Just as you take my hand, Just as you write my number down, just as the drinks arrive, just as they play your favorite song. . .
"You know Kris, I think Radiohead might be the greatest band...*inhale*...ever..."
"Ha, yeah . . . *inhale* . . . don't I know it. They always make me feel better on shitty days. Just like . . . *inhale* . . . this . . ."
Finally, some calm in my hectic life. Nothing like weed and Radiohead to calm the mind. This almost perfect week had turned out to be a lie, just like everything else. I just needed to get away. So Lynne and I decided to drive away and be alone.
. . . Before the night owl, before the animal noises, closed circuit cameras, before you're comatose . . .
Like I said, my week was seemingly perfect. I brought in some kick-ass grades, my mom and I were finally getting along, and I was graduating soon...everything I worked hard for finally seemed to be coming together. But all of this didn't seem important after I was stabbed in the back by the person I least expected.
My best friend Ariel and her boyfriend of a year and a half had gotten into a huge argument that resulted in their breakup. It left her distraught, and I knew I had to console her somehow. Not one for drugs to remedy her sadness, I thought I'd treat her to a Girl's Day at the nearest outlet instead. That way, we could talk about her upsetting situation with Rob. There was a lot more shopping than talking, and I never found out what the basis of the argument was, and I knew I needed to know so I could help her. If Rob needed an ass kicking, I needed to know. Call it nosy. I don't care.
Later on, I spoke to Rob about it. He seemed reluctant to talk to me, but I assured him that it was okay, and that I wasn't going to curse him out. I didn't even have a reason to. I just wanted to know what the hell was going on with him and my best friend. Again, he seemed reluctant about sharing information with me. I didn't think it'd be that bad, so I told him not to beat around the bush. But the next words out of his mouth made me so sick to my stomach, that I seriously considered vomiting my lunch onto the ground.
For the past few months, my
best friend
had been fucking around with my current, well, not so current boyfriend, Carter, behind my back.
Carter and I had been going out for longer than Ariel and Rob. We met at the beginning of junior year at a football game. He was tall (about 6'2") and pretty built, had very short blonde hair and the brightest blue eyes of anyone I had ever met. He was very arrogant, yet I loved it. I couldn't help myself. "Bad boys" turned me on. We really didn't click at first, but over time we grew to like each other. I had never been as intimate with a guy until I was with Carter. He had even been the one to take my virginity. Everything felt so right with him. I never really thought he would leave me, and I never had a reason to leave him. I always thought I was more than enough woman for him, but I guess I was wrong.
How Rob found out, I don't know, but I knew that there was hell to pay. Rob wanted to find Carter and destroy him and, frankly, I wanted to as well. I wanted to drop that motherfucker while at the same time ripping each and every single strand of hair from Ariel's body. I wanted her to feel pain like no other. I was
so pissed.
From then on, I had a rain cloud over my head. I felt so shitty about myself. I became extremely antisocial; I barely talked to my friends and family. I called in sick to work just to sulk in my room with my music drowning out my thoughts. I smoked like a forest on fire. Anything to keep me thinking about what had happened. I didn't even do anything to resolve the situation, except break up with Carter through Facebook. It was tacky, but he deserved it.
Word spread about my break up with Carter and why (probably due to Rob and his friends). All I got was pity from people, and it did nothing to lighten my mood. Ariel actually had the audacity to come up to me to talk about it. That got me even more upset. Not wanting to cause too much of a scene, I told her to back off and not speak to me again. Thankfully, she got the message immediately.
Carter was braver. He tried coming over to my house while I was out so he could ambush me in front of my mom and stepdad (they loved him). Unfortunately for him, his plan backfired. I had already told my parents (I'm not an idiot) and they threatened to unleash hell's fury on him if he didn't leave our property. That was actually pretty funny, I must admit.
My somber mood was making everyone miserable. Finally, Lynne, my next door neighbor, wouldn't allow me to sit in my room and sulk any longer. So, there we were, by the beach, smoking a bowl, listening to the soulful sound of Thom Yorke's voice as it slowly massages our minds. Truly relaxing.
. . . Jigsaw falling into place, There is nothing to explain, Regard each other as you pass, She looks back, you look back, Not just once, not just twice . . .
"So...what now Kristi? Have you planned on getting sweet revenge on the mother fuckers who hurt you?"
"Honestly, I don't fucking know anymore. I hadn't really thought about it. I mean, I just want to walk away from all of this crap. I don't even wanna think about it. Can we just not talk about it?"
"Alright . . ."
"Hey, let's go somewhere else. I don't feel like staying in this same spot all night. You know that really big meadow over by Eisenhower Park? I wouldn't mind lying down over by there. Star gazing . . ."
"Woah, wait, not that one over by that really big abandoned manor, right?"
"Yes, what's the prob-"
"No, Kris, no! Are you high?!"
"Haha . . . yea . . ."
"Oh, well, so am I, but that's beside the point. You do realize that manor is haunted? Like ghosts and demons and such? I don't know about you, but I don't feel comfortable going there."
"Ghosts and demons? Are you fucking serious?"
"Hell yes I am! Connor and Jake were telling me about it. Some little girl was attacked by her dad or something."
"I cannot believe you listened to those idiots."
"They aren't idiots, Kris. And I asked my aunt about it. She said the same thing they did."
"Jesus, Lynne…"
"We aren't going. I am not driving us there."
