“Dunno,” Sniff said.
Park had a crush on me, I knew this and used it. It’s not that I thought I was all that, even though Auntie Reba and Nick told me I was, in Nick’s words, “extraordinarily beautiful”. He said this because he loved me. I did have a mirror, though, and even though I didn’t think I was the hottest of the hotties, I was nothing to sneeze at. I had Dad’s black hair but, on me, because I wore it long, it had a bit of wave. I had Mom’s violet blues eyes and pale skin and Mom’s curves too. I wasn’t going to win any beauty pageants but no one was going to hand me a bag to put over my head either.
To be honest, I had a crush on Park too, but obviously not the same kind as he had on me.
He was funny, sweet and smart as hell. He made me laugh so hard my stomach ached and he looked at me in a way that made me know I was making a difference.
I was beginning to realize I wasn’t going to save the world but I sure as hell was going to save Park, even if it killed me. I knew I should have boundaries but I loved that kid. I loved all three of them.
Park knew I’d be at King’s that day. He wouldn’t miss a chance to see me.
“Sniff, no pudding cup for you if you don’t spill,” I threatened.
Sniff liked his pudding cups.
“Dunno, Law. Just, not here.”
The sacrifice of the pudding cup was a surprise and heralded bad tidings. Sniff knew something was going on and Park could be problematic. He was too smart for his own good and needed challenges to keep his active mind moving, especially moving away from a life that was pretty much shit. He got in trouble a lot, searching for adventure and release and a way to get away from it all. I had my hands full with him; I had my hands full with all three of them.
I grabbed the material of Sniff’s overlarge sweatshirt at his arm and dragged him to Roam.
“Let’s go boys. We’re finding Park.”
They came with me mainly because it meant they could ride in Hazel.
We found Park, it took hours, we searched all his places, and there were a fair few, but we found him.
I’ll never forget it.
The syringe was resting in the alley by his lifeless hand.
Bad dope.
He was stiff, rigor mortis had set in. His eyes were open, his usually beautiful skin was pale.
I took one long look at him and then shouted, “God dammit!”
Sniff puked.
Roam put both of his palms to the top of his head, his eyes never leaving the dead body of his friend.
I cursed a bit more (okay, maybe a lot more) then crouched low by Park and stared at him.
It didn’t even look like him. I’d never met a person with more life than Park. Seeing him lifeless was like looking at another human being.
I dropped my head and cursed some more.
Then I pulled out my phone and called the police.
When I was done, I stared at Park again.
After awhile, when the vision of him was burned on my brain, I closed my eyes and found the vision of him was burned on the insides of my eyelids.
That’s when I knew what I had to do.
It just came to me.
I got out of my crouch and looked at Roam.