Page 75 of A Cock and Bull Story

“I think Jude is our best option,” I insist. “We just need to create a diversion around my apartment building so he can get up there—and out with my passport. As long as there's plenty of people around, I would think that we will be safe. . . I mean, it would be pretty strange if a tiger attacked us midday at Oxford University, right?”

“That’s what we thought before you got nabbed,” Theo counters.

“Yeah, but I was an idiot and walked away—out of sight—from people,” I argue.

“She's right,” Arthur concurs.

“Hey—did you just call me an idiot?!” I ask in affront.

Arthur smirks.

“Nay, lass—you did. I was just agreeing, and not even with that bit. As long as we have people around with all their phones, we should be ok. People record everything nowadays—Tershes won’t want to expose themselves. What kind of diversion were you thinking?”

“Something obnoxious—like me streaking,” I suggest.

“Streaking?” Jude repeats.

“Yeah, ya know, running around naked in public.”

“You want to jot around campusstarkers?!” he exclaims.

“You’ve never done that before?” Jack asks in surprise.

I glare at him.

“No! Just because I have whorish tendencies doesn’t mean. . . ok, I don’t know where I was going with that argument. It sounded better in my head. Anywho, I think me flashing all of Oxford my lady bits will be sufficiently distracting. But what’s the point? Dean Hardwick has to have my file—he knows that I'm American. He knows where I live. Where will we hide? I can’t go back home. And what if Dean Stiffdick uses my family against me?! I guess the question is. . . what's it matter if I'm dead or alive?”

“Don't say that!” Arthur snaps harshly. “Never say that you being alive doesn’t matter! You living is. . . it'severything.”

I blink, startled by the depth of his words.

“But a life in hiding is not a life,” I argue. “I understand that my survival is important to you—but I don't want to survive to just be on the run the rest of my life. And, now, you’re caught up in this mess, forever on the run with me. I’veruinedyour lives!”

Jack rolls his eyes.

“Such melodrama! Are you saying that you'd rather be dead? And you haven’t “ruined” our lives—” Jack starts.

“You’ve enriched them,” Theo concludes.

I smile softly at his touching words.

“Listen, we're in this together,” Jude reassures me. “We're a team, and we’ll figure it out as one.”

“A team?” I test.

“A team,” Arthur reiterates.

I snort, even though my heart clenches—what a team we make.

Quite the motley crew, but I wouldn't have it any other way.

“Bizziesareeverywhere!” Arthur breathes when we finally pull on to campus.

Frankly, I don't even care—I'm just relieved that we even made it there without getting stopped by a tiger and slashed to death.

I don't say this out loud because tensions are already pretty high in the car.

After our heartfelt moment, things went back to the way they were—rife with anxiety.