Gateway Drug | Volume I

Gateway Drug | Part Four

"Why won't your mom-"

"She thinks it's sexually immoral to have a piece of cotton shoved up in there." Tommy interrupts just as Nikki comes back in from outside.

"Can we please stop talking about my anatomy?" I ask them.

"Absolutely." Vince surprisingly agrees.

"Thank you." I sigh out, and the room gets quiet as Vince turns another page, making an impressed facial expression as he turns the magazine to get a better look at whatever he's seeing.

"We sure as fucking hell can talk about Vicki Lasseter's anatomy, though." He grins and Tommy and Nikki rush to his side to see what he's seeing, tilting their heads to match his, oohing and ahhing and I gag. "Hey, Viv, why don't you try to get in to one of these?" Vince asks, waving the magazine.

"I'll pose for Playboy when you do." I tell him without thought.

"Oh, please, Saint Vivian would never lower her standards to match that of those worthless whores with lack of morals and spiritual compass." Nikki mocks my voice and I look at him.
"You'd be surprised to find that I don't think the same way my mother does, Devil-Spawn, and if you would stop writing me off all because I go to church and pray to a God you couldn't believe in any less, you would discover I don't think any less of the women who pose nude, I don't think any less of troubled rockstars and I don't think any less of people who don't share the same beliefs that I share because if everyone kept their clothes on, only listened to mundane music and agreed on everything, the world would be a boring place." I argue, giving him a smug smirk when he rolls his eyes and steps to the kitchen.

"You don't look as shitty as I thought." Mick tells me blankly.

"Awe, thank-"

"Just take the fuckin' compliment and shush Virgin Mary." He waves me off and I give him a closed mouth smile, flattered he complimented me...sort of.

"Hey, Tommy, do we have rubbing alcohol?" Nikki asks, about to light a cigarette.

"Under the bathroom sink, why?" Tommy answers and in a few seconds, Nikki's in front of us, holding the bottle of rubbing alcohol in one hand and a box of matches in the other with his cigarette hanging from his lips.

"I have an idea." He tells us and we look at him blankly. "We need more special effects for the shows, man." He adds with a raised brows, as if that makes it a better idea.

Apparently I'm the only one with a brain because Vince and Tommy jump up with bright smiles.

"Dude, it'll be fuckin' awesome!" Tommy exclaims and Mick and I exchange looks.

Before I can say anything, Nikki's offering the bottle of rubbing alcohol up to Vince and he starts dousing Nikki's leather pants in the stuff before taking a match from the match book.

"Um, you're doing that in here?" I ask them before Vince can start any fire.

"Sure, why not?" Vince shrugs and I take a few steps back, waiting for him to light his friend on fire.

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The crowd's screaming gets louder and rattles my eardrums once Vince lights Nikki's leather clad legs on fire during the middle of "Live Wire."

I watch from behind stage, not feeling like dealing with the pushing and shoving of the crowd.

Once they're done with yet another sold out show, they're stumbling backstage, high off adrenaline and tipsy on Jack and I'm a few paces behind them as they head in to the dressing room.