Dance Moms - Lorelei (3) James & Hilliker

Chapter 20 : Gang Land

Chloe looking at the burner phone, thinking what to do with it. Kalani bought kebabs from a food truck and found an empty basketball court to rest. Like the rest of the city, it was covered with trash and graffiti.

"Why aren't you touching yours? I asked to skip the chili." she still mocking her at the prank.

"How can you eat after beaten up someone like that?"

"Don't have feelings for junkie." Kalani took a big chunk.

"Most of them involuntary. Do you think they would take drugs if they have other choices?"

"They HAD other choices. Most of them did it to impress their friends."

"Have you done drugs?"

"Next stupid question?" the gangster girl threw her a look.

"But you didn't become an addict?"

"I was deep in it. Deep!" Kalani admitted.

"What's it like?"

Kalani took a long look at the well educated girl, leaned back and began.

"It's like borrowing money. You made an advance of all the money you'll ever need in your life, spent it all at once, and then spending the rest of your days paying back. Except with money, when you're paying back you can keep your mind on other things. With drugs it's joy, taken it away and you couldn't think of anything else, you'll do anything to get the next refill, even it means robbing your mom or selling your little sister."

"How did you overcome it? The addiction."

"You fight it. There's no easy way around it."

"But how? So many people failed at rehab."

"By looking at others fail." Kalani looked away. "You look into the mirror every day, telling yourself you don't want to become like them."

Suddenly Chloe understood why Kalani beaten the girl, she must be resenting her own past. Not wanting to dig deep, Chloe changed the subject.

"Where did you get those pills?"

"I took a tour at the rehab when you were in session."

"You're kidding me! You stole it from rehab??"

"I wanted to know what they have!" Kalani shrugged, took out two orange bottles and rattling it like a baby's toy.

"Put it away!" Chloe looked around cautiously. "You could get arrested for procession of drugs!"

"Not in Philly apparently." Kalani put the bottles back in her pocket. "They're not just drugs, Chloe. They are currencies, sometimes they work better than money. People will do anything to get it. It's control. It's power!"

Chloe nodded quietly. She learned about what drugs could do to people, but mostly from school and news. Today she witnessed the poor girl licking powder off the street, it impacted her more than ever.

Her thought was cut short by shadows casting over them, looking up she saw four boys and a girl snickering, they looked no older than eighteen.

"Looks like someone got in here without paying a toll!" a boy who wore his cap backwards said.

"I think her shoes would worth the price!" his girlfriend nodded. "And her clothes."

Chloe felt an unusual awkwardness, she has been shot at, burned, blown up by terrorist and cartels, she has never been robbed. For a moment she wasn't sure whether to take them down, or just give them money and send them away.

"What? Can't a girl take a rest in a public place?" Kalani whined, continued eating her kebab.

"This place isn't public. This is our land, it has our name written all over it." the boy pointed at a graffiti on the wall.