Sam knew this day was coming. Sooner than he would have liked but he knew not to expect too much. His grace period was long over, and he was just waiting for the moment it all came crashing down. Secrets were something Sam had come accustomed to and the night at the docks was no different although he was much less dramatic about it than the other boys. He wouldn’t let it bury him but rather he would live knowing what he did.

Fletcher on the other hand must have completely ignored all logic and thought they would get off scot free. The way his thin hands shook as he dialled Roman’s number was concerning. He must have been terrified. When Roman told Sam not to call, he wasn’t kidding. Fletcher and Sam must have tried sixteen times between the two of them and his voice mail only got increasingly irritating.

“Roman Davenport. Leave a message or don’t, I won’t call you back.” Sam’s phone echoed for the seventeenth time. Even his voice mail was crude.

Fletcher was pacing back and forth speaking gibberish. Sam wondered if he was supposed to understand. Closely, he watched Fletchers every move waiting for a proper moment to interrupt his mental breakdown.

“Ellis.” Fletcher spoke clearly for the first time since telling Sam about the lake. “We should call Ellis. He needs to know too.”

Why calling Ellis earlier hadn’t occurred to him earlier was a mystery. It could have been the knowledge of how condescending Ellis was or knowing that if Ellis knew that means they had to deal with it. It didn’t matter, Fletcher had already started dialing.

“Maybe we can wait till Monday. Ya know cause we will all be in Bio.” Sam asked.

“Can’t wait that long.” Fletcher pressed the phone so tightly to his ear it was beginning to turn red. Ellis, much like Roman, wasn't one to answer his phone; however his voice mail was more professional. “Oh, I got a text! Ellis said to stop calling him…”

“Let’s wait it out.” Sam said and Fletcher didn’t say anything. Fletcher was so non-confrontational it was becoming a problem. Especially when he looked up with the worried look painted across his face. His eyebrows furrowed and his eyes darted back and forth as if he was already waiting for their eventual comeuppance. “Fine. I’ll call Ellis.”

The phone rang for less than a second before Ellis picked up and began yelling that he was in a meeting with the student council as if that was important to anyone else. Ellis Holloway was the sort of person who thought very highly of himself for doing things that in the end didn’t really matter. No one cares about the student council after graduation, it's just another bullet point on a college application. Sam put the call on speaker phone.

“-And you think that I can just drop everything to talk to you? News flash, Samuel! We aren’t fourteen anymore.” Sam knew that they were sixteen and honestly, he didn’t think two years made any difference in responsibility. “You have some nerve-”

“Aradia is about to have a shit ton of people digging around in it and we both know what that means for us.” Sam cut him off.

“Oh god. What are we going to do?”

“I don’t know, Roman won't answer.” Fletcher said. It was strange how they all looked to Roman for answers, even now. He was an unwilling leader, always had been, always will be.

“I will take care of Roman.” Ellis made it sound like Roman was part of a to-do list rather than a person but then again Sam couldn’t imagine anyone else being able to get Roman’s attention.

Sam and Ellis talked back and forth discussing places Roman might be or how to get him to answer his phone. Ellis had considered calling Declan, Roman’s brother but decided that was some baggage they didn’t have time to unpack. Even in the quaint town of Emmerson, Roman had learned to become invisible.

“Uh…Did we ever go back?” Fletcher's voice trembled like he’d seen a ghost.

“No, why would-” Ellis hissed, getting cut off for the second time. Sam could only imagine the eyeroll he must have been doing.

“The gun.” He stared directly at Sam with the same wide eyes that he had that night at the docks.

“Doesn’t matter. It’s been three years.” Ellis said with the astuteness of a politician.

“It matters. We need to go get it. God knows when Roman is going to answer.” Fletcher paused. “It’s evidence and I’m betting it's incriminating.”

“Fine, you guys go. I will deal with Roman.”

Before Sam hung up Fletcher had already jumped into the passenger seat. He pulled out of the drive trying desperately not to think about the gun or the footlocker. How are we going to get that out? Sam's mind wandered.

Thinking was not something Sam enjoyed doing. He was well educated and well-spoken but rather uninterested in life. To be alive is all he wanted. To truly live, not just survive. However, Aradia Lake was currently getting in the way of his plans. If things went south, he wondered who would turn first. Ironically, he guessed it would be himself. Ellis was fiercely loyal, Roman was too calculated to turn while Fletcher was too soft to hurt anyone.

