It was a late August night. The air was warm, and the cicadas played their familiar melody as the starlit sky and silvery moon gave enough light to see ahead. Strong smells of pine needles, wildflowers and the lake reminded Fletcher of home. As the boys walked down the dirt road soaking wet from another evening spent in Aradia Lake, they laughed as if they had heard the funniest thing but there was nothing really being said. Roman draped himself over Ellis whispering some sort of off handed joke to him that the other boys were likely to find entirely unfunny. Sam wrung out his long coppery hair prattling on about the upcoming swim season. Trailing behind, Fletcher noticed a small car drive past as Roman let out a loud shout of incoherent joy. He was always loud.

“Are you guys nervous about starting high school?” Ellis asked meekly as if the topic were a sensitive issue for him.

“No way. Same school it's always been, our classes are just in a different wing.” Sam replied, pulling his wet hair back into a ponytail.

“I don’t know, hazing is still concerning.” Fletcher replied, chewing his bottom lip.

The thought had been rattling in his head since the start of the summer. He’d heard a few tales of some fairly intense hazing to come from the seniors ranging from paddling to being tied to the flagpole overnight.

“As if my grandfather would let anything happen to us.” Ellis laughed in a reassuring way.

“I think you’ve got bigger things to worry about than hazing.” Roman added. Furrowing his brows, Fletcher waved his hand to say, what do you mean? “That girl Beck from history. She's obsessed with you.”

Scoffing in reply, Fletcher couldn’t help but roll his eyes at the ridiculousness of it. He was far from anything a girl like Beck would be interested in. He was wiry and awkward. Plus, he lacked most redeeming traits. All he really had going for him was his friends and God, did he love his friends.

There was a wildness about them. Boyhood recklessness flowed through their veins and it was obvious by the way they acted. The moment they were together, they would break out into fits of laughter mixed with destructive behavior. Between the teasing and the roughhousing there was trust and an unbreakable bond. Sam pulled back a branch and released it, letting it slam into the side of Roman’s face but he only giggled in response.

In the midst of the wildness was Ellis, a perfectly behaved boy. Fletcher watched him carefully, unsure of what was going through his head. It was just over a year since Prue’s unfortunate accident, but he never seemed to want to talk about what happened. A lingering sadness hid behind his eyes. Unsure of the entire story, Fletcher chose to keep quiet on the matter. Better for Ellis, he thought.

Roman let out another joyful shout of some curse word. Out of the four of them, he was most certainly the most untamed. A cocky smile always played at the corners of his mouth. Sam was doing a peculiar dance that he definitely thought was cooler than it was. As he told some long-winded story, Fletcher noticed headlights for the second time. Odd for a relatively unpopulated area.

“Is that the same car as before?” Fletcher pointed back as the car continued down the road.

“Dunno, probably just looping around.” Ellis replied.

“Have you guys got your schedules yet?” Sam asked. “I got Gaelic at 8:00 am. I can barely speak English that early, let alone a different language.”

“That’s rough but I think I got you beat. I got Mrs. Ryder for chemistry. She already hates me for the penny bomb incident which is entirely unfair.” Roman said.

“You set penny bombs off in the middle of an assembly.” Ellis rolled his eyes.

“I didn’t mean to!” Roman squealed defensively. “They were meant for after school.”

“Just like the firecrackers.” Sam added doubtfully.

“Yes, and I don't like that accusatory tone.” Roman said half laughing. “It wasn’t that I wanted to set them off. It just happened. Besides no-”

“That car's back.” Fletcher interrupted as he shifted closer to the tree line.

The other boys didn’t seem all that bothered by the car. The beaming headlights at the end of the road captured Fletcher’s attention. Trying to convince himself they were just turning around; he closed his eyes and took in a deep breath. For the third time, the car passed them but it halted for a moment and the driver laid on the horn. Instinctively, Fletcher covered his ears as he turned to get a better look.

“Hey, Asshole. What the he-” Roman started before falling silent.

The passenger side door opened and a man in all black jolted towards them. Frozen in place, Fletcher wasn’t sure what to do. The whole situation confused him. Why would someone honk at them? Why would someone be so angry with them? Were they on private property and didn’t realize? As the man got closer, he stepped back.

