Coffee and Cigarettes

I wrinkled my nose in distaste as I pulled up to my "new" house. We had moved here almost immediately after my brother's death, but this house still wasn't home to me. It's a lot nicer than my old one, but it's not gaudy or anything. It's white, much to my liking, with a big tree in the back that I like to climb when I get bored. It has two stories not including the basement, which is where my room is. The whole basement is kind of mine, actually. My mom never really goes down there because her boyfriend told her that I was a "typical teenager" and that I needed my space. I hated him. He isn't a drunk or abusive or even mean, actually, I just don't like him. He acts more like a therapist than a step-dad. He's always trying to get me to quit smoking, he constantly tries to get me to talk about my brother, and he tells me that I need to forger about my father. The last one always pissed me off the most. I actually smacked him one time because of it.

My dad died from cancer when I was seven. He was my best friend. I remember him always playing stupid games with Kevin and I and bringing home presents for us every day after work. I loved him so much. He started getting sick when I was five. It was the hardest thing to understand. I got so mad at him for being in bed all the time, and I said so many things I wish I could take back. When he died my whole world fell apart, and so did Kevin's. He started getting into drugs when he was at the tender age of fourteen. Kevin was my hero, so I followed him in everything he did. The day he killed himself he was tripping out on some wacked up pill, and it made me realize what drugs did to people, so I stopped immediately. There wasn't anything I wouldn't give just to give my brother a second chance.

I darted down the stairs that lead to the basement, trying desperately to avoid any contact with David, my mom's dreadful boyfriend.

"Audrie?" his hideously annoying voice rang through my ears.

"Yeah?" I sighed as I wrapped my hand around the railing, waiting for him.

"How was your day?" he walked over to the banister and looked down at me.

"Fine," I groaned.

"Oh good. Your mother and I are going out tonight. You gonna be ok here all by yourself?" he arched his bushy grey eyebrows. Honestly, what did my mom see in him?

"Yep," my voice was hard. They went out almost every night, and he always asked me the same stupid question.

"Ok. There's..."

"Food in the fridge, got it," I finished for him as I dashed down the rest of the stairs, not in the mood for his antics.

I loved living in the basement. It was like having my own little apartment. There's a big, open living room with a TV and a black leather couch, a little kitchen with a fridge I always keep stocked with soda and freeziepops, and of course, my room.

My room's my favorite part. My walls are painted a blood red that contrasts beautifully with my black bed, carpet, and ceiling. There's also a black desk in the corner where I keep all my sketchbooks and drawing pencils. My clothes are always thrown across my floor due to the fact that I'm the polar opposite of a neat freak. I don't think I've ever made my bed once in my entire life.

I sighed as I plopped down onto my silky red sheets. I rested my hands on my stomach as my eyes found their way to my ceiling, my mind slowly drifting away from reality. I thought about doing my math homework, but the thought disappeared as quickly as it had been created. I shivered slightly, so I grabbed my heavy black blanket and draped it over my body, deciding that a nap would be much more productive than doing pointless math problems.

My eyes flickered open to a slight humming noise by my head, making me groan.

"What the crap is that?" I wondered as I rubbed the sleep from my eyes and waited for the fog to disappear from my brain.

Once it did, I realized that my phone was buzzing, so I hurriedly snatched up my purse and dumped its contents on my bed. I grabbed my leopard print cell and looked at the caller ID. I had no clue who it was, but I flipped it open anyway.

"Hello?" my voice was groggy and full of sleep.

"Hi, is this Audrie?" the voice on the other end was barely audible.

"Yeah, who's this?" I furrowed my brow.

"Um, this is Mikey. The funny looking kid from Barnes and Noble."

I smiled after I matched a face with the voice and laughed. "I remember you."

"I hope so," Mikey spoke, "or this would be very awkward."

"What would?" I pondered as I cocked my head to the side.

"Well are you doing anything right now?"

"Nope," I answered truthfully.

"Cool cause I was wondering if you wanted to hang out."

"What, like, right now?" my eyes widened.

"If that's ok. You did say you weren't doing anything," he pointed out.

"What time is it?"

"Uh," he paused for a second, "Seven forty-two and thirty-six seconds p.m."

I laughed. "Ok I guess I could. What do you wanna do?"

"Umm, do you want to come over here? My friends wanna meet you."

