Infinite, Sometimes

16

"I'm glad you told me how to get down here and all, but that's about all you've said since lunch."

"Yeah, sorry. What did Ellen say she was doing today?"

Spencer's eyes narrowed to study Ryan. "She told you she has to have dinner with her aunt tonight, remember? Her aunt's birthday?"

"Oh, yeah. I forgot."

"Dude, Ryan. You've been holding that paper this whole time." Spencer sat down on the cement and motioned for Ryan to move away from the water and join him. "You wanted to come here, so what's up?"

"It's just from Brendon. Nothing's up, I just wanted to show you this place." Ryan sat down while speaking and he tried to position himself to look like he was relaxed, but he was hardly successful.

"Well it's nice here, yeah, but why are you so quiet?"

"It's just better that I keep my mouth shut. What all did Ellen tell you?"

"About what? Nothing, I don't think."

"What me and her talked about in art today."

"I know she told me to talk to you because she couldn't say things... something about it not being her place to tell me or something. She must like you a whole lot because I tried to drag it out of her but the woman refused to talk."

Ryan smiled and pulled another piece of paper from his pocket—the first letter from Brendon, the one he had shown Ellen. "I just thought I should talk to you."

"What's goin' on with you? I'm not sure if I should be worried because you really seem alright, but you're so weird all of a sudden."

"Thanks."

"Oh shut up." Spencer leaned sideways to knock shoulders with Ryan and he sat back up quickly. "What's with all these notes?"

Ryan shook his head. He was at a complete loss for how to explain everything, but Brendon was right—this water did have a strange effect on a person's nerves. He laid one square on top of Spencer's leg. "Bren gave me this one this morning. Ellen read it already."

"What is it?"

"Well I assume she told you what I said when she called me right after school yesterday?"

"Yeah, about you two delinquents leaving school to sit here all day."

"Oh because you've never skipped school to go to a certain concert and wait all day for it or anything."

"Point taken. But yeah, she told me that. Why?"

"I guess his mom got mad at him for skipping and he ended up coming over to my place last night."

"That's not good. Well, I mean it's not good that she was pissed, but you know—"

"Yeah, he ended up staying all night and everything just happened from there. His brother saw us walking this morning and he picked us up and he ended up being a dick so Brendon said some shit to me just because he was pissed. So he gave me that later in the day."

"You know, El said you were all... weird, or whatever. Why do I think this coincides with what you told me at my house the other night?"

"Huh?"

"God, I just know you, Ryan. I know how you are and I have never seen you like this, but I'm not stupid. I just want you to tell me what's going on with you."

"I'm trying. Just read that. I need to read this one still. I said something stupid and even if I wasn't lying I shouldn't have said it, and he gave me this and told me not to read it right then."