Getting It Together

A Familiar Face

"So, Gi-Gi..." Pascal drummed his fingers on the steering wheel and hummed. He looks at Giovonnie in the rearview mirror. "How are you doing? Did you keep drawing while I was...Away?"

"M'fine..." Giovonnie mumbles, staring out the window. His hand gently ran through Sela's fur, his gaze vacant. He had fallen asleep for about an hour and had woken up to Pascal still driving.

"Wha'ohh. Looks like we need gas." Pascal notices, quickly pulling into a gas station. "You want some chips, oreo?"

"No thank you," Giovonnie whispers, slouching down in his seat. Sela lets out a small ruffing noise, nuzzling close to Giovonnie in an attempt to comfort him.

Pulling up the hood from the babysitter's hoodie, Pascal gets out of the car and starts the gas flow into the car.

Sela whines, looking up at Giovonnie. Giovonnie looks up at the soft muted jingle as the convenience door swung open, and Kayla Smith walked out.

"Yuk it up, Kayla." Brent laughed. Kayla shook her head tiredly and took another swig from the bottle.

"Are you sure your parents are okay with this?" Giovonnie asked quietly. He was seated a little ways away from the circle, his arms wrapped around him. He still wore his shoes, too uncomfortable to take them off, and his hood was pulled over his head in an attempt to hide. People moved around the group on the floor, some ocasionally falling with how drunk they were. Another teen, looking to be almost twenty was passed out on the couch, his mouth wide open and his face covered with spitballs.

"Yeah dude, it's totally fine." Jenna smiles, leaning over and spinning the bottle. "Ooh! It landed on you, Vonnie!"

"Me?" Giovonnie blanched, staring down at the bottle.

"You know the rules man, kiss, or drink." Kevin waggles his eyebrows suggestively

"Is it...?" Giovonnie opens the top and sniffs the drink, his nose wrinkling in disgust. "Is it strong?"

"Nah dude, it's like eighty percent water." Brent assures him.

"Hey, you don't have to drink it," Kayla tells him, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"C'mon Kayla! He can't chicken out on the rules!" Jenna argues. "He said he'd play! You're game, aren't you Vonnie? Don't be a pussy."

Giovonnie looked down at the bottle and quickly took a swig. The vodka burned as it went down his throat, making his eyes water.

"Ayy, good sport!" Kevin cheered, smacking him harshly on the back.

"Oreo?" Pascal huffs annoyed that Giovonnie's attention was on something other than him.

Giovonnie snaps out of his daze as Pascal looks over to the convenience store. Giovonnie notices the car was no longer near the gas pumps and was instead parked in a hidden part of the parking lot, likely because Pascal didn't want the van to be noticed.

Kayla was still outside, holding a bag of chips with one hand and talking to someone on her phone. Giovonnie could see her pretty clearly thanks to the bright gas station lights. Her lipstick was smeared, and she had mascara running down her face. If Giovonnie were closer, he would have noticed the young teen's hands shaking.

"That's the bitch that hurt you..." Pascal growls.

"Geez Vonnie, you're such a lightweight." Brent laughs. "One sip and you're drunker than all of us."

Kayla and Kevin were in a bathroom together, and soft noises and giggling occasionally drifted under the doors, muted by the music pounding through the house.