Quarter Mile

Notebook

Dakota had been in and out of sleep for five days. He had taken in a lot of smoke and it had damaged his lungs quite badly, making it hard for him to breathe.

The doctors praised Beck for his quick actions, stating that if Dakota was in there any longer, he probably would have died.

The night of the fire, Dakota was rushed to the hospital. It brought back horrific flashbacks for Beck and he was shaking the whole way to the hospital in his ambulance.

Parker, Eli and Harvey had hitched a ride in Beck's ambulance and Parker had called Dakota's mother on the way. He had also filled the boy's in on what he had seen.

Beck was filled with rage when Parker told him it was Easton who set the fire.

When they got to the hospital, Dakota had already been rushed into a ward, and the boys and his mother were sitting anxiously in the waiting room. Parker had his arm around Dakota's mother and she was resting her tired head on his shoulder.

Beck had been called in to see a doctor, got the all clear and then started pacing the waiting room, making everyone more anxious.

At three in the morning, a boy had burst through the doors of the hospital, not noticing Dakota's friends sitting to his left.

"Hi," Easton said quietly, to the receptionist. "I'm looking for Dakota. Is he okay?" His voice was shaky, like he could cry at any minute.

Beck's head snapped up when he heard the familiar voice. Without warning, he shot up like a rocket and sped towards Easton, who had now noticed him. Easton started backing away as Beck moved faster. The other boys had noticed Easton too, and Parker shot up just as quickly as Beck, grabbing his wrist and pulling him back. He placed his other hand on Beck's chest, pushing him back softly.

"TAKE HIS NAME OUT OF YOUR MOUTH, YOU PIECE OF SHIT," Beck spat, acid present on his tongue.

"Beck, I— I—" Easton stuttered. "I didn't mean to—"

"BULLSHIT," Beck cut him off.

"I— I'm sorry, okay! I just—" his voice grew quiet, struggling to find the words he wanted to say.

"Shut the fuck up, Easton," Beck warned, pressing against Parker's hand. "Get out of here." Easton's eyebrow furrowed.

"I just need to know if Dakota's okay." Beck was about to explode before Parker stepped in.

"Don't you dare say his name ever again," he scowled. "You don't deserve to know if he's okay." And then, behind Easton came two policemen, heading straight towards the cowering boy.

"You are under arrest for first degree arson. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. Do you understand?"

Easton nodded his head, holding out his wrists for the policemen to place handcuffs on and was whisked out the door.

Beck was fuming as he sat down again, and something inside Parker's brain clicked, connecting all of the dots: Easton was jealous of Dakota.

That's why he had been so off when Dakota first showed up; he had sensed a change in Beck, just like Parker had. That's why he had stormed out of detention after hearing Parker and Dakota talk about the lake. And that's why when Dakota and Beck were screaming senselessly at each other at the homecoming dance, Parker had caught Easton watching on intently with a wicked smirk on his face. That's why he set the fire. This whole time, he'd been jealous.

After the doctors had told Dakota's support party that he was going to be okay, Beck disappeared. Without a word, he had walked out the double doors of the hospital.