I should have taken my car,
I thought. "Fine. I'll walk."
"No, you can't do that, Kris, it's too far away. And I'm not comfortable with you going there either...by yourself, no less. Geez, let's just stay here. What's wrong with the beach?"
I sighed heavily and hopped out of the car with iPod, somewhat frustrated. I was tired of arguing with people. I decided I'd just walk a couple miles and lay down for a few hours in meadow listening to music. I just needed more time to myself anyways.
***
"You've been eyeing me all night. You expecting something?"
He looked her up and down and looked away. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"Oh, I see. Well, d'you wanna dance cutie?"
He took a sip from his drink and set it down on the bar. "No."
"C'mon. You know you wanna." She let out a small drunken giggle.
She watched him and waited for an answer while he downed the rest of this drink and got down from the bar. "I'm leaving now. If you'd like to join me, you'd better hurry up." He walked away from the bar towards the exit. Drunk blondie grabbed her purse and hurried after him.
"Your place or mine?" she said with another drunken giggle.
"Yours."
"Okay. We'll take my car."
They arrived at her apartment and sat down on her couch. He pulled her close and started kissing and nibbling her neck. "Should we take this to my bedroom?" she whispered, loving the feeling of his warm mouth on her neck and his hands all over her body.
He continued to suckle the skin above her collarbone. His hands held onto her sides as he began to slide her shirt up towards her breasts. She started breathing heavily as his hand squeezed her breast gently over her lacy black bra, his thumb grazing over her sensitive nipple. His mouth moved higher up over her neck as his fangs elongated. He sank his teeth deep into her jugular and a wave of mind numbing pleasure rippled through her body. She didn't know what he was doing, but she loved the deep throbbing in her core. He continued to drink deeply from her and she let out a loud strangled moan and blacked out as her quickly approaching orgasm ripped through her body.
He licked over the bite marks in her neck and laid her gently on the couch. His fangs retracted as he straightened his clothes and ran his fingers through his hair. He left the apartment inconspicuously and ran off into the night…
***
Having more time to myself seemed to be exactly what I needed.
Why did everything bad have to happen at once? Was this karma? Was God upset with me because I made poor choices? Was this a sign telling me that I shouldn't have trusted those assholes? I just didn't get it. And nothing frustrated me more than not understanding.
I knew that eventually, things would get better. I'd get over the fact that my best friend (who was a whore to begin with) fucked my ex-boyfriend. I'd get over the fact that I would probably never breathe a word to her anymore. I was sort of okay with it. But that didn't stop the hurt from consuming my thoughts. I even thought about hooking up with Rob, but that was far too tacky for me, and I didn't feel like stooping to her level.
But then, I started feeling dowdy. Ariel was so desirable. Every guy wanted to hook up with her, and most did. She was a little taller than me, with a clear tanned complexion. Her dark brown hair was about shoulder length, and she had beautiful bright green eyes. She was pretty okay in the chest department (a B cup, maybe?), but lacked greatly in the ass department. Yet guys seemed to flock to her like ducks to bread.
I, on the other hand, am 5'4" with a milk chocolate complexion. I'm a C cup with a sizable ass, thick thighs and toned calves from working out occasionally. My hair is straight, black, and falls down below my shoulders. I guess I could be considered cute, but not smoking hot. Not "Ariel" hot. The only thing I lack in is confidence. I also have some pretty bad habits, like smoking weed and cigarettes and having an occasional drink. No wonder why my boyfriend cheated on me with her. He probably had his sights set on her from the beginning. Wow. Being used to get to your best friend. I never really understood what that felt like until just then. I started getting angry again.
"I need . . . fuck . . ." I checked my pockets for my cigarettes, but I didn't feel them or my phone. I realized I probably left them in Lynne's car. When I thought about her, I started to feel bad about the way I acted. I shouldn't have been so short with her. Damn, I'm such a bitch.
I should go apologize to her tomorrow.
I thought about what she said about the manor being haunted. I never believed in any of that crap. All those shows about ghost whisperers and real haunted houses seemed silly to me. It didn't seem possible and made no sense whatsoever.
I bet if someone fixed that old house up, it'd be quite nice
, I thought. It was a large, three-story, off-white (due to its dirtiness) 1840s Victorian styled manor big enough for a family of five or six, or possibly two small families. The large wraparound porch was made of rotting wood and the windows were so caked in dust and mold that no one would be able to see through them - not like they wanted to anyways. The meadow was essentially the backyard of the manor and was large and surrounded by trees. There was a dirt path opposite of the back porch that led to Eisenhower State Park, which was where I came in from. There was also a single large oak tree in the backyard with a long rope attached to one of the branches, most likely for a tire swing or something. The front yard had a U-shaped driveway with another tree (cherry blossom?) in the middle. From there, the driveway led to a large iron gate which was on a street across from more large houses. If someone made it into a restoration project, it would be a beautiful place to live.
I sighed heavily again and tried to guess the time. "It's probably really late. I need to get out of here soon before mom and Sir Douchebag call the cops on my dumb ass."
While struggling to get my fatigued body off the ground, I heard a rustle in the trees about 30 feet away from me. A shock of fear flowed through me, but it didn't last long. I waited a moment just in case there was another rustle. None came.
God, I'm so far gone, hearin' shit.
It was probably just some nocturnal animal or the wind or something. I walked towards to path back to the park, ready to head home and face the music, when I heard it.