“He’s got a gun.” Sam shouted before running into the forest while the other boys followed suit.

As they ran through the dark thicket, Fletcher could hear the car screech as it drove off. Unable to see the other boys, he kept moving but listened carefully for them. He only could have been running for a few minutes, but it felt like a lifetime. Practically out of breath from the steep hill, he started to slow down. Jumping over roots, he approached a clearing where he could see Roman through the darkness standing still.

“The hell are you doing?” Fletcher shouted, running past him.

Looking back, he saw exactly what Roman had stopped for. Somewhere between when they had started running and reaching the clearing, Sam fell. Running back to him, Roman tried to get him up. Fletcher was frozen in place again, unsure of what he should do. There was no rulebook for being chased by a gunman.

“His foot is caught.” Roman called out to Fletcher and pulled at Sam’s foot.

All at once, it occurred to Fletcher that he was going to die but he had no idea what he had done wrong. He was a good person, or at least he tried to be. What had he done to deserve this? What had any of them done to deserve this? Blankly staring at Sam, Fletcher realized he should help but he was stuck motionless and consumed by fear.

Fletcher watched as the gunman caught up. He pointed the gun at Roman at first and cackled as if Roman’s wide-eyed stare was the joke of the year. The gunman motioned with the gun for Roman to step back to which he obliged. With each step, the gunman got closer and closer until he was an arm's length away from Sam who was still stuck. Pointing the gun directly at Sam’s head, he laughed again. It was a hauntingly genuine chuckle that echoed through the woods. Before Fletcher realized what was happening, he saw Ellis run up, attempting to wrestle the gun away but he was too small. Effortlessly, the gunman shoved him down. His glasses went flying. As the gunman jabbed the gun into Sam’s forehead, Sam started to twist his leg just enough to move.

“Any last words?” The gunman spoke in an almost fake deep scratchy voice.

“Don't need them.” Sam said in a brazen voice before launching his foot directly into the side of the gunman’s knee

The gun fell a few feet away. Crawling through the dirt, Sam tried to grab the gun before the man reached it. Both clasped on to the gun and began to wrestle for it. Fletcher couldn’t bear to watch. Holding his breath and closing his eyes tightly, he started to count. One… he heard a shout. Two…he heard a snap. Three... he heard a crack he knew all too well; Broken bones always had a hollow snap, almost like a branch. Opening his eyes, he saw the man’s head cracked open on a rock. Even in the dark, he could see the blood that coated rock. The blood pooled underneath him.

Quietly, Ellis grabbed his phone with shaking hands. He turned on the flashlight and pointed it at the gunman. Breathing, he’s breathing, Fletcher thought as he watched the man's chest rise and fall. His relief died the moment he saw the man’s face. It was Davis Astor, a high school senior.

“Why?” Fletcher’s voice cracked.

“It was a prank.” Roman said in an entirely unfamiliar tone, almost desperate. Turning he held up the gun with its bright orange cap at the end. “It’s a toy.”

“I didn’t mean to.” Tears started to form at the corner of Sam’s eyes.

“We know.” Ellis replied quietly, wandering around almost as if Davis wasn’t even there. “Can someone help me find my glasses?”

“I’m calling an ambulance.” Fletcher said, taking Ellis’s phone from him. “He could still be okay?”

Ellis squinted at the ground as he searched for his glasses. He seemed rather unconcerned with the whole affair but Fletcher guessed he couldn’t really see the damage without his glasses. Just as he started dialing the number, Ellis let out a high-pitched scream. Looking over, Fletcher noticed Davis wasn’t in the same spot as before but Ellis was.

“He grabbed me. I don’t know, I just… I don’t know what happened.” Ellis said with his hand pointed out at the edge of the clearing.

Turning the flashlight over to the area he was pointing, Fletcher guessed what happened. Ellis must have spooked and given Davis enough of a kick to send him rolling down the cliff. His body crumpled around a tree.

“He’s certainly not okay now.” Roman replied dryly.

“So, we call the cops.” Fletcher said unable to look away from what they had done.

“No way. Gun's fake, there is no way anyone is going to believe us.” Sam piped up as he desperately tried to whip the dirt off himself.

“We can get lawyers,” Ellis replied with his rich kid catch phrase.

