Chasing Nikki: April 2012

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Chasing Nikki
Voted
Top 100 Best Book of the Year
by Amazon!

By Lacey Weatherford

Moonstruck Media - Arizona

Chapter One

I took a deep drag from the joint before passing it to the girl next to me. She clasped it easily, lifting it to slip between her plump lips. I watched her inhale deeply before I looked away, turning back to concentrate on the fire dancing in the dirt ring before me. My eyes wouldn’t adjust though, and it kept swimming in and out of focus.

Man, I’m cross-faded already, I thought. Then again it would probably be more surprising if I weren’t, considering how much I’d been partying lately. If I were being totally honest, my days were starting to run into one another. My life was definitely not what it had been before ... everything, but I didn’t want to think about that.

I reached for the bottle of beer sitting on the ground and lifted it, taking a heavy swig. I didn’t even notice the bitter taste of it anymore. I was feeling numb, and that’s exactly the way I wanted it.

“Hey, Chase.” The girl leaning against me nuzzled the underside of my jawline, placing a little kiss there as she traced a finger down my chest. “Wanna get out of here and go someplace we can be alone?”

“Maybe later … um ….” I chuckled as I pushed her away slightly with my elbow.

“What’s so funny?” She stuck her bottom lip out in a pout as she stared at me.

“The fact I can’t remember your name,” I replied bluntly.

“You’re a jerk!” she said, shoving me hard and getting up to walk away.

I caught myself before I fell to the side. “Yes, I am!” I shouted at her retreating figure, and I tossed back another long swallow of my beer. I did feel sort of sorry. I really should remember her name, seeing as we’d been dating for weeks now.

I glanced over to where my friend, Connor, was making out with his girlfriend. It was funny, but I could remember his name just fine. I gave another chuckle and leaned against the large rock behind me, closing my eyes. I must not be blitzed enough yet.

Someone shook me, and I woke with a start, not realizing I had fallen asleep. For a moment, I was unsure where I was.

“Hey, buddy. Where’s your keys?” Connor’s voice broke into my hazy thoughts.

“Keys?” I questioned, confused.

“Yeah. You’re too drunk to drive, and my mom is threatening to send my dad out looking for me if I’m not home in the next thirty minutes.”

“Not cool.”

“Yep. Party’s over, bro.”

I grabbed my beer and slowly got to my feet, while Connor hollered over his shoulder for the two girls to get into the truck.

He turned toward me, narrowing his eyes a bit before letting out a laugh. “Feeling a little unsteady there?”

“Maybe,” I replied with a grin.

My friend offered me an arm, and I leaned heavily against him for support as we made our way to the vehicle. I briefly handed my drink to one of the girls in the truck so I could reach into my pocket to drag out the keys and hand them to Connor.

He helped me inside and closed the door before going around to the driver’s side.

“Be careful with my truck. It’s my baby,” I joked as we started off down the bumpy road.

“It’s in better hands than yours right now,” Connor ribbed back.

“I thought I was your baby,” the girl beside me said, squeezing my thigh with her fingers.

“Really? Hmm. Wonder where you got that idea?” I replied as I lifted the bottle to my lips.

She sucked in a hurt breath and pulled her hand away, but I just couldn’t bring myself to care.

“You’ll never make it home in time,” the other girl whined as we left the desert road and turned onto the highway. “We’re at least twenty minutes away from town still.”

“Yeah? Watch me.” Connor laughed, hitting the gas heavily. The engine revved loudly, and the truck shot off down the road, causing the scenery to flash by in the blur of the headlights.

I closed my eyes, fighting the nausea the motion caused. All of a sudden I felt sick. Clenching my teeth, I gripped the door handle, trying to calm my stomach. I wrestled with the overwhelming sensation, trying to control it for several minutes before finally giving up.

“Dude, pull over.”

“I can’t,” Connor replied. “My mom will kill me if I’m late.”

“I’m gonna throw up, man. Pull over!”

Connor let out a stream of cuss words and hit the brakes so hard I felt like I was going pitch right through the windshield.

“What the hell?” I yelled, as I braced myself against the dashboard and turned to look at him.

That was when I noticed the red and blue lights flashing behind the truck, and the sound of a short clicking siren filled the air. I glanced down at the container of beer I had tucked between my legs and started laughing.

Yep, I thought, dragging a shaky hand through my short dark hair as the truck came to a complete stop. Tonight is about to get fun.

I opened my door and puked.