lath4n - Tumblr blog

lath4n · 8 years ago

Text

Shok - September 2017

Not many new additions, but this is the entirety of Shok as it stands in August 2017.

Show

By Lathan Sullivan

Money. Money. Money. It amazed me how money controlled the world. Money was always ripping apart and dismantling my family. My Mom, Michelle, was a bookkeeper for a local electrician, and she made $23,000 a year after taxes. My father worked for a construction company, with horrible hours and even worse pay. My brother Ben, who was 19, worked at a golf course as a groundskeeper. My parents let him keep half of his paycheck, and the other half went to "supporting the family." Ben always talked about wanting to go to college, but his grades were never good enough, and our family couldn't afford it. Our house in Lincoln, Nebraska was suited for a few college students, not a growing family. I was 17, and didn’t have a job. My parents always told me to put school first, and try to earn scholarships for college, instead of focusing my time on a job. Often, I could hear my parents arguing about money through the vents in my room. Every part of my life was affected by my family’s financial issues. We bought off brand food, sometimes from the store that sold expired food for cheap. I wore clothes from goodwill, and if I was lucky, my cousins would send me their old hand me downs. At school, people looked at me as just another poor kid. No one respected me. No girls even came close to acknowledging I even existed. I found myself daydreaming of winning the lottery, and driving fancy cars by them while they stared, mouths wide open.

It was November 6th. I was awoken by Ben climbing out of his bed. Being such a light sleeper, it was a common occurrence. I looked at our small desk we shared, and saw yesterday's Algebra II homework, looking untouched. I sighed, and waited for the sound of Ben turning on the shower. When I heard the water running, I got out of bed, and did a quick workout. I had always been a very skinny kid, and was embarrassed of my body. I did 20 push-ups, in sets of 5. I was breathing heavily when I realized that the house was quiet, and Ben had finished his shower. I grabbed my clothes, my ragged Carolina Panthers shirt and a pair of jeans that didn't look too dirty. I passed Ben in the hallway, and he said "There's no soap left, so have fun cleaning your skinny ass with shampoo!" Followed by a snicker. I ignored him, and took my soap-less shower in peace. After a breakfast of Cheerios (dry, I didn't like milk). I got in Ben's 1999 Oldsmobile Alero, and he drove me to school.

I attended Lincoln North high school. The school was not far from my neighborhood, and was populated by mostly lower income families, and a few extremely rich families, who lived in the elite "Thorns" part of Northern Lincoln.15 or 16 of them in my class of 300, we simply called them "Thornies" when they weren't around, out of jealousy. It was a colder than usual day, and my T-shirt didn't do a very good job of stopping the wind when I walked through the front door. My best friend, Nate, was waiting for me in the commons area. "Panthers eh? Betcha can't even name their quarterback" he said with a smile, approaching me. I didn't have a clue. I had never been a big sports fan. "Whoever it is, I bet he makes better jokes than you!" I said, a little annoyed. Nate had a girlfriend named Megan, and she was standing by him, giving me a glare. Megan's dad was a lawyer, and he taught her that being snobby to everyone was one way to make yourself better than them. Or at least it seemed like it to me. Well she wasn't a Thornie, most people viewed her as one. I didn't even want to deal with her so I said my farewell and headed off to class.

My first class of the day was always Architecture, and while I loved the subject, I hated the people in the class. The love of my life (or so I thought) Katy Rose sat two rows in front of me, and she was all I could think about. Her dark brown hair and eyes, her gorgeous smile, all of it made me go crazy. Today was no different. When I walked in the classroom, Katy was chatting it up with one of the most popular Thornies, Stephen Westwood. He was wearing brand new Christian Louboutin shoes, worn by multiple celebrities. I despised everything about him. His clothes, his perfectly styled hair, his ice white smile, and most of all, his wealth. Katy's perfect laugh was the first thing I heard when I walked in, and a wave of sadness hit me when I sat in my seat. I grabbed my folder from the back, opened it, and started work. The class was on the "Building your dream house" project, and I loved it. "My house" was a modern styled house, with a pool, countless rooms, and even a basketball court. The class flew by, and so did the next, and the next. When the bell sounded to end the school day, I hurried out the main doors, and saw Ben's car in one of the closest parking spots. He drove me home, and I watched TV until my parents both came home.

My parents car pooled to their separate places of work every day, so when their car pulled up, there was no guessing who it was. But something was wrong this time. I heard 6 loud, honks ring out from the car. I looked up from the TV, alarmed. I opened the front door, and my mom was right there. "YOUR DAD, GET SOMEONE. OH MY GOD. CALL 911." She screamed, mixed with sobs. My heart race instantly seemed to increase to 200 beats per minute. I jumped down all 3 steps of my porch, in my socks, almost spraining my ankle. I ran over to the driver's side of my parent's car and saw my dad. He was motionless. A small amount of thick, white, spittle was coming out of the right side of his mouth. My mouth dropped open. I didn't know what to do. I put my hand on his neck, trying to feel for a pulse. I couldn't tell if his heart was beating or not, my hand was trembling too much. I heard my mom crying, now on the phone with the 911 operator. I started pounding on my dad's chest. "PLEASE. DAD! PLEASE" exploded out of my throat. It didn't seem like my own voice. My mom pulled me away from the car, and I started running.

I didn't know why I was running. But I was sprinting, still bawling, tears blurring my vision. I heard my mom call out my name, but I didn't even think of turning back. I ran until I couldn't run anymore. I sprawled out in a random driveway, and my world went dark.

I was numb. It was like someone had turned down my senses, like some setting in my brain had been altered. The bright, synthetic lights and white walls told me that I was in a hospital. Then I realized that I was in a hospital bed. I flew out of bed, a wild look in my eyes. I didn't notice that my mom was in the room. She stood up and grabbed me, and hugged me warmly. She started crying. "Honey, your dad... He didn't make it. It was a stroke. I should've realized it... I'm sorry baby..." She said, with a sniffle. I didn't cry. I didn't feel anything. I already knew that he would be gone. The numbness just increased. I felt like I was in some fantasy world, some white walled planet, and this was just part of a play. I heard the door to the hospital room open, and turned around, startled. It was Ben. His eyes were a deep, crimson red. He didn't even make eye contact with me. He just walked to the corner of the room and sat down, gazing at the floor. "Babies, we will get through this. We are strong." My mom said, without much conviction. "I need to get air" I exclaimed, walking out of the room hurriedly. I heard my mom protest behind me, but the words didn't even register in my brain. I found my way to the outside of the hospital, and sat down on a bench.

