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CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

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It was the junior prom night and Ian shouldn't have cared less. But in a way he did. Of all the things he and Jo had talked about during the one week they'd been together ... for some reason prom had been one of them.

"Would you not go to the senior prom with me?"

Her question had made him puzzled.

"Is that… like an anti-thing?"

"Yeah. I wanted not to go there with someone."

"Then of course I won't go with you. But promise we won't go to mine either."

And now... He was hanging out at the edge of a lonely playground next to the school with no one, sitting on a large rock sipping beer - he had come by car so one beer was max. He wasn't sure why he had come there but he kept looking towards the school and the groups hanging outside.

"Smith, right?"

Ian was startled from his thoughts. It was another junior. A dark-haired guy.

"Don't expect you to remember me. We met during the trials…"

He slammed his hand on his chest a bit too dramatically, revealing his intoxication. In his other hand he had a bottle. Whiskey it seemed.

"Lucas."

"Right." Ian nodded. "And yeah, I'm Smith."

"Mind if I hang out here too?" Lucas asked.

Ian shrugged. The jock seemed harmless. He kept sitting on the rock and Lucas leaned to a close-by tree, both of them facing the school.

Suddenly an party of football players and their dates emerged to the school yard. Ian couldn't help noticing Lucas was suddenly downing the whiskey in an accelerated pace.

"That's Janice in the silver dress... " he had time to say before taking another gulp from the bottle. Ian noticed the particular girl had the football captain Bat's arm firmly around her.

"My girlfriend. I mean, ex-girlfriend."

Ian could just sense the open wound. He didn't really know what to say. So he just nodded.

"Yeah, yeah, time will heal wounds and all that shite. But I was done with being a Drag anyway. I've never liked playing football... "

There was a brief silence and then Lucas continued.

"I know about your band... and Newman. That couldn't have been easy either."

He made an empathetic frown and offered his half-full - or half-empty depending on the viewpoint -bottle.

...

A no-go. This is a no-go.

The small voice in Ian's head was speaking but suddenly the voice just went quiet - perhaps it was drunk too, just like him.

"C'mon, don't look at me like that," Ian said to his Ford Ka.

He had always thought the small grey car somehow looked sad - and now even more so.

"Besides, I'm not going far."

The strange Lucas guy had shared the rest of his whiskey. After he departed Ian had decided he'd talk to Jo tonight - having this newfound courage.

He sat down to the driver's seat and for a second he just leaned on the steering wheel sighing.

"You'll understand one day … what it's like when you miss someone … like..."

He straightened himself and rubbed his face.

"Fuck... I'm talking to a car."

Ian turned the key in the ignition and turned the volume up. The mix cd just happened to play DragonForce. This was a good sign, Ian thought.

...

He didn't park the car to Jo's driveway but further, to the side of the main road. Coming out of the car he felt nauseous but also slightly more sober. He took in the fresh air and began to walk. When Ian reached the driveway he then saw something he didn't expect.

Erik's car.

What… ?

The bottom-line feeling was hurt. Sure... Erik was her oldest friend. She'd let him come close. Following now came the jealous train of thought... How close exactly?

Ian turned back.

…

Seven minutes later

The last thing Ian sensed was the acrid smell of the quickly-inflated-now-deflated airbag.

…