Page 78 of The Casualty of Us (Philosophies of the Heart Duet #1)

“Oh, goodie.” I let my lips lift this time at the little kick it gives me before waving my hand around carelessly.

“I’ll explain for the rest of the class.

” True anger sparks in his eyes and gives me pause for about two seconds, considering the variables before one promise wins out.

“The veil of ignorance asks you to design a society without knowing the place you will have in it.”

I pause to let that sink in as the knee against mine gives a jerk, letting me know I’m not the only one that noticed the shift but not pushing back in protest either. Not that I could stop if I wanted to right now, honestly.

He’d probably have to haul me away.

It’s too personal now—this moment too perfect to pass up, and I’m almost there.

“So for example, Kyler, you’re about to go to the planet Earth.

Hooray.” I clap my hands with a sarcastic cheer before sighing dramatically.

“But before we celebrate and send you on your way, I’m going to give you the opportunity to either leave things exactly the way they are or change the rules of the world to your benefit.

” He leans back with an irritated sound, no doubt already hating what’s coming next.

“Here’s the tricky part, though…” I cock my head at him again, watching his eyes narrow in distaste.

“You’re not going to know what role you’ll take.

” Hayes’s arm brushes mine as he uncrosses his arms, and I swallow before quickly adding, “You could be anyone.”

A humorless snort leaves me. “Which sounds promising at first until you think of the girl about to be born on the other side of the world who will be so full of ideas but never even have the opportunity to learn to read.” I hold his gaze, sucking in a quick breath.

“Or the boy from the city whose name you’ll never even care to know, who will lose his legs in a bombing by ten.

” My words start to come so quickly that they’re practically on top of each other.

“Or the single mother down the street who’s about to have to choose between buying food for the week or affording her kid’s daycare.

” My lungs start to protest, demanding more air, and I slow down enough to take a deep breath before summarizing.

“You could be a one percenter, or you could just be a number to someone on a budget sheet.”

The air in the room around me shifts enough to let me know the words are hitting everyone, tension rising uncomfortably and leaving me posing softly, “So tell me, Kyler, what would you do?”

His brow twitches. “That’s a difficult question to answer.”

“Is it?”

“It’s hypothetical, and the variables are—”

“That’s the point, you’re in control of everything here but your lot in it,” I scoff the truth.

“So would you roll the dice and leave things exactly the way they are?” Answering for him because at this point it’s nothing but for show.

“Because I don’t think so. I think that if your place in the world isn’t so secure, you might be changing a few things even if you won’t say it. ”

His mouth opens for a second before closing, nothing coming out, and his jaw clenches with something flashing over his face that has that sick feeling shooting up the back of my throat.

“The veil of ignorance highlights the fact that people often won’t choose something just because it’s good for the many.

For humanity.” I blink away from him, looking over a few of the other people in the classroom and finding a myriad of reactions there.

“It forces you to apply your own self-interest fairly, because the sad truth is most of the time people have to think they’re getting something out of it in order to actually care.

” Bringing my eyes back to the person across from me, I let my lips lift just a bit while finishing it.

“Kyler would never deny someone’s rights, of course not, but that’s not the same as empowering them, is it?

” I scoff. “That’s why politicians campaign on lowering taxes, and religion, with all its flaws, still calls for the poor to be fed.

” My mind immediately makes the jump. “One is trying to appeal to your ego, and one is calling you to repent.”

I lean in further with my next breath, something I’ve kept tucked away since hearing his voice in the woods suddenly making that knot in my chest twist.

“And to answer the other question, you couldn’t,” I practically hiss.

“Women are for everything—we are creation and therefore can be anything we choose.” The knee against mine suddenly pushes back hard.

“Don’t forget that it was Eve who first dared to question while Adam was content to do nothing but sit.

Maybe if he had, you would know that making decisions that impact society based on your own personal beliefs can lead to a horrible breakdown in moral objectivity.

Rules are meaningless unless you apply them to everyone, and the same goes for human rights—it’s only freedom if you’re willing to grant the same agency to your enemy as you do your friend.

” I somehow manage to get it all out, flat out ignoring the way his face is turning red.

