Page 151 of Gin and Lava

Connor:Sunburns and sex are the worst.

Mason:I didn’t say sex.

Connor:Yeah, but you’re you. It’s implied.

Yeah, I’m me. I’m the asshole who will screw anything that moves, right? That’s what everyone expects. That’s what Naomi wants nothing to do with.

Ned:Did you tell Naomi you’re in love with her?

And there’s Mr. Buzz Kill.

Connor:He went out and deliberately burnt his skin to a crisp. What do you think?

Mason:I didn’t do it deliberately.

Connor:And yet, it probably hurts less than your *broken heart emoji*

Mason:Connor, you better be figuring out how to procure a 20 gallon vat of aloe, right now.

A picture of the inside of a Drug Store shows up on my screen.

Connor:Way ahead of you.

Ned:What did she say? When you told her?

Ned has a special talent of poking a wound like nobody else. I don’t want to rehash any of this with them.

Mason:Whatever you’re imagining she said, she said.

Ned:Nope. That’s not what I asked. What did she actually say?

Connor:Give him a break. He’s obviously punished himself already. Whatever it was, it wasn’t good.

Ned:Being an idiot who doesn’t wear sunscreen isn’t the same.

Mason:I’m Mason. That’s what she said. I’m me. She couldn’t believe I could actually have feelings. So …

Connor:Fuck. Really? That’s harsh.

I look at my red arms, broiled neon and aching with my stupidity.

Mason:You both knew this would happen. It happened. You already knew the end of thisstory.

Ned’s obnoxious three little dots show up again. I can imagine him trying to come up with the perfect closing argument, something poetic that packs a punch, an I-told-you-so that sounds like a compliment.

Mason:I shouldn’t be surprised. I act like a douche all the time. That girl was never going to fall for me.

Ned:Except, she didn’t mind that you acted like an ass.

Mason:It didn’t matter.

Ned:It does matter.

Connor:Don’t be cruel, Ned.

Ned:I’m saying it doesn’t add up.

Mason:You’re the one who said to bail the second this started. You kept telling me to call it off. Well, it’s off. You got what you wanted.

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