I heard my name. I saw a familiar looking car parked in the parking lot, a 2006 blue Honda Civic. It was Nate. He opened his car door to get out, but I ran over to his car. There was a tension between us. "Get in. Let's go." I said, solemnly. "Dude.. I-I-I don't even know what to say." Nate muttered. "Shut the fuck up. Take me to your house." I said, with ice in my voice. Nate started his car, backed out of his parking spot, and drove me home. The drive was silent the entire way. When we got to Nate's house, his parents were waiting in their driveway. Their tears, along with words of condolence bounced off of me. Nothing could change the fact that my father was dead. I made my way to the guest bedroom, and fell asleep. I was awoken by Nate's parents checking up on me multiple times. I heard his mom explaining the situation to my mom. I knew that she couldn't force me to come home.

The next few weeks were the toughest weeks of my life. I went back to my house a few days later. My mother and Ben barely talked. They both got work off, and I didn't go to school. My days were spent drowsing off in bed all day, and eating my meals by myself on the small desk in my room. I didn't want to talk to anyone. People sent me text messages, telling me how sorry they were. My house got phone calls seemingly hundreds of times a day. My aunt came down from Omaha, and took care of my mother, and all of us.

I started back school on November 27th. Ben drove to me to the building, the only audible sound throughout the ride was the car's rattling engine and squeaky brakes. I walked into the building, and the second after the door closed behind me, every single person in the commons stared at me. I hated it. I walked into the boys bathroom, and locked myself in the stall. I didn't feel sad, I felt angry. I punched the stall door 4 times, letting out more and more anger with each blow. My hand was throbbing with pain, but it didn't bother me. The bell rang, and I walked out of the bathroom, hiding my hand in my sweatshirt pocket. When I got to architecture class, it was the same story. Every person, including Katy and Stephen, stared me. I put my head down and waited for the teacher to start class. No longer were we on our dream house project, we were learning how to effectively build a retaining wall around a property. The class was dull, and I barely paid any attention. After the class, I felt someone tap on my shoulder. I turned around, and it was Katy. "Hey, I know we don't really talk much, but I just wanted to tell you how sorry I am for your loss, and if you ever wanted to talk, I would be glad to." She said. She seemed sincere. Being so close to her beautiful self, I couldn't contain my emotions. I started crying, but managed a "thank you" while I walked away briskly. I was so embarrassed. "What girl wants a guy who is poor, dresses badly, and is a cry baby?" I thought to myself. I went back to the same bathroom, and punched the stall door again. My knuckles started to swell, but I didn't care. I hated myself. I hated my life. I walked out of the bathroom, through the commons, and out the front door, slamming the door behind me.

All of the cars in the parking lot should have been empty, but one single car, a blacked out, low riding Nissan 370Z was running. I blew it off as merely a visitor, or maybe a student leaving early for the day, but the car wasn't doing anything. It was just in park, a low, sporty sounding rumble coming from the engine. Meanwhile, I hadn't decided what to do yet. My heart was beating fast, and I almost started to panic when the car suddenly turned off. An attractive, blonde girl got out of the vehicle. She looked to be about my age, or a few years older. She looked at me straight in the eyes, and motioned for me to come to her. I quickly walked over, not knowing what to expect. "Are you Jason?" She asked in a hushed voice. "No…?" I said, very confused. "Oh shit.. Well you better get in the car so we can talk about this." The girl muttered. I walked around to the other side of the car, and thought about running. Being too intrigued to escape, I opened the door, and sat down.

"My name is Savannah. Don't be alarmed, if you're cool, this is all going to work out." She said. I just looked at her, wanting to know what on earth was going on. "I'm new to this school, and I was supposed to meet a dude named Jason here." She explained. "What? ...Are you some sort of drug dealer?" I asked. "Not quite. Let's go for a drive okay? I assume you just skipped school? It'll be best for you anyway." She said. I nodded, and put on my seatbelt.

She drove like a maniac. Her car must have had some sorts of modifications, because it accelerated extremely fast. She was constantly asking me questions on the drive, like it was some sort of test. I told her about my dad, and she said she had read about it in the paper. She must have had a lot of money, because her jewelry and clothes were all top of the line brands. She said that she was 19, the same age as Ben.

The drive was about 15 minutes. We finally parked, in the parking lot of an old printing press building in downtown Lincoln. Faded words were painted on the side of the building, but I couldn't distinguish what they said. There was one other car in the parking lot, a silver Range Rover with tinted windows and rims. Savannah turned her car off. "I don't know why I'm showing you this, kid. But you seem alright, and maybe you could be part of my operation. So just keep your mouth shut, and follow me." She explained. My heart raced. I wondered what she meant by her "operation." I had never done drugs, or had anything to do with them. They were too expensive, and too risky to use in my small house. I got out of the car, and followed her to a small side door at the bottom of the large printing press building. Instead of using a key to open the door, she pressed a small button, which made a ringing noise. Nothing happened at first, but suddenly the door unlocked, with a loud click. She opened the door for me, and we walked in.

The building was completely empty. A few indistinguishable machines sat idle in the corners of the room, with a layer of dust covering them. I could see all the way up to the roof, the building only had the base floor. Savannah, knowing exactly what she was doing, walked to the very opposite side of the room, and sat down next to a typewriter. She hit 4 different numbers, and a portion of the floor slid back, revealing a staircase. I was absolutely appalled. "Cmon!" Savannah said with a grin. "Down to the office." I walked down the stairs, just one set, illuminated by lights planted in the wall. Savannah typed in another four digit code into a keypad at the bottom of the stairs, and I heard the floor slide back into place. At the same time, the door at the bottom of the stairs opened, revealing what seemed to be a large office like area. There was a large desk with multiple chairs, and smaller desks with computers on them. A large storage area was also set aside, lined with unmarked boxes.

"Savannah, who the hell is this?" Said a deep, gruff voice behind me. I turned around, and saw an extremely muscular man, who looked to be about 50 or 60, staring at me. He had tattoos covering his body. He reminded me of bikers that I would see in my neighborhood often. "This is ___, he is cool. That Jason dude you told me about never showed, instead this guy came out. He's cool, don't worry. I thought maybe he could be a partner." Savannah explained, looking a little embarrassed. "You brought a random kid to the center of our operation?! What the hell are you thinking Savannah?" the man said, angrily. He looked at me dead in the eyes, and said "tell me about yourself."

"My name is ___ ___. I am 17 years old. I go to Lincoln North. My father recently passed away. I had a panic attack and walked out of school, and that's when I saw savannah. She thought I was Jason, or whoever, but after she found out that I'm not, she took me here. I won't tell anyone, I swear. I don't know anything about drugs, just let me go. I'm totally chill" I explained, frantically. I thought the man was going to kill me at any second.

