High Life | ✔️

23

THE STUDENTS AT Richmond Park Academy really knew their forest, is all I can say.

I tread a treacherous path with sharp twigs and unimaginable critters as Elias and his blonde companions navigated the thick overgrowth. The night wasn't a silent one, it provided us with an orchestra of owl hoots, cricket chirps and rustles of various leaves and branches as night breeze whistled through tangible nooks and crannies.

Conversation was idle. Soon, I began hearing a different sound. The rhythmic bass of something not naturally occurring in American forests. Upon further advancement on the dangerous path of dead twigs, possible quick sand and mysterious creepy crawlies, we chanced upon another group of teenagers who had camera flashes of their cellphones pointed at the ground. Quite similar to the positions we took.

"Yo, DICKHEADS," Elias hooted in their direction.

"Yo," One of them called back. "Guys, look, it's STD with two legs!"

"I do not have an STD you morons," Elias yelled back as he began to speed up his pace.

This of course alarmed me. I was already falling behind. Although I wore sneakers, these females had steel toes clad in sandals. I reconciled my protracted pace with my lack of experience in jungle trekking performed in complete darkness.

As soon as Elias was out of earshot, one of the blondes spoke up.

"Does he really have an STD?" Concern laced her voice, that much one would be able to tell even in a state of complete darkness as one undertook dangerous tasks such as hiking through razor sharp twigs, unseen predators from the wild and a landmine or two who the fuck knew.

"Did you guys bang?" Another one of the females asked back. Her question took an accusatory edge.

I was starting to understand that Elias was some kind of a prized object in Richmond Park Academy.

"Why are you so shocked?" The blonde scoffed back. "We hang out all the time. Do you think we play board games?"

"I think she meant to ask if you two were dumb enough to have unprotected sex," Elias's third female companion chimed in.

"Hmm," the blonde took a few seconds to think. "Well, no but... I, you know, his dick."

"I don't know what you did to his dick. Please enlighten us," one of them returned.

"I," the blonde began to make obscene hand gestures near her oral orifice.

One of her friends burst out laughing. "You can't get an STD from sucking dicks."

"Are you sure?" The blonde asked back. "Like are you really, really sure?"

"Who cares," the third voice laughed. "I would be, like, honored to catch an STD from Elias. I want to carry his child. Imagine how hot my child would be if it had half of Elias's genes. And his wealth too," she sighed happily.

We were drawing close to the venue of the party now. I could now hear the familiar dynamics of pop culture music blasting through high quality speakers. We soon approached an opening. One that seemed to overlook an abyss. The party was at some sort of a cliff - pity the vista it boosted was shrouded in darkness.

The party appeared to be in full swing with teenagers gyrating to Lil Uzi in various stages of undress, bushes in proximity echoing with moans of pleasure, the faint but present smell of Marijuana, large bonfires surrounded by arsonists who appeared to be burning anything in vicinity (pretty sure I just saw someone push their friend into the fire), and of course the kegs. Oh alcohol was everywhere. The place was littered with glass bottles and aluminium beer cans.