Sam turned down the road he had only been down once in his life, but he remembered better than he remembered most things. Every curve, twist and dip in the road had been carved into his mind. This was the first road he had ever really driven down. Fletcher prattled on about his worries, but Sam didn’t pay any mind. Worrying was for people who had time and Sam certainly did not have that.

The road was a straight shot of dirt and mud cutting the woods directly in half. It was an unpopular spot as the road itself led to nothing. A dead end with no real reason. As far as Sam could remember there had never been anything there. Pulling the truck on to the shoulder of the road, Sam felt a knot forming in his stomach. Although they never spoke of it, Sam knew the other boys were haunted by that night. He could see it in Fletcher’s eyes and the way Roman found flaws in everything besides himself. It was easier for him to pick things apart than admit he didn’t like himself anymore. Sam felt guilt. He was certain of that, but he didn’t replay it in his head. When he vowed to never speak of it again, he planned to never think of it again. And yet here he was, parked at the spot that forever changed his life. Neither Sam nor Fletcher made a motion to get out of the truck. Maybe it was fear or maybe it was guilt. Either way, they needed to go.

“We could wait for Roman.” Fletcher suggested.

“We shouldn’t. Aren’t you pissed at him anyways?” Sam countered, not really convincing himself or Fletcher.

“Yeah, but…” Fletcher trailed off.

“Ellis would be pissed.”

Ellis so desperately wanted to fill the role that Roman had thrusted upon him. Roman was a leader in more ways than one. He didn’t get the choice anymore. Ellis wanted it so badly, but Sam realized long before the night on the docks Ellis was never going to be a leader. Leaders didn’t want power, that was for politicians. Real leaders were built from the hell they had been through and Roman Davenport could walk through hell blind folded. Ellis however was a politician in the making.

Just as Sam got ready to leave the truck Ellis pulled up in his black Rolls-Royce with Roman sitting in the passenger seat. Even at a distance, Romans scowl was clear as day. Given the circumstances, Ellis looked surprisingly in his element. His aristocratic features show no signs of distress at all. His hands however told a different story. In the few seconds since they arrived Ellis had run his hands through his platinum blond hair at least four times. Nervous energy was flowing through him.

“What are you waiting for?” Roman slammed the door behind him with Ellis noticeably wincing at the sound.

You, Sam answered silently and Roman seemed to understand. Hiking up the steep hill, Roman entered the woods. There were no trails or pathways. Branches poked and prodded the boys as they wandered around. The roots of the trees twisted together in a dangerous mess, liable to make someone trip. He knew that too well. Dread was building up in Sam with every step he took. The way the wind blew through the trees created a strange whistling noise, as if the forest was warning him to leave. He didn’t know exactly where they were going because it had been so long and so dark that night. All he could remember about it was how his legs burned from running, poorly placed jagged rocks and his foot getting hooked by a stray root.

Nearly an hour passed looking for the small clearing and Sam was about ready to turn back. Listening to Ellis and Roman bicker was slowly killing all of his desire to speak to them again, not that there was much to begin with. Fletcher continued to mediate between the two but Sam was so done with the melodramatics of it all.

“You are absolutely-” There was most likely an insult to follow Roman’s comment but while he talked Sam noticed the oversized jagged rocks.

“We’re here.” Sam stated, eyes fixated on the rock. The space didn’t look the same during the day. Smaller, a lot smaller than Sam had even considered. Kicking the stray root, he continued speaking, “Anyone remember where it went?”

No one did. That night was hectic, emotions running at an all-time high and it made sense that none of them had considered it before. However, the gun being there was unlikely, at least that’s what Sam thought. He couldn’t get over the strange feeling nudging at his chest. We need to leave. Sam considered silently before pushing the feeling away. He didn’t know how long they had been searching for the gun before Roman started to speak but he suspected it had been much longer than they should have been.

“It’s not here.” Ellis announced standing up from the now torn apart grass patch. “Call it a day. We have bigger things to deal with.”

“Yeah, we should head down to Aradia on Friday and we can deal with the rest.” Roman in a rare turn of events agreed with Ellis.

The boys started to hike back down to the road. It was nearly thirty feet before they realized Fletcher hadn’t followed. He was standing near the edge of another sharp decline, eyes completely fixed at the bottom. Sam recognized the decline, but it didn’t make sense to look down there. The gun never made it that far. Maybe Fletcher’s emotions overcame him or being in this spot had finally triggered something in him.

