Lighter

n i n e

i'm such an animal and baby,
honestly these teeth won't let you g o . . .

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There aren't many places in the world that make me feel safe. Being a walking nervous disorder means that I tend to feel the most secure in my own home, and that's about it. Although inside Tommy's Buick is also the only other spot where nothing bad could happen to me, in my eyes. With my best friend next to me and a thick cloud of smoke surrounding us, I was practically on top of the world.

I handed the joint back over to Tommy after I took my hit, holding my breath for a couple seconds and then exhaling long and slow. The burn in my chest spread until it washed over my entire body as we finished off the rest of Tommy's stash. He brought some home from school just for the two of us to smoke over his fall break and that's just what we did.

It was only a four-day weekend for him and Kurt, but that didn't deter him from making plans. He invited our usual group of friends over to his empty house for something to do on a Saturday night. Before everyone was set to arrive, he whisked me out to his car, following the departure of his mother and younger sister who were doing dinner and a movie. Knowing them, that was just code word for "getting out of the house and away from Tommy's wild friends", and they probably wouldn't be back for hours. Not that Mrs. Cage doesn't like us – she loves me like a second daughter, to be honest – she just isn't too fond of being around all of us for too long. We could get rowdy fast, and I can't really blame her for wanting to avoid it.

"I wish I had more," Tommy whined.

"We say that every time," I chuckled, lolling my head over to look at him. "It was just enough to take the edge off, which is fine."

"You're right," he said as he nodded slowly in agreement. He pulled his navy blue beanie a little further down, tufts of mahogany curls sprouting out from underneath the hat. As a typical boy who never got his hair cut as often as he should, he complained about it too much. I always liked the color and the curly aspect to it, but that's just me.

"It's too bad Chey has to work tonight," I mused.

The words came out of my mouth as soon as my other half crossed my mind. I wasn't thinking of saying anything, but then again, prying into Cheyenne and Tommy's non-existent relationship is one of my hobbies. Especially ever since they slept together in his bed and woke up cuddling, just weeks ago. Nothing much has happened in their world since then, but that doesn't mean something couldn't happen ever again.

Tommy's eyes widened a fraction. He recovered with a slumping of his shoulders and a careless sigh. "I know. But she said she might come after," he explained to me, his tone too indifferent for the matter at hand. This was Cheyenne we were talking about here – the girl of his dreams.

"Oh?" I raised my eyebrows at this news. All she told me was that she had to work late tonight with the possibility of her sleeping at my place when she got done, even if I wasn't home.

What the fuck is going on between them?

"Y-yeah. I don't know. She said she'll see," he quickly added in. I just hummed for a response and watched him with narrowed eyes. He didn't glance back over at me. About half a minute passed by of him fiddling with his car keys until he huffed, "Guess we should head inside. They'll be here soon."

"M'kay," I mumbled. I shoved open the door and stepped out of the car, the chilly October evening breeze hitting my bare arms instantly. It wasn't bothersome though, and that could've been due to me being a little high. Then again, tank tops and jeans are typically a good combination during the fall in our area, since the season mainly consists of warm days and cool nights.