"How'd it go?" Jordan queried as soon as he had got the door for his aunt and cousin. Mrs. Stuart sighed, kicked off her loafers and exited the corridor. She was done for the day. Emily offered her cousin a tired smile and proceeded to take off her shoes.

"It's not looking good." Emily leaned back on the wall to step on her left Christmas sock. She did the same to her right.

"As long as there's no evidence nothing should happen to you." Jordan locked the door with a key and placed it on a hook next to the door. Emily wriggled her moist feet on the cold surface beneath her.

"What evidence?"

"Just anything that ties you to the case."

"I didn't kill him." Emily's tone hiked. She sighed and gathered her shoes from the floor and began walking to her room. To her, everyone was as frustrating as the other.

"Well okay, but I'm just saying what if, you know?" Emily took bigger strides up the steps. "That is why we need to eliminate that possibility, before it's too late."

"I'm okay Jordan, thanks." Emily stood by the door of her room and pursed her lips. "I just want to be alone right now if you don't mind."

"I'm trying to help you." Jordan insisted. Emily stared back at his unwavering look. There was no fear nor pity in his eyes, only strange determination.

"And how exactly are you going to help?" Emily walked away from the door. Jordan followed and perched on the side of her bed. From the pockets of his jeans, he retrieved a small, clear plastic bag with two circular pills.

"What the hell Jordan?" Emily exclaimed. "I'm not messing with that kind of stuff, again."

"Again?" Jordan frowned and peeled the ziplock. He grabbed a yellow novel from Emily's headstand and used the back of his phone to grind the pills to powder. "It'll help you remember, anything. I'll be here with you so I can assure you that nothing's going to happen." Emily bit her lip in contemplation.

"No." Jordan looked up at her statement. "I'm not doing it, get out of my room."

"It's worth the shot, right?"

"Jordan I said no."

"C'mon Em." Jordan proceeded to plead with his cousin. "I'll do it with you then."

"Don't you have asthma or something?" Emily ransacked her closet for a comfy wear to bed.

"What about it?"

"What if it goes terribly wrong?"

"It won't."

"Jordan, you can barely breathe on a full roll of weed."

"But I do, don't I?" Jordan walked over to Emily's desk. "It's just the mind playing tricks on me." He separated the white powder into two unequal sections and sighed. "I've researched and it hits hard and fast so you have to lie down." Jordan bent and took a struggling sniff on the shorter pile of white dust. Emily watched, her teeth busy digging tunnels through her cheeks.

Jordan stood up straight, squared his shoulders and pinched his nose. He then opened the sound recorder app on his phone and placed it on her night stand. "Anytime now." He voiced prompting Emily to do the same. Emily took in a deep inhale through her nose and exhaled through her mouth.

"Fuck it."

 
***

Jordan laid on his back on a sheet next to the bed while Emily took the bed. A boring movie played idly on Emily's laptop at full volume. Emily tried to follow through the characters' dialogues in vain.

"What's supposed to happen?" Emily queried after a short while. Jordan took a whole minute to respond.

"Just think about it I guess, try to remember." Jordan sat up abruptly. "Do you see that?"

"What?"

"A butterfly." Jordan got up and walked to a corner of the room. He made a motion of the insect perching on the back of his hand.

"There's no butterfly." Emily sank back on her bed. Blocking out Jordan's protests, she took another deep breath before shutting her eyes.

Try to remember.

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