Текст книги "Thizz, A Love Story"

Автор книги: Nicole Loufas

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Текущая страница: 2 (всего у книги 19 страниц)

“See you Monday, Dani.” Matt waves and offers me a small smile.

I look at Nick as he walks away from the car on his call. I can’t hear what he’s saying, but he has a serious look on his face. The call doesn’t look pleasant. I’m grabbing the handlebars now.

I close the car door and slide my backpack strap on my shoulder. Nick looks up and ends his call. He hurries back to me and gives Matt a perturbed glance. I don’t want to make this awkward. “I can walk from here,” I tell them as I start towards the intersection. Nick tries to protest but I stop him. “I don’t want Katie hunting me down and killing me.” I’m only partially kidding. “You should stay.”

“Don’t even worry about that girl, she’s just putting on a show. We’re not together or anything.” Nick nudges Matt to back him up, but Matt just shrugs. His silence tells me he doesn’t want me to take the ride from Nick. Maybe he knows something I don’t.

“Thanks, but I’d rather walk.” The light turns green and I start across the street. “I’ll see you in class, Matt.” Nick looks disappointed, but Matt is smiling at me. Once I’m safely across the street I look back to make sure I’m not being followed. Nick is walking back into the Rack Room, but Matt is still standing in the parking lot, watching me. For some reason I feel safer knowing he’s there. I speed walk to the next light and exhale when I turn back to see the parking lot is empty. As much as I would’ve liked a walk with Matt or a ride from Nick, this is the safer decision. I’m all about being safe.

I pull a pillow over my head and try to ignore the incessant ringing coming from the desk. There is a girl in a bikini waiting for me in the dream I was just ripped from. My phone goes silent and my body relaxes back into sleep mode. Just as the world starts to fade, the ringing starts again. I jump out of bed and grab my cell. “What!” I scream, ignoring the caller ID.

“Dude, get up. I’ll be there in five minutes.”

I should’ve known it was Nick. No good morning, just get up I’m on my way. Only he can get away with this kind of shit. It isn’t just me—everyone obeys him. I like to think I’m different though, that he somehow respects me more than the other guys. I did save him from being kissed by Molly Wells in kindergarten. Even at five, she had a mustache. He still owes me for that one.

“Matty!” Ashley yells as she opens my door.

“Ash, a little privacy, please.” She pauses while I pull on a pair of jeans. “Ok, come in.”

She bursts in my room and jumps on my bed. “Mom wants to know if you’re coming with us today,” she asks as I leave the room to take a piss.

Damn. St. Joseph’s Hospital has a yearly ceremony for the volunteers, and this year Ashley is being honored. If it were me, I’d never step foot in that place, but she can’t stay away. Ashley had leukemia and is in her second year of remission. She spent half her life in and out of the hospital, so I guess it’s the only thing she knows. If she stays cancer free, she will return to school in the fall. I hope once she’s around healthy kids, she overcomes her obsession with the sick ones.

I return from the bathroom and find Ashley curled up in my bed. She’s fourteen, but seems so much younger. She’s the strongest person I know, yet she still seems so fragile, like a cracked windshield ready to shatter into a million pieces.

“I can’t. Nick’s coming.” I hate seeing the disappointment in her face. “I still don’t get why you hang out there so much. Isn’t it depressing?”

She throws aside my comforter and gets up. “Yeah, that’s why I do it. I try to make it less depressing. I wish someone would have done the same for me.” My little sister has the guilt trip thing down to a science. She snoops through a pile of CDs on my desk while I put on my shoes.

“Don’t you have a better way to spend your time? Wouldn’t you rather be outside?” I pluck a CD from her hand and put it back in the stack. She knows I hate when she touches my stuff.

“I go outside,” she protests. “The hospital has a really nice courtyard. You’d know if you ever visited me.”

Ouch. There is only so much guilt I can take. I’m about to call Nick and tell him I’m busy when I hear his car rumbling outside. Too late. I know it’s wrong, but its way easier to flake on my forgiving sister than it is to tell Nick I can’t hang out with him. Ashley’s already forgiven me for so much worse.

“Hey, I’ll make it up to you.” I grab my Stanford sweatshirt from the back of the chair and kiss Ashley on top of her head.