"Alright kid." The man said, seemingly satisfied with my monologue. "My name is Chris. You can call me C. Yes, we are involved with drugs. But it's not what you would think. We have 6 employees. Savannah here, is third in command." he said.

"Okay... But what exactly do you do, if it's not what I think?" I asked, intrigued.

"We sell a new type of drug called Shok. It's a pill. We get it from a supplier in Russia, believe it or not. Shok isn't like most normal drugs. It isn't dangerous. It's just a clean, good high. But it's expensive. So our clients aren't average, everyday bums like you, no offense. We .. Uh.. Look for.. Higher income, clients, if you will." C explained.

I was interested. I had never heard of the drug Shok before. Kids at Lincoln north did their share of marijuana, and occasionally harder drugs, but never this.

I still didn't get it. "Why do you have this entire building to sell drugs out of? And six employees? Isn't that overkill?" I asked .

"Not too fast kid. You'll find out eventually. For now, that's all you need to know." C said, sternly. "Fair enough, but why were you at my high school? We are mostly poor kids.. None of us could afford your drug. And who is this Jason person?" I asked. "We have a few people at your school who buy our product in mass volume, and they have the money to do so." C said. "Wait.. So like thornies?!" I exclaimed.

Savannah and C both looked at me like I was an idiot. "Thornies? What the hell are those?!" Savannah asked, laughing.

I was embarrassed. I forgot that outsiders obviously don't know the slang words that the students use.

"Um, thornies, kids who live in thorns, the rich neighborhood by the school? You sell to a few of them?" I said, looking at the ground

"Right kid. Every school has rich kids, and there's always a few rich kids who like drugs. We know most of these kids by name. They take the product and either use it, or sell to other people. It's pretty simple actually." C said.

I was amazed. There was a secret drug trade going on in Lincoln, and at my school, and I was standing in the headquarters. But my look of amazement must have reminded C that he didn't even know me, and that I could still cost him everything if I were go to the cops.

"Well kid, now you know too much. So you're either in, or you're out, if you get my drift.” C said with a chuckle.

I thought he was kidding, but my glance at savannah told me otherwise. "My dad is dead. My family needs money. I'll do whatever you need me to." I burst out.

C looked proud. "Okay. Me and Savannah will talk it over. Savannah, take him back to school. We don't want any attention on him if he's going to be an employee of ours, do we?" C said. "Yes sir. I'll see you later then." Savannah said, respectfully. "Let's go kid." She said to me.

She repeated the same process to exit the "office", enter the code, climb the stairs, and enter another code on the typewriter to close the staircase.

On the drive home, Savannah seemed excited for me. "You probably have a lot of questions, but don't worry. You will get answers. I will be in touch with you. And don't skip school anymore!" She said, with a wink. We pulled up to the front doors of the school. "Wait, _NAME__, have this." Savannah said. She handed me a small stack of money. I had no clue how much it was, but my face light up. "Thank you, I won't let you down." I said. I shut the car door, and she drove off. By this time, I had missed most of my classes. I walked back inside, and went to the central office. I told the principal that I had gone outside, because I was being bullied. Obviously having a soft spot for me after the death of my father, he was fine with it. "Come to me first next time, ___NAME___. Don't just walk outside. Hope things get better." He said, patting me on the back. I went to my last class of the day, English, with a smile on my face. During class I asked to go to the bathroom, and counted how much money Savannah had given me. It was $750. "YES!" I yelled, thinking about how insane and lucky my day had been.

When the final bell rang, and I found Ben's car, I was still all smiles. "Get your first kiss, loser?" Ben said, mockingly. "Sure, go with that." I joked, making sure my money was secure in my pocket. On the drive home, my mind was racing. Who is Jason? Which Thornies buy the drugs from C? Am I actually going to work for them? I was excited, and nervous.

Ben had brought home some macaroni from the clubhouse at the golf course, so we heated that up for dinner. My mom came home late, putting in extra hours. She had dark bags under her eyes, seemingly never disappearing after my father's death. I immediately wanted to give all the money to her, but I couldn't. After doing some homework and watching TV, I went to bed. I felt hopeful for what was to come.

The handle of the knife felt so smooth in my hand, like

polished marble. It’s blade was long and shiny, reflecting the sunlight. I looked up, but there was no sun. I was in a white room, and the only sound was a slow, methodical dripping noise. I looked down. I was covered in blood. I was confused. I wasn’t hurt. But then I noticed, the figure slumped against one of the walls. A trail of dark red blood connected the two of us. I looked in it’s eyes. It was my father. My heart stopped. The dripping got louder, and louder. The knife fell out of my hand, hitting the ground with a clatter. I seemed to have fallen on to the floor. Blood started dripping from the ceiling, right onto my nose. I could smell its metallic scent. My eyes rolled back in my head. Everything went black.

I woke up, my pajamas soaked in sweat. My heart was racing. Nightmares had plagued me since my father died, but nothing like this. Then I felt it, something dripping onto my face. I looked up, and saw a damp spot in the ceiling. Our house was always leaky, and it had been raining earlier in the night. “So much for sleeping” i thought to myself. Ignoring the slowly leaking roof, I got out of bed, and went downstairs, careful not to wake Ben. I crashed on the couch, and as I was about to drift off, my phone buzzed. I almost ignored it, but then I remembered Savannah. I looked at my phone

Tuesday, November 28, 3:07 AM

New text message:

Nate: Megan finally agreed ;) told u bro

I rolled my eyes, putting my phone on the ground in disgust. Not only did I not care about Nate and his girlfriend’s endeavours, it was three in the morning, not time to discuss it. After staring at the ceiling for what seemed like an eternity, I finally fell asleep.

