Catastrophe

Chapter Two

Raven

It's been seven long fucking years since my mom uprooted my ass and brought me here to Los Angeles, California. She got a job as a receptionist at some high class plastic surgery center and made some celebrity connections. I never would have believed it would happen until it did, but because of those connections, I was now famous, a heartthrob snagging the attention of all who met me. I was a king among the dark souls of this wicked town. I was a singer. A rapper in a band I created. Eighteen years old and I'm the king of the scene wherever I go. Mom's been edgy lately. I'm not sure why, but I get the feeling she's about to drop something heavy on me. That's fine though. I don't care.

It was nine in the morning on the last Saturday in July. I had gotten home sometime after two in the morning, reeking of alcohol once more, a bit of coke still smudged under my nostril and a joint tucked behind my ear. My wrists were bloody once more and I had lost another five pounds. At six foot six, I guess it was unhealthy for me to weigh just under a hundred pounds. My black jeans were barely staying up and my black tee swallowing me whole, but fuck it, I didn't give a fuck.

"RAVEN!" My mother's voice echoed from the kitchen as I pulled myself from my bed and out into the hallway. I was hung the fuck over and everything hurt. My eyes were blurred from the leftover effects of the drugs and alcohol.

"Yeah?" I may be a famous, drugged up rich bitch, but I always spoke to my mother with respect and love. It was because of her that my music made it big and she's always been my biggest supporter. I walked towards where I heard her yell from. Mom was older now, her brown hair laced with silver as her brown eyes held wrinkles around the edges. My mother was my hero. She had two kids, an ex-husband, and had survived a battle with cancer not once but three times. She was smart, brave, kind, and strong. She was everything I wasn't and more. I would do anything for her.

"Raven, honey, I need you to sit down for a minute." Mom sighed as she ran a hand through the newly grown hair along her scalp. I looked around the house for a moment. Boxes were stacked up and filled to their brims with our things. A travel bag was open on the table with a couple tickets to Colorado sitting beside it. This was it. The moment I felt coming since we left seven years ago. We were finally going home.

"South Park?" I heard my voice ask softly, hearing my voice switch from the cold and dark tone of Raven the singer to Stan the South Park kid. My mother, sensing the switch, used my birth name instead of my preferred name.

"You need help, Stanley. Your father and sister have agreed to let us stay with them until we find a house. I love you, but I can't watch you slowly kill yourself." She bit her lip for a second, fighting off tears. "Stan, there's something else. Kyle isn't in South Park anymore. Neither are Kenny, Eric or Butters. Your father says the boys and their families all disappeared the night we left. We're going home, but it may not feel like home anymore."

"I understand." I sighed as I stood to pick up a stack of boxes to pack my things into. "Are you putting me in rehab?"

"Tell me honestly what you're on and we'll decide together how to deal with it okay?"

"Coke, weed and alcohol, I guess I should tell you now that I also smoke every once in a while." I looked away from her. I felt like a disappointment.

"Stan, honey, I think you should at least look into the rehab center outside of town when we get back to South Park."

I felt myself breathe in deeply and sigh, "Okay, Mom. I'll go pack. When do we leave?"

"Plane's at one, but the movers will be here at noon, so you better pack fast. I love you, honey." I felt her arms around me for a second before I got up to go pack, pulling my phone out to message StarBoy back. I had no idea who he was, but he had been my constant friend since we met in an Omegle chat room when I was twelve. He and his boyfriend, BabyBean, were the only people who seemed to know the real me and accept me no matter what. They were on the site to try to ease Bean's anxiety to strangers. I knew they had made a handful of friends from different sites, but I had never talked to the rest.