“I know you will.” She sits in my chair and spins around.

“Don’t steal my CDs and we’ll see,” I warn as I run out the door.

Nick is all smiles when I get in the car. “What up!” He holds out his hand and we perform the handshake we made up in the fourth grade.

“Where we going?” I ask, feeling shitty about missing Ashley’s day. This better be important.

“I need you to come to San Francisco with me.” Nick backs out of the driveway before I have a chance to object. “I’m meeting my uncle. We’re picking up some inventory.” Nick’s uncle Will is a mid-level gangster in San Francisco. He has a bar in North Beach that he uses to front his real business—weed.

“What the fuck. I don’t wanna get involved in all that.” The car rumbles to a stop at the light and I consider jumping out, but it seems like such a chick thing to do.

“How much weed are you holding for me right now?” Nick raises his eyebrow in that way he does when he knows he’s right.

Ok, so I have an emergency stash hidden under a loose floorboard in my closet. I sure as hell don’t want to know where it comes from or be an accessory in its transport from San Francisco to Eureka. “Dude, I can’t get busted.” I sound like such a punk.

“I got your back, Matty.” The light turns green and he stabs the gas.

Nick has never involved me in his business. “Where’s Arnie?” He’s the one that usually goes with Nick on these runs. Selling weed has always been Nick and Arnie’s thing. They’ve been doing it since the eighth grade.

“His old man is on his case about the army again. He’s got a meeting with a recruiter. But I also thought it’d be cool if we hung out today. It’s been a minute since just me and you kicked it.”

I smile, feeling weird that Nick’s comment makes me feel happier than it should.

As many times as I’ve been to San Francisco, I’m in awe as we drive through the city. I wonder if the people that live here appreciate this magnificent skyline. The symmetrical balance of the Embarcadero buildings offset the jagged tip of the Transamerica tower. I’ve always been intrigued by architecture. I seriously debated between architecture and law. Law won. I’ve wanted to be a lawyer since the first time I watched my father pick a jury. Plus, I suck at math.

Nick makes an illegal left from Columbus onto Broadway. I count at least three neon signs flashing LIVE NUDE GIRLS. Even though it’s the middle of the day, a couple of them have half-naked women standing in the door, coaxing people to join them inside. I fucking love this city.

Will’s place, the Lucky Charm, is one of the seediest-looking bars on the block. We find a spot right in front and park, but neither of us have the fortune in change it takes to feed the meter.

“Fuck it, we’ll just come check on it every few minutes.” Nick locks the doors and we head inside.

The Lucky Charm reeks of stale beer and cigarettes. Nick goes straight to the back room to find Will and I take a seat at the bar. I realize the twenty-one and over sign and the no smoking sign are just pieces of artwork on the wall when the Asian girl behind the bar offers me a beer, and the sweaty guy next to me lights up a Camel. I decline the drink, then step back towards the door to check on the car and get some much-needed fresh air.

Some chicks walk past and smile at me. They must think I’m twenty-one. I lean on the wall like I belong here and smile at the pretty brunette. I wish I was this confident yesterday after school. I wasn’t sure Dani would show, and then bam, there she was. We had a good vibe in class. She laughed at all my lame HTML jokes and always smiled at me when we passed each other in the hall. I have been wanting to ask her out for so long. She never seemed ready. The last couple of weeks I noticed her open up a little. She smiled more and she even asked me how my weekend was. I finally decided to make a move then I pussed out and sent the message instead of going to class. I should’ve had at least had her meet me alone, because having Nick beside me was like growing an extra head. He can’t help but suck all the attention his way. Then he opened his big mouth about the Rack Room and well, the timing didn’t feel right. I thought maybe Nick Marino’s charm had won her over. Then she shocked me and Nick when she decided to walk to work. I don’t think I’ve seen anyone, male or female, pass up a ride from Nick. Guys love his car and chicks love Nick.

I think I still have a chance. Maybe I’ll stop by the café tomorrow and see if she’s working. Or maybe I’ll just wait until Monday. It isn’t like she’s going anywhere, we don’t graduate for a few months. I still have time.

