stay
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Summary
It’s the same now, with Ryland. Frozen like a prey animal caught in a trap, a frog paralysed with venom; his traitorous body still shaking like a mutt from the leftover adrenaline and the sudden, overwhelming terror that, once again, he has revealed the brutality of himself, the ugly violence comprising the foundation of who he is, to someone he cares for.
And once again, they will leave him for it.
Driver almost kills a man. Ryland watches.
Series
- Part 1 of driving lessons
- Part 1 of stay
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Summary
Well, just look at him.
Driver's voice is flat. The difference from his usual tone is jarring; Driver is generally a quiet man, but that doesn't mean he lacks emotion. Ryland has learnt to identify the small tells in his mild-mannered voice — the lilt in his speech when he smiles, the tight, tense note that his tone takes on when he's feeling on edge, the way his words go all soft and warm when he's being shy. But Ryland doesn't think he's ever heard him sound like this, his voice so utterly devoid of inflection.Does he look like a good guy to you?
In the background, the cartoon keeps playing, the animated shark now segueing into a villainous monologue.
I smell blood and I bite! The shark declares. Its serrated teeth are drawn in identical isosceles triangles. That's just what I do!
It's easy to take a stray dog home. The hard part is keeping him.
Series
- Part 3 of driving lessons
- Part 2 of stay