Page 122 of Them Bones

“Sorry,” Shane mumbled.

“Same,” Cody said. “Got a bit carried away, you know how it is…” he tapped his nose.

Shane’s eyes turned cold and hard. “I’m not going to tell you what to do on your own time, Cody, but you keep that shit away from Laney or we’ll have arealproblem. You feel me?”

Cody nodded. “I know, I would never…”

Shane’s face softened a bit. “You should watch it with Jenna, too… We were getting a bit heavy into the junk, before we…”

“Don’t worry about my girlfriend,” Cody bit out. “I got it. Okay?”

“Cody, it’s not like that… You don’t know what it feels like, to watch the girl you love…” he trailed off, his voice laced with pain.

Jenna was right. Cody had taken too much, and he was too amped for this conversation. He wanted to hit Shane, even though he knew Shane was just being nice, just looking out for him…

“I’m gonna take a walk,” Cody said.

“Dinner will be ready in a few minutes,” Jerry said, eyeballing them.

“A short one, then!” he snapped, and stalked off into the woods.

Ten minutes later his heart rate had slowed, and he’d calmed himself down enough to head back to the cabin. The sun was setting, the cool September air settling around him like a chilled blanket and as he got back to the little campsite, he saw Dustin and Laney folding up the camping chairs. Jerry was placing the steaks onto a plate and covering it with tin foil.

“Go help ‘em set the table,” Jerry said, nodding at the main cabin, the one Jerry and Dustin were staying in with the big kitchen table and the old TV with a surprisingly well-stocked Nintendo 64 gaming system.

Cody headed inside, pushed open the door, and froze.

Their heads whipped around, Jenna’s hands on Shane’s chest, Shane’s hands on her wrists, clearly pushing her away.

Jenna stepped awkwardly away from Shane, glancing nervously between him and Cody. Shane lookedpissed.

“Cody, man – ”

“Don’t bother,” Cody spat. “I know it wasn’t you.”

He stared at Jenna, his heart cracking in half, and he blinked rapidly to keep from embarrassing himself by crying. “Why?” he asked.

“Cody… I didn’t… it’s not like that, okay? I just wanted to – ”

“Just wanted to what, Jenna? Get some closure with agoodbye kiss?”His voice was harsh, and mean. “Or beg him to take you back? Are youthat fucking desperatethat you’d let him bag you on the side? You know he’ll never leave that girl… You’re cool with being his sloppy side piece?”

“Hey!” Shane said, stepping towards Cody. “Don’t fucking talk to her like that, okay?”

“Oh, that’s RICH coming from YOU!” he shouted. “She is nothing to me, Cody,”he mimicked. “I don’t even see them, their faces…”

Jenna’s face crumpled, tears leaking out of her eyes, and Cody knew he should stop but he couldn’t.“I get that you’re supposed to pretend that every broad you bag means something, but she doesn’t.”

Shane looked like he’d been kicked in the gut, and Jenna covered her mouth as a sob escaped her lips.

“I think that’s enough,” said a quiet voice behind him.

It was Jerry. “You need to leave, son.” He clamped a hand down on his shoulder and steered him out the door. “Now. Go to your bunkie and sleep it off, and you can drive home in the morning.”

“I’ll drive home now,” he said, trying to storm away, but Jerry clotheslined him by the back of his shirt.

“Oh, no you won't,” he said. “You’re high as a fucking kite and worked up real good. You’ll go sleep it off, and you’ll be leavin’ in the morning. I reckon it’ll be before dawn, once the shame kicks in and you done realize you fucked up real good.”

Laney had appeared and put an arm around Jenna who was shaking with silent tears.

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