The girls disappear around the corner just as Nick walks by holding a small bundle in his hand. He pauses in the doorway as I scan the street for black-and-whites; going to jail today would suck. I give Nick a nod, and he makes a beeline to the car. I have to admit, it’s kind of exciting.

“Was’up Matty?” A thick city accent startles me. I turn around as Will Walker emerges from the darkness. He’s wearing baggy black sweat pants, a white and gold Rocawear t-shirt. A cross dangles from a fat gold chain around his neck.

“S’up, Will.” I try to sound a little more street. I hold out my hand for him to shake. Will takes it and pulls me in for a hug. The show of affection worries me.

“So, my nephew says you’re a stand-up guy.” I look back at Nick, who is carefully placing the new inventory in a hidden compartment under the dash. I wonder what the hell he’s told his uncle about me. “Nick needs people he can trust. I’m not there to watch his back, so it’s good he has a close friend like you.” I nod to let him know I’m listening, but I’m unsure what to make of Will’s sudden interest in my friendship with Nick. We’ve known each other since kindergarten. I’ve had his back for more than half my life.

“Nick said you could use some money. Who doesn’t need a little green, right?” He chuckles and slaps my back. “Nick’s business is growing; the boys that stayed with me from the beginning are all ballers now. You know what I’m sayin?” Will’s grip tightens around my shoulders as he escorts me to the bar.

I think I know why Nick brought me on this run today. I clear my throat, hoping my voice doesn’t crack. “I get you, but, um, I’m going to college in the fall.”

“There’s nothing wrong with an education. Shit, even Nick’s gotta go to college, but he said you were down. He’s vouching for you.” His friendly demeanor fades slightly. “I thought you wanted in?” There’s a tinge of annoyance in his voice. What the hell did Nick tell him?

Sweat runs down the side of my head as I contemplate my options. Because of Ashley’s medical bills, my parents can’t afford to send me to college. Since I plan on going to Stanford, by the time I graduate from law school, I’ll have a quarter of a million in student loans. That alone is reason to say yes, but it isn’t my deciding factor. None of that really matters when you’re standing in the arms of a gangster, being offered a job, while your best friend hides drugs in his car. “Yeah, I’m in.”

Nick conveniently reappears just as I agree to Will’s offer.

“Sandy, three shots of Patron.” Will knocks on the bar, prompting the young girl to put down her book and pour the drinks. We pick up our shot glasses, clink them together, and slam the shots. Will takes the bottle from Sandy and suggests we take our celebration to a quieter spot. We sit at a table in the back corner of the bar. Nick holds out his fist to me and I bump it with mine. He’s sporting the goofiest grin I’ve ever seen. I want to be pissed, really I do, but he knows how badly I want to go to Stanford. He’s just looking out for me. I can’t get mad about that.

Will leans back in his chair and looks at Nick. “How’s school?” I think it’s kind of strange that he cares about his nephew’s grades, considering he is grooming him for a life of crime.

“It’s all good.” Nick leans back in his chair, mimicking Will.

“Do you know where you’re going to college yet?” Will leans towards the table and looks from me to Nick. “I don’t know how this shit works. Do they send you a letter or something?”

Nick fiddles with his empty glass, unable to look Will in the eye. I don’t know why he looks so nervous. He has legacy status at Stanford. His family has a fucking wing named after them. He’s pretty much guaranteed admission. “I haven’t applied yet.”

I choke a little on my spit when Nick says he didn’t apply. We’ve been planning on going to Stanford together since our freshman year in high school. Nick finally looks at me with an apologetic smile and I pour myself another shot.

“Hey, I’m just looking out for you. You know you gotta go to college.” Will reaches across the small table and playfully grabs Nick’s neck. “You hear me boy?” He laughs as his knuckles scrape Nick’s scalp.

“Alright!” Nick shouts in defeat. “It’ll get Mariann off my back too.” He looks at me. “Don’t worry, dude. We’re gonna run shit down there.” Nick holds out his fist and I bump it. I’ve never even considered going to Stanford without him. I assumed we would live together, which would save me money on housing. If Nick doesn’t go to Stanford, I’m fucked. Maybe that’s why he’s bringing me into his crew; he knows I’ll need the money. It isn’t just about the housing, I’ve never gone to school without him. We’ve always been there for each other, no matter what.