"Oh really," I smirked, "Have you been talking about me, Mikey?" I asked with a laugh in my voice.

"Maybe," he peeped.

I laughed again.

"Ok what's your address Mr.?"

It turned out that Mikey only lived like three blocks away from me, so I told him I'd be over in a couple minutes. I flicked my phone shut and darted into the bathroom, hoping I didn't look like utter shit. But I had been sleeping for two hours, so of I did. I grunted at my frizzified hair and smudged makeup before I went about fixing them. I pulled my long, black hair into a ponytail, happy that my bangs were still decently straight. I ran my fingers under my eyes and applied a fresh layer of eyeliner and quickly touched up my black eye shadow.

"Good enough," I muttered as I pulled at my fitted Misfits t-shirt and adjusted my skinny jeans. I pulled on my paint-covered Converse before I grabbed my keys and sprinted out the door to my car.

His house was easier to find than I thought it would be. It was actually really unnecessary for me to have driven. I sighed as I walked up to the door and knocked softly, hoping someone heard it. I hated knocking on doors. I don't know why, but it always makes me feel vulnerable.

"Hey!" Mikey's excited face poked through the door.

"Hello," I smiled. He pulled the door open all the way and invited me in. I fell in love with his house instantly. It was so homey. There were pictures of little Mikeys and some other kid hanging on almost every wall, and it was absolutely spotless, but not in an uncomfortable hospital way. I could feel warmth pouring out of the walls. It even smelled like home.

"Is that you?" I asked as I pointed at one of the pictures and laughed. It looked like he was about five years old, and he was dressed up like a vampire, hanging upside down from a tree branch.

He laughed. "I don't want to talk about it."

I smiled at him. I liked this kid.

"Mikey! Is that her?" A voice bellowed from around the corner. Before Mikey could answer someone came jumping over to us. He had long, dark hair and a cute, pudgy little face.

"Hi!" he shouted, making me step back a little. He was a hyper little bundle.

"Gerard, you're scaring her," Mikey stepped between us and started pushing him back around the corner, signaling me to follow.

Once I rounded the corner, my eyes widened immensely.

"Everybody, this is Audrie," Mikey announced to the room full of people. They were all smiling at me, but I didn't notice.

I was frozen.

I wasn't even sure if my heart was beating anymore.

"Audrie, this is my stupid brother Gerard," he stated, pointing to the boy with dark hair, "that's Ray, Bob, and you met Frank earlier."

I pried my eyes away from Frankie's powerful gaze and forced myself to smile at all of Mikey's friends.

"Hi," I uttered while lifting my hand in a motion that slightly resembled a wave. I still hadn't overcome the initial shock of seeing him sitting across the room.

"Hey," they all shouted back, except for Frankie; he was just staring at me, a smug smirk playing at his lips.

"Nice to meet you!" Gerard hollered from the couch Mikey had forced him to sit down in.

"You too," I smiled for real this time, "What're you guys doing?"

"We were planning on killing some zombies," Mikey informed me, "Only if it's ok with you though."

"I love killing zombies!" I beamed, excited that I had come across some fellow video game nerds.

Mikey smiled bigger and rocked back on his heels. "Do you want something to drink or anything?" he asked politely.

"Um, sure, what do you got?"

"I'm not sure," he smirked, "You wanna come with me?"

I nodded and followed him into the kitchen.

"Keep an eye on him, Audrie!" someone shouted after us.

"Keep an eye on you?" I shot Mikey a questioning glance. He laughed.

"Well uh, I'm kinda sorta accident prone. My mom doesn't really allow me in the kitchen anymore," he admitted with an embarrassed chuckle.

"What? Why?" I asked with a grin playing at my lips.

"I guess you could say I'm not really good with appliances," he stated while prying open the fridge, "Like yesterday I left my toast in the toaster so long it started on fire. And then one time I left the coffee on all night and it burned a hole in the coffee maker. I'm sort of forgetful," he sighed while attempting to pull out a container full of red liquid, but managing to knock half the things from the top shelf on his head.

"And clumsy," I added between spurts of laughter.

"And clumsy," he was blushing a deeper red than the drink he was holding. I patted him on the head before helping him pick up the lettuce, butter, and celery that had attacked his face.

"Kool-aid ok?" he asked when we were all done.

"Perfect," I replied.

He opened one of the cupboards and pulled out two glasses before spilling the sweet red substance into both of them.

