[ She’s right. Jesse’s stomach twists unpleasantly at the thought, but he doesn’t try to deflect the blame, letting it settle over him instead. Like most disastrous situations, there had been several factors in things going straight to hell. Having only played a small part doesn’t mean being any less responsible for the outcome.

What he doesn’t— or can’t— deflect is the quicksilver sting of irritation as she shrugs his concerns off again. Instead of insisting she sit down, or instead of trying to get through to her again, Jesse watches Chloe stand with a deeply-etched frown on his face. Later, he’ll puzzle over that last bit. The part about dying. Later, when he’s in a better position for making bad decisions. ]

If you’re really gonna keep takin’ his word over the word of people who actually care about you, then I don’t know what else to say.