99 Steps

Step 29: Make Peace

Hey

Dude answer me

There's a party at my place and I thought you should come

Screw it I'm fucking calling you if you don't answer

Right as Jack read the last message, Kloee's name popped up. He hesitated for a moment, an image of Mark sitting across from him in the diner flashing across his mind before he just brushed it aside and answered.

"Hey, fuckass, are you going to show up or not?"

"First of all, you didn't even give me time to reply to your texts, and second of all, I don't have a car."

"Steal Mark's? You know how to drive right?"

"Well yeah, it's just that he's not here right now." Jack looked at the time, counting how many hours Mark has been gone for. "He left for the night like 4 hours ago now."

"Oh shit. Did you dump him?"

"No, well kinda but not real-" Jack was cut off by Kloee talking again.

"I'm not talking to see how you guys are doing, so are you coming or not?"

"Kloee, I just fucking told you that I don't have a ride. So no, probably not." Something about the conversation he was having made Jack remember why he didn't like talking to drunk people when he wasn't drunk - at least he hoped Kloee was drunk. Otherwise she needed to work on paying closer attention to her conversations.

"Oh, right. Well I could come pick you up, huh? Oh no, Frank is going to. Yeah he lives right over there. Yeah. Okay." Clearly she was still on the phone with Jack, but talking to 'Frank'. "Okay so he'll be over in a few minutes. Be ready otherwise he's gonna leave without you." And with that, she hung up the phone.

Jack sighed and rolled off his bed, looking at himself in the mirror. He was lightheaded and dizzy from smoking nearly half of what he had left in his pack of cigarettes, aside from that he could probably pass as a student who did what they were told - minus the green hair, tattoos and gauges. So really, he couldn't pass as a good student at all.

Something in his chest made him walk over and flip the light off and lay back down in bed. He had to make some sort of peace with that part of his life and just leave it behind him. Jack couldn't keep doing the same things that ruined his life.

The Irishman's thoughts swirled away like leaves on a breezy autumn day as a pounding on the front door thudded through the house.

"Hey," Jack said, pulling the door open. His eyes paned the man outside the door a few times before meeting his eyes. "Frank?"

"Yeah. Kloee is drunk off her ass otherwise she would have come to get you. I hope this isn't weird for you or anything-"

"No, not at all! I mean," Jack looked to the side awkwardly for a moment, trying to gather his thoughts back together. "No, it's fine." Frank smiled stuffing his hands in his front pockets. "So we should probably go." Jack stated after realizing that Frank and himself where drinking in the sight of eachother.

"Yeah. Kloee is excited to see you." Frank got back in the drivers seat of his car, which he presumably didn't turn off when he knocked on the door.

The 20 minute drive wasn't weird, in fact Jack found it refreshing to be in a different car with a different man, listening to the radio instead of the music he picked out.

"Well. Let's go get shitfaced." Frank grinned as he killed the engine in front of Kloee's house.

As Jack walked inside, he thought about Mark and their date for breakfast, and how he told himself he had to put this part of his life behind him and leave it there.

Crowds of people in the halls and living rooms jostled him around as Jack followed Frank on the search for Kloee. He didn't really think anything of it, but Jack realized that Frank had a tight grip on his hand, pulling him around with him. As if on cue, a new song started playing that seemed to shake the walls.

Frank looked back, smiling. "Hey, a casual affair, that could go anywhere and only for tonight."

Jack smiled, recognizing another one of his favorite bands. What he didn't realize was Frank's intentions for the night.