Chapter 80: Chapter 80

Couldn’t I?”

For a moment,

they stared at each other, aghast at the sound if their sharp voices echoing in

the quiet room.

Fuck

“Lee,” Patrick

said. His voice came out on a whisper. He reached out a hand, but Lee drew

back. “What’s going on?”

“I thought

things would be different.” Lee sounded more bemused now than distressed. “When

I came back from Mum and Dad’s, after the explosion… you see, I was determined

to make things different.”

“What things?”

“Between us.”

Patrick’s head

hurt even more now. “But between us is good, isn’t it?” Or it was until

right now.

Lee shut his

eyes briefly. “I thought so. You started… we started… but I think I’ve just

been a fool.”

“What?” No!

“You haven’t

told anyone, have you?”

“Told them

what?”

“Don’t make me

feel even more stupid, Patrick. About us.”

Us. It. That. “I thought you wouldn’t

want me to,” Patrick said wretchedly. “It’s early days.”