Like Hurricanes

9. Is it fast enough so we can fly away?

 ''And then?''

''And then we stole the car.''

''What? Oh my god! Pit, did you hear that?'' Dario shook my shoulder. ''They stole a car. These bastards stole a fucking car!''

I nodded my head and hummed. Diego and Stiff were telling a story, about them being reckless and all. As always, they were just bragging about their adventurous lives in Milan. That's all they had been doing for the last few weeks. Just bragging and talking and ignoring me. And of course, conquering everybody's heart. Even this little pool party was thrown in order to gain my friends' sympathy. Thank God at least Virginia didn't like them. Well, she didn't really hang out with us anymore.

''Why?'' I asked.

''Huh?''

''Why did you steal it?''

Stiff snorted. ''Because!''

To him, the answer was obvious, so I didn't even try to argue. The water in the pool was freezing and it was 2 a.m. and I was too drunk to care about anything.

Diego smirked. ''What, you aren't impressed? Oh, I know what would impress you, angel boy. If we made cookies for our grandma, you'd be amazed, wouldn't you? You'd squeal with excitement.''

''Yeah,'' Stiff puffed, ''this fucking guy.''

I ignored them. I hated how everyone seemed enchanted by their arrogance. Clarissa and Gloria were literally glued to them. Diego had his eyes for Gaia though, so they both flirted with Stiff.

Clarissa was a short blonde girl with brown eyes, too naive to notice if someone was making fun of her. But she was cute, so no one dared to mock her lack of intelligence. At least, not in front of her. She was the first girl I'd ever slept with and at the time I was afraid of breaking her heart. But I'd soon found out she fell in love with every boy she hung out with. So it was nothing serious.

Gloria, her best friend, was one of those average girls, not pretty but not ugly either. She had dyed red hair and big blue eyes that she liked to squint whenever she made fun of someone. She wanted to be like Gaia, loved and hated at the same time. But everyone just hated her.

''Can someone get me a fucking cigarette?'' she grumbled, glancing at Clarissa and Stiff who were passionately making out.

''There aren't any,'' Gaia said, ''I've already checked.''

Her elbows were leaned on the external surface of the pool, her large T-shirt now completely wet. Diego looked at her, in a way that filled me with rage.

''I have an idea,'' he said, and glanced at his uncle's Jeep parked in front of the house. ''Who's up for a midnight ride?''

I snickered. ''Pff, you can't even drive.''

''Of course I can.''

''No, not according to the law.''

''Who cares about the law?''

I narrowed my eyes. ''You're seventeen, you obviously don't have a license and you're completely drunk. Forgive me if I don't feel like putting my life at risk and get in the same car as you.''

Diego smirked. ''No one said you have to. We can always leave you here.''

I sarcastically imitated his smile. This son of a bitch. He thought he was such a rebel it wasn't even funny. And yes, maybe I was acting a little too paranoid. I wasn't acting 'cool', like I was supposed to. But losing my life or wasting months in a hospital didn't sound 'cool' either.

''I'm in,'' Gaia said.

Everyone nodded and got out of the water. Our clothes were spread all around the pool. Gaia didn't even care about finding her jeans or shoes. She just put on her extra large hoodie and grabbed a bottle of peach vodka. I guess that's all she needed.

I followed the others and dressed up. After five minutes, we were all ready. As the girls hopped in the back seat, I wondered if I was actually going to do this. I thought that maybe it wasn't too late to turn around and let the car leave without me. To be honest, I was scared. I didn't trust Diego. Not even a little bit. I didn't like him as a person and I was sure I wouldn't like him as a driver. A drunk and stoned driver.

''Come on, Pit! Get in!'' Dario patted me on the shoulder and slightly pushed me inside the car. He was laughing. He was happy and ecstatic and I didn't want to ruin that. I didn't want to let him down. So I got inside the car, I clicked the seat belt latch and I hoped I wasn't going to die.

Sitting in the front seat, I kept my eyes on Diego. At first I was anxious, but then I realized there was nothing to worry about. He manoeuvred the car as if it belonged to him. He accelerated and I turned on the radio, setting the volume on maximum. As we heard the first note of the catchy pop song, we all started singing along. We were off-key, but we were too drunk to care. Then another song started playing and suddenly everyone fell silent. There was something about this song. It was difficult to describe, but it reminded me of things I had never lived and people I had never met. It was Pieces by Andrew Belle.

As we rode through the car tunnel we rolled down the windows, letting the wind hit our faces. The speed was now at 120 km/h. The streets were almost desert, with a few cars flying by. We didn't look at the traffic lights, their rules didn't affect us. We just kept going, faster and faster. The lights flashed in front of us, turning into blurry shades of fluorescence. There was something magical about being awake in a sleeping city.

As Gaia finished drinking her peach vodka, she stuck her head out of the window, letting me contemplate her beauty from the side view mirror. Oh, she was fascinating. Autumn wind blew right into her face and through her silky brown hair that she clutched behind her ear.

I wondered what she felt in that moment. I wondered if she felt alive. If the adrenaline was rushing through her body, taking control of it. If she got that feeling of sharp, tingling goosebumps that now seemed to devour me. I wondered if she was happy. I wondered if she was having fun. If this quiet and peaceful city was enough for her rebellious soul. If her heart was craving for new adventures, if it craved for anything at all. She had been to so many different places and she had met so many different people, I wondered if there was anything that could amaze her. Something that could take her breath away.

She closed her eyes, breathing in the fresh night air. She was toxic and electrifying. Magnetic and poisonous. She was my heroin, and I was dying for another dose.