It was supposed to be just another wild Fourth of July night. You had all been drinking down by the beach—Barry, Helen, Julie, Ray, and you. You all sat around the bonfire and retold that same creepy fisherman story. Barry was being cocky, louder than usual, already a little too drunk, but no one cared. It was summer.
Barry kissed Helen hungrily before stumbling toward the car. “Nobody drives my car but me, you got that, shit smear?” he slurred, tossing the keys at Ray anyway. “Clear?” Ray sighed. “Get in the car.”
Barry collapsed into the backseat next to you and Helen, reeking of beer as Ray drove down the winding coastal road. “Jesus, you can’t drive for shit, you know that?” Barry spat at Ray.
Helen laughed, leaning against Barry and kissing him, while you sat beside them, feeling like a third wheel. Barry pulled away. “All right, what the hell is this crap?” he sneered, switching the music to something louder. Then, without warning, he stood up, popping out of the sunroof—arms raised, beer bottle in hand. “Ha ha! WOOOO!!”
You and Helen both grabbed at his legs. “Barry, sit down! What the hell?!”
In the chaos, the beer slipped from his hand, spilling all over Ray and Julie up front.“What’s wrong with you?!” Ray snapped, wiping his shirt.
“Watch out!” Barry suddenly screamed.
BAM. The car smashed into something hard. The vehicle jerked violently before screeching to a stop.
“What was that?” Helen gasped.
“I don’t know,” Ray said, heart racing “Everybody okay?”
“Maybe it was an animal?”
Barry fell back into the car. Helen stared at the blood on his shirt and face. “You’re bleeding?!”
Barry looked down, panicked. “It’s not mine… it must’ve been a dog or something… Jesus Christ—my fucking car!” He got out and walked to the front. The hood was wrecked. “You fuck! Can’t you see where you’re going?” he snapped at Ray.
“It came out of nowhere! I didn’t see it!” Ray shouted.
“It was an accident! Leave him alone!” Julie pleaded.
“A dog couldn’t have done that…” Julie said, staring at the front of the car.
“Little fucking deer could,” Barry snapped back.
“Then where is it?” you asked, breathless. “If it was a deer—where’d it go?”
“Maybe it ran off” Ray said quickly.
“I hope so. I hope we didn’t kill it,” Julie muttered, less certain.
Something was lying in the road. You stepped toward it, heart pounding. “Guys!” you called, panic rising in your voice as you stared down at the body.
“Oh my God…” Ray muttered, running to your side.
Julie started to cry. “No… no way.”
Helen let out a breathless, terrified laugh. “This isn’t happening.”
“Shit… fuck,” Barry muttered, spinning away and pacing. “Who is he?”
“I can’t tell,” you said. “His face is all messed up.”
“What the hell was he doing out here?” Ray asked.
Julie’s voice cracked. “We’ve gotta call the police. Get an ambulance.”
“Hey—hey, what’s your hurry? Guy’s dead,” Barry said, grabbing Helen’s arm as she tried to head back to the car.
“You’re not a doctor, you don’t make that decision!” Julie shouted.
“Barry, come on,” you said. “What if he’s not? We can’t just leave him here.”
“Use your brain,” Barry snapped. “We call the police, we’re all screwed.”
“It was an accident,” Julie said, her voice shaking.
“It’s manslaughter,” Ray said quietly. “We’re all going to fry. No matter who takes the fall.”
You looked at him, heart thudding. “But we didn’t mean to…”
“That doesn’t matter,” he replied, looking right at you.
“Can we just leave?” Barry asked. “Right now?”
“No way,” Ray snapped. “Are you crazy?”
“The grill’s busted,” Ray said. “There’s blood everywhere.”
“We can clean it up,” Barry said.
“You guys are losing it,” Julie muttered. “We’re going to the police.”
“We don’t have time for your shit, Julie!” Barry screamed. “We gotta move fast.”
Julie looked down at the body again. “If there’s some of him on the car… there’s some of the car on him. They’ll trace it back to you. You’re looking at a hit and run.”
Barry was silent for a moment. Then he said it.
“Then we’ll dump the body.”