Sunny September, part fifteen. Chase.

  I sit there in the grass for several minutes taking in everything that’s just happened.

  Regaining my composure, I wonder if it was actually an intelligent decision to get Chica involved. It was ultimately a shot in the dark and I don’t know if this will pay off. She was correct to point out the logistics as I don’t know what to do with Markeiff after he’s free. Where will he go? The cops will be hot on his tail and I don’t think there’s a solution without doing something extreme like forcing him to change his identity. How the hell would I even do that? And this is all assuming Chica can be trusted to get the job done.

  I call Okimoto. He doesn’t pick up which starts to worry me, but then I hear his ringtone go off somewhere deep within the house.

  Cautiously I go back inside where I see that Fredrick and the sisters have fallen to the ground, all of them fast asleep.

  Listening carefully, I make a turn for the staircase where the ring tone (Thank You For The Music by ABA) plays.

  I come to find my best friend sprawled out with what looks to be vomit trickling from his mouth at the bottom of the steps.

  I squat then slap his face and shake him until his eyes squint open and he releases a groan.

  He sits up before grabbing his stomach in discomfort.

  It doesn’t take me long to realise he too must have fought with Fredrick.

  “How long was I out for?” He asks.

  Checking the time I see it’s thirteen over one in the morning.

  If I’m not mistaken I arrived here at around ten past ten, which means we’ve been here for around three hours.

  “I wasn’t there when you got knocked unconscious so I don’t know,” I admit, “all I know is I’ve had enough of the Mickey Mouse cum house and would love to go home.”

  “What happened to Fredrick and the Seven Sisters?” He asks, “why are they sleeping and back to normal?”

  I don’t know if it’s a good idea to tell him how the situation with them was resolved. Chica is something far beyond either of us and with Okimoto’s inclinations it’s best to not let him have access to her. He’s already done enough damage as it is and it would benefit no one if he uses her to stir up more catastrophes.

  “They wouldn’t stop messing with me when I tried to leave,” I explain truthfully, “I finally snapped beat them all unconscious. They’re not as strong as they seem. You should stop slacking off during karate class so you don’t get folded like a Samsung galaxy fold next time.”

  “You’re right I’ve been getting a little fat too lately,” he sighs. “I think Daqwan’s long gone, but what about Germain?”

  “He should be fine,” I say before briefly checking inside the garage where I see him and the other boys all snoring as they sprawl scattered across the ground. “Looks like they’re all fast asleep and won’t be awake until the morning.”

  “I guess that’s it.” Okimoto says, rolling up a spliff without any further questions.

  He rolls one for me too and I hear something shuffle behind me.

  Turning to look I see Trevor holding his head with a grimace as he examines the hole he left in the wall.

  When his eyes meet with mine I see some spider legs briefly emerge on his face before vanishing.

  He’s still infected? Should I call Chica?

  I decide to not bother the girl any further since I’ve already asked enough of her for one night. Still I wonder just what she’s capable of? The casual attitude she had when she said she’d save Markeiff implies a nature that transcends human authority in this world.

  By being friends with someone like her who’s a literal angel I have a massive asset in my life. The last thing I want to do is potentially strain things by making her life tedious, especially when there could be greater opportunities to exploit her abilities in the future. Trevor doesn’t seem to be a threat at the moment so I’ll let him be a problem for another day.

  No words are exchanged between the three of us. As he turns to leave his phone rings and when he answers it’s apparently his girlfriend.

  Not looking to stick my nose in his business, I turn to face Okimoto before remembering the LSD in my pocket.

  I check for it, my face scrunching up when it’s not there. Thinking it’s lost I wonder if retracing my footsteps around the house is worth it.

  “What’s wrong?” Okimoto asks.

  I lean in and whisper. “The LSD’s gone.”

  “You’ve got to be kidding me,” He growls.

  “You’ve got LSD on you?” Trevor yells surprised.

  For a moment I wonder how he’s able to hear us but then I see he’s actually talking to his girlfriend. Then I start to get suspicious, only now noticing he’s dressed up as the joker, and remembering that one bitch dressed as Harley Quinn…

  Now I can’t help but find the phone call he’s having a bit more ‘interesting’.

  “How are you feeling?” She asks.

  Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

  “I’m totally done for the night,” He says. “Are you still close by? I’m going to need a lift home and don’t get mad if you I fall asleep on the way,” he laughs. “Oh and you were saying what about the LSD?”

  “Snatched it from some tall black dude with dreads.” Her voice sounds.

  He looks at back me, his complexion shifting to that of milk fresh from the udder.

  Okimoto stands up. “Here’s what you’re going to do. You’re gonna call her back here where she’ll give it back to us so no one gets hurt.”

  “I’ve think I’ve fucked my life up enough by taking orders from you,” Trevor hisses venomously.

