truth or dare {five-six people; barrie kids}

[CLEO EVERETT]

{barrie common room/student center.}

Cleo had had a very long day. It wasn’t her classes, per say. She’d only had three of those. It was that she’d gone home after her classes and proceeded to do way too many things. She just really missed her mother and grandfather, that was all. So, she’d done laundry and cleaning and chores and lots of baking, along with a lasagna and salad. Cleo had just felt like moving around and keeping busy and the best way to do that was to go home and do everything she couldn’t really do at Barrie. She could do laundry and cleaning and cooking in her dorm, but it wasn’t the same. It was cramped and familiar in there. She missed home.

Cleo had had a very long day and she was quite tired. Instead of collapsing in her bed, Cleo instead put the extra food from home away in the dorm kitchen and headed down to the common room. She could just lounge about in here, watching the guys play video games or maybe she’d join some girls in nail painting and gossiping. Whichever. She just needed something new. Cleo was curled up in a comfy armchair, her arms wrapped around her legs. She was resting her chin on her knees and she nodded off a few times already. It wasn’t easy to stay asleep, though; it could be pretty loud down here. A few guys were playing some video game with lots of shooting which led to shouting at each other or the television screen or both.

Cleo had hardly noticed the dull weather until she was on her way back to the college. It was gray and cloudy out and she was quite sure she’d felt a few raindrops while heading into the dorm building. The last thing she expected, though, was weather bad enough for the power to go out. At first, she hadn’t realized for she’d dozed off again. When the yells got louder than before, she slowly woke up and opened her eyes to see what was wrong. It was still dark… Cleo sat up and looked around. The lights were out and the television and she really hated sitting in the dark. She sighed, annoyed and shifted in her arm chair.

“Well. Anybody up for a game of truth or dare?”

[JAMIE SHOEMAKER]

Sitting under a lampost smoking a joint.

It was one of Jamie’s hobbies almost. He didn’t usually smoke as much as he did today but shit was getting real bad, real fast. He had a couple of days until he’d have to show up in the Alleyway. The only people who knew were Joey and J. His dad had no idea and neither did any of his drinking buddies. He wondered what they’d do when he disappeared. He wondered what his dad would do when Jamie showed up at his house and asked to move back in.

But Jamie didn’t want to wonder and he didn’t want to worry. So he smoked a joint. Then two. Then three. Until he felt nothing. He missed being this fried. Everything was calm. Nothing mattered. What was the harm in that? Maybe he could start smoking a bit more just to keep the anxiety away. Cigs usually did it for him but having a gun held up to your head every other day and watching people get hurt, or even killed made cigarrettes feel like an energy drink without caffiene. They just didn’t work. Weed wasn’t too bad for him and it didn’t cost as much as what he used to have.

He wouldn’t do those drugs again. When the weed stopped working he’d just have to deal. Or maybe stick a gun up to his head and blow his brains out. It sounded like a nice idea. Hopefully he’d go to Heaven but even Hell sounded nicer than the Alleyway.

Okay, Jamie thought. Don’t think. He took another long drag and realized the light above him had gone out. All he could see was the glowing end of his joint and the moon. Why was it so dark, he wondered. Jamie stepped on the remains of his joints and walked back into his dorm. The common room was completely pitch black. Not knowing where his cellphone is, he flipped up his lighter and went towards who he thought was Cleo.

“Well. Anybody up for a game of truth or dare?”

Her face appeared in the small light the flame gave and Jamie sat down next to her.
“So, the power’s out. That’s nice,” Jamie said to her. “I guess I’ll play. Better that than be bored.”