Obsession // Ashtray

1

Nyah's POV (nai · yuh)
I stared at the ceiling, counting how long the seconds really were. "Rue, do you think we're gonna be for lifers?" I giggle with nothing but space in my head. I don't know what drugs Rue offers me anymore but it never bothers me that I don't know. I just pay for her because I want the high and she wants someone on the high with her.

Rue had just come from rehab, and I'm not gonna lie, I was shocked she had no intentions of staying clean. It worried me a bit and made me feel like a bad friend for encouraging her addiction. But I needed the escape too, I tried to convince my brain that I just wanted to see her happy and be the one person who isn't trying to change her but I know deep down I'm hooked too.

"We better beee. You're like my drug sponsor," she laughs falling off the bed, making us both submit to a laughing fit. I get up and walk to her bathroom feeling the high slowly come down. "That was the last of them, wasn't it?" I ask, sighing as I sit on her toilet and wait for my brain to let me pee. "Yeah we should get more at the corner store," Rue tries to say coolly, I knew what she really wanted to say which was "pay for me again" but she didn't.

"Yeah, word. You know McKay? Yeah well, he's having a party and since I'm his cousin he wants me to help set it up so if you want shit, we gotta go now." I sigh, observing my body in the mirror. You couldn't really see anything because I was wearing Rue's grey long-sleeved shirt, red and blue checkerboard pants and a random jumper. It was safe to say Rue and I left her house looking homeless as fuck. I tied my once-free afro into two puffs which took so much energy because my hair was not cooperating and I was so very out of it.

"Bike or car?" Rue looks at me and gives her the most judgemental look ever. "Girl, are you serious? Don't answer that because the only right answer is no. Get in the fucking car I'll drive." She gets in after jokingly surrendering her hands in the air, looking offended. On the drive there, we bop our heads to some Trippie Red vibing.

"Fez! What's good?" Rue yells running to the high man smoking a blunt chilling in his chair. I get out of the car and lock it then walk to Rue and Fez who were already conversing. "There's some new girl in town that I think you gonna be friends with," Fez says looking at Rue and then nods at me in a greeting way, and I smile and reciprocate the movement. "Who?" Rue continues the catch-up chat so I look around the store for anything, to be honest. As I walk to the back, I hear Fez say "Shit, I don't know. She came in yesterday lookin' all Sailor Moon and shit. I'm thinking to myself, like, look like somebody Rue would get along with."

Lo and behold there was Ashtray. Now, this guy didn't really have a reputation that I knew of other than being Fez's brother and partner but it's fascinated me that I didn't know much about him. "What do you want?" He looked up from the money he was counting, and I was surprised at the face tats he had. Honestly, if he is my age, then I'd be quite surprised who would do his face tats. I hadn't seen him since before the summer... before Rue went to rehab. And that's because I only do drugs with Rue. After all, I may be hooked but I'm not outright dangerous.

"Just waiting for Rue to come and say what she wants for us." I laugh awkwardly at the end of my sentence. Why am I so weird? "Why can't you just say what you want?" He asks rudely. Well damn, I was baffled and confuzzled. "Cuz I don't know what she gets? Damn, is this an interrogation?" I roll my eyes, almost about to walk out but Rue walks in.

"I thought your ass was dead." Ashtray laughs as he watches her walk in. "You look like it too." He adds with a smirk. "I thought you had Asperger's till I realized you're just a prick." She retorts back. They had a cute relationship I must admit, but it made me feel some time of way. "This is a fickle industry. Y'all come and go. I'm just trying to stack my cash, pay off our mortgage. So what the fuck you want?" He glares, and I can't tell if he's joking or not.

I feel a buzzing in my pocket and see it's Roy calling me. "2C-T-2, 2C-T-7, and 5-MeO-DIPT." Was the last thing I heard Ashtray say before I walked out to talk to Thing 1. "Yes?" I roll my eyes. Why the fuck is he calling me when I still have time before I need to set up. Chris, Troy, Roy and I were all super close when we were young, but we drifted and started all doing our own shit when we got to middle school. And I know we'll always have each other's backs because we're family but part of me wishes we were close again.

