same drugs//young lyric x lil niqo

when did you change?

"lyric, let's go. I'm leaving in five minutes." alyssa yelled from downstairs, rushing me.

"okay, okay. you been telling me you're leaving for like the past thirty minutes. just give me a second." i yell back, playing with my hair in the mirror for the 1,000th time.
this was going to be the first party I've gone to since i started attending public high school, so i had to make a good impression.

rushing down the stairs, i ran towards the door, sliding on my shoes. "finally. you dressed like you on your way to the Grammys." alyssa opened the door, pushing me out gently.

~

we had to walk through a bunch of trees and weeds to get to the area where the party was being held. the boy having the party, julio, was not allowed to have parties inside of the house. his family has money. he has all of his parties in their backyard, which means we have to walk all the way around his huge house to even get to the party.

"hey! lyric, right?" julio greets me, holding out his hand to shake.
"mich- yeah. lyric." i shrug, shaking his hand.
"cool, nice to meet you. food and stuff is over there, the bathroom is straight through the living room and to the right, and everybody is sitting by the pool. don't go anywhere else in the house but the kitchen, living room, and the bathroom. other than that, go crazy." he explains, picking up a drink. i nod and walk towards everyone else, pulling alyssa behind me.

the crowd was moving towards a table, setting up cups and filling them with alcoholic drinks. beer pong.
the cups formed a pyramid, the liquid equal in each one. i thought about what could happen if i decided to play. i had never had any alcohol before, so i don't know how my body will react to it. still, this party is huge and this is my chance to just relax and do things i wouldn't normally do. that's what the fun is about, right?

i ended up drinking twice. i didn't feel anything serious yet, but i was a little dizzy.
"here, see how this tastes." a boy comes up to me and hands me a cup, patting my arm and then walking away. i shrugged and drank it, not realizing what i was doing at the time. both the smell and taste were very strong.
after i finished the drink, i stood up, nearly losing my balance. i walked slowly around the yard, searching for alyssa. people kept offering me drinks, but i rejected them. i was trying my best to stay in control of my body, but it was becoming harder overtime.

i walked into the house, searching around for her. i know he told me not to go anywhere but the kitchen, living room, and bathroom, but i had to find alyssa.
i walked back out, asking everyone i ran into where she could be. i was ready to call an uber and leave, but i couldn't go home without her.
"no, i don't know where alyssa- wait. lyric?" someone pulls me up by my shoulders, making me stand up straight. i study their face, trying to remember them. it wasn't happening.

"it's niqo. your old best friend? what the fuck are you doing here and why are you drunk?" he asks me. i got a chill as i thought of the past and when we were friends.

i met him in second grade. we didn't live very close, but we still went to the same school. we were in the same class throughout most of our elementary school years. we were split up in middle school. i had to go to a school closer to me, and he went to a school closer to him. we tried to stay in contact, but it just was not working.

after middle school, i was supposed to go to the same high school all my old friends were going to, but my mom decided that she wanted to send me to private school for freshman and sophomore year. i was so lonely. i had no friends and nobody to talk to, so she decided to stop torturing me and sent me to the public school.
i hadn't been to a party since i was in private school when one of the girls who i was friends with had a birthday party at a hotel. i really don't enjoy going to parties, but i thought it was a good idea to come. now i know why i felt like there was a reason for me to be here.

"come on, we're going to find alyssa." niqo interrupted my thoughts, grabbing my hand and walking towards the front of the house.
"what kind of car does she drive?" he asked me, turning around.
"i don't know, but it's pink. we parked right there, next to that tree." i pointed lazily, sighing. my arm was weak and didn't stay up for very long. he gasped, but immediately was quiet.
"stay right here." he sits me down on the grass and starts walking away. i groan, laying on my back and waiting for what felt like forever.

"i have to take you home, julio can't leave while guests are here and everyone else is trashed." niqo grabs my hands, pulling me up. he wraps my arms around his shoulders, making me walk behind him and helping me stay up.

once we reach his car, he opens the back door, gently sitting me inside and putting on my seatbelt.
"you're puttin me in the back?" i question him. he just sighs and gets in the driver's seat, starting the car.

"do you remember how to get home?" he looks at me through the rearview mirror. i shook my head, not even knowing where we are.
"call alyssa, please." he tells me, stopping on the side of the road.
the phone rings for a while, then she picks up, sounding tired.

"lyric! oh my god, I'm so sorry i left you there. are you okay?" she rambles. "yeah. I'm coming home. niqo is driving but i don't know where he needs to go." i respond.
"i can't understand you." she says simply. niqo takes the phone, explaining. i close my eyes, leaning my head on the door and falling asleep. niqo's voice was relaxing, a good source of background noise as i tried to relax.

~

the door opens, and suddenly I'm being pulled out of the car and carried up to the apartment i share with alyssa.
when we get inside, niqo lays me on the couch and removes my shoes.
"are you straight? if you need to sleep, I'll stay." he tells alyssa, handing her my shoes. she stares at him for a moment, squinting.
"alright. one time." she throws him a couch pillow and goes back into her room.

"okay, lyric. you're just gonna have to sleep in that dress. where's your makeup removing stuff?" he asks, looking around. that question reminded me of the past. at one of my parties in 6th grade, i had fallen asleep with a bunch of messy makeup all over my face. my cousin had bought us cheap makeup to play around with. niqo didn't have any on, of course, but everyone else fell asleep with theirs on. he had woken me up to ask where the "remover stuff" was because my cousin told him that it's not a good idea to sleep with makeup on. he woke everyone up, handing them remover wipes and explaining why they had to take it off.
this moment was just like that one, and he's still the caring person he was before.

"when did you change? the lyric i knew wouldn't have ever done any of this." he asked me, looking concerned.  i didn't say anything. i wondered the same thing. when did i change? why was making a good impression so important to me?

i was disappointed in myself.

a/n: hi i hope this didn't suck ): the next ones will be longer, this is just an introduction type thing. i hope it wasn't corny either lmao but if it was, oops. thank you teelaflare for the cover and @Mia_And_Books for the idea. thanks for reading (: 💕