Page 18 of From the Ashes
“Perfect. It’ll be here just in time for the apocalypse.”
Charlie laughed and the pair of us walked arm in arm back to our seat. We both waved at our parents, the three of them going absolutely ape shit in the stand. They were so embarrassing, and I could tell it bothered Charlie just a bit. But I didn’t care. It was nice to have people that cheered me on. Especially when I liked to get into as much trouble as humanly possible and drive those poor people batshit crazy with my antics.
After the ceremonyfinallycame to an end, all of the graduates were paraded out of the auditorium like cattle and out onto the front lawn of the school. There our families could meet us and take pictures, fawn, or whatever the fuck else they wanted to do. But today, by some lucky chance, it had decided to rain. And that meant not standing in the lawn with two hundred other kids I fucking hated. Instead, we ran to my parents’ van, and we all piled in, even Charlie and Mrs. Miller. The rain picked up the moment the door was shut and soaked everyone else that was still outside. I couldn’t help butchuckle as Jordan and his flunkies got fucking drenched and their convertible, which already had the top down, began to fill with rain.
“Serves those dickheads right,” I said, pointing them out to Charlie.
“Phoenix! Language!” my mother barked from the front seat.
“Oh, leave him be, Laura,” my step dad said, giving me a wink. “He’s a man now. Let him swear a little.”
“He’s been swearing like a sailor since he was twelve years old!” she shot back. “And I’m pretty sure it’s your fault for letting him do it in the garage.”
“He’s gotta learn from someone.”
I smiled back at him. While the pair of us started out rocky thanks to him uprooting the family and forcing us to bum-fuck nowhere Oregon, we’d grown pretty close in the past few years. Ted McKean was a good guy, and I was happy to have his last name. He was more of a father to me than my real father had been. In fact, I could barely even remember the man considering I hadn’t seen him since I was seven.
“I better not hear you talking like that, Charlie,” Mrs. Miller added, glancing back at her son.
“Don’t worry,” he sighed. “I won’t.” Then he looked at me, whispering under his breath. “Around you…”
“I heard that, young man!”
We both laughed and Mrs. Miller smiled. For all the times she pretended to be a tough parent, she was easily the most gentle of the three. She’d become somewhat of a second mother to me over the years and I thought of her as my family. Sometimes I liked her better than my own parents. She let us get away with all sorts of shit and I knew I was always welcome at the Miller house, no matter what.
“Well,” my mother sighed. “So much for all the beautiful pictures on the lawn I was hoping for. We can just take them tomorrow if the weather is nice.”
“Let’s make sure we burn these ugly things tonight then,” I whispered to Charlie. “We’re still having a bonfire at your place, right?”
He nodded. “I’ve got lots of…marshmallows.”
I grinned, feeling the tingle of mischief tickling my belly. “I bet you do.”
Skipping pictures and all the crowds in town, Ted drove us all over to Eugene for a nice celebration dinner at the best Chinese place in town. Charlie and I were big fans of all you can eat buffets and our parents, despite wanting to do something more fancy, acquiesced to our wants. Of course, that didn’t stop my mother or Mrs. Miller from crying when they brought out a graduation cake for the both of us. Our parents had planned the entire thing, but they were the first to get emotional.
I ate until I could barely recall my own name. After a long day of graduation rehearsal and the actual ceremony that seemed to last hours, I was happy to be fat and sleepy in the back of the car with my head resting on Charlie’s shoulder. He snored softly beside me, his head resting against mine. We still had our own plans once we got back home. Knowing I’d need the energy, I allowed myself to snuggle in and let sleep take me.
I snuck out my window after my parents had gone to bed. Grabbing my backpack and my bike from the backyard, I crept my way out through the gate, leaving it unlatched behind me. By the time I reached the road, Charlie was already there waiting for me. He toohad a backpack and his bike. But, unlike me, he was fidgety and nervous. Charlie never was one for breaking the rules.
“You ready?” I asked, throwing my leg over my bike.
He nodded. “Yeah.” I heard the tinkling of glass as he mounted his bike. “I got the stuff.”
“Oh my god, Charlie,” I laughed. “It’s not cocaine. It’s just booze.”
“And we’re only eighteen,” he shot back.
“So? We have to celebrate somehow. It’s not my fault the laws in this country are dumb.” I placed a hand on my hip, lifting an eyebrow in his direction. “I could go join the army and die for this country right now. But they won’t let me drink? Tell me which of those two has the biggest consequences?”
He sighed. “I’ve heard this all before, Nix.”
“Well then stop being such a worry-wart and come on!”
Kicking off from the ground, I pedaled as fast as I could out of town, heading to the north. A minute later Charlie was at my side, his sideways glances of annoyance making me laugh. I felt a familiar tightness fill my body, like I was a balloon about to burst. It felt as if all the world were trying to hold me back, even my own psyche. But I knew better than to hold that wild feeling in. I let go of the handlebars, threw my arms wide, and howled up at the moon.
“Nix! Someone will hear us!” Charlie hissed.
“Who cares?” I laughed. I saw him grin despite himself. “Come on, Charlie! Join me!”