Page 11 of You Were Mine

“I doubt Lord Byron looked very good while he was dying of malaria,” I said.

“You don’t know,” Logan says. “You weren’t there!”

“Neither were you,” I point out.

“Well, no, but I’m different.”

I roll my eyes. “How?” I ask.

“BecauseIam so awesome that Lord Byron personally rose from the dead and graced me with his presence.”

I glare at Logan and shake my head.

“You scoff now,” Logan says seriously, “But when the zombie apocalypse finally arrives, Lord Byron will protect me! His aura will guide my knives!”

Truth be told, he probably will be ready. Logan does have an impressive set of biohazard green knives made specifically for the zombie invasion.

“And I’ll apologize for scoffing when that day finally arrives,” I say.

“No, you won’t,” Logan replies, raising one eyebrow. “You’ll just continue as if you didn’t just demolish my family honor with your lack of faith.”

I turn my notepad around. “What do you think?” I ask, showing him my sketches of rabbits and coyotes.

“I think that rabbit in the top left corner has something wrong with its left ear. The angle or something,” Logan says, tilting his head to get a better look. “Yeah, the left ear.”

I look at the notepad, realize he’s right, and fix it.

“Doing your project on inspiration from animal fables was pretty cool,” Logan adds. “Did I tell you that?”

I shake my head. “But thanks. I’m really excited about it.”

Logan nods. His project is on a revisioning of the Arthurian legend, right up his alley, so lately, he’s been looking through a million books at billions of pictures of knights. This also has meant I’ve had to endure an excessive number of jokes about knights, lances, and swords lately, but I tolerate it.

What attracts a knight in shining armor even more than a damsel in distress? A magnet.

Arthur and Lancelot visited an inn, renting a room. Arthur slept in a king-sized bed.

Lancelot took the queen.

Took the queen!!… Hah!... get it?................. Neither did I.

Which of King Arthur’s knights built the Round Table?

Sir Cumference

At least, Logan is passionate about something; I like to see him excited and invested.

I glance at the clock again. It’s time to go.

Chapter Five

Mark

We meet at a small café called the Tipsy Turtle. It’s a small place with bright colors and lots of coffee… and booze. I like to go there because it’s locally owned and less expensive than the Starbuck’s three blocks down. I’m sitting across from Brandon and wrapping my hands around my chai tea latte. After having seen him nude in class, it feels surreal being here with Brandon fully clothed.

“So, what happened to … pre-med? Or was it nursing?” I questioned, trying to remember.

Brandon offers a one-shouldered shrug. “Pre-med. I didn’t get into the program and rightly so,” he says. “My grades were pathetic.”

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