"Here you go," he said cheerily while handing me the one with more in it.

"Thanks, Mikey."

"You're welcome," he smiled after taking a chug of Kool-aid, a little red mustache glistening above his lips. I laughed and swatted it off for him before we made our way back into the living room.

They already had the Playstation set up and had a game going. I'm more of an X-Box girl myself, but it was better than nothing. I sat next to Mikey on the couch and waited for my turn. Gerard and Frank were both sitting on the floor in front of the TV holding controllers and shouting profanities at each other. Frank was kicking his ass, to say the least. I giggled as Gerard grabbed Frank's controller and threw it across the room in attempt to catch up to him, causing Frank to look at him incredulously before pushing him over, grabbing hold of Gerard's controller and making him kill himself.

"Cheater!" Gerard hollered.

"What the shit are you talking about? You're the one that threw my controller!"

"You killed me!" Gerard shrieked back.

"Only cause you tried to kill me! It was self defense!" Frank claimed.

Mikey and I were laughing uncontrollably when Bob and Ray finally grabbed hold of the controllers and said that they both lost and started a game of their own.

I froze instantly as Frank got up and sat down right next to me on the couch. My head spun slight as his leg brushed against my own, and my stomach tingled when he placed his hand over mine. I kept my eyes glued on the screen, unable to look over at him.

"Hey, Audrie, you ok?" Mikey asked, taking notice to my stiff posture. I couldn't speak, so I just smiled and nodded. He shot me a questioning glance before returning his gaze back to the zombie bloodfest occurring on the TV screen.

Frankie ran his thumb back and forth over my hand the entire time Bob and Ray played each other. I wasn't sure how I felt about that. When Ray finally died, Mikey jumped up excitedly and shouted "Our turn!" pointing back and forth between him and me. I slowly pulled my hand out from under Frankie's and slid to the floor, not sure if I was totally up for killing right now.

I soon became totally engaged in my game against Mikey that I forgot about everything else. There's nothing like slicing heads off of the undead. Despite how much I was enjoying myself, Mikey was beating the crap out of me, so I propped up on my knees and moved directly in front of the screen so he couldn't see, so he kicked me in the butt trying to get me to fall over.

"Cheater!" he hollered.

I giggled as I felt him tug on my shirt and force me back on my arse. I was so far ahead of him now that it was impossible for him to win anyways. Within the next few seconds, Mikey's character blew up and turned into the word "Loser."

I jumped to my feet and threw my hands in the air and started jumping around, proclaiming my victory.

"Mikey got his ass kicked by a girl!" Gerard shouted.

"She cheated!" he exclaimed in his defense.

"The fact that she's a girl totally cancels that out, man," Bob quipped back at him. Mikey stuck out his bottom lip in a pout, well aware that there was no way he could win this fight.

"Aww, I'm sorry Mikey. I'll let you win next time ok?" I grinned.

He smiled at me and nodded.

"My turn!" Gerard leaped for the controller and looked at Frankie expectantly.

"What? No way in hell am I playing you again. Cheater," Frank spat jokingly.

"Fine," Gerard shrugged.

"I'll play," Ray chirped as he leaped for the controller.

I helped Mikey up and we resumed our places on the couch while Gerard and Ray duked it out. Frankie's hand eventually found mine again, and he squeezed it tightly making my head automatically spin around in his direction. Our eyes met for the second time that night, and I was completely blown away. He must have noticed my reaction to him because his lips started to slowly curl upward in a knowing smirk.

"You wanna come smoke with me?" he asked in a low, husky voice. I didn't need a cigarette, but for some reason I couldn't say no to him.

I shifted towards Mikey. "Me and Frank are gonna go smoke, k?"

"Can I come?" he asked innocently.

"Course," I grinned. Frank grunted as he stood up and marched toward the door, not bothering to wait for Mikey and me. If I didn't know any better, I'd think he was mad at me.

I sat next to Frankie on the concrete steps and Mikey stood in front of us. The tips of our cigarettes were glowing brightly in the dark, and we were surrounded by a hazy cloud. Mikey and I were carrying out a friendly conversation. Frank was silent.

"You're such a dork," I stuck my leg out and nudged Mikey with my foot, making him stumble back a little. He just smiled at me before he took his last drag and threw the butt of his cigarette to the ground, sliding his foot over it to put it out. Frank and I finished almost immediately after, and I was getting up to go back inside, but I was stopped when Frank pulled out two more cigarettes and placed one in my hand.

