they told me he’d had it coming for a while. It’s good to know that not everybody was laughing at my expense.
It’s a little after seven when I hear my cell phone buzzing beside me on my bed. At the same time, there’s a knock on my door, so without checking my cell, I clamber off of my bed and go to see who it is.
“Can I come in for a second?” It’s Neil. This is the first time I’ve seen him since the early hours of the morning, and I’m relieved that both his tone and face seem a lot calmer now.
I open the door wider so he can get by me, and as I close it, I see him sitting down on the edge of my bed.
“I heard about what happened during lunc h today,” he gives me a sympathetic smile as I go and sit beside him. “I also heard Matt has a pretty nasty black eye already.” His smile turns into one of amusement as he chuckles softly, before he places his arm around my shoulder.
“You looked pretty pissed last night,” I say while studying his face, and I see him nodding a couple of times in response. “If you’ve come to warn me away from Brandon, then there’s really no need.”
He tilts his head back , and looks up to the ceiling as he lets out a breath, “That’s why you were asking me about him yesterday.” He looks at me with a small flash of bleakness in his eyes. “I didn’t come in here to lecture you, Alex. I came in here to thank you.”
“Thank me?” Well, I wasn’t expecting him to say that. “What are you thanking me for?” I’m confused.
“When you told me you saw Brandon acting suspiciously, I went over to speak with him so I could find out what he was doing,” he squeezes my shoulder gently before continuing to explain. “Alex. Brandon chose to study here so he can keep a safe enough distance away from Olympia, but still be close enough so that he can find out who did it.”
I turn my body around so I’m fully facing him, and can feel my eyebrows furrowing with confusion. “Who did what?”
Oh please, Neil, just cut to the chase because I don’t think I can handle being any more confused than I already am.
“Brandon admitted that if you hadn’t have told me what you saw yesterday, then he wouldn’t have gotten Ryan or I involved, but because you did tell us, we can try and help him,” he’s smiling now, but I still have no idea what he’s talking about. “Brandon is trying to find out who set him up.”
“Someone set him up?” Okay, well I wasn’t expecting him to say that.
“Alex, he’s has never taken drugs in his life, let alone dealt them. Whoever did it was close to being caught, so they used him as a scapegoat because he was there when … he was one of the people there.” I can hear the emotion in his voice and see the glazed look in his eyes as he tries to explain.
“Neil, I’m really not following…”
He holds his head in his hands, and takes a couple of deep breaths as though he’s trying to control his emotions.
“Alex, someone died from an overdose eighteen months ago. Whoever supplied the drugs, planted the heroin at Brandon’s place. It was confirmed to have been from the same batch. The cops knew Brandon was there the night it happened because he’d already given his witness statement. When they got tipped off and found the heroine, they took him in.”
Oh my God. I’m shaking and feel sick to my stomach from this revelation. No wonder he isn’t the same person they knew back in high school.
“How …? I mean, was he … was he charged with manslaughter as well as dealing?” I can’t get my words out. He was wrongly accused of dealing drugs and taking someone’s life?
“They couldn’t get him on the manslaughter. They tried, they really tried, but they didn’t have enough evidence,” the seriousness in his voice is clear. “Listen, it’s best you don’t mention this to anybody because if anyone related to this finds out that he’s trying to prove his innocence, it’ll be game over.”
“You said you
It’s a little after seven when I hear my cell phone buzzing beside me on my bed. At the same time, there’s a knock on my door, so without checking my cell, I clamber off of my bed and go to see who it is.
“Can I come in for a second?” It’s Neil. This is the first time I’ve seen him since the early hours of the morning, and I’m relieved that both his tone and face seem a lot calmer now.
I open the door wider so he can get by me, and as I close it, I see him sitting down on the edge of my bed.
“I heard about what happened during lunc h today,” he gives me a sympathetic smile as I go and sit beside him. “I also heard Matt has a pretty nasty black eye already.” His smile turns into one of amusement as he chuckles softly, before he places his arm around my shoulder.
“You looked pretty pissed last night,” I say while studying his face, and I see him nodding a couple of times in response. “If you’ve come to warn me away from Brandon, then there’s really no need.”
He tilts his head back , and looks up to the ceiling as he lets out a breath, “That’s why you were asking me about him yesterday.” He looks at me with a small flash of bleakness in his eyes. “I didn’t come in here to lecture you, Alex. I came in here to thank you.”
“Thank me?” Well, I wasn’t expecting him to say that. “What are you thanking me for?” I’m confused.
“When you told me you saw Brandon acting suspiciously, I went over to speak with him so I could find out what he was doing,” he squeezes my shoulder gently before continuing to explain. “Alex. Brandon chose to study here so he can keep a safe enough distance away from Olympia, but still be close enough so that he can find out who did it.”
I turn my body around so I’m fully facing him, and can feel my eyebrows furrowing with confusion. “Who did what?”
Oh please, Neil, just cut to the chase because I don’t think I can handle being any more confused than I already am.
“Brandon admitted that if you hadn’t have told me what you saw yesterday, then he wouldn’t have gotten Ryan or I involved, but because you did tell us, we can try and help him,” he’s smiling now, but I still have no idea what he’s talking about. “Brandon is trying to find out who set him up.”
“Someone set him up?” Okay, well I wasn’t expecting him to say that.
“Alex, he’s has never taken drugs in his life, let alone dealt them. Whoever did it was close to being caught, so they used him as a scapegoat because he was there when … he was one of the people there.” I can hear the emotion in his voice and see the glazed look in his eyes as he tries to explain.
“Neil, I’m really not following…”
He holds his head in his hands, and takes a couple of deep breaths as though he’s trying to control his emotions.
“Alex, someone died from an overdose eighteen months ago. Whoever supplied the drugs, planted the heroin at Brandon’s place. It was confirmed to have been from the same batch. The cops knew Brandon was there the night it happened because he’d already given his witness statement. When they got tipped off and found the heroine, they took him in.”
Oh my God. I’m shaking and feel sick to my stomach from this revelation. No wonder he isn’t the same person they knew back in high school.
“How …? I mean, was he … was he charged with manslaughter as well as dealing?” I can’t get my words out. He was wrongly accused of dealing drugs and taking someone’s life?
“They couldn’t get him on the manslaughter. They tried, they really tried, but they didn’t have enough evidence,” the seriousness in his voice is clear. “Listen, it’s best you don’t mention this to anybody because if anyone related to this finds out that he’s trying to prove his innocence, it’ll be game over.”
“You said you
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