The next few days all passed by, boring and uneventful. I started to think that meeting Savannah and taking the trip to the headquarters had never happened, that it was some silly daydream I had created. The only thing that told me it was real was the money, 750 dollars I was deathly scared to spend. At school, the constant stares turned into glances, and the glances slowly faded. “Everything gets boring, even feeling sorry for people.” Ben told me, when I mentioned it to him. I knew he was right, but I didn’t mind. On that Friday, December 1st, the school was abuzz with talk of a giant party being thrown that night, hosted by none other than Stephen Westwood. His parents were out of town on a business meeting, and he was home alone in his mansion in the Thorns. I never went to any parties, so the thought of attending didn’t spark any interest in me. Nate and I had plans to see a movie with Megan and one of her friends (hopefully less snobbier than her). At lunch, I sat down at my usual lunch table, and waited for Nate. Five minutes passed, then ten, and I was finished with my food and ready to leave when he finally sat down next to me. A wild grin was on his face, and before I could even ask, he blurted out “Dude, Megan and I got invited to the party tonight...we are going to go!” I looked at him blankly. “I hope you’re kidding.” I said disapprovingly. “No man, turns out that Megan’s friend, the one that was going to hang out with us tonight? She knows Stephen and he invited her, and she asked him if we could come too!” he said, excited smile never leaving his face. I was pissed off. Nate and I always talked about how stupid partying was, and made fun of people who bragged about it. But now, when he was invited, he pretended like it was the biggest deal in the world. “Alright dude. Have fun, I guess we can hang out tomorrow or something, if you aren’t too hungover.” I mumbled. The look of disgust on my face must have been pretty obvious, because Nate looked taken aback. “Jealous bro? I bet it sucks to never get invited to stuff, loser.” he said, icily. The look in his eyes had changed to something cold, something I didn’t see a lot. I got up from the table, returned my tray, and went to my next class.

Since the passing of my father, the school made me meet with the counselor, twice every week, towards the end of the day. During my final class of the day, the phone rang in my class, and my teacher looked at me. I got up and walked out of the classroom, without saying a word. The counselor’s office was across the other side of the school, so I had a long walk. Passing through the senior hallway, I heard my name. I turned around, and saw a girl. It was Savannah. She had dyed her hair black, with smoldering purple eye makeup, and dark lipstick. She was wearing a black dress, with gold and black platform shoes. “What the… how did you even get in here?” I asked, bewildered. “Easier than you think, kid. Tell your brother that you don’t need a ride home today from school. I’ll see you in the parking lot at 3:30.” she said with a wink. Before I could reply, she turned around and walked down the hallway. The sound of her expensive shoes hitting the white tile floor echoed against the walls. I kept walking to the counselor's office, feeling dazed. Remembering at the last second, I pulled out my phone and texted Ben, telling him that I was going to ride with Nate. I smiled, and walked into the office. The counselor, Mr. Quigley, was a large, old man, who had the spirit of a kindly old grandfather. He wore wide rimmed glasses, and laughed with his belly. His blackboard was blank, except for a childish drawing of himself with the word “Quiggles”. I sat down, and let the questions begin. I explained that no, I wasn’t depressed, and no, I didn’t have thoughts of hurting myself, or anyone else. That seemed to do the trick, and he started telling me a story about his granddaughter, who was a piano prodigy. Eventually the final bell rang, and I said a fake “thank you”, smiled, and walked out of his office.

Savannah’s Nissan was parked in the back of the parking lot, and techno music was blasting from the speakers, so loud I could hear it halfway to her car. I opened the door, and sat down in the low seat, practically on the ground. “You know, for a criminal, you don’t really do a good job of not trying to get caught.” I said, with a smirk. Her unusual style, her flashy car, and good looks attracted a lot of attention. “You know, for someone who wears those jeans, you sure have a big mouth!” she exclaimed, winking. My face felt like it was turning purple. “Anyway, kid, C and I talked, and tonight is going to be your first job.” Savannah explained. “Okay... what do I need to do?” I asked anxiously. “I assume you are going to Stephen Westwood’s party tonight, and we need you to introduce him and his friends to our product. Think of it as giving free samples.” she said. “Um, I wasn’t invited to his party.” I muttered. “Oh don’t worry kid, you can just show up. But you’re going to have to wear something different than that, obviously.” she giggled. “I have a dress shirt, that I wear for family holidays?” I offered. Savannah grabbed her sunglasses from the console of her car. “Let’s go shopping really quick.” she said, putting them on. She put her car in drive, and zoomed out of the parking lot.

No words were exchanged on the way to our destination. Savannah’s iPhone was plugged into her stereo, and up-tempo dubstep music filled my ears. Her car must have had subwoofers in it, because the whole car shook and vibrated. It was another short, high speed drive, which seemed to be the theme with Savannah. We were at Meyer’s, a department store specializing in luxury clothes. “Savannah, I don’t have money for any clothes, I hope you realize that…” I said. She just smiled at me, and got out of the car. “Stay here kid. What size of shirt and pants do you wear?” she asked. I told her, and she slammed the door, and walked inside. I rolled my eyes. I was starting to develop a little crush on her. I sighed, knowing that nothing would ever come from it. I was too quiet for any girls to like me, my clothes weren’t good enough, and I was broke. I stared out the window, wondering why Savannah even trusted me in the first place. After about twenty minutes, Savannah returned to the car, a large bag in hand. “We’re going to go to my house to get things sorted out before the party.” Savannah said, putting the bag in the back seat and hopping in the car. “You have your own house?” I asked, eyebrow raised. “Yeah, um, I’m comfortable.” she said, with a half smile. She started up the car, and drove away.

Savannah’s house was in South Lincoln, in a wealthy neighborhood that I didn’t recognize. It was a huge, older styled house, landscaped to perfection. She parked her car in the three car garage that was attached to the house. The other two spots were empty. We went inside, and Savannah showed me to a bathroom, where I could change into my new clothes. The shirt was a white v-neck, by a brand I had never heard of before, with a pair of jeans. There was a pair of shoes in the bag too, black high tops with gold trim. After putting the clothes on, I looked in the mirror, and let out a laugh. I looked completely different. Savannah was standing outside the bathroom, with a bottle cologne and hair gel in her hands. “It’s a makeover!” she declared with a giggle. She ran the gel through my hair, styling it up. “You look cute.” she said, while spraying the cologne on me. “Thanks..I guess?” I muttered, trying not to blush. I followed Savannah into her kitchen, which had granite countertops and top of the line appliances. I sat down at the table, which had magazines covering it. “Sorry about the mess, can I get you anything to drink?” Savannah asked, opening her fridge. The fridge was stocked with different types of pressed juice drinks, none which looked appealing to me. Before I had time to reply, her phone rang. She walked out of the room, leaving me by myself. I didn’t understand Savannah. She was 19, had crazy tastes, and seemed to have unlimited money. I wondered what made her get into the drug trade, and why she even did it. There was a lot more I wanted to know about her.

Savannah’s phone call was quick, and she came back into the kitchen within a few minutes. She sat down across from me, and gave me the game plan.

“Okay kid, here’s how tonight is gonna work. You will get to the party right when it starts, so everyone is mostly sober. Get friendly with Stephen and his close friends, then give them the product. After that’s done, leave, and give me a call.” she explained. “Okay, sounds good.” I said confidently. Savannah walked to a cupboard, and came back with a small metal box. She opened it, and it was full of semi-large, oval white pills. “Here’s the stuff. Make sure you don’t mistake it for breath mints.” she said, with her signature wink.

