KICKING THE HABIT
By Crystal Mullins(Nightcon)Part 1
They were all panting, throwing their hands in the air as the music made the room vibrate as they jumped and their feet hit the floor. There was so many of them that to be in the middle of it all made you lose your balance and fall against the others, but it didn't matter with the other sweating bodies there to push you to your feet.
He was pushed to his feet, again, always had to be pushed to stand. He was the wildest of them all, and they all knew his name. If he wasn't at the rave, it probably wasn't worth going to.
"Take another hit, you look like you're slowing down!" Die grabbed his friend around the waist, they couldn't make themselves jump in unison as their heads spun deliciously.
The blonde friend let him lead him off the dance floor, pushing people to move out of their way. They went to the bathroom; there were just too many undercover police around those days. The bathroom smelled rancid. There were only a few people here; the sound of sex came from a half-open stall. In another, that was missing its door, a woman vomited as her friend held her hair.
Laughing for no reason, Die pushed his friend into the handicap stall and locked the door. With a moan, the tanned body leaned against a filthy wall and held his head.
"What's in that stuff?"
Die laughed harder, "A little of this, a little of that!" He pulled a little baggie from his black, leather jacket pocket. From the other he pulled a little, red, coffee-stirring straw that he took from Starbucks. He sat down next to his friend where he had slid to the floor and poured a bit of the white powder into his palm. "Here." He handed the blonde the straw.
The blonde didn't even think about it, just swooped down and snorted all the powder. He panted and leaned against his friend. "Give me a minute, and we'll go back out."
Die stood and pulled the surprisingly light man to his feet. "You don't need a minute, best to be out there when it kicks in, right?"
The other man laughed loudly, the lovers in the next stall were now pounding on the adjoining wall. He banged his fist very hard against that wall in a mocking imitation and laughed until he choked. Die laughed so hard he fell to the floor and held his side.
"Let's go!" Die's friend pulled him to his feet but he fell again with his laughter. "I'll be out there, Die-kun!" The friend ran out.
A minute later, Die stopped laughing and pulled himself to stand in front of the small, smudged mirror above a broken sink. His reflection swayed too much. He couldn't get a clear view of himself. He shrugged and stumbled into the small hall outside of the bathroom. Something wasn't right. He knew what it was; there was the sound of the music but no sound of people. Then, there was a scream and some frantic yells.
He reached the end of the hall and screamed. His lover was flat on his back with someone leaning over him, shouting for someone to call an ambulance.
Die fell to his knees beside them, but the man took one look at his dilated eyes and said, "I'm a cop, back off or I'll arrest you!"
"I'm his friend!" Die sobbed out. "What's going on? What happened?"
The cop grabbed Die's shoulders and shook him to pay attention. "What did he take? Tell me! It could help save his life!"
Die resisted, not wanting to be arrested or his friend to be, but it was too late; police started running into the rave. The ravers screamed and ran to avoid the police. "Take him!" The cop shouted to another as he pointed to Die. The other officer grabbed Die and when he struggled he pushed him to the floor, flat on his face and put the cuffs on him.
Die screamed and fought. "Let me go! Wake up, tell them you're okay!"
The blonde didn't move, and he started to choke just as the medics ran in with a stretcher and oxygen mask.
As they were dragging Die away, who was kicking and screaming, he heard them shout, "He's not breathing!" The last thing he saw before being pulled from the room and read his rights was the medic frantically giving Hakuei CPR.
to be continued...