"Wow, that's the response I get from my favourite cousin." I laugh and I hear him fake pouting on the other side of the call. "Yeah, well, I'm only your favourite cousin because we share a last name and what do you want?" I joke. I missed this energy. "Chris wants you to buy drinks, he'll send you the money is that calm?" I roll my eyes again. I know I'm already at the store for drinks, but that's still an effort, and I wasn't mentally prepared to do favours for people. 

"Yeah, okay, tell him to text me the list of what he wants," I say as I walk back to where Ashtray and Rue are. "Okay, cuz, thanks; love you," I hear him say, "yeah yeah, you know I love you too." I chuckle and hang up, then look to Rue and Ash, who are still talking about drugs. "Who was that?" Rue asks teasingly, and Ash doesn't say anything but looks a bit intrigued too. "You nasty asshole," I laugh and punch her in the arm, "It was cousin Roy asking for shit." They both go back to their convo, and I sit on the chair near the door bc my back be aching from living.

"I don't know. The shit's been blowing up in Tampa, and mad people like to fuck on it." Ashtray continues. "Okay. Yeah." I don't know what Rue was agreeing to but I couldn't really be bothered to care. I was busy looking at the fat list Chris wanted me to get for drinks. "That'll be 120."
"Fez said he'd spot me." Rue lies, taking the small bag and a few steps backwards. "Fezco don't spot nobody." Ashtray retorts and Rue grabs the car keys out of my hand and runs out before he had the chance to continue.

"This bitch," I sigh, though it was really no surprise and pay double to the tatted boy in front of me. "Can I get whatever she got?" I look him in the eye, something I realise I have done this whole time and his face falters for the tiniest second making me question what I really saw. Nonetheless, he says "Calm," Handing me the little ziplock bag and contents. I walk out of the fridge to see Nate fucking Jacobs. "Hey Nyah," he winks at me and returns to browsing the shop. The nerve of this guy, "Wait, since we have the same destination, why don't I drive you there?" He moves closer to me as if he's about to touch me but I quickly get out of the way. I hate the Jacob's family."That's okay. Mckay wants me to run some errands first and I've got Rue in my car," I smile weakly and walk closer to Fezco before he has the chance to respond. Man, I should've punched this boy. "Okay, we'll see you there," he yells and walks away, his voice getting less clear from the distance.

I look to Fez with the most disgusted look and say, "Why do I feel like McKay's party is gonna be total chaos?" He shrugs, zoning out again after another hit of his weed and I look to the legitimate fridges filled with an assortment of liquors. After what felt like an eternity, I finally picked all the alcohol needed. "You got any cash left?" Fez asks. "Nah, card or bitcoin," I scrunch my face after checking my bra for any last dollar, knowing damn well I didn't have any."Go to Ash he'll transfer it so you get cash. I ain't got no Eftpos," he inhales on his blunt and sits on the counter lightly hitting his legs on the cabinet door.

"Miss me?" And as soon as it came out my mouth I wished it never left. "You're fucking weird" Ashtray raises his eyebrow his face in full judgement. "And you're technically a dropout but I don't say nothin." Wow, I really don't shut up. "Can't drop out if I was never enrolled dumbass," he sneers and I wave my phone around in surrender. "I just need cash from Bitcoin," I sigh, folding my arms. This boy is so annoying, like damn I get the world is cruel and all but relaxxxx. Giving me a whole headache and for what? "Yeah, whatever. All the money in the account?" He grumbles avoiding my gaze. "Yeah," I gulp staring and my feet which won't stop shuffling around. The awkward tension starts to suffocate me as he transfers the Bitcoin to his account. When he finished, he gave me the cash, and I ran out quickly saying a quiet thank you. I paid Fez and took the 15 bags of liquor to my car where Rue was laughing and nothing. "Bitch already took them drugs without me," I sigh and drive off.

Word count: 1770

This was long as shit icl. Thoughts so far? Also pls vote Thanks :)