Don't Stand By Me (COMPLETE)

CHAPTER ONE

KIARA

July 25th 2022 - 17:22

Like every other bad idea, it started with Violet. She would get these ideas in her head that were impossible to shake, and I got dragged along for the ride. I knew when she got that look in her eye, that I was screwed because no one was capable of saying no to Violet for anything. What she wanted, she got. This particular idea though, I wasn't expecting and to be honest, I could have said no if I really wanted to, she wouldn't force me, but my guilt of lying to her forced me to say yes.

It was a random Monday in the weeks following graduation when she burst into our shared apartment, a wild look in her eyes and clutching sheets of paper.

"I have the best idea ever!" She squealed, kicking her shoes off haphazardly and literally skipping into the centre of the room.

Violet was practically bouncing on her toes, her blue eyes wide and shining as she had to physically contain herself from hopping around the room. There were times when her energy was infectious - this was not one of those times. In the four years we had known Violet, she had been multiple different people; the spoiled brat, the rebellious teenager - which in her case was refusing to spend her parent's money for a week before she had a meltdown in her part-time Sephora job - the vapid influencer, and then the somewhat regular girl. This most recent phase, which was somehow a combination of the lot, was still my favourite, despite how high energy she had become.

Violet was like a hyperactive pixie girl who was born and bred amongst New York's highest socialites. She was the kind of girl who wore Escada jeans and Gucci sunglasses yet lounged around the house in a gingerbread onesie screaming Britney Spears lyrics at the top of her lungs while Elvis and I, usually hungover, begged her to stop. She had come a long way in the last four years and - as much as I didn't care to admit it aloud - she had brought us along for the ride.

I was a self-assured person, I could admit that Elvis and I were raging assholes when we first met Violet, but she had been no piece of cake either - something she would never admit outloud.

Elvis and I shared a look over the kitchen table, one of his perfectly shaped eyebrows raised at me in concern. We knew her well enough to know this was something we would not enjoy. Elvis took a slow sip of his coffee and looked at her expectantly.

"Well?" He sighed, "What is it, Barbie?"

She glared at him, then shook her head, not letting his bitchy demeanour distract her from whatever she had in store for us. To be fair to her, it had been at least a few months since she had sprung something like this on us, but the last time...well, Elvis and I were pulling glitter out of uncomfortable spots for weeks. And the images burned into our minds were still fused there.

"We are going to the Grand Canyon!" She clapped her hands excitedly, throwing the papers onto the table.

Splayed across the table were dozens of pictures of the Grand Canyon, along with printouts full of words I couldn't even make out because there was too much to pinpoint. One of the sheets had a photo of the ugliest RV I had ever seen. I barked out a laugh, and Elvis joined suit, both of us bursting into a fit of laughter while Violet watched with her hands on her hips, glaring at us.

"The fuck we are," Elvis snorted once he caught his breath, "Not a chance."

"I'm with him. No way."

"Come on!" Violet pouted, "It would be so much fun and God knows we all need a distraction!"

"I am doing just fine, thank you very much." Elvis crossed his arms, "I am not spending a week in a sweaty RV with you two to go see a glorified cliff? No chance, princess."