“Oh, and as far as ...compensation goes, how does another 750 sound?” Savannah asked. “That sounds perfect!” I blurted out, breaking into a smile.

“Good. Well we better get going, Thorns is all the way across town.” Savannah said. I grabbed my old clothes, and got in her car. My heart was racing, excited for the night. After a long, dubstep music filled drive, we finally got to Thorns. The houses were enormous, even bigger than Savannah’s. We turned onto a short road, with a cul de sac at the end. The cul de sac was lined with cars, all of them expensive. I saw Megan’s red Infiniti, and knew that her and Nate were already there. “Good luck kid, call me when you’re done.” Savannah said. I got out of the car, and she drove off. I felt a little nervous. I could hear music coming from the house, and people’s voices. My life had taken such a dramatic turn in the last month, it was almost unbelieveable. I would’ve never guessed that I would be at one of the hottest parties in Lincoln, handing out drugs, wearing expensive clothes, just one month ago. I walked up to the front door, and knocked, three times.

It was Stephen himself who answered the door. “Sup.” he said, giving me an approving look. I nodded, and he let me in. His house was beautiful. Straight out of the pages of a home design magazine, everything was done to perfection. The house was open concept, and everything seemed to connect with each other. A table with glasses of different alcoholic beverages was in the kitchen, and that’s where I saw Nate. I started to walk over to him, but I had second thoughts. Something about him in that moment disgusted me. There was an open couch in the living room, and I sat down. There were speakers in the ceilings, so music seemed to come from the entire house. I saw Stephen head downstairs, so I decided to follow him. The stairs were white marble, and they must have cost a fortune. The basement was just as impressive as the top floor, with a movie theatre, fully equipped bar, and mini gym. An Xbox was hooked up to the movie theater, and a few guys were having a tournament, playing a racing game. Stephen sat down on a chair by the pool table, watching a game that was in progress. I knew that this was my chance. I wanted to get this over with. I didn’t feel comfortable at this party, and I was nervous that someone would recognize me. “Hey Stephen, I have something for you.” I said, walking up to him. “Yeah bro, what’s up?” he asked, looking up at me. “I have some samples of a new drug, I think you should try it.” I said, not knowing how to explain myself. “Okay, what kind?” he asked, like it was no big deal. “It’s a new drug, it’s called Shok. It's a pill, and it’s supposed to get you really high.” I explained. “Uhh, alright, I guess I’ll take it.” Stephen declared. I took the container out of my pocket and handed it to him. “Thanks bro.” he said. I nodded, and walked away. My job was done, and I wanted to get out of this house. I walked back up the stairs, and as I was about to leave, I heard my name. I turned around, and was almost in shock. It was Katy, looking absolutely stunning.

“Hey Katy.” I said, trying not to fall apart. “I like your new look! And the hair!” she exclaimed, a bright smile on her face. “Thank you, you look good too.” I murmured, looking at the floor. Her name was called in the background, and she glanced away. “Well, I’ll catch you around.” she said with a smile. She walked away, and my head was spinning. I headed out the front door, and walked away from the house. Savannah was parked down the street, with her usual music playing. I opened the door, and climbed in. “How’d it go?” she asked. “Fine, I guess. I gave him the stuff, and got out of there.” I said. Savannah just nodded, and started driving. I pulled out my phone, and my stomach did a flip.

New text message:

Nate: what the hell is your deal bro? First u bash me for going to stephens party, then u show up? And nice hair and clothes lol, who did you borrow those from? I know ever since ur dad died youve been messed up… but this needs to stop. Btw… youll never get katy lmao. Cya

A sensation of pure rage filled my entire being. Even though Nate was my best friend, I wondered if my friendship with him was even worth it. Savannah seemed to sense the change in my mood. “Are you okay? Is something bothering you?” she asked, turning the music down. “Just drama with my best friend... Don’t worry about it.” I muttered. Out of nowhere, Savannah gently and affectionately grabbed my left hand. “You know, I am here for you, if you ever want to talk. You could give me a call!” she exclaimed, with a grin. I didn’t know what to say. I had not had a girlfriend before, and Savannah’s beautiful, greenish gray eyes looking deep into mine and her soft hand on mine made my entire body shiver. All of my emotions suddenly welled up inside me, and tears started streaming down my face. Savannah, looking genuinely concerned, pulled into a random side street and parked the car.

“Okay seriously, ____, what is going on? This is making me depressed!!” Savannah declared, with a sad look in her eyes. Being an emotional person, I often wanted to share my feelings with people, but never had the opportunity to. Extremely embarrassed, I tried to stop crying as quickly as possible. “Just... a lot of stuff has been going on. I guess I’m just stressed.” I said flatly. “Ugh, well I want you to be happy, and I need you to be happy if we are going to work successfully together. I promise you, I will help improve your life, babe.” Savannah said flirtatiously. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. Did Savannah actually like me? Then it hit me, Savannah was absolutely perfect. I didn’t know it was possible to develop this much of a crush on someone in such a short period of time. “Thank you Savannah, I truly appreciate it.” I said, smiling. She just flashed a grin, another Savannah trademark, started up the car, and we were back on our way.

When we arrived at my house, Savannah pulled out the $750 from a Louis Vuitton bag in the back seat of her car. “Good job tonight, even if you don’t think it was much, it’s a start!” she proclaimed. Before I could respond, she handed me my payment, and kissed me on the cheek. “Thanks.” was all I could respond with. “I’ll be in touch, goodnight ___.” she said, with a wink. I got out of her car, money in hand, and she sped off, music already blasting from her speakers.

I went straight up to my room, another insane night behind me. Ben was already deep into slumber. I changed out of my new exotic clothes, hiding them under my bed. I put my money that I had earned that night with my first $750, also in a small box under my bed. I was a little intrigued that my mom had not called me asking where I was, after all, it was almost 1 A.M. The text from Nate was still on the home screen of my phone. I decided to ignore it. I went and brushed my teeth, and hopped into bed, falling asleep almost instantly.

