Roulette (Part 3)

KayZee was standing in front of the television in the living room, feeling a wave of panic rise in her chest. She’d heard stories like this one in campfire stories before. Usually ones similar to the urban legend of the hook. But, as she listened to the news anchors talking about a woman who escaped a psychiatric hospital where she was being held, KayZee couldn’t believe what she was hearing was real.

            “What’s wrong, KayZee?” Harper asked. “Did something happen?”

            Harper stood next to her friend trying to figure out what happened to put KayZee in a near catatonic state. Unfortunately, Harper only caught the end of the report. She didn’t hear anything about the escaped patient. Only the anchors urging watchers to call the police if they saw a woman, whose picture was superimposed on the screen next to one of the reporter’s heads.

            “No, seriously. What?” Harper prodded KayZee.

            “Oh, nothing. Just something on the news that’s kinda creepy.”

            “What? Did something happen back home?”

            “Not there… Somebody escaped a psychiatric hospital about fifty miles from here.”

            “That’s only creepy if they were in for committing a crime,” Harper wasn’t concerned about someone escaping a hospital. Fifty miles away? What were the odds that they would end up anywhere near the cabin? Besides, Harper had learned through experience that people with mental illnesses weren’t all scary murderers as society would have everyone believe. In fact, her own older brother had Borderline Personality Disorder. He was still a pretty great guy.

           

***

            Mateo placed his duffel bag on the bed, making sure not to damage some of the things he’d brought. Most of the contents were his clothes, which he obviously wasn’t too concerned about. However, he’d had an idea for what he and his friends could do during their stay in the cabin. Mateo wasn’t expecting there to be much to do. He wasn’t even expecting there to be electricity. It was in the middle of the woods. Just in case this trip turned out to be the real-life version of the stereotypical slasher movie he brought his zombie knife. To be honest, it was more of a machete with a green handle. The tip of the blade of flat instead of pointed and the back end of it was serrated. His second most prized possession. His first being the bottle of vodka he took from his parent’s liquor cabinet. Sure, he’d be blamed for it later, but as long as this trip was in any way interesting, he was fine with that.

            Pulling out the bottle by it’s neck, Mateo held the bottle of clear liquid in front of his face, inspecting the contents.

            “How fucked up would it be if my Mom or Dad replaced the real vodka with a vodka bottle full of water. Wouldn’t be surprised. They have to know I’ve been taking shots of their good shit for years.”

            Mateo heard laughing coming from upstairs. It sounded like Miles. He’d know that deep bellowing chuckle anywhere. This reminded Mateo of a time when he went camping with Miles and few classmates in Junior High. One of the older boys in the class brought a flask full of whiskey and about five kids played a game called Roulette. That was the first time any of them had been drunk. One of the kids in the group, Vanessa, became more paranoid the more she had to drink giving them all away.

            “That’s a solid idea. A full bottle should be enough for a few games of roulette. Maybe more than enough. It all depends on how quickly we get wasted.”

            With his bottle of vodka in hand, Mateo walked back up the stairs to join his friends. It was already late—about eight in the afternoon. This would be the perfect time to play. Mateo hoped it would be as interesting as the first time.

***

            “Your parents are gonna be so mad you took that…” Jenna shook her head at Mateo. But, she was glad that he’d brought some liquid courage. Luka was going to need it. She couldn’t get him to relax around all of her other friends and it was starting to bother her.

            ‘Maybe I really shouldn’t have brought him along. But, he was invited. I guess he’s just really shy about being in other peoples’ houses.’

            “Yeah, they probably will. But, it wouldn’t be the firs time, nor will it probably be the last. Who cares about that? I brought it so we could play a game.” Mateo held up the bottle as if he’d one it on The Price is Right. “It’s something Miles and I played while we were on a school camping trip in Junior High!”

            “No…” Miles said, excited at the thought of playing what had since become his favorite game, despite only having played it once. His eyes widened as he thought of the fun he’d had the last time. Or, at least, what he could remember from that night. Miles had fewer shots than some of the other kids but reached a state of drunkenness faster because he was small for his age at the time.

            “Oh, yes, my friend!” Mateo had a look on his face that was borderline maniacal. It’s time to play… Roulette!”

            The others in the room who had never played Roulette before looked around at the others waiting for someone to explain Mateo’s rambling.

            “Oh, and you have to take straight shots. None of that pussy shit, chasing it with orange juice or whatever!”

            KayZee raised an eyebrow, “Pussy shit?”

            “Yeah, whatever. You gonna explain what we’re supposed to do?” Jenna asked. She was totally on board, feeling that getting Luka drunk would be the only way he would loosen up.

