Warped Minds

Chapter 1

I opened my eyes to see a bright sun shining in through the car window. The smell of the cold winter air is filling my nostrils along with cigarette smoke. I rub my eyes as I sit up in the small back seat of the Monte Carlo. I loved this car, but I seriously need an upgrade.

"Hey Aria, can you get off at the next exit? I really have to pee." I said, holding out my hand to indicate for the cigarette she had in the center console. She set them in my hand and I opened the small box getting a whiff of the sweet nicotine inside. I take out a long straight cigarette and purple lighter and light the small object between my lips. I breathe in the intoxicating smoke and breath out. The first hit is always my favorite.

"How was your little nap?" Aria asked. "You know you slept for about two hours." She said looking into the rear view mirror. I smiled and put the cigarette in the holder while I crawl over the center seat.

I sit upright and scratch my head grabbing at the cigarette again. I turn my head to look at Aria and she has a few dark circles under her eyes and he hair was a mess.

"You know all you had to do was wake me up and I could have driven," I said looking out the window. As we go on to the exit we see a small town that has not even a population of one thousand. We follow that road signs and get to Casey's. As we park I open my door and throw my cigarette on the ground and step on it. I took a deep breath as the cold winter air was sucked into my lungs as I stretched my arms upward.

"So how far are we?" I questioned as Aria walked around the front of the car.

"Were about an hour away. But if we speed we can get there in thirty minutes." She smiled. I rolled my eyes as I opened the door for her. We bought some chips and drinks and we checked out. She flung the keys at me as we walked out of the store. I caught them and got into the driver's seat, I strapped on my seat belt and turned the key in the ignition. The car roared to life and we started on our way again.

***

Aria was right, about an hour into the drive we were in town. It was about six thirty P.M. and we made good time. I pull into the hotel parking lot and thought it would be best if I woke her up after I paid. I left the car running so Aria wouldn't freeze to death and walked into the warm hotel. I walked up to the counter and rang the bell. A middle-aged woman walked out and plastered a half-hearted smile on her face. I asked her for a room with two beds. She handed me the key as I swiped my card. I smiled at her and left the building. I walked outside and Aria was already up and looking around. I opened the side of her door and she smiled when she saw me.

"I thought you left me in here." She said as she stretched getting out. I closed the door behind her and went over to pop the trunk.

"What makes you think that?" I question her, giving her a questioning look.

"Well I mean, You left me in here and were parked in front of a hotel, so thought you just went to the hotel room."

I shook my head as I helped her with our bags. We shut the trunk as we piled the last of our bags onto our shoulders. We step inside the warm doors and rest our bags onto a cart. Aria pushes the cart as I try to find our motel room.

"125...126...127...128!" I hold the card in front of the lock and it clicks to green. We get into the small room and I take the items from my pocket and throw them onto the bed. I sit on the bed and lay back. It's nice to have a real bed to lay in after five hours.

"Hey, we should grab some grub." Aria states. I nod in agreement.

"But what though? I know I saw Starbucks across the road or there's

McDonald's a little bit down the street." I reply. Aria sat up and heard an involuntary sigh come from her.

"Well, I know don't want to get back into the car, so how about I walk across the street to Starbucks and see what they have." She stated.

"Yeah that sounds good, I'll unpack for us." I state. I looked into the bathroom, it was the nicest bathroom I had seen in forever. I definitely need a shower tonight to warm up my cold body.

As Aria leaves, I grab my bag and take out my clothes putting them in the large dresser that takes up most of the room. I get Aria's bag and hang her clothes. She has this thing against creases, but I think she just doesn't want to have to fold them.

After I finish unpacking our things, I grab some fresh clothes and go to the bathroom. I set my phone on the counter and turn the water on. I strip down and go to my playlist on my phone. I play the song MANTRA by Bring Me The Horizon. I step into the hot water and it gives me goosebumps. My body instantly warms up and I stand there, just letting the water hit my face. After about five minutes I finally decide to clean myself. I take a handful of soap and spread it around in my hair. After it's all soapy I get the body wash and take a decent amount of soap on the washcloth. After I wash my body, I rinse my hair out. I shut off the hot water and grab a towel from the shelf. I myself off and wrap my hair.

I change into a black tank-top and some loose shorts. I grabbed my phone and walked back into the main room. Aria was setting down the drinks and food. I walked over to the counter and grabbed for a drink, and a plastic container. I thanked her as I laid back on the bed.

"Hey, aren't you excited?" She questioned me. What is she talking about?

"What should I be excited for?" I questioned her, clearly sounding lost.

"Aren't you excited to be here for this concert, because it seems to me since we left town you haven't been feeling yourself." She states. I've been totally normal.

"Well maybe I'm just a little homesick, that's all Aria. Don't worry about me okay? I don't wanna ruin your fun." I smile as I take a bite of the chicken wrap she brought home. It tastes so good compared to all that junk food we snacked on in the car.

"Well, I want you to have foo too. I'm not gonna be happy if you're not." She states. I roll my eyes playfully.

"Fine, you win. I promise from here on out, I'll be nothing but happy." I put my hand to my chest and held one up. "Scouts honor." I said smiling. She rolls and I earned a laugh from her.

"You know I thought about going down to the pool. Do you wanna join me?" She questioned.

I tilted my head back and forth deciding whether I should or not. I think I'm gonna decided against it. "No, I better not, If we have to wake up as early as we have to tomorrow then I should stay in and get some sleep." I replied. I finished my wrap and laid back onto the bed before getting another drink of that delicious Starbucks.

"Well, I'm still going too. They have a hot tub here and I need to relax some.

She said going over to the closet and grabbing her swimming suit.

"Well you have fun, I'm gonna lay in bed and relax," I said making fun of her. She rolled her eyes and took off down to the pool. I turned off the light and quietly played some music to help me fall asleep faster.