Justify His Murder

Rest Stop

   "If you wanted attention, you could've just...fainted or something." Reed helped me with my bag as I got into the car. My arm was in a sling which was the only thing holding me back from punching him in the shoulder.

    "Oh, shut up." I smiled. He slid into the driver's seat. Mischief was looking chipper. By that I mean, her paint chips were gone and Reed had dedicated the past week to giving her all of the attention she "deserved". Even I had to admit Mischief had taken one for the team.

   "I'm just saying. I was a hostage, but you went and got shot. Why steal my moment?" He chuckled. I smiled and leaned back in my seat. Although I had spent the past week and a half in a hospital room, I felt good. Breathing was easier. I could smile without constantly thinking of things I should be doing.

    And Sienna had come to visit me everyday. She brought flowers and read to me from To Kill a Mockingbird because she found out I had never read it. When Reed visited, he just brought all the things that made him want to vent. But that was good too, because they were there. We were all still here. As much as I wished that Sienna could have been here to celebrate my homecoming, I knew she needed to work today.

   "I gotta stop to get gas." Reed sighed.

   "Wow, my day to go home and you couldn't be bothered to show up with a full tank." I smiled. He rolled his eyes and headed towards the gas station. I thought back to the events of that night. The sky was light, but when I closed my eyes I could think back to the pitch black we had gotten ourselves into. I could hear the screams of that man as we walked away. Maybe I'm evil. Maybe I'm a criminal in my own way, but it made me smile. That man would never hurt someone else again without picturing the three of us on his front lawn.

  Reed pulled into the gas station. Today, there was no van waiting. There were no masked people with weapons. There were just regular cars with people in regular clothes. A man was helping his baby eat ice cream. I took a deep breath and let it sit for a while. Life was different for me now. Better.

  "I'm going to get you a coffee." I said and got out of the car.

   Reed looked up from the pump, "From in there? With creepy Greg?"

  "You deserve a coffee."

  "At noon? Are you going to poison it or something?" He grinned.

   Rolling my eyes, I went inside. The shelves were bursting with candy bars, snacks, and gum again. I went over to the coffee machine and poured it into a cup with some difficulty.

  "What happened to your arm?" He came out of nowhere, like a shadow at sunset.

  "Got shot, Greg." I sighed.

  "When?"

  "Take a guess, Greg." After a couple tries, I finally got the lid onto the cup.

    He led me to the counter and I grabbed a couple bags of gummy worms too. I could surprise Sienna with them later. I noticed something different on the counter. It took me a moment to realize the large crack in the glass.

   "What happened to your counter?" I asked.

   "Take a guess." He sighed as he scanned my stuff. I couldn't hold back a smile. I wondered who spent their Purge night breaking into the gas station just to mess with Greg's counter. If Reed wasn't with me, I might've guessed it was him.

   "Sorry to hear that. Hope you get it fixed." I said, taking my bag and the cup with my good arm.

   "I'm sure." He rolled his eyes. I shook my head and went back to the car. Reed scrolled on his phone, but helped me with the stuff so I could get in. We headed back home.

   I rolled down the window and looked around. The streets were cleaned up. The store fronts had recovered from hurricane Mischief. Everything was back together again. Even I was. Things are always perfect, until they're not. I had thought about that recurring theme that had been plaguing my every day while I was in the hospital. But now I realized, I didn't need things to be perfect. I was okay with what I had.

   "So are you going to watch movies with Sienna and me tonight?" I asked while we clambered up to our apartment.

   "Well actually, you're not the only one with a hot date tonight." He sipped his coffee mysteriously. The kitchen was surprisingly clean. He must've picked up this morning. It even smelled like bleach, which we did not have a couple weeks ago.

   "Really? Did you find a cute psychopath you haven't told me about?"

   "One good thing came out of your little arm injury, my dear friend. An EMT asked for my number and we're going out for dinner later."

    I smiled and let my mouth fall open in surprise, "You were flirting over my unconscious body?"

   "Oh please, you were not fighting for your life." He laughed. We plopped onto the couch.

   "Fair is fair." I nodded.

   "So what are the Three Musketeers doing next year for Purge? I've had my eye on expensive bags."

   "Very funny. The Three Musketeers are staying in from now on." I snapped my fingers like he usually did.

   "Fine. That bullet sucked all the fun out of you."

    And we laughed. We lived. I moved on. Sienna and I ended up together. Reed's still looking for love after his EMT date didn't work out. But Greg from the gas station followed him on Instagram, so who knows. We still live in that rinky dink apartment with the radiator that acts up. I even do volunteer work at our local Home for People in Crisis. Life got easier.

     I could easily justify that man's murder. But I just couldn't justify dirtying our hands for it.