When I woke up the next morning, Ben was already at work. I walked into the bathroom to start my shower, and smiled. My hair was still holding some of its new style from the night before. After a quick shower, I threw on a pair of old gym shorts and a University of Nebraska football shirt that was way too big for me. I went downstairs, and saw my mom sitting at the kitchen table with a cup of coffee. I knew something fishy was up. “___, we need to have a discussion.” she said, monotonously. “Okay..” I said, taking a seat at the table. “Honey, I really don’t want to ask this of you, but I think you are going to need to look for a job. After your dad passing, I have been struggling to keep things going with just my own money and Ben’s help.” she explained, with a depressed look on her face. I know she probably felt terrible asking me to chip in. “Okay I guess I can look for one, no problem.” I muttered, not with much enthusiasm. “Thank you, do you need me to drive you around to submit some applications?” she asked, ignoring my gloom. “Nah, I’ll apply online or get someone to pick me up.” I said. I got up from the table and walked back up to the bedroom. Laying in my bed, staring at my ceiling, I started to think. In such a short amount of time, I had already made $1,500 dollars from basically doing nothing for Savannah. No job accessible by someone my age could ever pay that much. I decided I would have to fake getting a job somewhere, and use the money earned by working for Savannah to help my family. At the same time, a feeling of anxiety overcame me. What if the business with Savannah didn’t work out? After all, I was no tough drug dealer. And what was the whole Shok thing going to do to my personal life? Nate and I were not on good terms, and my feelings towards Katy were being replaced by my developing crush on Savannah. Just as my thoughts were about to get even deeper, my phone buzzed. It was Savannah.

New text message:

Savannah: hey, you busy today? I thought I would take u to meet the rest of the employees, lol. Let me know!

My heart did a little twirl.

Sounds good, pick me up whenever! :)

I got up excitedly, and rushed downstairs. My mom was still sitting, cup of coffee in hand. “I got someone to pick me up to go job hunting, she will be here soon.” I said. “She? Who is this person?” my mom said with a devilish grin. I rolled my eyes, although it was nice to see my mom smile. “Don’t worry about it.” I muttered, blushing. I hung out on the front porch for about ten minutes. Eventually, I saw Savannah’s car cruising down the street. It looked so out of place, mixed in with the old, low end cars of my neighborhood. I hopped in her car, and the first thing I noticed was her extreme clothing choice for the day. She was wearing a leopard print long sleeve shirt, and black leggings. Three gold Cartier bracelets were dangling from her wrist, and enormous Versace sunglasses almost seemed to cover up her entire face. “Hey dude, ready to go?” she asked, with a smile. “Uh, should I go change?” I asked, suddenly embarrassed at the outfit I was wearing. “Psh, you know I got you covered.” she said with a giggle. She motioned to a suit bag in the back seat of her car, hanging up on the hook. The word “Armani” was emblazoned on it. “Good lord… you-” “Don’t worry about it.” Savannah interrupted, with a wink. The drive to the Shok HQ was not very talkative, with droning electronic music deafening me the whole time. We pulled into the parking lot of the old building. Along with C’s Range Rover, four other cars were in the parking lot. There was a Mercedes SL, an Infiniti coupe, a new Jeep Grand Cherokee, and a BMW 3 series. All of the vehicles were completely blacked out, like Savannah’s. “Okay, let’s do this ____.” Savannah said confidently. I grabbed my new suit, and we walked up to the entrance. “I don’t know if you remember from the first time we came here, but this button is how you enter the HQ. It’s fingerprint activated, so we will have to get you registered into the system.” Savannah explained. “Okay, cool.” I said. Savannah pressed the button, and the door instantly unlocked. We walked in, and she gestured to a large machine in the corner of the room. “You can go get changed over there. I’ll wait here. Don’t be nervous!” she exclaimed, looking hopeful. I nodded, and went to go get changed. The suit fit me perfectly, somehow. There was no tie, so I left the collar unbuttoned. A pair of black dress shoes were included at the bottom of the bag. I tossed my other clothes into the bag, and returned to Savannah. “Awh! You look so professional and stuff!” she blurted with a giggle. I just sighed, and replied with a simple “Thanks.” We walked over to the same typewriter as before, and Savannah entered the four digit code again. “The code for this is 1017, don’t ask me why.” she explained. After she punched it in the floor started sliding back. We went down the stairs, to the next layer of security, the keypad. “This one is 1003 for the code.” she said. I nodded. She typed it in and the ceiling above us slid back into place. The door opened, and I was met with five pairs of eyes, staring at me icily, at the large table in the office. My heart rate skyrocketed.

0 notes

lath4n · 9 years ago

Text

Shok - Original 22 pages

Shok

By Lathan Sullivan

Money. Money. Money. It amazed me how money controlled the world. Money was always ripping apart and dismantling my family. My Mom, Michelle, was a bookkeeper for a local electrician, and she made $23,000 a year after taxes. My father worked for a construction company, with horrible hours and even worse pay. My brother Ben, who was 19, worked at a golf course as a groundskeeper. My parents let him keep half of his paycheck, and the other half went to "supporting the family." Ben always talked about wanting to go to college, but his grades were never good enough, and our family couldn't afford it. Our house in Lincoln, Nebraska was suited for a few college students, not a growing family. I was 17, and worked at a fast food joint. My parents always told me to put school first, so I didn't make enough money to even save it. Often, I could hear my parents arguing about money through the vents in my room. Every part of my life was affected by my family’s financial issues. We bought off brand food, sometimes from the store that sold expired food for cheap. I wore clothes from goodwill, and if I was lucky, my cousins would send me their old hand me downs. At school, people looked at me as just another poor kid. No one respected me. No girls even came close to acknowledging I even existed. I found myself daydreaming of winning the lottery, and driving fancy cars by them while they stole, mouths wide open.

All of the cars in the parking lot should have been empty, but one single car, a blacked out, low riding Nissan 370Z was running. I blew it off as merely a visitor, or maybe a student leaving early for the day, but the car wasn't doing anything. It was just in park, a low, sporty sounding rumble coming from the engine. Meanwhile, I hadn't decided what to do yet. My heart was beating fast, and I almost started to panic when the car suddenly turned off. An attractive, blonde girl got out of the vehicle. She looked to be about my age, or a few years older. She looked at me straight in the eyes, and motioned for me to come to her. I quickly walked over, not knowing what to expect. "Are you Jason?" She asked in a hushed voice. "No.." I said, very confused. "Oh shit.. Well you better get in the car so we can talk about this." The girl muttered. I walked around to the other side of the car, and thought about running. Being too intrigued to escape, I opened the door, and sat down.

"My name is Savannah. Don't be alarmed, if you're cool, this is all going to work out." She said. I just looked at her, wanting to know what on earth was going on. "I'm new to this school, and I was supposed to meet a dude named Jason here." She explained. "what.. Are you some sort of drug dealer?" I asked. "Not quite. Let's go for a drive okay? I assume you just skipped school? It'll be best for you anyway." She said. I nodded, and put on my seatbelt.

