A Slip of the Hand

Chapter 12

I follow Mickie and Daniel to a small balcony off of the hookah lounge and sit sideways on the solitary lounge chair.

"Beautiful night, innit," Mickie declares in his strong British accent as he gestures to the valley. He lights the joint and takes a long hit, holding in the smoke until it forces itself out with a loud cough.

Mickie passes the joint to me next. "Here," he says, the smoke still leaking out with his breath and dissipating into the dry night air.

I take what I think is a small drag, but I'm so wrong; my throat and lungs are on fire, and I can't even hold it in for a second before I cough it out. Saliva floods my mouth, and I have an overwhelming desire to spit. I force myself to swallow it down and pass the joint to Daniel as I continue to cough and sputter.

"Alright, love?" Mickie asks with a chuckle.

"I haven't smoked much before," I admit with a nervous laugh, which is punctuated by additional coughs.

Daniel sits down beside me, sharing the long seat. "Just sort of kiss the end and gently suck," he explains. My heart jumps as he puts my hand to his lips to demonstrate the technique. "Then inhale the smoke that fills your mouth instead of just inhaling from the joint."

He takes a hit, and I try to pay careful attention to his method, but I'm a little distracted by the curve of his lips and the fluttering in my chest. He passes the joint back for me to try, but I wave it off to Mickie.

"I wanna watch again," I say.

Mickie passes it to me when he's done, and I think I get it now—especially after Daniel's demonstration. I try it, and it works better, but the smoke still feels a lot harsher than the hookah earlier.

The joint continues around a few times, but Daniel takes it when Mickie tries to pass it back to me again. "You should pause there if you're not used to smoking."

"Shit, no more for you, love!" Mickie laughs.

Mickie and Daniel continue to pass the joint as I stare up at the dark sky. I wish I could see even a single star.

"I miss them," I muse absently.

"The stars?" Daniel asks, reading my thoughts.

"Yeah..."

My body feels like I'm in perfect homeostasis. I could stay like this all night, just staring at the sky. I feel like I'm floating above it all—above the city—up here on this balcony.

"I'm gonna catch Cameron before he leaves. I'll see you lot inside," Mickie says, his voice abruptly calling me back down to my seat.

"Bye, Mickie," I say with a wide grin that never leaves my face.

My thoughts spin around and around as I stare off into the sky, and I suddenly realize that Daniel can't hear them—that we've been sitting in a strangely comfortable silence.

"Wow. I think I'm high," I share.

"That's what happens when you smoke weed," Daniel chuckles.

I barely think about my words before they pour out in a slow cadence: "It always ends up like this, huh?"

"Like what?"

"The two of us. Hanging out."

"But we've only ever hung out twice," he laughs.

"I was pretty bummed when I didn't see your Jeep out front," I say, still stating whatever comes to mind. My filters are non-existent now.

"I got dropped off. Why were you bummed?"

"Oh, because I thought it might be nice to see you again." I feel a powerful urge to lean against him, but I root myself before I do. "I think I feel like I can let my guard down around you," I say after a long pause, breaking the silence around us once more. I've never had this much trouble keeping my words in before, and it'd be alarming if I didn't feel so relaxed.

"You should never let your guard down," Daniel taunts with a grin that fills his entire perfect face, and then he jabs me in the arm in quick succession.

I shriek and grab his hand before I poke him in the ribs.

Daniel jumps and grabs my hand reflexively. "Oh, it's on now!" He frees his other hand from my grasp and uses it to tickle my sides.

"No!" I squeal, laughing and struggling to fight back. "Mercy! Mercy!"

"Okay, mercy," he grins, and releases me.

"Sucker!" I go to pinch his thigh, but I'm not quite fast enough. He smashes my hand into his leg before I can dig in.

"I gave you mercy!"

I flash him a doe-eyed gaze, and he stares back with those intense caramel pools. Instantly, I'm caught in their gravity, unable to look away.

I notice the weight of his hand on mine, the sturdiness of his thigh below. My senses hyper-focus, and I swear I can feel the adrenaline-filled blood flowing through every little capillary of my body. The texture of his denim delights my fingertips as I caress his thigh. He releases my hand, and it feels like it's on autopilot as it creeps up his leg, a strange hunger growing within me.

Daniel takes a deep breath. "I'm gonna head back inside."

I nod silently, my stomach plummeting. My hand slides off of him as he stands.