missing | gilinsky

57

Jack Johnson

We ended up in the woods not too far from my house. 

It took a bit to convince Gilinsky to come, but I tired him out enough to the point where he gave in and showed up at the house.

I'm not sure what Nadia's thinking when it comes to him. When I asked she refused to talk about it, but when he stood at our front door she looked as if she'd been swept off her feet, I couldn't tell if it was in a good way or not. She's way too temperamental about these things. 

Anyway, I got the alcohol and drugs from Mike, who insisted he tag along on our little get together. Then Mallory came into the picture and that's where I had to put my foot down. There's no way I could handle seeing Mallory right now, especially when Hannah was going to be around.

"Listen, man. I'm thankful for you hooking me up, but I got a lot of my mind. Do you think I could have some time to myself?" I had explained. 

"Yeah, totally," he concurred, looking a little defeated. I would've felt bad for him if I wasn't already feeling bad for myself. 

After thanking him I went back to the jeep and directed Gilinsky to where I thought would be a great spot to chill. So far I think I made a pretty good choice. 

Gilinsky has a pretty high tolerance for alcohol, so as he reached for his fourth beer I wasn't too worried. It was Nadia who was starting to spark my interest. She's already on her third, and she looks like hell. 

Me, on the other hand, am doing pretty well with the joint I've got between my fingers.

Hannah hasn't touched any of it, I should've known. She's not that kind of girl no matter what the situation. It impresses me, but also kind of makes me feel guilty. Mallory was moral like that, before me of course. 

"Slow down," I warn Nadia as I watch her hiccup down a gulp. I can't believe I'm actually letting her get drunk. Sam was always one to talk me into putting my guard down when it came to her, and he's even doing it from hell or wherever he is at the moment. 

"You're no the boss o'me," she exasperates. 

I would be annoyed with her for not listening to me if I wasn't getting high, instead I end up laughing.

"He's right," Gilinsky instructs, snatching the beer can right out of her hands. My eyes widen, as does Hannah and Nadia's. I don't mind him looking after her, but I didn't realize he'd be so forceful about it. 

"Hey!" Nadia protests, her forehead wrinkling. "Give back!"

"Stop."

"You stop!" She's angry now, standing up from the grass, almost tumbling back down. Gilinsky's fast as he jumps up in front of her, gripping onto her forearms. 

"This is her first time drinking?" Gilinsky asks me. My mouth parts open as if I'm going to answer him, but the words never find their way out. 

"I'm pretty sure, yeah," Hannah replies, biting the inside of her cheek as she looks me over. 

"I'm definitely cutting her off."

"You can't cut nothin'," she argues, trying to push him away from her. He doesn't move an inch. I laugh, scared by the loudness of it. I flick my joint into the grass, knowing I've had enough puffs to last me a while. 

"I'm starting to think this wasn't such a good idea," Hannah lectures, beginning to pick up the empty cans strewn around the ground.

"Aw, c'mon now, baby. Don't be such a dweeb," I provoke.