She drove like maniac. Her car must have had some sorts of modifications, because it accelerated extremely fast. She was constantly asking me questions on the drive, like it was some sort of test. I told her about my dad, and she said she had read about it in the paper. She must have had a lot of money, because her jewelry and clothes were all top of the line brands. She said that she was 19, the same age as Ben.

The drive was about 15 minutes. We finally parked, in the parking lot of an old printing press building in downtown Lincoln. Faded words were painted on the side of the building, but I couldn't distinguish what they said. Savannah turned her car off. "I don't know why I'm showing you this, kid. But you seem alright, and maybe you could be part of my operation. So just keep your mouth shut, and follow me." She explained. My heart raced. I wondered what she meant by her "operation." I had never done drugs, or had anything to do with them. They were too expensive, and too risky to use in my small house. I got out of the car, and followed her to a small side door at the bottom of the large printing press building. Instead of using a key to open the door, she pressed a small button, which made a ringing noise. Nothing happened at first, but suddenly the door unlocked, with a loud click. She opened the door for me, and we walked in.

"My name is ___ ___. I am 17 years old. I go to Lincoln North. My father recently passed away. I had a panic attack and walked out of school, and that's when I saw savannah. She thought I was Jason, or whoever, but after she found out that I'm not, she took me here. I won't tell anyone, I swear. I don't know anything about drugs, just let me know. I'm totally chill" I explained, frantically. I thought the man was going to kill me at any second.

"Okay... But what exactly do you do, if it's not what I think?" I asked, intrigued.

I was interested. I had never heard of the drug Shok before. Kids at Lincoln north did their share of marijuana, and occasionally harder drugs, but never this.

I still didn't get it. "Why do you have this entire building to sell drugs out of? And six employees? Isn't that overkill?" I asked .

Savannah and C both looked at me like I was an idiot. "Thornies? What the hell are those?!" Savannah asked, laughing.

I was embarrassed. I forgot that outsiders obviously don't know the slang words that the students use.

"Um, thornies, kids who live in thorns, the rich neighborhood by the school? You sell to a few of them?" I said, looking at the ground

"Well kid, now you know too much. So you're either in, or you're out, if you get my drift" c said with a chuckle.

I thought he was kidding, but my glance at savannah told me otherwise. "My dad is dead. My family needs money. I'll do whatever you need me to." I burst out.

C looked proud. "Okay. Me and Savannah will talk it over. Savannah, take him back to school. We don't want any attention on him if he's going to be an employee of ours, do we?" c said. "Yes sir. I'll see you later then." Savannah said, respectfully. "Let's go kid." She said to me.

She repeated the same process to exit the "office", enter the code, climb the stairs, and enter another code on the typewriter to close the staircase.

On the drive home, Savannah seemed excited for me. "You probably have a lot of questions, but don't worry. You will get answers. I will be in touch with you. And don't skip school anymore!" She said, with a wink. We pulled up to the front doors of the school. "Wait, _NAME__, have this." Savannah said. She handed me a small stack of money. I had no clue how much it was, but my face light up. "Thank you, I won't let you down." I said. I shut the car door, and she drove off. By this time, I had missed most of my classes. I walked back inside, and went to the central office. I told the principal that I had gone outside, because I was being bullied. Obviously having a soft spot for me after the death of my father, he was fine with it. "Come to me first next time, ___NAME___. Don't just walk outside. Hope things get better." He said, patting me on the back. I went to my last class of the day, English, with a smile on my face. During class I asked to go to the bathroom, and counted how much money Savannah had given me. It was 750$. "YES!" I yelled, thinking about insane and lucky my day had been.

The handle of the knife felt so smooth in my hand, like

Tuesday, November 28, 3:07 AM

New text message:

Nate: Megan finally agreed ;) told u bro

The next few days all passed by, boring and uneventful. I started to think that meeting Savannah and taking the trip to the headquarters had never happened, that it was some silly daydream I had created. The only thing that told me it was real was the money, 750 dollars I was deathly scared to spend. At school, the constant stares turned into glances, and the glances slowly faded. “Everything gets boring, even feeling sorry for people.” Ben told me, when I mentioned it to him. I knew he was right, but I didn’t mind. On that Friday, December 1st, the school was abuzz with talk of a giant party being thrown that night, hosted by none other than Stephen Westwood. His parents were out of town on a business meeting, and he was home alone in his mansion in the Thorns. I never went to any parties, so the thought of attending didn’t spark any interest in me. Nate and I had plans to see a movie with Megan and one of her friends (hopefully less snobbier than her). At lunch, I sat down at my usual lunch table, and waited for Nate. Five minutes passed, then ten, and I was finished with my food and ready to leave when he finally sat down next to me. A wild grin was on his face, and before I could even ask, he blurted out “Dude, Megan and I got invited to the party tonight.. we are going to go!” I looked at him blankly. “I hope you’re kidding.” I said disapprovingly. “No man, turns out that Megan’s friend that was going to hang out with us tonight? She knows Stephen and he invited her, and she asked him if we could come too!” he said, excited smile never leaving his face. I was pissed off. Nate and I always talked about how stupid partying was, and made fun of people who bragged about it. But now, when he was invited, he pretended like it was the biggest deal in the world. “Alright dude. Have fun, I guess we can hang out tomorrow or something, if you aren’t too hungover.” I mumbled. The look of disgust on my face must have been pretty obvious, because Nate looked taken aback. “Jealous bro? I bet it sucks to never get invited to stuff, loser.” he said, icily. The look in his eyes had changed to something cold, something I didn’t see a lot. I got up from the table, returned my tray, and went to my next class.

Since the passing of my father, the school made me meet with the counselor, twice every week, towards the end of the day. During my final class of the day, the phone rang in my class, and my teacher looked at me. I got up and walked out of the classroom, without saying a word. The counselor’s office was across the other side of the school, so I had a long walk. Passing through the senior hallway, I heard my name. I turned around, and saw a girl. She had dark hair, purple eye makeup, and almost black lipstick. She was wearing a black dress, with gold and black platform shoes. It was Savannah. “What the… how did you even get in here?” I asked, bewildered. “Easier than you think, kid. Tell your brother that you don’t need a ride home today from school. I’ll see you in the parking lot at 3:30.” she said with a wink. Before I could reply, she turned around and walked down the hallway. The sound of her expensive shoes hitting the white tile floor echoed against the walls. I kept walking to the counselor's office, feeling dazed. Remembering at the last second, I pulled out my phone and texted Ben, telling him that I was going to ride with Nate. I smiled, and walked into the office. The counselor, Mr. Quigley, was a large, old man, who had the spirit of a kindly old grandfather. He wore wide rimmed glasses, and laughed with his belly. His blackboard was blank, except for a childish drawing of himself with the word “Quiggles”. I sat down, and let the questions begin. I explained that no, I wasn’t depressed, and no, I didn’t have thoughts of hurting myself, or anyone else. That seemed to do the trick, and he started telling me a story about his granddaughter, who was a piano prodigy. Eventually the final bell rang, and I said a fake “thank you” smiled, and walked out of his office.

