Ruby nodded. "That does seem fair."
Aasim threw up his hands. "Are you serious? It's bullshit."
"You're bullshit," Willy shot back.
Clementine's voice turned pleading. "Please, don't do this. I know you're angry—"
"You don't know shit," Mitch interrupted. "If you did, you would've stopped AJ."
Aasim rounded on him. "Like you stopped Marlon from killing Brody? Fucking hypocrite."
"Shut up, Aasim," Rhett growled.
I tried again. "That is fucked up! After all Marlon did—"
"Two wrongs don't make a right!" Ruby cried.
Omar sighed. "A vote's the only way to settle this, or we'll be arguing forever."
"Fine," I spat. "I guess we're fucking voting. Louis needs to vote too." I turned to Tenn. "Could you go get him? And... try to talk to him."
Tenn clapped for Rosie, but the dog remained curled on Marlon's grave. He sighed and trudged off.
I faced Clementine. "Could you guys go wait in the dorm? I'll come get you."
AJ's eyes widened. "Please don't kick us out."
AJ's eyes widened. "Please don't kick us out."
Clementine took his hand. "Come on, let's go."