Four Corners

The four of them sat in a lopsided square of chairs. The rest of the chairs were stacked in a corner of the classroom, and the tables were pushed to one side. Sally avoided eye contact, frequently fiddling with a corner of her skirt. John tapped a pencil on his knee, looking at the floor, sighing every once in a while. Rose looked at the door, wishing it wasn't locked. Thomas couldn't stop staring at the gun sitting on the nearest table.

"Should we draw straws?" John began, his words slushing through the thick silence like slick boots in a swamp.

"Do we even have any straws?" Sally spat, narrowing her eyes.

Thomas' eyes finally shifted to the circle. "We could flip a coin. Or play rock, paper, scissors."

Rose bit her lip, not removing her eyes from the exit. "I don't think we should decide this by chance." She blurted out the words as she dragged a foot from the back legs of her chair to the front.

"Then how should we decide?" Thomas glanced at her.

"By who's oldest." Rose glanced between them.

"What? No. Then It'll be me." John said with wide eyes.

"You sure?" Sally asked.

"I'm 38. You?"

Sally huffed. "A woman never reveals her age."

Thomas rolled his eyes. "Look, we have to decide tonight. I say we should do it by who has the least to lose."

John cleared his throat. "I have a wife, three kids, a house, and a dog."

"I have a classroom full of children and a very important trip next month." Sally shifted in her chair, crossing one knee over the other and adjusting her skirt.

"I just have my daughter and my credit card debt." Thomas swallowed, running a head through his hair. "We don't even have health insurance." Then Rose realized how worn his overalls looked in the moonlight in the windows.

The three of them glanced at Rose, who had receded farther from the square with each beat. Sally coughed, giving Rose a pointed look. "I have a new job." Rose mumbled, her eyes not rising from the bottom of her sockets.

"Oh, well, we don't have to decide by that." John said.

"Right." Sally replied, chewing her lip.

Thomas just watched Rose, his eyes narrowing. They weren't any closer to deciding, except him. It would be so much easier just to shoot her. She didn't have as much to lose as the rest of them. He could just imagine it.

~~

Picking up the gun, Thomas looked her in the eye. He looked passed the gray in her eyes, to  the chilling fear behind her pupils. Thomas would make her feel better. He would wipe away her dread. She wouldn't even feel it. Just click off the safety, pull the trigger, and hold the gun as the blast kicked him back.

What would they find on her when it was said and done? Would they even hesitate, or would they flee out the door? What would be in her wallet? Did she have any family? A brother, or parents who disowned her?

~~

Thomas stood up and picked up  the gun. It felt cold in his hands.