"When you first shoot up, you will most likely puke and feel repelled, but soon you'll try it again. It will cling to you like an obsessed lover. The rush of the hit and the way you'll want more, as if you were being deprived of air—that's how it will trap you." Sam, a 15-year-old addict
Lacey woke up to Danny's arms still tightly around her. She smiled contentedly as she pulled his arm tighter to her body. Lacey was in Danny's shirt while Danny lay in only his boxers. Both of their legs were entangled below a white sheet.
Sarita stood in the doorway staring in at the couple. She had only walked up to knock on the door to ask Danny where he kept the Tylenol for her headache. But the door opened unexpectedly when she he hand gently touched it. She saw Lacey and Danny sleeping in an obvious aftermath of a night of sexual endeavors.
"I wondered where you were when we got back." She could see Lacey's eyes widen before she pulled out from Danny's sleeping arms.
Lacey put her finger to her lips alerting Sarita to be quiet. She moved Danny's hair from his face before leaning to kiss his forehead. He groggily mumbled something incoherently before pulling a pillow closer to him. Lacey couldn't help to notice how beautiful Danny was.
Sarita rolled her eyes as Lacey did that. Then she allowed Lacey to lead her out of Danny's bedroom. "We're not back together."
"But you had sex." Sarita sounded judgmental. "So sleeping over at Danny's means having sex with him."
"Honestly, Sarita, this isn't any of your business." Lacey crossed her arms over her chest defiantly. "I don't answer to you."
"I thought you answered to the Almighty God now." Sarita chuckled haughtily. "Isn't there something in that book of His about chasteness?"
Lacey's eye twitched as her jaw muscles tightened. "Mind your own business." Lacey had enough of Sarita's condemnation of her. "You've made it plain our friendship is over. So I don't need to try to keep up appearances for your sake."
Sarita nodded to the door where Whitney and the girls all were sleeping. "Don't worry. They're all out of it. Whitney got some old dude to buy us some alcohol. They're all sleeping off a night of binge drinking."
"And you're not." Lacey leaned against the hall wall crossing her legs at the ankles. "I suppose I'm going to be your next gossip of choice."
"Not really." Sarita leaned up against the adjacent hall wall. "I just can't believe you'd be sloppy seconds to Jo Masterson. Are you the side chick now?"
"Hmmph. Really, Sarita?" Lacey bit her lip as she closed her eyes. Now wasn't the best time to be reminded that she slept with Jo Masterson's boyfriend.
"Yeah. Really, Sarita?" Danny had awoken and shocked both girls when his voice interrupted them. He had slipped on a pair of loose jeans. They hadn't even seen him awake no less walk out of his room. "Like Lacey could be sloppy seconds to anyone. She's queen. The rest of Green Grove High are only peasants to her as far as I'm concerned."
"Even your girlfriend, Jo Masterson?" Sarita quipped as she scowled angrily at Danny.
"No. Jo is no peasant in Lacey's kingdom." Danny stared at Lacey with a smirk. "She's more of a court jester." Danny reached for Lacey's hand. He pulled her to him as he wrapped his arms around Lacey's waist. He kissed her nose before stating. "We need to talk."
Lacey grinned broadly. "Okay."
She could see the seriousness in Danny's eyes. She would pretend not to notice for Danny's sake since Sarita was there. Danny and Lacey walked away hand in hand. The door to Danny's room shut behind them. Sarita turned to see Phoebe and Whitney standing down the hall watching the scene as well. Phoebe was the first to speak.
"Don't tell me that you both don't see how absolutely adorable those two look together." Phoebe chuckled before exiting to go back to the bedroom.
Sarita shrugged and stated before following Phoebe. "Whatever. Those two are addicted to each other."
Whitney felt herself grow angry. She should've known better than have Lacey and Danny in the same house together. Whitney thought she had him where she wanted him. If Lacey found out the extent to Danny's drug abuse, she'd try to save him. All her and her dad's hard work would be for nothing.