“How is granny?” Will couldn’t sound more sarcastic if he tried.

“She stays out of my way and I don’t embarrass the family name.” Nick hates talking about his grandmother. He moved into a cottage in the back of their estate and rarely sees her. It’s kind of sad since he’s her only grandchild. He’s the only family she has left.

Will’s sister, Maria, was Nick’s mother. Nick met Will at his mother’s funeral when Nick was thirteen. Will and Mariann have been fighting for Nick’s loyalty ever since. “You’re too serious, Nicky.” Will pours another round of shots. “I got something that’ll put a smile on your face.” He pulls a plastic bag from inside his jacket pocket. “You knuckleheads ever heard of thizz?”

Nick looks at me as if I would know something he didn’t. Will tosses the bag at Nick and smiles. The bag is full of small blue pills. “What is it, black market Viagra?” Nick laughs.

“It’s ecstasy, and it’s going to make us a lot of money.” Will takes his shot and nods for us to do the same. The lukewarm alcohol is hard to swallow, but I force it down in one quick gulp. “The kids in the bay call it thizz. But it ain’t just the kids taking it. Some of my biggest clients are in their forties. It’s cheaper than coke and it lasts all night. And the chicks, oh man, the chicks will do anything you want!” Will grins. “Just wait until those little girlies up north to get a hit. They’ll be all over you and each other.” Nick and I high five at the possibilities, then I immediately think of Dani. She’s the only girl I want all over me.

Will takes a pill out of the bag. He holds it between his thumb and forefinger and says, “One hundred percent pure MDMA is a rare commodity. Most of the small-timers are cutting it up, mixing it with caffeine or speed. But that’s not what I’m about. My shit is the Mercedes of MDMA.” He puts the pill back in the bag and tells us thizz is a top priority since the market is still open in most of Northern California.

“What about the cops?” I ask, then regret it immediately for sounding like a pussy.

“Are they giving you any heat?” Nick adds, making my question sound less pathetic.

“From what I’ve seen, it isn’t on anyone’s radar.” Will takes another shot of tequila. He doesn’t even wince. “Unless you count Devon’s bust.” He mumbles some curse words under his breath. “Remember that punk I used to run with, Devon Brown? Yeah, he had the right idea, dealing it to the yuppies. He was doing alright, until he got popped. Fucking idiot.”

Nick and I agree that this Devon guy is a loser while we each take another shot. My head is fuzzy from the tequila, but the last shot goes down like water.

“If Devon didn’t dodge that third strike, he would’ve been in San Quentin for life, and I’d own this half of the city.” Will flips his glass onto the table. It echoes through the bar. “You gotta be smart and you gotta have smart people around you.” Will points at me and then at Nick. “Devon is still selling dime bags on street corners. He’ll never leave the hood now. He’s too scared. That’s why we parted ways. I wanted more. I branched out to other businesses, like this bar. I’m diversifying!” Will opens his arms and looks around the dirty bar like it’s something to be proud of. “Shit, I’m about to be the next Tony Montana, fuckin Scarface.” Will sits back and pops his collar. “You feel me?”

We bump fists with Will in a show of respect and I realize why Nick admires him. Will is a tough guy, and who doesn’t love having a tough guy on their side? Knowing Will trusts me enough to bring me in his crew gives a huge boost to my ego. Sitting in his musty dive bar discussing the distribution of an illegal substance suddenly feels less criminal. More like three business partners brainstorming marketing ideas.

After a brief tutorial on disposable cell phones, Will walks us to the car and scans the street before hugging Nick. We get in, and Will leans into the driver’s window to tell Nick to keep it under eighty.

“Yeah, yeah.” Nick smiles, but we both know it isn’t going to happen. Nick’s engine roars to life. He gives it a little gas and watches the gauges. “How much are we selling the thizz for?”

“Give out some freebies to first-timers. When they come back, its twenty a hit.”

Nick whistles at the price tag. “Isn’t that kind of high?”

“Don’t worry, they’ll pay.”

Twenty dollars might fly in the city, but it’s pretty steep for Eureka.

“Thizz.” Nick repeats the strange word. “What the fuck does it mean?”