“We do that and you can say goodbye to the ivy league and any other dream you have.” Roman countered as he stared down the bloody mess that was Davis. “We bury him.”

Silence washed over the boys for a moment. Each took in the scene in front of them, all having vastly different reactions. Sam sat down and started to sob as quietly as he could muster. Ellis just stared off blankly which was in direct contrast to Roman who couldn’t seem to look away from the body.

“We don’t have time for that.” Ellis let out a sigh.

The two of them bicker about exactly how to dispose of a body as if either had any clue. Sam could only speak through muffled tears and usually rejected any proposed plan. It was ridiculous to think a bunch of fourteen-year old's could even get away with murder. Surely, it would have been easier to call the cops Fletcher thought but that wasn’t what he said.

“We can dump him in the lake...” Logically, he was correct. It was their best bet but it didn’t feel right to say the words. “There was that woman that drove off the road. Killed herself and her kids, but the police were never able to find the bodies.”

“Okay and how do we keep the body from floating? We can’t exactly drive a car into the lake?” Ellis said, still searching for his glasses. “Help, please.”

Sam started looking around for the glasses while Roman just rolled his eyes, no doubt thinking something about how Ellis was being no help. It was very much an Ellis-like action to poke holes in plans but offer no real resolution although Fletcher thought he preferred it in a rare moment.

“We can put the body in a foot locker. I have one back at the cabin.” Roman said as he joined the search for the glasses.

“And how are we going to move him because I don’t know about you, but I don’t think I can lift a 200-pound man.” Ellis pinched the bridge of his nose before there was a faint cracking noise. “You stepped on my glasses, didn’t you?”

Shyly, Roman nodded before handing the glasses over to Ellis with one lens cracked and a slightly bent frame. Ellis tried to smooth out the bend but eventually gave in and slid on the broken glasses.

“I can get the truck. We can drive the body out to the lake. My parents aren’t home.” Sam’s voice trembled.

“You can’t drive.” Roman started before Sam gave him a death glare.

“Do you have a better idea?” Sam asked but Roman only shook his head. “Then I guess I’m going to get the truck.”

It wasn’t a decision they agreed to but Sam took off running. He lived a far bit away leaving the other boys completely unaware of when he’d return. It only took half a minute of waiting for Roman to get restless and take off in his own direction to retrieve the footlocker, leaving Ellis and Fletcher alone with the body.

The sight of the body made Fletcher’s stomach turn. The face, or rather what was left of it was frozen in a twist grimace of pain. At that moment, Fletcher would have done anything to turn back time. It was a prank, a crude one at that but he didn’t deserve to die over it. Suddenly, Ellis wrapped his arms around Fletcher. It was nice, comforting but it only intensified his guilt. He didn’t deserve comfort. He stood like a coward while his friends tried to help. Maybe if I just done something, we wouldn’t be here, Fletcher cursed to himself

Fletcher was a trusting person. He trusted his friends at least he did until a few moments before. However, he did not trust he was doing the right thing. With every passing second, the overall wrongness of the situation set in. How could he trust anyone when his friends were capable of this? How could he trust himself? He was complicit. Softly, he cursed himself for ever mentioning the lake. It was the police they needed, not a plan and certainly not the makeshift casket Roman left to fetch.

Sam laid on the horn, letting the loud blast echo through the woods. At least that’s who Fletcher hoped it was. He wasn’t sure how much time had passed but surely Sam had run the entire way. Ellis clenched his jaw as he peered through the trees. Luckily and as expected it was Sam. His hands were still shaking as was his breath, but his pretty blue eyes had turned to steel, almost empty in a way.

“Let's load the truck.” He said as if it were something like a tent rather than a boy.

“I’m not touching it.” Ellis scoffed with his head held high.

“Then get Roman too.” Sam hissed. “You think not touching the body gives you some sort of merit? There’s no merit in murder, Ellis.”

“Oh, don’t you start with me. This is your fault.”

The words were as heavy as lead and hit Sam all at once. His expression shifted from anger, to guilt and then a pensive sadness completely washed over him. His lips trembled as he tried to come up with a witty reply, but no words came out. Thinking about it, Fletcher wasn’t entirely sure Sam would ever be okay again. He was always so sensitive.

