Side Effect ● Open Novella Contest Entry 2019

2 • News

Mom poked around Levi's eye and he swatted at her. "Ow, stop it Ma!"

"I can't believe you got into a fight," Mom said, tsking and shaking her head. She turned and opened the fridge, getting out an ice pack.

"It wasn't a fight," he said with a sigh. He put his hands in the cupboard behind him and pushed himself up. "Everyone was going crazy and I didn't want anyone near Jo. I pushed him away and he punched me."

I was sitting in the bar chair, spinning side to side. "It was crazy, Mom," I said. "And I didn't even get to watch the ball drop because he was laying in the street."

"Ah, shut it Jo," Levi groaned, grabbing the ice pack. He placed his elbow on his knee and held the pack against his head.

"Was it all you hoped for, Jo?" Mom asked.

I shrugged. "It looks cooler on TV," I said. "There was too much alcohol and drugs to make it fun."

Mom's eyes went wide. She looked at Levi. "You didn't tell me about that," she said, a disapproving look etched on her face. Levi shrank the look on her stare.

"We didn't have anything," I said, rolling my eyes. "We were offered but we stayed good children. Don't worry."

"I shouldn't have let you go," Mom said. "Drugs, fights, just plain crazy."

I waved a hand. "It wasn't that bad. Levi just got a little cold and crazy. Did we mention we almost froze? Snot turned to rock before it exited the nose."

"Agh." Mom gagged and turned away. "Maybe don't tell all this to your dad when he gets home."

"Are you kidding?" Levi said. "Dad won't care. He'll think it was hilarious. It's you we probably shouldn't have told."

"You guys..." Mom muttered before walking away.

Levi slid off the counter and walked to the fridge. He pulled out a carton of juice, twisted the lid off and lifted the container to his lips.

"Levi, no," I said, not even looking up while I pulled out my phone. Levi huffed and lowered it. He dropped it on the counter and got a cup.

"It never changes," he said.

"It's the order of the universe," I said. "The baby sister watches over the older brother."

Levi pulled a chair out and sat in it, drinking his juice. "You mean tattle on. What are you doing on there?" he asked. I looked up from my phone.

"Trying to see anything about Hiipe," I said.

"Success?"

"No... not yet at least. As far as I can see, there's nothing." A search result containing the correct spelling of Hiipe. "I think I got it!" I clicked on it and was disappointed. "Never mind. It's just some dude's website where he misspelled every other word. Including 'hype.'"

"Well, keep searching," Levi said, tipping the cup up and draining it. "I gotta go."

"What? Why?"

Levi stood up. "I'm seeing some of my friends before I leave for New York," he said. He began walking to the mud room to get his coat and boots. "This might be the last time I ever see them."

I laughed. "And what would cause that morbid thought?"

"Oh, you know," he called from the other room. "A plague."

My silence caused him to chuckle. "No, I'm talked me about just getting older. You'll probably never see some of your friends again after you graduate high school. I just want to leave off on a high note with my buddies. See you, Jo!"

The door to the garage opened and slammed shut. I kept searching on my phone for something. Anything at all. But there wasn't a single word.

I have a friend who wanted to work in security. In the process, he's learned how to get into places in the web someone his age shouldn't. I clicked out of Safari and into my contacts. I chose Max's name and held the phone to my ear.

It rang several times and I thought that perhaps he wasn't going to pick up. He did, finally, and answered groggily. "Hullo?"

"Hey, Max, I need a favor."

"Jennifer?" It was silent for a second then, "It's like three o'clock."

"In the afternoon."

"And it was New Years last night! I fell asleep two hours ago."

"And I flew in from New York this morning," I said, rolling my eyes even though he couldn't see. "Help me out here."

"Fine."

I explained to him what had happened and asked what I wanted.

"Jennifer, why are you so concerned about the drug?" Max asked. "Did you take some?"

"Heck, no," I snorted. "I'm just curious. In my forensics class, we're talking about narcotics so I want to to know. Just curiosity."

"Okay. And you want me to Google it? Can't you do that?"

"No, can you get onto a website that sells it and tell me what it does to you?"

"If they're selling it, they won't give the bad side effects," Max pointed out. "Just the happy, happy feelings."

"I know."

Max sighed loudly and I pulled the phone away from my ear. "I'll get on it," he said, his voice seemingly distant with the phone away. I put the speaker back to my ear. "Thanks Max!" I hung up.

Maybe I'll get some answers. Now that I thought about it, it was weird I was so curious. I really was in a forensics class. We're in a unit of drugs right now and I thought I knew about most drugs. In all honesty, I was frustrated there was something I didn't know.

I got a call back from Max twenty minutes later. "Did you find it?" was how I greeted him.

"Yeah. There was only one site that took some digging to find. I entered the chat room to figure out more about the drug."

"Max," I said, laying my head in my hand. "I didn't want you to get into a chat room. Those things are dangerous."

"Oh, like you've never done that?" Max said.

"No!"

"Oh." He cleared his throat. "Anyway, the website never said what was great about the drug so I asked the guy. He originally made it. Get this; it's only five dollars for his little packet of Hiipe. That's some cheap drugs."

"Did you buy some?"

"Nah. I'd rather for getting arrested for hacking into the FBI than getting busted for drug possession. But after I talked to the guy, he told me the drug gives you a high that lasts days. And it's not so extreme that you hallucinate but just enough where life's chill for three days straight. And there's no crash. It's slow and kind to you."

"This is according to him," I said. I didn't doubt this drug made life happy from what I've seen but what Max was talking about seemed impossible.

"It is according to him and he can't be trusted. But that's what I found out. Are you good now?"

"Yeah, I guess so." I didn't find all I wanted to but that's all I was going to get for now. "Thanks Max. You can go back to sleep now."

"Good night."