“So what hurts? I know you don’t want to go to the hospital, but what’s the worst thing you have going on?” I found his blanket on the floor and shook it out before draping it over him.

“Headache. Nut ache. Possibly a dislocated shoulder and a few cracked ribs.” He rolled his hips and hissed with pain.

I felt overwhelmed as I tried to guess what the best course of action was. “I never planned on being a doctor, you know.”

“That’s because I’m your only patient.” He covered his one swollen eye with his hand. “Oh, this is fucking killing me. I think they popped my damn eyeball.” He winced and touched the skin gently.

Taylor peeked in, stepping just past the doorway. “Can I get anything?”

I turned and looked at her. She had swapped to pajamas, but still had on the makeup and fancy hairstyle.

I shrugged and held up my hands.

“Let me get some warm towels, some ice, and some antibacterial cream for starters.” She ducked out to the kitchen.

“Tell her to get me whiskey and a fucking pistol so I can end this shit right now.”

Ah, the self-harm ploy. An old Endgame favorite. How many times did he convince me I was the only thing keeping him alive?

Too many.

The worst time flooded my memory.

I was at a club with Tinsley and Parker when I got the video call from Endgame.

“Don’t answer it.” Tinsley tried to block me from touching my screen to pick up the call.

I brushed her away and stood from the table we had been using as a homebase that night. It was littered with empty cocktail glasses.

I glanced at the screen as it connected. Dark. The screen was dark and having trouble picking up the subject in the video. I saw speckles of stars behind him and had to find a place to hear him. The bathroom sufficed. I picked a stall and closed the door.

“Where are you?” I turned up the volume as I tried to make out his location.

“Gone. Remember? You kicked me out.” He’d turned a bit and I finally made out where he was. The rooftop of our building.

“I told you that you couldn’t deal drugs out of my apartment. That you would've to move a few fucking feet away from the building. I mean, you get that, right? That I don’t want to be kicked out when the landlord starts getting complaints.” The angle Endgame had the camera at was confusing. It almost looked like he was on the opposite side of the safety fence on the roof.