A NIGHT TO REMEMBER {OPEN}

[kacie marie helms]

kacieMARIEhelms
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

She was in a room. An old, college dorm bathroom, actually. The bright, florescent lights shone down on Kacie, looking in the mirror. Ugh. She made herself sick. You don’t deserve to live, her conscious told her. You don’t belong here. Go on. Finish it. Make everyone happy. She eyed the knife on the bathroom counter carefully. Should she really do it? Take herself out of this world, simply because of her nightmares? Because of her past?

What? Are you honestly that selfish? The voice in her head contradicted her. The voice in her head continued to badger her, tangling her thoughts until it truly made her believe that she must do it. She picked up the long, sharp weapon, wielding it in her right hand. She pressed the blade against her skin, pressing it deeper and deeper until she finally saw the crimson of her blood. She made it travel the vein, all the way up her arm to the crease on the inside of her elbow. A sharp, stinging, painful sensation enveloped her. It hurt so much. She hadn’t expected it. She moved on to the other arm…

Kacie continued to look in the mirror, finally returning from her horrid reverie. Slowly, she turned her gaze away from the flat, emotionless stare of her reflection, and stared at her cloth-covered arms. She pulled one sleeve up reluctantly, running her fingers across the old, unforgettable scar. She would never forget that night, especially with the proof right there on each of her arms. She barely remembered much after that, other than beginning to feel dizzy, then…

She shook her head, refusing herself to remember anymore. She wanted to forget. She looked at the clock on the far wall. 10:27. She sighed. Well, at least she could go out tonight. Today was her day off at the restaurant, her homework was done, her daily phone call to her brother accomplished. Now it was ‘Kacie-Time’, and she knew exactly how to spend it. Walking towards her closet, sure to take her time, she picked out one of her favorite outfits: a nice, comfortable black t-shirt from her favorite store, Hot Topic, and a pair of black cargo-jeans. She wanted to take her time getting ready, doing anything she could think of to keep her mind off of other matters that lurked in the shadows of her mind.

Walking out the door of her dorm, Kacie immediately began to look for the nearest bus stop. She didn’t own a car at the moment – thanks to her grandmother and the Repot man – so she was stuck looking for a ride. She had the perfect place in mind for her to go, too. It was a nice, normal little nightclub there in LA. Of course, she wouldn’t be able to buy any alcoholic beverages because she was too young, but she could always find some desperate thirty-year-old to buy something for her. She could always get a drink for free, given the right guy with the right kind of charm. Kacie didn’t like being like her parents, what with the drinking and all, but it made her feel good. It made her feel numb to all the craziness and bullshit of real life. She’d been forced to deal with reality all her life. Couldn’t she go one night without being reminded of it?

“C’mon, sugar. Daddy’s got ya,” the old man’s words were slurred, his eyes glazed over. “No, Dad. I don’t want to,” the little girl replied, backing away from her father, a frightened look on her face. She knew what was going to happen, and tried her best to stay away from her father, at least when he was drunk. A small boy stood in the doorway to the living room, his eyes opened wide in shock. “Go to sleep, Matt. I’m fine,” She assured him, giving him the GO AWAY warning while her father turned to look at him. “Go to bed, ya little brat,” he ordered, “Or you’ll be next.”

“Don’t tell him what to do! You’re not even his real dad!” She yelled at him. She didn’t like this man. He wasn’t her real father, and he certainly wasn’t Matthew’s. He had no right to treat him that way. He could mess with her all he wanted, but he’d better leave her brother alone. She’d kill him if he ever even thought about it.

“Shut yer trap!” He yelled back, striking her across the face. Matthew stayed where he was, his expression changing from horror to anger in a second. “You leave her alone!” The small, gangly twelve-year-old – merely a year younger than his sister – charged at the large man, jumping on top of his back and striking him as hard as he could…

Kacie took a deep breath as she stepped off the bus, clearing her thoughts once more. She didn’t need to think about it, she didn’t need to think about it…

It still didn’t keep her from remembering it anyway.

Quickly, she hurried into the club, eager now to search for her kind of Novocain, whether it be the drink or the pipe, she didn’t care. She needed it, and she needed it now. She paid her way in, of course, and the man at the door placed a large U on her hand with a large, black Sharpie. Who cared about that anyway? That she was underage? Those old farts wouldn’t pay any attention anyway. She sighed, walking into the building filled with young adults and college students. The place was dark, with bright, colored lights flashing across the dance floor. She began to circle about the room, searching for a decent candidate that would be willing to buy her a drink…

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

word count 957 - not counting coding
status FiNiShEd
tagged OpEn
inspiration ToUrNiQuEt - EvAnEsCeNcE
other