Stories Yet To Unfold

We stared at each other intently; knowing farewell that bragging rights was a huge issue here. I looked dead into Rian’s eyes, smirking at him. Just next to me, Alex was staring at Jack, the same smirk planted on my partner’s face as mine.

“Uno,” Alex said, holding our last card up and ready to play.

Rian, trying to be the smart one like always, smiled and put down a change-color card and widened his smirk at us. “Blue.”

Alex laid down his last card and stood up from his seat. “Owned, motherfucker! Change-color card right back at your ass!”

I stood up with him, rubbing it in Jack and Rian’s face that they lost and we won – which meant bragging rights for at least two weeks. After a few minutes of dancing and high fiving between Alex and me, I sat back down on the motel beds.

A loud, obnoxious knock came at our door as we jumped back in surprise. Jack sighed heavily and opened it to a cranky-looking Matt. “You guys, we can hear you in the next room, shut the fuck up! It’s one in the morning, you have to sleep soon – so come on Melissa, let’s go to our room.”

“Alright, alright, I’m coming,” I respond to him as I got up from my spot and said goodbye to the boys. “I’ll see you all later today, I suppose.”

“I’m not even tired, come on stay so we can play another round!” Jack pleaded, his puppy dog eyes intent on Matt’s face.

Zack interrupted all hopes of playing another game. “Come on, we have to get up at seven o’clock and you’ve been playing for five hours straight, let’s just go to bed and you guys can play on the way to the next city tomorrow.”

“When the hell did you become such a dad?” I questioned.

“When I realize someone on this train of nonsense has to be,” he winked at me with a smile, right before getting back under the covers.

I laughed and went to the room right beside the boys’ that I shared with Jeff and Matt. I sighed with tiredness as I climbed into my bed immediately and pulled the covers over me. Matt chuckled as he got on the other bed, next to the already-sleeping Jeff. And within four minutes, I was fast asleep.

**********

Someone shook my body back and forth, and I groaned as I sat up in bed. “What time is it?”

“Shh!” Jack spat at me. “You’ll wake them up, just come here – follow me.”

With little consciousness, I grabbed Jack’s hand and followed him to the dimly- lit hallway. When I got there, the other three of them were already out; dressed in jeans and t-shirts. I scratched my head in confusion; wondering why the hell we were up at 2:30 in the morning.

“We’re going to go out and we were wondering if you wanted to come too,” Jack explained with a slight grin on his face.

“Are you fucking kidding me, Jack?” Rian gave him an intense look. “I thought you had to get something out of Matt’s bag, not Melissa! She can’t come with us.”

“Oh, come on, we started at her age, it’s not that big of a deal,” Jack rolled his eyes, obviously not understanding why Rian was getting so upset.

“That doesn’t mean she has to start doing this now!” Zack whisper-yelled, hitting Jack upside the head before turning his attention back to me. “Go back in the room, go back to bed.”

“What the hell is going on? Tell me that first,” I demanded, wanting badly to know what they were talking about and why it was such a big deal that I might go.

“Nothing, we’re just going for a walk,” Alex insisted with a smile. “You don’t need to be out on these streets this late anyway.”

“I’m fourteen, not six; you don’t need to hide shit from me like a parent,” I told them snappily, thinking about how I was more mature than them anyway. I could handle anything they were going to do and then some.

“We’re going to get someone to buy us some alcohol, that’s all,” Jack shrugged. “We haven’t had any in a while and I’m craving some like a bitch.”

“Well, then you’ll need someone to watch over you then,” I nodded, trying my best not to show how surprised I was that they drank at seventeen – they didn’t seem like the type.

“See! She’s going to help us, how can you let that offer go away with us?” Jack asked as the boys stiffen statures calming a bit.

“Fine!” Rian spat with some worry apparent in his eyes. “Let’s go.”

I followed right behind him, not wanting to get caught anywhere alone in this city – night or day. I looked back at Alex to see him twiddling his fingers in nervousness and looking off in the distance. Once he turned back he looked at me and smiled as I returned it. With high hopes, we walked to the local liquor store and waited for someone who was willing to buy us booze.