Triggering: Grave Isolation (Story)

[sassygurlone]

Just can't wait to see what comes next!

[GoneBeyondRepair]

i havent had time to read much of this, but from what ive been able to read, this is very very good! i like it

[Total Light Storm]

I can't wait for Chapter 20 either!
I would love to know if Gina's diary is being used by the police as some sort of evidence or if it will be used in the future.

[Boxy]

Chapter 20:
Sparks are flying everywhere, lighting up all of our faces as we twirl lit sparklers in the dark of night. Dinner was fantastic; Zesty-grilled chicken, mashed potatoes, and corn on the cob - also grilled. I haven’t had food so good since my dad’s cooking.

“David! Don’t you have any big ones?” yells Lea, searching through the box of fireworks. “I know you do, don’t pretend you aren’t a pyro anymore!”

David laughs and goes inside, coming back with several two-foot tall tubes. “Big enough?” he says with a dimpled grin. He sets them up in the drive way and lights the fuzes one by one. “Everyone step back,” he warns.

Fiery, colored blasts fill the sky. Some sparkle, some crackle, some shoot straight up and simply glow. We’re sitting on a blanket spread out on the lawn. Suddenly, a dozen shoot out at once making loud booms and whistles. I jump at the noise and David holds my hand. “Now that’s what I’m talking about!” Lea yells through the monstrous sounds above.

I stare at the glittering sky and sigh with satisfaction. Sometimes it startles me that through all the pain, life goes on, but it does, it always does, and this right here; this amazing night filled with friends and laughter, proves it - I think.

I slowly stand up. Dropping David’s hand, I go inside. I walk down the hallway and make my way to the bathroom. There’s a mirror hanging above the sink. A troubled face stares back at me. Eyes dark with circles underneath to match, cheeks lacking color, and messy, stringy hair. I look like a drug addict jonesing for my next hit while having not slept in a week. I guess Brekenstone really took a toll on me. I turn the rusty knob and let cold water fall into the sink. I cup my hands and splash my face with it’s bitterness. Refreshing.

I walk back through the narrow walls and see Lea rummaging through the kitchen cabinets pulling out assorted shot glasses. I look at all the glasses she’s pulled out. One has seashells on it, another has a dragon with big eyes and sharp fangs, and one has a white Playboy bunny. Finally, she pulls out one more. “Born Drunk” is written across it. She pours a shot of Jose into the Playboy and Born Drunk glasses. We clink them together, not saying a word, and let it flow down our throats. I take the handle from her and fill all the tiny glasses. I grab two and head outside with them, passing the seashell one to Shelly. Lea emerges behind me and passes the dragon shot glass to David.

“To a night I wanna remember forever,” announces David.

“To a night we probably wont remember,” mocks Lea just before we knock ‘em back.

Half a bottle later we’ve moved into the living room. Shelly is pretty drunk and slurring her words a little. Lea walks perfectly across the room and turns on David’s stereo, cranking it all the way up. She pulls Shelly to her feet and jumps around dancing and laughing around the room with her. Suddenly, Shelly looks sick. She brings her hand to her mouth and lets out the worlds loudest burp.

“Phew! That felt good!” She exclaims. We all burst into laughter. Lea sits down, while Shelly continues to dance around the room. I get up, grab her hands, and spin in circles with her. We start out slow, but the alcohol makes us want everything to go faster. We spin and spin and spin, just smiling at each other. We’re going so fast our hands slip and we fall backwards. I open my eyes to find I’ve fallen to the floor, on my back and Shelly into the recliner.

Lea is gone. “Where’d she go?” I ask, looking at David. He shrugs. The three of us in the room take three more shots back to back.

I decide, for some reason, that whatever Lea is doing must be interesting. I go to find her. She’s in the back room talking on the telephone. “Thanks, man. See you soon,” she says before hanging up. She looks over at me. “Wanna go on an adventure?”

“Uh, I don’t know. What kind of adventure?”

She unlocks the window and pushes it open. “You coming or not?”

“Yeah, just give me a second.” I jog down the hall, through the living room, and into the kitchen. I grab the Schnapps from the freezer and break the seal. I find an empty water bottle on the counter and fill it with the peach alcohol. “Be back in a few guys,” I say to David and Shelly, rushing past them again. “I’m going on a mission!”

I rush back to the room and see Lea climbing out the window. I shut the door behind me and lock it. Adventure time. We walk around to the front of the apartment and head toward the road. I pass her the bottle. “What’s this?”

“Don’t ask, just drink. It’s an adventure, remember?” I reply. She takes a sip and puckers her lips. “So what’re we doin’?”

A dark green pickup truck pulls over. “Come on,” she says, handing the bottle back to me. She climbs in and hugs a pink-haired girl with an eyebrow ring. I step up into the truck, and take a seat.

“I haven’t seen you in forever, girl! How you been?”

“Oh, you know, same old thing. What’ve you been up to? I like the hair.”

“Thanks!” the girl says back. “Hey,” she says looks at me. “I’m Ace.”

“Alli,” I say back.

“All right, enough introductions! Lets get this show on the road!” Lea declares.

“You got it.” The engines revs as we speed down the road, gliding around sharp curves. “Where’s dude at anyway?”

“He said we can meet him at the tracks. But hold on, stop over here,” Lea says pointing at a small convenience store. The truck rolls to a stop and Lea pulls a wad of cash out of her pocket. “Could you get me a box, Ace?” She hands her some money and the girl hops out and into the store. She returns with a box of Green Game dutches. We pull out and get back on the road.

We roll to a stop at a set of deserted train tracks and Ace turns off the head lights. A young Puerto Rican looking boy appears outside the driver’s window. “How you ladies doin’ tonight?”