            “But, pussy shit, though?” KayZee rolled her eyes. “I’m gonna have to drink you under the table for that one…”

Roulette (1)

“Come on! It’ll be fun!” Jenna said with almost too much enthusiasm. It was finally winter break, and they had a few weeks off from school to do something fun. Although, hanging out at a secluded cabin in Hillsdale wasn’t Luka’s idea of fun. He’d rather lock himself in his room to play videogames and draw, particularly because he got paid for the latter. But He was invited to the spend a week at KayZee’s cabin along with Jenna and a few others, and Jenna was doing her damnedest to convince her best friend to come along.

“It’ll be fun for you because you’re friends with pretty much everyone who’s gonna be there,” Luka reminded Jenna. “I only know KayZee and you.”

“But Mateo will be there,” Jenna said in that sing-song voice that people use, making it seem like they’re dangling a prize in front of someone’s face.

“I don’t know him…” Luka said, feeling his ears become hot. If he knew they were turning red that meant Jenna did, too and could tell she was winning.

“But you like him, and he’s going to be there,” Jenna teased. She shot Luka a glance displaying her confusion with a bit of disbelief. “How do you have a crush on someone you don’t know?”

“First of all,” Luka reached for a bag just big enough to fit in a week’s worth of clean clothes and his laptop. “I don’t have a crush on him. And, isn’t that how…life works? Have you never heard of the phrase ‘Love at first sight’?”

“Aww, is that what it was between you two?”

Luka gave his friend his best ‘you can’t be serious’ face and threw a pair of his underwear at her.

“Ooh, yes! Bring these!” She squealed. “They’re cute! And Mateo likes cute.”

“He’s not going to see them even if I wear them! Besides, he has a girlfriend.”

“So? He’s on the football team. Those guys don’t even know what monogamy means, much less how to spell it.”

“You’re kinda mean,” Luka laughed as he stuffed his things into the bag. He’d just organize it all when he got there. If they didn’t leave soon, they’d be late. And Luka didn’t mind spending a week with Mateo.

“I’m also kinda right.”

***

            “Why do we have to take your car, again?” Mateo groaned while climbing into one of the back seats. He decided to sit next to the window hoping something in the passing scenery would keep him awake. According to Mateo, the worst thing in the worlds were road trips, and this would be a long one.

            “Because my car is bigger than yours,” Miles laughed. “Like a lot of other things.”

            Mateo glared at the back of Miles’ head who elected to sit in the middle row, next to the window. Miles knew Mateo was staring at him and was inwardly laughing at how worked up his friend got about things. Like the time in elementary school when the two were camping in Miles’ backyard, and Mateo demanded to walk home, just next door, early because he peed in his sleeping bag after a nightmare. Miles thought he was just going to change, but he left crying and never came back.

            “I can still feel you burning holes through my head, bro. Calm down!” Miles said without looking back at Mateo. He preferred to imagine heat radiating from the top of Mateo’s head. It was funnier that way. “I was just joking!”

            “Hahaha, fuck you…” Mateo mumbled. He knew Miles was joking, and that was the problem. The guy never took anything seriously. Including what he said to people. Miles figured because they were friends he could say whatever he wanted and expect there to be no consequences. Despite being best friends, his joking nature was the one think Mateo hated about him.

            KayZee walked around to the driver side and opened the door. “Can you guys keep it down?” She asked, annoyed at the two boys who would be sitting behind her. “I could hear you when I was locking my front door!”

            “Sorry…” muttered Mateo. He knew KayZee was being a little dramatic, but he and Miles did get a little loud when they were around each other. He thought about that but couldn’t come up with an answer as to why.

            “Sure,” Miles said sarcastically, handing his car keys to KayZee. “Just…please don’t wreck my baby. I beg of you!”

            “You drive a Honda Odyssey. It’ll be fine no matter what I do to it.” KayZee started the large, blue van as she sat in the driver’s seat. “Jesus, Miles. You wanna be a soccer mom when you grow up?”

            “Don’t mock the van. Last time I did that I was stranded on eighty-one outside of Scranton.” Miles shuddered in remembrance of his most difficult time in the snow.

            “That’s because you’re terrible at judging how far you can go on an empty tank,” Jenna said as she got into the car in the same row as Miles. That way Luka, who got in after her, would be forced to sit with Mateo, or risk making thinks awkward. “Heads up, it’s usually nowhere far enough to make a difference.”

            Luka sat down in the opposite side of the back row, avoiding eye contact with Mateo as best as he could. He even took his phone out and stared at the home screen to pretend he was busy. If Harper hadn’t called shotgun twenty minutes ago he would have sat in the front passenger seat. But now he had to act as if he hadn’t been caught staring at Mateo in the locker room freshman year. And pray Mateo had forgotten about it.