Author's Notes

Sorry it's taken so long to get this chapter up. I had to reformat my computer, and in the recent move I made, I had trouble finding my Word Processor re-installation disc. You know how it is. I'd also like to state that ist is not my job to protect you, and that I have done the best job I can do by rating this fic M. It has been my understanding that this rating roughly translates to "not for the faint of heart" and I meant it. If you don't like it, don't read it. I warned you with the rating from one of the earliest chapter. Also note that I haven't been able to get online at my house, and I'm currently at a friend's house, who's not always home, so updates will most likely be erratic. Also note that while typing this, I am in a hurry and on a keyboard I'm not used to, yes they're different. So, if there are more mistakes than usual, I apologize.

Disclaimer: I do not own the South Of Nowhere characters. They belong to Tom Lynch.

In The Sun

Chapter 9

By Persephone's Nautical Nun

- Spencer -

I don't know how many joints I smoked while waiting for Ashley to come back. I didn't think it really mattered how much I smoked. The more I smoked, the more at ease I became with the entire situation. Sure, it sucked that she was out there doing things to Dallas, but there was definitely a reason, and there wasn't any point in me making a fuss over something she probably regretted doing anyway. The pot seemed to put things into persepctive for me.

The relationship between Kelly and Ashley had been growing clearer to me, lately. They had this weird love / hate thing going on. It's hard to explain really, and more of something you just have to accept as the way things are. Ashley always tried to do the right thing, and kelly always pulled her back, and I think that's what drew the two together. Kelly liked the idea of keeping some one close to her, and Ashley liked the idea of being close to some one. That seemed to be all there was to it.

Where do I fit in? I suppose I'm the happy medium of the two. I'm the good girl, desparately trying to break out of the shell that every one has put me in. I'm the girl that's drawn to the girl underneath all of Ashley's insecurities. I'm the girl that Ashley tries to protect, but I seem to take more care of her than she ever does with me. She doesn't know this, though, and I'm okay with keeping it that way. I think I give her a sense of purpose.

Ashley finally comes home, locking the door behind her, and as she approaches, I can tell she's been crying. I was right. She regretted anything that transpired between Dallas and her. There are a few things I want to know, but I'm definitely not upset.

"Kelly, go get your diploma," she instructs before sitting down next to me, reaching underneath the sole of her shoe, and pulling out a small, plastic bag about two inches high, filled with white powder.

I take this time to ask te few questions still in my mind. "Why did you have to do it? Why not Kelly?"

She lets out a shuddering sigh. My tone held no accusations, so I can tell this is alla bout how she feels about the whole situation, and she seems to feel pretty damn bad. "Two reasons. One, I didn't have any money to put in. Two, Dallas likes me more," she answered, not meeting my eyes.

I nodded. The answer made perfect sense to me. Who wouldn't pick Ashley over Kelly? While Ashley tended to think they were exactly the same, Ashley had a better sense of humanity than Kelly did. Let's face it. Who wouldn't choose a human over a zombie?

"What is that?" I asked, pointing to the tiny bag on the coffee table.

This time she looked up at me. I tried to read her ees, but they were hard to decipher. I couldn't tell if she was scared, or excited, or both. "Cocaine," she said, simply.

I tried to check my memory for everything I had ever heard or read about cocaine. I knew it was a natural stimulant, and had a tendency to keep people awake. It was probably a lot like pot in the sense that it wasn't as dangerous as every one would lead you to believe.

Kelly came back out, carrying an exact-o knife, and a high school diploma in a picture frame. She handed the frame to Ashley and set the knife on the table, heading towards the kitchen, and taking a straw from one of the cabinets, cutting a three inch piece off of it. Ashley nimbly took the pane of glass out of the frame and set it's contents gently on the other side of the coffee table, away from harm. When Kelly came back with the straw, she handed all of the items over to Kelly, who wasted no time in shoveling a small amount of the white powder onto the pane of glass with the exact-o.

"So," she addressed us. "Two lines or three?"

I didn't give Ashley time to answer for me. She had tried to do it in the past, and i appreciated it, but I was a big girl, and I could take care of myself.

"Three."

---South-Of-Nowhere---

- Ashley -

My hands were shaking when I got home, but they're quite steady now as I draw up two more lines for Spencer and me. Kelly's had her fill and has gone to bed, but I hate to leave coke around, too illegal for my liking.

If I had my way, Spencer wouldn't be doing this with me, now. But, I didn't get my way, and she seemed to want to continue doing it. That's fine with me. At least I have some one to help me finish off this shit.

Before we started, I did ask her if she had any health problems. She told me she didn't, and I hope she was telling the truth. Coke is bad shit to be doing if you've got a weak heart, or something like that.

I was to the point now, where I couldn't decide if i was hot or cold. Spencer was far past that. Spencer had hit the depressed stage, because for the past five minutes, she's been talking about how she thinks that no one gets her but me. She never spoke that way before, and I know it's the coke talking. It's quite possible that what she's saying is true, but it's still different for her to act this way.

The coke in my nostrils had started to dry, and harden. We didn't have much left out of our original gram, but we had done enough for me to be to the point of wanting it to be gone. I was ready to stop snorting, and just chill before going to bed. I was at the best stage of my coke high.

I let Spencer do the first line this round, considering i had done the first last time. I held her hair back as the coke in front of her disappeared into the straw and up her nose. She pulled back, tapping the straw on the glass and picking up whatever particles from her line she missed with her finger, placing it on her tongue. She learns quick. Already, she's learned not to let any coke go to waste.

We finally hit the last of the bag, and a sense of relief and pleasure washes over me as the last of the coke hits my sinuses, seeping into my bloodstream. I've had a drip threatening for a while now, and i'm glad it's waited until there was no more coke to come. I press down on the bridge of my nose, opening up my nasal passages and inhale deply, shuddering as coke-filled mucus slides down my throat.

There are fingertips on my cheek, and a familiar warmth courses through me. Coke enhances a person's sense of touch, and I feel as if I'm being engulfed in an inferno.

"Are you okay?" Spencer's concerned voice breaks through my ears. I look over at her and smile, kissing her palm, hoping she'll take this to mean 'yes.'

"Come here," she says, softly, trailing her fingers down my arms, and grasping my hand, pulling me to her. She slides back on the couch, and I find myself on top of her, breathing already eratic, as her mouth finds mine.