Gabriel (Continued) (Book 2)

Keep Off The Grass

win. Knowing that they will never be as popular as us."

I smile and kiss her even though I had nothing to do with nominating them. I

wanted them to disappear, not be on the radar. But whatever made Erika happy.

Strangely I felt happy too- so happy, and so satisfied.

Gabriel and Johanna were gone again so as soon as I got home from practice I

went and took a shower. The water was scalding hot as it ran over my face and

chest and it turned my skin red.

I got out of the shower and stood in front of the mirror and looked at myself. A

towel was wrapped around my waist and drops of water still clung to my perfect

body. But where there was perfect there was also unperfect. Perfect body but

fucked up mind and soul. Perfect body with patches of unperfect peeking through.

I was covered in bruises and bite marks that seemed suddenly so permanent. I was

damaged-and I was beyond repair. On the counter rested the packet of blow I had

bought earlier and a rolled up twenty. I tilted my sister's make up mirror so

that it was lying flat and then cut a couple lines of coke. I leaned towards

them and snorted the lines, instantly feeling invincible.

"Drew!" Nikola was pounding on the door, "I need to pee!"

Ugh, why can't she go use Gabriel and Johanna's bathroom? I opened up the door

and shouldered past her.

"Put some clothes on," she groaned before closing the bathroom door. I ignored

her snide remarks and stormed into my room. I put on a pair of boxers, a pair of

jeans, a button up shirt and my football jacket. I was the image of wholesome

high school boy- perfect.

"Hey, I'm going out," I said to Nikola as I reached the bottom of the stairs.

She stared at me in confusion, her head tilting to the side and then an

expression of pure horror on her face.

"What?" I whispered.

She stood up from the couch and slowly walked close to me as if I was a wild

animal.

"What?!" I asked again.

She was about two feet away from me. She reached up her shaking right hand and

touched under her nose. I brought my hand up to my nose and when I pulled it

away, my fingers were covered in deep red blood.

Shit! I wiped the blood away with the back of my hand. Of course I would get a

bloody nose from the coke now!

"Drew," she whispered.

"Leave it, Nikola," I commanded and then stepped towards the door.

Her arm bolted out and she stepped in front of me, "Don't tell me to 'leave it'.

Drew, this is serious-"

"No, Nikola, its not."

"Yes," she hissed, "It is. Are you doing drugs? Cocaine?" I went to open my

mouth, "Oh my God, you are, aren't you? Drew-" I turned and started towards the

back door. If I couldn't leave through the front door I was definitely leaving

through the back.

But Nikola beat me too it- granted, I wasn't running there.

"Drew, no! We have to talk about this. You can't be doing drugs! Just stay here,

with me. We don't need to go out to a party tonight, we can stay home and talk."

"But its pot day! And Gabriel and Johanna are away!"

"Yeah, POT day. Not cocaine day," she mutters.

"Look, I'm fine, okay? No harm no foul-"

"How long have you been doing drugs?" She snaps.

"Fuck off!" I storm off back to the front door.

"Drew-"

"Nikola, get out of the fucking way now!"

"But I care about you-"

"Fuck you," I growl before yanking her aside and locking myself in my car. I

drove away before she could even get halfway to me. I wanted her to leave me

alone. I wanted everyone to leave me alone! It was all getting to be too much-

my head felt like it was goona explode! As soon as I got to the party, I pulled

Erika into a corner and held her. Being this close to her was the only way I

could feel better- the only way that I could feel like things were truly going

to be okay.

"Shh," she whispers, "everything's fine. Its all going to be okay. Just forget-

and relax. It will all be over soon."

-Drew