“Look it up. There’s a whole music scene dedicated to thizz.” Will points at me as I fumble with the radio. I nod and search for the hip-hop station we were listening to earlier. I want to soak up as much of this music as I can before we lose the stations. I turn the volume up on a Kid Rock song and sit back.

“You need to ditch your hillbilly shit and get with the times, boys,” Will says. “You have product to sell!”

The drive home always feels longer. Having a carload of illegal drugs doesn’t make it any easier. It’s taken four hours to drive back from San Francisco, because Nick actually stuck to the speed limit. I know it was hard for him. His muscle car wasn’t built to go sixty-five, and he has a stack of speeding tickets to prove it. Nick never has to worry about things like speeding tickets or money in general. The Marino’s own most of the land in Humboldt County, which is why people kiss Nick’s ass. They think he’s their future landlord. Little do they know Nick has other plans. It doesn’t stop Nick from getting free movie tickets, complimentary haircuts, and sometimes a free oil change, just because his last name is Marino. He’s really gracious about it all. Every time the manager opens a new line for him at the grocery store, or an attendant leaves their booth to pump his gas, he acts shocked at their sudden burst of hospitality. Nick’s one of the most powerful people in town, but he wants to believe he’s just like everyone else. There might be some fucked up psychological explanation for this, but I think it has something to do with losing his parents. His father died when he was two, and Mariann made sure he never knew his mother. Will told Nick that Mariann made his mother, Maria, sign her parental rights over after Nick’s father died in rehab. Will said she saved the money, hoping to get Nick back one day, but that day never came.

Nick pulls in front of my house and I yawn. “Fuck, I’m tired.”

“Yeah, it’s hard work sitting in the passenger seat, Matty.” Nick puts the car in park and comes inside to use the bathroom.

My parents let me have the little apartment that sits beneath our main house. It’s a one-bedroom with its own living room, bathroom, and kitchenette. Nick goes straight to my bathroom and I head upstairs two at a time. I stop on the landing in the hall and listen to make sure nobody is here. When I pass Ashely’s room, her door is ajar. I peek in and see the evening sun spotlighting the pillows on her bed. When she was sick the last time, the worst time, my parents offered to switch rooms with her. That way she’d have her own bathroom and more space for the hospital bed they were going to rent, but Ash refused. She wasn’t about to move to an uncomfortable hospital bed in our parents’ bedroom. It sort of negated the whole point of being sent home to die. She wanted to stay in her room, in her bed, with the afternoon sun shining on her face.

I close her door and head to the bathroom in the hall. Evidence of Ashley’s condition is everywhere. From the industrial-size mouthwash for when she’s puking her dinner, to the stacks of garbage bags and never-ending bottles of medications that cover every available counter space. She’s in some kind of remission now, but I don’t think this stuff will ever be put away. The first time Ashley got better, my mother dumped everything and threw this huge party. Seven months later she was back in the hospital. This time she isn’t being that optimistic. Or maybe she’s superstitious. Either way, we all have to live with the daily reminder that life can really suck.

When I get back to my room, I find Nick on my computer—he’s on Dani’s Myspace page. I swipe the mouse from his hand and click off her page before that Audiodub song has a chance to load. It’s weird enough they like the same band. I don’t want her earning any more points with him.

“What the fuck, Matty?” Nick reaches for the mouse and I pull back.

The shock on Nick’s face finally registers and I snap back to reality. “Sorry, I’m just tired.”

I’ve never challenged him when it comes to girls. I never had to; every girl we meet loves him. The rest of us are just background noise. Dani didn’t seem interested in him yesterday, but what if I’m wrong?

Nick spins the chair around to face me. “Do you like her or something?”

I shove my hands in my pockets and shrug. I know how I feel about Dani, but how I feel doesn’t matter if she likes Nick.

Nick kicks my foot. “If you like her just tell me, dude.”

Nick isn’t trying to stake some claim, like Arnie does whenever we see a group of chicks at a party. So, why can’t I look my best friend in the eye and tell him to back the fuck off? I want to, but I know it’s wrong. If Dani likes Nick, I don’t want him to blow her off because of me. And if he likes her, I can’t compete. All I can do is get to her first.