Nita was silent. She’d never thought too much about the casual considerations that went into everyday encounters. Now that she was, she found she didn’t like the picture Fabricio was painting.

“So you see, Nita, to some extent, all our interactions are manipulations of some sort or another. We’re all playing a part, and how we deal with people is a trick to show them what part we want them to think we’re playing.”

Nita’s eyes narrowed at that. “Is that so? Well, I see what part you’re playing with Kovit.”

“Do you? Because if you really did, I don’t think you’d be so angry.” Fabricio smiled slightly and set down his maté. “Speaking of, I imagine you want to follow him now. It’s about the right time for you to play the good friend. That’s your role, isn’t it?” He rose and went to the couch Kovit had vacated, pulling one of the blankets draped over the top onto his shoulders. “And it’s about time for me to go to bed. I still have some drugs to get out of my system.”

“Please.” Nita rose. “Those wore off hours ago.”

He curled up on the couch. “So you say, but I doubt you’ve ever experienced being drugged. Not fully. The moment you can think clearly, you can heal it. I, unfortunately, can’t.” He closed his eyes and rolled away from her. “Good night, Nita. Kovit is waiting.”

She hesitated, wanting to say more. But she didn’t know what to say or how to counter his arguments. She didn’t even know that she disagreed with him, she just felt like she should say something.

But why do you want to say something? Do you just want Fabricio to be wrong because he’s Fabricio? asked a small voice in her head.

No, Nita responded, then hesitated. Maybe.

She looked at Fabricio’s back, his body curled away from her. He’d pulled himself into the fetal position even though it clearly wasn’t the most comfortable position on the couch, and she wondered, not for the first time, what his life had been like before she met him. Because the more she spoke to Fabricio, the more she saw the cracks in him, saw that he was just as broken as she and Kovit, maybe even more so. He just knew how to hide it better.

She turned away. She could ponder Fabricio and his warped manipulative mind later. For now, he was right—it was time to go see Kovit.

Nita walked to the door and tapped softly on it. “Kovit? Can I come in?”

“Sure.”

She opened the door, slipped inside, and closed it behind her. This was a private conversation. She didn’t need Fabricio eavesdropping and figuring out how to manipulate them even better.