“Hey Roger, how’s it goin’?” Lea answers.

“All good, girl.” He reaches over Ace and passes Lea a bag of bud.

“Thanks man,” she passes him two twenties.

“I’ll see you gals later?”

“You know it. I’ll be hittin’ you up. Thanks again.”

Ace puts the truck in reverse and we turn around.

[Total Light Storm]

Oh yea!!! This just keeps getting better and better!!

[GoneBeyondRepair]

lloooveeeeiiinngggg thiiisss!!!!!

[Imagine849]

Wow! I just sat and read the whole thing at once, can't wait for the next chapter

[sassygurlone]

This definately needs to be published as a teen/young adult novel.

[Boxy]

Thanks for all the positive feedback guys =]

This chapter took me quite a while to finish.
I just started working on the next chapter earlier today. I hope I can keep it going

Chapter 21:
Smoke swirls above our heads as the humidity keeps us engulfed in pure THC. I inhale deeply with a freshly rolled blunt between my lips. I haven’t done this in ages. Puff, puff, pass. I pass it to Ace.

“Hey, gimmie a shotgun,” says Lea.

Ace takes a hit then turns the blunt around, putting the lit end in her mouth. She leans in close to Lea and blows smoke out the other end as Lea inhales. She pulls back after a moment then leans towards me blowing me a shotgun, too. She hits it again before passing it in rotation. We’re sitting in a gazebo at a park not far from the tracks. It’s dark but I can still see the graffiti covering the cold, cobblestone walls. I sip from the bottle and offer it to Ace. She declines, and Lea snatches it up and takes a few gulps.

“So what you been doin’ with your life, girl?”

“Oh, you know me, just causing hell.” Lea lets out an evil laugh.

“Yeah, I know, right. I been trying to cause a little less of it lately.”

“Why? Your mom been on your case or something?”

“No, not exactly.” Ace smiles, “I’m pregnant.” I suddenly feel kinda bad that I offered it to her.

“What? No fuckin’ way, dude! Congratulations! Who’s the lucky man?”

“You remember Jamie Laurence?”

“Cute kid, red hair, tattoos?”

“That’s the one. I’m moving in with him next week, he’s got his own place in The Heights.”

“Damn. I’m so happy for you!” Lea leans over and gives Ace a tight hug.
Another puff. Another drink. My head is floating on clouds. I pass the bottle and hop out of the gazebo, sliding down onto the grass. The stars are twinkling above, magnetically pulling me into them.

“Oh, come on, man. I’m fine.” Jayson opens another beer. This will be his fifteenth one tonight.

“But you still need to drive me home,” I protest.

“Fine! Let’s go now, since you wanna leave so fucking bad!” He chugs his beer and slams the empty bottle down on a table. He lunges towards me and grabs my arm, pulling me towards the door.

“Ow! You’re hurting me! I’m sorry, okay? I was just sayin’.”

“Just saying what? Huh? Just saying you don’t want me to have any damn fun.”

“No, it’s not that. Just never mind.” I sigh and plop down on the couch.

“Move the fuck over. God damn.” He pops the top on another beer and sits next to me. He puts his hand on my thigh and grips me uncomfortably tight. He touches his sweaty forehead to mine. I can smell the alcohol on his breath as he breathes down the side of my neck. My eyes burn. I try to pull back a little which only makes him grab me tighter. He pulls hard on my neck, forcing me closer to his lips. He roughly kisses me. My face. My neck. My collar bone. His hand wanders up my shirt and I jump back. “What the fuck?”

“I uh. Uh.” All I can think to say is that I’m thirteen and I don’t know why I thought I could make it with a nineteen year old. I can’t say that though.

“You fuckin’ tease! You bitch!” He’s furious.

I slowly move to the door. “Maybe you should just take me home. I uh, I don’t feel so good.”

“Oh, hell no. You aren’t going anywhere.” There’s a devilish look in his eyes. I open the door and run down the sidewalk. He throws his half full beer bottle out the door at me and I hear it clash on ground behind me. “You slut!” I keep running.

I don’t stop until I reach the nearest gas station. I go inside and beg the foreign man behind the counter to let me use his phone. He finally gives in. I can’t call my parents, they’d be so mad at me. I call Erin. She hears the tears in my voice and says she’ll be here as soon as she can.

Lea leans over me and pokes my nose. “Hello Miss Graves. All aboard the party express!” She takes my hand and pulls me up. We climb into the truck and light up some cigarettes. Back to David’s we go.

When we get there Lea asks Ace if she wants to come inside and join us, but she has to get home because she has to work tomorrow. We crawl back in through the window and Lea chugs what’s left in the bottle as she tries to concentrate on rolling another blunt. I have to pee. I unlock the door and get to the bathroom. All this drinking is making me feel like my bladder is going to pop. When I go to wash my hands I look in the mirror, but I don’t see myself. I see my mom’s face. Dad always said I looked exactly like her.

“Lets go, slow poke!” Lea pounds on the door.

“What took you guys so long?” David looks annoyed.

“Had to make a pit stop,” Lea answers, lighting the blunt.

David brings the bottle of Schnapps to the table and pours some shots. Shelly takes hers right away and pours another one. One blunt and six shots later we are all wasted. Everything is blurry, my body tingles, and my mind reels. David and Lea and Shelly are playing some card game I’ve never heard of. I think they’re so drunk they’re probably just making it up as they go along, but I don’t know, I’m too fucked up to pay enough attention. I’m next to David with my head resting on his shoulder, his arm around me. I drift in and out of consciousness.

[GoneBeyondRepair]

this is soooo good! i cant wait for more!

[Total Light Storm]

Ooooo, wow!!!