“Wait.” It was almost a whisper but they heard it clearly. Fletcher pointed to the bottom of the decline.

“What is it?” Roman asked, practically running to where Fletcher was. “Oh. That’s…”

Sam followed after him and saw exactly what perplexed Roman. At the bottom of the decline was the gun in perfect condition. The orange cap at the end was still as vibrant as the night they tossed it. Three years and it didn’t look any different but that wasn’t what interested Sam. It was how the gun sat perfectly in the center of a ring of large pure white mushrooms. A stillness settled over the boys, each trying to grasp exactly how the gun ended up there. Roman simply slid down the decline, fully planning on retrieving the gun. His foot was inches above the circle before Ellis stopped him

“Don’t.” Ellis sounded concerned which was surprising all things considered. “That’s a fairy circle. They say if you step inside, you’ll be trapped forever. Or you could lose an eye.”

“Bullshit.” Roman replied, rolling his eyes.

“Please?”

Roman tilted his head to the side with a puzzled look on his face. Ellis was a very logical person, almost to a fault. Perhaps he had some sort of point. Roman turned around and broke a long thin branch off of a tree. Slowly he pushed the gun around, attempting to get the branch through the trigger guard. After a few fumbled he managed to get it and slowly swung it outside of the circle. Sam couldn’t help but notice how out of character everyone was acting. Roman considered other people’s feelings, Ellis being superstitious and Fletcher…he wasn’t really there. Physically speaking he was but mentally he was gone.

“I can bury it out at my dad’s. There’s enough land out there that no one would notice.” Roman said, taking off towards the road.

“And the footlocker?” Sam asked.

“We will have to go get it.” Roman replied simply as if it wasn’t plunked deep in Aradia Lake.

“It’s October.”

“I know. Contrary to popular belief, I do have a concept of time.” Roman pushed stray branches out of the way so that the other boys could get by.

“It will have to be during the night. Can’t risk anyone seeing us.” Ellis added and Roman nodded. Funny how two people who hated each other only hours ago were now agreeing on everything.

“We can stay at my cabin Friday night, deal with the situation and get back to normal.” Roman offered.

Sam's stomach turned at how the two could speak about the whole ordeal as if it were business. They sounded all too much like their parents for his liking. Leaving the woods as it turned out was much easier than entering. It took them only half the time it took to get to the spot to get back to the road. Ignoring Ellis’s concerns of the how and the what of the Friday plans, Sam took a deep breath. Roman claimed he would take care of the details and that was enough for Sam.

“Hey, can I see the gun?” Sam asked.

Roman handed it to him and Sam became captivated by it. It was a stupid toy that destroyed him and his friends. How could one piece of plastic ruin his life this badly? Musing on it, Sam noticed the gun shouldn’t look this way. He had noticed it before but up close it was more apparent how pristine the gun had remained. No discoloration, no scratches, not even dirt remained on it. There were no coherent thoughts that Sam could form about the gun besides he needed it away from him. He tossed it back at Roman, who barely caught it.

It didn’t take very long for them to reach the road. Not wanting to be near the woods anymore, Sam rushed into his truck. Turning the key, the car only spat and sputtered. Strange, I just had it inspected, Sam thought. He tried again only to hear the engine hack some more.

“Can you boost me?” Sam yelled out the window at Ellis.

“I don’t know how.” Ellis replied. Of course, he wouldn’t know. He was easily the most studious of them but very rarely had any practical skills. “If you have the cables, you can try.”

“Okay, just start your car when I tell you to.” Sam got out of his truck and pulled some old jumper cables out. Popping the hood, Ellis watched carefully. Sam connected the ground to his truck when Ellis's car rev. “Jesus Ellis, turn it off! You could have electrocuted me.”

Ellis awkwardly turned the car off and waited. Sam hooked the jumper cables to Ellis’s car and gave him the go ahead to start it. Starting his truck again, it roared back to life. Roman kindly disconnected the cables for Sam before getting in his truck. For a moment, he considered asking why but he already knew the answer.

Driving back to town Sam couldn’t help but sense something was deeply wrong. The gun, the fairy circle and the truck all could have been some odd case of circumstance, but Sam didn’t believe in coincidence. There was more to it, there had to be.