“Or are you saying the rapist is more deserving of bodily autonomy after the fact than his victim ever was to begin with?” Spitting back in it instead. “Is that what your equality is?”

The bell rings.

I gasp. “Happy holidays, Kyler.”

Everyone sits still for a moment more before starting to slowly get up and shuffle around us, the blue eyes across from mine holding for another couple of seconds until Hayes shifts on my right and he looks away.

He stands suddenly and my stomach drops with nerves as he spins around to grab his bag, leaving me tracking him carefully and holding my breath until he passes through the door.

“Fuck,” I blow out, shoulders falling with a tension I didn’t even realize I’d been carrying around and frowning at the way my heart is racing.

“My god,” Lisette breathes out, making me glance her way to find delight filling every inch of her face. “I am so happy I decided to take debate again.” She claps her hands, making me shift uncomfortably. “That was even better than last year.”

“Thanks,” I snort, finally turning my head to meet the pair of hazel eyes waiting for me on the other side and seeing the way he looks torn between spanking me and wrapping me in bubble wrap again. “I dealt with it.”

A scoffed laugh leaves him. “Oh, is that what that was?”

“Well.” I shrug. “I’m guessing he won’t be asking if I’m coming to the New Year’s Eve party again.” Because I’m done playing around when it comes to him. “Whatever. I’ll explain it to my dad.”

His eyes leave mine for long enough to roll over the room before he leans in, mouth dropping to my ear and voice lowering with it. “You have about five minutes to make it to your dorm before I spank that blasphemous little ass of yours.”

“Why?” My mouth pops open, brows falling, trying to figure out where I did something to warrant that .

“For making me want to fuck the shit out of you for pinning a target on your back.”

Something low in me clenches at his words, breath leaving me as my chest collapses—

“Miss Fitzroy.” I whip my head around at the sound of Mrs. Long’s voice, standing in panic at the things that were just being said and practically getting whiplash before finding her standing behind my chair now.

“Yes?” I quickly supply, trying not to sound too breathless and attempting to cover my ass automatically. “The thought experiment really is a useful tool for removing personal biases from decisions because it forces people to apply their own self-interests fairly.”

Hayes and Lisette stand as well during my minor meltdown and start to collect their things as she stares at me for a long moment before nodding to herself.

“If you can manage to keep your personal affairs out of my classroom for the remainder of the year”—her gaze drifts to Hayes briefly before coming back to mine—“I’d like to invite you to join my mock trial team next year.”

“Oh.” My eyes flare with surprise washing through me, not hating the idea enough to quickly add, “Yeah–yes, that’d be great.” I nod. “Thank you.”

“Of course.” She gives me a small smile before nodding at the other two. “Have a nice break, you all.”

“Quick! Quick!” Lisette smacks Hayes’s shoulder with the whisper when she turns around. “Write it down, Flynn!”

He jumps a little, looking between us and muttering, “What?”

“We just got to witness the day Ophelia Fitzroy realized she can emasculate assholes for the rest of her life and get paid for it.”

I can’t help but grin at that, reaching down to grab my bag. “And the world wept,” I shoot Hayes a wink while starting to back out of the classroom. “Tick, tock, Dimples. I leave in the morning.”

A little giggle bursts past my lips when his eyes narrow dangerously, and I dash out the door, something about him always able to pull me just over that line of discretion.

I manage to make it to the PO box on the second day back since Bobby is just as prone to needing to pee as anyone else. Finding a letter waiting for me there in the same style as before. The only difference being the message waiting for me on it.

The rules are simple when it’s just us.

For every question you ask, I’ll answer honestly,

But it will be up to you to figure it out.

Enticing enough for you, sweetheart?

And my heart is racing by the time I make it to the end of the message, everything about it telling me this was the right call because he’s already showing me more syntax.

Clearly trying to set himself above me and prove his superiority in some way as well.

Not to mention the possibility of a blanket pass to information.

The last bit throws me, but still…it’s too good of an opportunity to pass up, despite the anxiety I have over how a certain someone is going to react.

So I drop my reply in the mail the next day, dragging Ollie out for Christmas shopping and tossing it in the first drop box we come across.

Game on.

Now tell me. Who am I talking to?