#rivervale_lodge

"May, just go to class. I'll catch up. Gotta wash my face."

"You sure?" May says "I don't like leaving either of you like this. I.. I want to help" lamely

"Go check on Lupita. She ain't mad at you."

"She's mad at EVERYONE right now, or no one...but she's not just mad at you if she is mad at you. I could tell"

"Just GO, May. Please?"

"I... okay" May says "I'm sorry. I don't know what I'm doing wrong today..." She slinks despite her height and goes.

Frustrated, Sam slams her fists down on one of the sinks. Now May's upset too. Great.

The sink shudders

Another huff, like an ill-tempered bull, and she turns on the water to wash off her face.

Well, got rid of that stuff. Fine

She heads out from the bathroom, down the hall, out for the freedom of outside.

"Sam!" Sylvi was waiting for her in the hall, and follows. "Wait! Where are you going?"

And the two head outside.

"Home."

WHich isn't hard to do.

"But...class..." A sigh. "You sure? If you get in trouble, you won't be able to come to the thing tonight."

"Class is stupid. And Lupita's in gym. And I don't wanna see her right now."

Stomp Stomp Stomp...

"Okay...okay, look. Yeah, something's wrong. Yeah, she popped off at you. But I'll bet ANYTHING that she needs you to be there for her right now. I think you're, like, her best friend."

"She thinks I'm a basketcase! She's just like everybody else!"

"She thinks you were a basketcase. She said that's how you used to be!"

"Look, if you gotta go, go. I get it. I'll try to cover for you if I can. But don't be mad at her. You used to push people away, too, remember? She needs a friend who's...unpushable."

They notice that in the distance, but clearly watching them, is Vali. The French teacher.

"Well, maybe I'm just not a very good friend, then."

Sylvi raises her hand to acknowledge Vali, but it's not really a wave. "You know you're a good friend, Dagmar," she says with her voice low. "And she knows it, too. She's just mad at something...and yeah, she took it out on you, and that's not fair, and it sucks, but you guys are friends, and that would be a sucky thing to lose."

"She was being weird. Now she's mad."

Vali holds still, maybe he realizes intruding might not be best. Yet.

"Yeah. I thought, maybe she's about to Dream dance, and we just hadn't noticed, but I checked...it's not that. I don't know what's going on...but...I think maybe it's bad."

"She's just being a bitch."

"She could.. she... I can't... UHG!" She kicks at the dirt. "Screw her."

A pause. "You know she's not."

"I can't help her!"

"Something's wrong and I can't HELP."

"And you're mad because you want to. Because you're a good friend, and you want to help, but you can't."

"And I shouldn't even care because it's not my fuckin' problem!"

"But you do."

"It's stupid. Why can't she just say something?"

"I don't know. Maybe...it's something she's ashamed of? Or maybe she just doesn't know. It's weird, but...but try to be patient with her?"

"I tried!"

"I've been trying to be all... supportive or whatever... but she just... I hate this. I don't want to go to the stupid dance."

"Okay, look...you know her a lot better than I do. Let's try to sort it out. What do you know about her life outside of school?"

"She has a big family. All brothers, she's the only girl."

"Um. Her grandma lives at home."

"You think her brothers are...messing with her?" The weight of the word implies more than just roughhousing.

Dagmar's face goes cold and blank. "I'll kill them."

"Whoa, I could be way off base." Hands up. "No killing yet."

"If they are, I will. I could, I bet."

"You could. But it wouldn't help as much as...other stuff. And it would break Escheat. And it might break you."

"I won't let that happen to her."

"Yeah, but killing isn't the only way. We'll figure it out...but we gotta keep an eye on her. And you can't do that if you leave." Reasonably.