Maybe Just a Bad Trip

The party inside was getting out of hand, and Cara felt like a refugee fleeing a war zone as she stepped out into the chill air. She jammed her hands into the pockets of her hoodie and slouched her way across the parking lot to where a couple of guys were passing a joint back and forth. Cara had dropped acid over an hour ago and was tripping hard at this point; she was verging on being in a state of panic and thought maybe she could get some weed to mellow her out. As she drew closer she saw that one of the guys was Jeremy, a dude she had graduated high school with. They weren’t really friends, but they had each smoked the other up a few times when their paths had crossed. She didn’t recognize the other dude.

“Hey, Jer,” she said as she walked up to them.

“Hey, Care,” he replied, then laughed at his unintended rhyme. Cara flashed a smile that looked more like a grimace. She had a tendency to grind her teeth when she was tripping.

“Think I can get in on that?” She asked.

“Not my shit.”

“Oh, okay. So introduce me to your friend and I’ll ask him,” she replied, shooting a glance at the tall, skinny guy next to Jeremy.

“This is Josh. Josh, this is Cara, who apparently wants to get high, on top of whatever else she’s been doing tonight.”

“Oh, man, Cara said, “I am trippin balls, you know? And it’s, like crazy in there, right, and I totally just need to mellow out. It would really help me a lot.” She flashed her eerie smile once more, and was rewarded with a nod and the passing of the joint. She hit it hard then passed it on to Jeremy. “I didn’t see you guys inside,“ she said in the strained voice of someone trying to talk without losing their smoke.

Jeremy nodded. “We just got here. Is it crazy lame, or crazy crazy in there?” he asked.

Cara thought about this for a moment. It was a very Jeremy question. “Crazy crazy, which is kind of lame, you know? I mean, a couple guys started wrestling, and then it got kind of ugly, and everyone else thought it was great, but it made me nervous, so I came outside. And of course I can’t find Kyle anywhere, and the fucker won’t text me back. I could absolutely kill him right now. I didn’t even want to come to this fucking party.”

“So that’s true, then? You and Kyle? I had heard that. Damn, girl, I thought you had better taste than that.”

“So did I, man. I am just now starting to realize what a douche he can be.” She accepted the joint from Josh and hit it, then passed it on.

“You ought to kill him,” Josh said. Cara laughed, choking and coughing on the smoke.

“I really ought to, right?”

“Yes,” Josh said. He had a voice much deeper than Cara thought his concave chest could have contained. It seemed to lend gravity to everything he said. Suddenly Cara didn’t feel like laughing any more. Jeremy cocked his head and looked at her.

“You could do better, you know. WAY better.”

“But my boyfriend is in the way,” she replied, then grinned viciously. “So maybe YOU oughtta kill him, if you want a shot.”
“I’ll do it,” Josh interjected. He took a long drag off the joint and flicked the tiny remnants of it away. “Could I get a shot if I do it?”

Cara felt stuck. The acid was kicking hard now; she couldn’t decide if they meant it or not. But why should I care? She thought suddenly, alarmingly. He’s a jerk. He stranded you at this fucked up party. If they want to kill him, let them…but they don’t really mean it. But what if they do? I’d have to sleep with them, then, wouldn’t I? Is that the deal? “You wouldn’t do it,” She finally said.

“Hey, you don’t even know me,” Josh replied. “You don’t know what I’d do.”

“He’s just fucking around,” Jeremy said, shooting a sidelong glance at his friend.

“Am I?” asked Josh. Jeremy and Cara stared at him.

“So go do it,” Cara blurted. “Go ahead. He’s right inside.” She continued to stare at Josh, wrapped up in a mixture of fear and awe, and a twisted sort of triumph. That fucker has treated me like shit since we hooked up, she thought. Fuck him. And this dude’s kinda cute. Maybe I should give him a shot?
“Text him,” Josh said. “Get him out here.”

“I told you, he’s not answering my texts. You’ll have to go inside and get him.”

“Hey, guys, this isn’t funny anymore,” Jeremy said. They both looked at him, noticing for the first time that he had sidled away from them and was now standing on the other side of a car.

“No one said it was,” Josh replied. He reached out and took Cara’s hand. “Let’s go, sweetheart. You’ll have to point him out to me.” He tugged gently on her hand, and she followed him back toward the party. She did not look back to see Jeremy staring after them. He continued to stare long after they were gone, then shook himself, as if shaking off a bad dream, got in his car, and drove away.