Savannah’s Nissan was parked in the back of the parking lot, and techno music was blasting from the speakers, so loud I could hear it halfway to her car. I opened the door, and sat down in the low seat, practically on the ground. “You know, for a criminal, you don’t really do a good job of not trying to get caught.” I said, with a smirk. Her unusual style, her flashy car, and good looks attracted a lot of attention. “You know, for someone who wears those jeans, you sure have a big mouth!” she exclaimed, winking. My face felt like it was turning purple. “Anyway kid, C and I talked, and tonight is going to be your first job.” Savannah explained. “Okay.. what do I need to do?” I asked anxiously. “I assume you are going to Stephen Westwood’s party tonight, and we need you to introduce him and his friends to our product. Think of it as giving free samples.” she said. “Um, I wasn’t invited to his party.” I muttered. “Oh don’t worry kid, you can just show up. But you’re going to have to wear something different than that, obviously.” she said with a giggle. “I have a dress shirt, that I wear for family holidays?” I offered. Savannah grabbed her sunglasses from the console of her car. “Lets go shopping really quick.” she said, putting them on. She put her car in drive, and zoomed out of the parking lot.

No words were exchanged on the way to our destination. Savannah’s iPhone was plugged into her stereo, and up-tempo dubstep music filled my ears. Her car must had subwoofers in it, because the whole car shook and vibrated. It was another short, high speed drive, which seemed to be the theme with Savannah. We were at Meyer’s, a department store specializing in luxury clothes. “Savannah, I don’t have money for any clothes, I hope you realize that…” I said. She just smiled at me, and got out of the car. “Stay here kid. What size of shirt and pants do you wear?” she asked. I told her, and she slammed the door, and walked inside. I rolled my eyes. I was starting to develop a little crush on her. I sighed, knowing that nothing would ever come from it. I was too quiet for any girls to like me, my clothes weren’t good enough, and I was broke. I stared out the window, wondering why Savannah even trusted me in the first place. After about twenty minutes, Savannah returned to the car, a large bag in hand. “We’re going to go to my house, to get things sorted out before the party.” Savannah said, putting the bag in the back seat and hopping in the car. “You have your own house?” I asked, eyebrow raised. “Yeah, um, I’m comfortable.” she said, with a half smile. She started up the car, and drove away.

Savannah’s phone call was quick, and she came back into the kitchen within a few minutes. She sat down across from me, and gave me the game plan. “Okay kid, here’s how tonight is gonna work. You will get to the party right when it starts, so everyone is mostly sober. Get friendly with Stephen and his close friends, then give them the product. After that’s done, leave, and give me a call.” she explained. “Okay, sounds good.” I said, confidently. Savannah walked to a cupboard, and came back with a small metal box. She opened it, and it was full of small, circular white pills. “Here’s the stuff. Make sure you don’t mistake it for breath mints.” she said, with her signature wink. “Oh, and as far as .. compensation goes, how does another 750 sound?” Savannah asked. “That sounds perfect!” I blurted out, breaking into a smile. “Good. Well we better get going, Thorns is all the way across town.” Savannah said. I grabbed my old clothes, and got in her car. My heart was racing, excited for the night. After a long, dubstep music filled drive, we finally got to Thorns. The houses were enormous, even bigger than Savannah’s. We turned into a short road, with a cul de sac at the end. The cul de sac was lined with cars, all of them expensive. I saw Megan’s red Infiniti, and knew that her and Nate were already there. “Good luck kid, call me when you’re done.” Savannah said. I got out of the car, and she drove off. I felt a little nervous. I could hear music coming from the house, and people’s voices. My life had taken such a dramatic turn in the last month, it was almost unbelieveable. I would’ve never guessed that I would be at one of the hottest parties in Lincoln, handing out drugs, wearing expensive clothes, just one month ago. I walked up to the front door, and knocked, three times.

It was Stephen himself who answered the door. “Sup.” he said, giving me an approving look. I nodded, and he let me in. His house was beautiful. It looked straight out of a home design magazine, with everything done to perfection. The house was open concept, and everything seemed to connect with each other. A table with glasses of different alcoholic beverages was in the kitchen, and that’s where I saw Nate. I started to walk over to him, but I had second thoughts. Something about him in that moment disgusted me. There was an open couch in the living room, and I sat down. There were speakers in the ceilings, so music seemed to come from the entire house. I saw Stephen head downstairs, so I decided to follow him. The stairs were white marble, and they must have cost a fortune. The basement was just as impressive as the top floor, with a movie theatre, fully equipped bar, and mini gym. An Xbox was hooked up to the movie theater, and a few guys were having a tournament, playing a racing game. Stephen sat down on a chair by the pool table, watching a game that was in progress. I knew that this was my chance. I wanted to get this over with. I didn’t feel comfortable at this party, and I was nervous that someone would recognize me. “Hey Stephen, I have something for you.” I said, walking up to him. “Yeah bro, what’s up?” he asked, looking up at me. “I have some samples of a new drug, I think you should try it.” I said, not knowing how to explain myself. “Okay, what kind?” he asked, like it was no big deal. “It’s a new drug, it’s called Shok. Its a pill, and it’s supposed to get you really high.” I explained. “Uhh, alright, I guess I’ll take it.” Stephen declared. I took the container out of my pocket, and handed it to him. “Thanks bro.” he said. I nodded, and walked away. My job was done, and I wanted to get out of his house. I walked back up the stairs, and as I was about to leave, I heard my name. I turned around, and was almost in shock. It was Katy, looking absolutely stunning.

“Hey Katy.” I said, trying not to fall apart. “I like your new look! And the hair!” she exclaimed, a bright smile on her face. “Thank you, you look good too.” I murmured, looking at the floor. Her name was called in the background, and she glanced away. “Well, I’ll catch you around.” she said, with a smile. She walked away, and my head was spinning. I headed out the front door, and walked away from the house. Savannah was parked down the street, with her usual music playing. I opened the door, and climbed in. “How’d it go?” she asked, “Fine, I guess. I gave him the stuff, and got out of there.” I said. Savannah just nodded, and started driving away. I pulled out my phone, and my stomach did a flip.

0 notes