Without much argument, Fletcher and Sam slowly walked down to the body, careful not to slip. Fletcher tried his best not to look at Davis and instead focused on Sam. Taking his feet, Sam rolled the body back, so he was on his back. Fletcher half considered asking if Sam would switch sides but decided against it. Grabbing Davis’s arms, he gagged. Awkwardly, the two boys carried the body out the main road making sure not to trip over anything on the forest floor. Occasionally, the two would move out of sync resulting in the body nearly falling. Between the journey from the forest to the main road, Fletcher had ended up with blood on his shirt although he wasn’t sure when it got there.

After tossing the body in the truck, Sam crumpled down again. Sitting with his face pressed to his knees, he started to sob again. Ellis was sitting in the passenger seat of the truck, his lips drawn into a thin line. His delicate features showed very little about what was going on in his head.

“Do something!” Fletcher mouthed at Ellis.

“What?” He mouthed back.

“Apologize.” Fletcher said in a hushed whisper.

Ellis would do no such thing. Not because he wasn’t sorry, the way he chewed on his nails and the pitiful glances he gave to Sam were enough to conclude that he was. It was Roman’s sudden appearance that ended all potential conversations. The footlocker was much smaller than Fletcher had expected. Unsure of how they were going to fit the body in it, he considered the possibilities.

“Why did you guys put him in the back?” Roman asked with a surprising amount of humanity compared to the rest of them. Unlike the other boys, he used a pronoun so as to not strip Davis of his status as a person.

“Didn’t want to wait.” Sam said, palming his eyes to hide the tears.

Roman nodded before climbing into the truck bed while Sam trudged over to the driver's seat. Extending his hand, Roman helped Fletcher up. Unlike Fletcher, Roman wasn’t horrified to touch the body. Perhaps he was numb to it or maybe it was part of his mania. Dragging the body over the edge of the foot locker, he tried to calculate the best way to fit the boy in the chest. Fletcher opened it allowing Roman to drop the body into it. It didn’t fit but that wasn’t a surprise. With his foot poised on Davis’s back, Roman stomped down with all his force. Cracked ribs echoed through the night. The footlocker still didn’t close. Roman plopped down on the top, trying to latch it.

“Little help here?” Roman requested but Fletcher couldn’t meet his eyes solely focused on the blood that now coated his chest. “Fletch?”

“Yeah.” Fletcher replied as he reached over and latched the lock.

Sam drove down the road surprisingly well for someone who had never driven before but Fletcher still white knuckled the side of the truck. Roman looked almost remorseless, his face void of any expression. He hoped it was the shock but Roman seemed far too prepared for what had become of them.

There was a saying Fletcher once heard about ends justifying the means. Sure, they were all poised to do great things. It was written in the stars. Ellis would make real change with his future career in the senate, Sam aspirations to be a doctor would surely help people and Roman, well no one really knew what his plans were but he was a natural born leader so it seemed obvious that he would do some good. Still, Fletcher couldn’t get past what they were about to do and what they had done. His father once told him character isn’t about what you do when everything is fine, it is about what you do when the decisions are hard. No amount of future good deeds would redeem their character or wash the blood away.

“Fletcher.” Roman said.

Pulled from his thoughts, Fletcher realized that had already arrived at the docks. Funny how fast time passed when you were dreading what was to come. Using the thick leather handle, Roman started to slide the footlocker out of the back but the weight was too much for him alone. Holding the other handle, Fletcher helped him lower it down. He looked out at the lake and watched Sam and Ellis position a boat. There was still time to go back, call the police and get help yet the words died on the end of Fletcher’s tongue. The two carried the footlocker to the boat and carefully placed it in the center to avoid throwing off the balance. Vomiting had occurred to him, almost dry heaving from his emotions, but he pushed the thoughts away. Only he and Roman got in the boat while Sam and Ellis waited on the dock. Before rowing out, Roman reached out for Ellis; The two held hands for a moment almost like an unspoken prayer between the two. Oddly enough, Fletcher felt a bit jealous of them.

There was no rhyme or reason to why or when they had stopped paddling. They just assured that they weren’t too close to shore before dropping the footlocker into the lake. Fletcher watched as it sunk down like the guilt now residing in the pit of his stomach. Fletcher was certain now that he wasn’t a good person. He now owned a secret never to be unburied.