Lacey sat down on the bed curiously as she watched Danny open his dresser drawer. She could hear him take in a ragged breath. She watched his shoulders flex as he pulled something from the drawer. He turned around with an unsure look on his face. Danny bit his lip before sitting down beside of Lacey.
He took her hand and squeezed it. "After today, you'll be glad we're not together anymore. You'll put last night out of your memory. Therefore, I want to thank you for the last moment of happiness."
"Danny, don't say that." Lacey squeezed his hand back.
Danny smiled weakly as he opened the cloth wrapped around his dirty secret. He could feel his heart rapidly pounding against his chest. Danny saw Lacey study the items before her.
"Say something. Please." Danny pleaded as he gauged Lacey's reaction to the items on his lap.
"Oh, Danny." Lacey finally broke the smothering silence in the room. "I didn't know it was that bad. Is this what I think? Are you shooting up?"
"Once. I did once a couple of weeks ago. That's why I put on a condom this time. I know you're on birth control. But I won't chance anything with you. Even if it was just once. I know the needle was new but..." He stopped not wanting to make the night of passion to be a bigger mistake than Lacey probably was already thinking it was. Danny swallowed the bile down that had came up in his throat. "I was so sick and even repelled at myself for it. I can't count how many times I threw up afterwards. I thought I was going to die. I wondered if the guy sold me some bad stuff." Danny blinked as he looked away from Lacey fearing she was looking at him with disgust. "I remember the next day, I broke the D*MN needle so it wouldn't taunt me. I'm not going to lie. If given the chance to do it again, I would. I can't explain this need I feel to have that high again. It was almost immediate. The nightmares were over. When I saw Dad and Tara's faces, I laughed. I don't fear what I see when these drugs course through my veins." Danny continued knowing Lacey was unable to form words at Danny's confession. He wrapped the cloth back around the items and placed them in the floor. He used his foot to scoot them under his bed. "The only reason I haven't shot up since is because Jo said Tyler can only get the drugs that I snort. I have no way of getting a syringe and the stuff the dealer gave me. I'd go to prison if I got caught. I guess that fear is what is keeping me from getting more to shoot up. Jo can't get it for me. She looked through her dad's police files to find the name of a dealer for me. But I'd never let her go into that part of town. I don't want to take a chance of going back to the dealer because of prison. But sometimes, the craving is so bad, I don't care if I get caught. As long as I get a hit."
Lacey pulled her hand away from Danny's hand. "Is that why you are still dating her? You're dating Jo because she gets you this junk!"
"No, Lace. It's not like that." Danny watched as Lacey stood up to pace back and forth in front of him. He noted she was angry and hurt as she tried to take in all the information he was throwing at her. "Jo said that…" He hesitated. Did Lacey really need this much truth?
Lacey turned to glare at him. "Jo said what?"
Danny allowed his head to fall to look at his hands now folded in his lap. He took a deep breath before continuing. "Jo said that if I broke up with her that she'd tell her dad about the drugs. Lacey, if they test me and this is in my system, I'm going back to juvie or worse. I may go to prison. No matter what, if I'm caught with drugs in my blood or on me, I get at the least a sentence in juvie until I'm eighteen. I don't even want to think of the worst." Danny interrupted Lacey before she could speak because he knew she'd ask why he doesn't just give up the drugs. "Before you ask, it isn't so easy to quit like I thought. I'm hooked now and I know it."
Lacey halted her pacing to look at Danny. He glanced up at her with sad eyes begging for her forgiveness and understanding. "Jo is blackmailing you to stay with her?"
"She thinks we will get closer. It isn't her fault. She wants to help me." Danny raked his hands through his hair as his body shook slightly at all the information pouring from him. He snapped his head back up to look at Lacey. "Jo thinks I'll realize I love her. She thinks she can make me happy."
