He's floored, utterly speechless for what seems like a long time as he tries to process. That stings--who would say something like that about him?

...Peter. He caught the little flicker of October's eyes towards the man.

"That's... not true. Peter didn't know we knew each other... and spoke out of turn. Just a inconvenient misunderstanding." Surely there's nothing more to the lie.

He stands up from the chair, touching the back of his neck in an old nervous habit. "I have a lot of questions, October. Why don't we get some fresh air?"