Cheating on Myself

The Shooting

Author's Note: This is a very upsetting chapter and may disturb people of a disposition. I recommend that if you cry easily, grab the tissues now.

'You took a while. What was that all about?' Gabe asked when I was released from Dixon's hold and had managed to navigate my way through the mass of sweaty bodies towards Dana and Gabe.

'Oh, he just explained why you two had fell out in the first place. I mean, he hasn't really done anything wrong towards me so I wondered what went on to make you hurt him as you did on that day behind the bike sheds,' I lied, smoothly.

'That's a very big mess and a very long story. That's why you were so long, is it? I hope you don't think worse of me now you know I beat my best friend up,' Gabe said, putting his arms around my waist.

'No, I think I'll let you off because I love you so much,' I said, grinning and reaching up on to my tiptoes to kiss him.

'Get a room!' Dana crowed, pretending to vom.

As I put my head on Gabe's shoulder, I noticed Ivan take a huge wod of cash from a gang of four or five lads and pass them little resealable bags a quarter full of white powder. It looked a little like sawdust, actually.

I kept watching for a few minutes and he handed out packets of pills and an extra large bottle of Skittles vodka. Two pills from the packet were popped by a heavily made-up girl and the next second she was bouncing off the walls like a kangaroo on... ecstasy.

'Hang on a minute, I'm just going to find Dixon and ask him if he can get Ivan out of here. He's dealing drugs and it's seriously scaring me,' I said, moving Gabe's hands from my waist to down by his sides.

Gabe nodded in approval and I found Dixon in the kitchen talking to a girl with gothic style black hair. I recognised her as Cassandra Hodthorpe (or Cas.)

'Hey,' he said, spotting me walking up to him.

'See you later, Dixon. Call me,' the girl said, putting a 'phone' up to her ear and winking. She left through the adjoining door and left me with Dixon and random gangs of people having their own conversations.

'So what's up, sweetie?' Dixon asked, leaning on the wall and taking a swig from his bottle. I saw it was Crabbie's Non-Alcoholic Ginger Beer. Good boy.

'Is there any way that you'd be able to ask Ivan to leave? Or at least deal his drugs outside?' I asked, smiling sweetly and fluttering my eyelashes.

'That punk is dealing shite in my house? Oh no, no, no, not going to happen,' Dixon said. He stormed ahead of me and found Ivan selling another packet of his white sawdust. I stood in between Dana and Gabe, holding his hand and linking her arm. I could just hear what they were saying.

'Look mate, s'there anyway you could continue this outside?' Dixon asked.

'You zink my customers want to go to cold for highs?' Ivan said.

'Well, no, zey probably don't. Tough, zey're going to have to,' Dixon said, mocking Ivan.

'Is you mocking me?' Ivan asked, squaring up to Dixon.

'Maybe I am,' he teased.

Ivan took a swing at Dixon's head but he ducked and took a couple of steps back.

'You want to play?' Ivan snarled.

'Well, I don't know about you but we could play Hide and Seek. You hide from me because you're so scared yet I still seek you,' Dixon threatened.

'Zat's it!'

The next second, Ivan pulled a gun from his trousers and shot a hole in the ceiling. Everyone screamed and started running, including Gabe and Dana and I. Dixon tried to get others out before he himself got shot. I screamed and everything went black with a final squeal.