NYCTOPHILIA

chapter one • the night we met

Rafe had never been a particularly big fan of obnoxiously large parties, held in vast houses and filled to the brim with bodied upon bodies dancing with one another. He would attend them no doubt about it, either to sell gear or see whom is out and about socialising- yet upon this occasion he was solemnly at this fruitless party for one thing, a distraction.

You saved your dad, aren't you proud of yourself?

Lately he had been in his head too much, concealed in a bundle of misleading thoughts that taunted him relentlessly and wanted a way out. There was only one thing that was able to numb that commotion for a short amount of time, drugs, drugs and more drugs.

Pouring the fine white powder from the small clear baggie it was stored in and then onto the bathroom counter, he pulled a random card from his wallet and created multiple precise lines of the substance next to one another. The males smile widened as he drank the sight in, mouth instantly salivating and organisms rattling with pure eagerness to consume those delicious looking fine lines.

There was around four rounds for him to inhale and within a blink of a second Rafe had his nostril connected to the cold counter, snorting the drug hastily with that greedy craving to feel numb. Usually he'd roll a dollar or two for a more clean and direct use, yet tonight was an exception as his patience was thinned to as little as a paper sheet.

He coughed a little as his eyes rolled to the back of his head, minimally shaking to let the drug enter his system whilst swiping his index finger across his two nostrils to clear the remaining power. Of course he never forgot to dig the pad of his finger into what was left upon the counter and rubbed it firmly into his gums, leaving not a grain of coke left to waste.

Looking in the mirror that hung above the vast sink, he took a free hand and raked it vigorously through his dirty blonde hair- letting it fall effortlessly upon his sweat lined forehead and breathed out a shaky exhale as he waited for it all to kick in.

And then he stood staring at himself in the mirror silently, examining each and every feature he inherited with all the concentration he could grasp. Hands gripping the edge of the marble sink as he leant in close to the reflection, you did the right thing Rafe, you're okay.

It wasn't long before he made his way back into the party now infused with cocaine, the intensity of the music and lights that were shone around the place were licking his tender skin. That same sense of euphoria he would often feel would arrive shortly, but for now he grabbed himself a red plastic solo cup and filled it to the brim with a cheap whiskey that sat on the beverage table.

The liquor swirled around in his plastic glass, watching it swell and fall with an intensive glare that the coke provided before he took it back and downed the whole lot with a few heft gulps. It burned, but he liked that, the feeling it summoned in the bit of his stomach as it felt fiery and warm.

Rafe never felt warm, always stone cold and lacking any heat within himself- so it was nice to experience that fuzzy feeling of the whiskey setting light to his insides.

A distraction, that's what he wanted initially as his top goal prior to attending tonight's party but it seemed the drugs and alcohol were just not enough, looking around as he slouched into an armchair that overlooked the sea of dancing bodies, hovering the cup over his bottom lip whilst scanning the area.

And that's when he saw her.

Dancing on her own upon a table that was in the middle of the mass of people- smiling and giggling as she ran her bare hands up and down her body sensually. The mystery girl was wearing a fiery red cami dress, clinging to her curves beautifully with a split that allowed her tan thighs to peak through as her wild chocolate locks were left dropped over her shoulder and down the nape of her back.