"That's bull crap, Danny!" Lacey stated a little too loud due to anger. "Quit making excuses for that self centered brat!"
"Lacey, don't blame Jo." Danny started to stand up but decided not to when Lacey's eyes dared him to approach her.
"Oh. I will blame her! I blame you too. But she is not this innocent victim she constantly wants to be." Lacey balled up her fists. "I swear I could beat her into a bloody pulp. She knows how hard this is for you. You loved your dad and he's dead. You caused it." Lacey began to pace again. "I get that has to hurt. But her enabling you makes me angry at her more than you! Jo ….GAWD! JO!" Lacey threw her fist into the door. She pulled it back in pain.
Danny jumped up noticing her wince in pain. "Lace." He took her hand. Lacey tried to pull it away but Danny wouldn't let her. "Let me see."
Reluctantly, Lacey allowed Danny to check her hand out. He kissed her red knuckles before pulling her into to a hug. "I warned you that you'd hate me. Thanks for last night. It meant so much to me to have one last time with you."
Lacey pushed Danny back angrily. She hit her sore fist against his chest as she screamed at him. "Don't you dare! Don't you dare think you're getting me out of your life that easily. Don't you dare!"
Holding her hands over her face, she collapsed onto the floor. The gravity of the situation seemed to pull her to the wooden floor. Danny dropped to his knees in front of her.
He pulled Lacey into his arms. "You need to be out my life. I'm no good for you. You're so much better than I deserve."
Lacey sobbed as she wrapped her fingers into his hair. She held her forehead against his forehead. Both breathed in each other as they gave in to the emotional pain.
"I can't stop, Lacey. I can't. I tried when you saw me at the church. You're the only one that noticed my weight loss. You thought I was sick." Danny inhaled causing Lacey's scent to waft pleasantly to his nostrils. "Mom has been too busy planning the wedding to notice. Jo doesn't care enough to notice. You did. So I tried to stop. I even started lifting weights to take my mind off the drugs for a few days. It didn't help. But I kept lifting weights and I started eating protein and less vegetables just to hide the drug use around you. My muscles ache now so the lifting weights stopped a couple days ago. I didn't want you to know. But now you need to know." Danny's voice came out broken. "Because you knowing means you'll forget me. You won't want me. I can't live with hurting you anymore. I'd rather die."
Lacey twisted her fingers tighter into Danny's dark tendrils of hair. Her breath was coming out in gulps now as she took in every word he said. She never spoke as she grasp tighter to Danny's hair. She was afraid of letting Danny go. If she let go, she may lose him forever.
Neither teen knew how long the stayed in that position. Lacey's fingers entangled in Danny's hair as if she was keeping him from teetering off into nothingness. Danny's fingers gripped the back of the shirt Lacey wore as if he was clinging to his last bit of hope in her.
A knock on the door caused it to open slightly. Phoebe stuck her head in. She took in the scene like it was a surreal painting before she spoke. "Andi Dang organized an outing at Seashell Lake. It is for Green Grove High and surrounding schools as a celebration of Spring Break. We're all going." Phoebe glanced away as the scene looked to intimate for intruder's eyes. "I think it would be fun."
"Let's go, Danny." Lacey begged as she still held the same position. Her forehead still connected with his forehead. "Please. Let's get out of here for a while. You and I going together."
"Jo will see us." Danny swallowed as he tried to explain. He hoped Lacey wouldn't hate him for bringing Jo up. Part of him hoped she would. He deserved her hate. "She'll…"
Phoebe began to pull the door closed as she left from Danny's bedroom. "I'll tell the others you two will meet them there."
"Shhh." Lacey interrupted Danny ignoring the door closing behind Phoebe. "We're good at hiding. We'll hide until we figure this all out."
Author's NOTE: Due to the intense chapters I've written, the next will have some levity so readers can get a break. A calm before the storm so to speak. Drop a note to let me know how I'm doing! (;