"We're going to have another, Mikey," Frank informed us.

Mikey squinted his eyes at him questioningly but nodded anyway.

"See you inside, Audrie."

"I'll miss you," I smiled. He ruffled my hair as he walked passed and stepped through the door. Once it was closed, Frank and I were enveloped in a thick silence.

I was twirling the cigarette between my fingers when I felt him tap me on my shoulder. I turned and saw him holding out his lighter. I placed the cigarette between my lips and bent over into the flame, sucking in so that I could fill my lungs with toxic fumes. When I was finished, he shoved his lighter back in his hoodie pocket and sighed as he lied back on the cement. I allowed my eyes to trail down his slender body, lingering on his exposed belly button, unaware that he was watching me as well.

"Lay down with me," he whispered. I did as he asked, my eyes finding their way to the stars twinkling brightly in the navy blue sky above.

"Do you feel awkward around me?" he asked after a moment, a hint of sadness in his tone.

I thought about it as I took another drag and blew out a thin line of smoke before replying, "Tremendously."

"Why?" he recoiled, sounding deeply offended.

"I don't know," I answered in a sour tone that I usually only used with my mother.

Silence swept over us again. He was waiting for me to answer. I could feel it.

"Maybe it's because I never thought I'd see you again," I answered truthfully, "I told you a lot of stuff about me and it's just, it's weird."

He paused for a moment then replied thoughtfully, "I don't want it to be weird."

"What would you like it to be like?" I grinned.

"Like how it was the night we met," he gushed, "I've never been able to talk to someone like that. It was amazing. You know like everything me, Audrie, and I don't feel awkward around you at all. I feel amazing. It's kind of liberating in a sense."

I sat up and rested my head in my free hand. I didn't know what to say to that.

"Audrie?" his deep tenor voice penetrated my ears.

"Hm?" I muttered into my palm.

"Is it because I kissed you?" he questioned carefully.

I didn't answer.

"I only did that because I didn't think I was ever going to see you again," he replied quickly, "You were the most amazing girl I had ever met, and it just felt right."

"You could have asked for my number Frank, instead of stealing my first kiss and walking out of my life," I spat.

"First kiss?" his tone changed completely, and he arched his eyebrow curiously.

"First kiss," I confirmed.

He paused for a moment, mulling that thought over in his head before he spat, "Well I'm sorry I ruined that experience for you," before he tossed his cigarette into the dirt bellow us.

"You didn't ruin it for me, Frank," I rolled my eyes, annoyed by his attitude.

"Oh yeah? 'Cause that's what it sounded like to me," he scoffed.

"Why are you yelling at me?" I furrowed my brow.

"I'm not yelling," he argued.

"Are to," I pouted.

Then, out of nowhere, he grinned.

"Fuck, your infuriating," he laughed.

"You're one to talk," I grumbled.

He chuckled again, looking at me incredulously.

"Come here," he grinned and wrapped one of his arms around my shoulders, pulling me into his chest. It felt better than I wanted it to, and I was overwhelmed by his beautiful scent of lavender and cologne. He ran his hand through my hair, messing it up and making me laugh.

"Why the crap does everyone keep doing that to me?!" I exclaimed while pulling away from Frank and swatting at my stray hairs. He smirked before he stood up, holding his hand out to me. I gladly took it.

"Friends?" he asked as we walked over to the door.

"Friends," I confirmed.

As we walked back into the house, the only thing I was thinking about was how right his hand fit with mine. Like a puzzle piece.

For the next few hours, I was mesmerized by the TV screen while the boys and I watched Dawn of the Dead and munched down a bowl of popcorn.

Once the movie was over, I glanced at the clock hanging on Mikey's wall.

12:47

"Holy crap guys, I have to go!" I exclaimed, leaping off of the couch.

"What?" they all looked at me.

"My mom is totally going to slaughter me. She has no idea where I am," I explained frantically.

"Awww," Mikey pouted, "But I was going to make you pizza."

"Maybe next time," I laughed as I poked him on the nose, making him smile up at me.

"I'll call you tomorrow?" he suggested.

"For sure. Bye guys!" I waved as I started walking towards the door.

"Later Audrie," they all chorused.

I glanced at Frankie one last time before closing the door behind me and running out to my car.

I was in deep shit.