How To Kill Ryder Blake (COMPLETED)

Three {I Call Shotgun}

"Remind me again why we're best friends?" Max joked, hand buried in a family size bag of Ruffles. I stared him down, fighting the urge to reverse the question back on him.

For as long as I could remember, Max had been able to pack away a good five meals a day without gaining an ounce. My mother, a nurse practitioner, had assured that it was no more than be graced with a fast metabolism, but I had better ideas. I'd come to the conclusion after he'd cleaned out my entire fridge while my mom and step-father were on a business trip a year and a half ago that Max Park was, in fact, not human. It would explain how he was also able to go from one sport to the next as the seasons ended and began without as much as breaking a sweat and still managed to keep his soon-to-be valedictorian status.

"Zoe." Max snapped his fingers in front of my face, so close to the tip of my nose that I felt his nail graze it. "What's going on with you? You've been in your own head all day."

I grasped the cart tightly, averting my eyes so I didn't fall victim and cave under his intense gaze. It had been a little over four hours since our meet up on my patio, and I still couldn't get Ryder out of my head. If it wasn't the crazy request he'd made bouncing around inside my head, it was the look of hopelessness residing in his eyes as he spoke them. Hearing the words, I had thought it was some kind of sick, warped joke, but that thought had quickly vanished upon seeing the seriousness in his expression.

"Zoey." Max repeated, this time in a sing-song voice. "What's going on in there?"

He pressed his finger into the side of my head before I had the chance to dodge the gesture. I shrugged a shoulder and retrained my eyes on the produce section of the grocery store straight ahead. "Nothing. Just a little tired, I guess. Ryder and his dad woke me up again this morning."

He leaned over the side of the cart, resting his foot on one of the wheels as his eyes roamed me.

"That sucks." he commented. "But I want you to stop lying to me, Zoe. You may be able to fool Gabby with all your excuses, but I'm your best friend, I know you."

I looked over at him, running the tip of my index finger along the knuckle of my other hand. I knew better than to try and dodge Max's question again, he'd find a way to get it out of me one way or the other, and I'd rather neither of us waste the time or effort of one of his crazy tactics of getting me to spill.

"Ryder Blake showed up on my porch this morning." I whispered.

"And?"

"He mentioned he was diagnosed with Leukemia a few days ago like it wasn't a big deal before asking me help him kill himself." I continued. "You can't tell anyone, Max. I mean, I shouldn't have even told you. He probably just wants it to stay a rumor and not have anyone know if it's true or not. It's his story to tell, not mine. You can't tell anyone, okay? Not even Gabby."

The mention of not telling the third member of our trio seemed to stir a little bit of aggravation in him. I knew very well he had a strong disliking for Ryder, and he probably figured it was in our best interest to spread the news like wildfire.

"Sure, whatever." he muttered, then added a few seconds later, "What are you going to do?"

I looked at the shelves of cookies to my right. "I don't know. What do you think I should do?"

He started ahead a few steps, grabbing a couple more bags of chips and setting them in the cart, deep in thought. After adding some pretzels to the mix, he breathed out a sigh.

"I think you should be cautious, Zoe." he responded. "This is Ryder Blake, we're talking about. The guy lies, hell, he's probably a pathelogical liar by the point."