  Okimoto lunges at him and is kicked back on to the stairs.

  Trevor books it for the front door as I hold Okimoto back yelling, “let it go.”

  “Screw that.” He sneers.

  “There’s always…”

  I stop myself from saying something dumb. There is no tomorrow for us. I shouldn’t get my hopes up as I don’t know if Chica can truly pull through. It’s easy to see the light at the end of the tunnel and jump for joy, not realising it’s only the headlights of an incoming train you can’t escape. Life is full of its nasty little surprises and I’m only stupid not dumb. I stupid person always knows better while a dumb person doesn’t.

  “Damn it let go of me!” Okimoto yells, frantically, “he’s gonna get away.”

  “Give it a rest man it’s one in the morning,” I sigh, “just go home and get some sleep.”

  “No,” He dismisses, “we might not even walk free after tonight anyway. So why not have this one experience to remember when we’re locked up?”

  Crap, I can’t let him know just yet. Not until Chica succeeds in the task I gave her.

  I give in and run with him out to the driveway where we see an unidentifiable car blast off down the hill.

  The cars from earlier were all gone, the main bulk of the party having gone home.

  We hop on Okimoto’s motorcycle and speed off towards where the car went, quickly catching up to it before tailing it through the streets of Bel Air.

  I identify the car as a Chevrolet as well as the licence plate.

  “RUN BOY RUN!” Okimoto yells out while laughing as if he’s already ingested some of the LSD.

  We blast past my house and are quickly out the gates and on to the main road.

  “We have to stay on their tails,” Okimoto yells above the roar of the engine, “I have a full tank of gas so we just need to outlast them. I don’t think they’re stupid enough to take the LSD while speeding.”

  The car speeds past the night time traffic with us following closely behind.

  Looking around at the bums and nightclubs, I feel a sense of deja vu. The previous night was just like this wasn’t it. Back then I really had no clue what was coming my way. I chuckle.

  The chase catches the attention of a cop car that’s immediately on ass like a pair of booty shorts.

  I start to have a panic attack that ends when I hear them blast their speakers.

  “TREVOR GREEN, OKIMOTO D. CHEFFEI AND CHRISTOPHER MARCUS. YOU ARE HEARBY UNDER ARREST FOR THE DESTRUCTION OF THE HOLLYWOOD SIGN.”

  Guess that’s the end of that. I’m simply going to jail now plain and simple. What point is there in stressing myself out? Why struggle hopelessly against reality when it does nothing to change things?

  I don’t care anymore, the LSD will just be an extra charge.

  Okimoto starts laughing maniacally, ramping up the speed before overtaking Trevor while flipping him off. He tilts and makes a turn towards the I405, heading through some shit hole part of the city, buildings run down and all.

  I guess in the end even an Angel couldn’t save me.

  Long story short we don’t even make it to the I405 and end up crashing when a cop car tries to flatten us from the side without warning.

  We both dive off, tumble across the road so fast it’s a miracle we're still alive and unharmed when we stop. The car barrels ahead where it crashes along with the bike, we don’t even get the chance to see the damage before the police grab ahold of us. At this point I know I’m screwed, so screwed I’m sure you’ll see the face of a Jamaican boy with dreads, high cheek bones and distinct pouches under his eyes pictured right next to the definition of screwed in future dictionaries.

  The world becomes a blur as a hand slams my head into the bonnet of a police car.

  My arms feel like a knot behind my back as I’m restrained, the handcuffs snapping closed on my wrists with a suffocating squeeze.

  The L.A.P.D. officers roar command after command that fly over my spinning head, the sirens drowning out their words as they thrash my ears. I feel a thud come from across the other side of the bonnet. The officer restraining me removes his hand. Raising my head, I admire the impression of my devilishly handsome face that’s left behind.

  Looking across the bonnet I see the idiot who got me into this mess rise to meet my gaze. His silver eyes show no signs of guilt or regret, a smirk forming across his lips.

  ‘Don’t ask me why I do the things I do. Life needs a touch of chaos and thrill to make things more fulfilling.’

  Like an old video tape that flickers on a grainy screen, his words from last night replay over and over, flickering through the turmoil in my mind. Tell me Okimoto, is this the touch of chaos and thrill you’re looking for?

  As I make a mental list of the charges I’ll be facing I smile back at him, knowing that what we’ve done will go down in history. I’m sure my face will be on the news in a few hours but I don’t care anymore, just like what will become of me when I get out of prison, it doesn’t matter.

  My life flashes before my eyes, the images slowing down when today replays. Even now I’m still haunted by the image of the spider legs growing from their eyes, the eyes of those bitches that tried to kill me at the party. The entire day was like a fever dream that never ended.

  I still don’t know why Chica looks so much like my best friend, why they have the exact same rosette shaped mark on their right cheek. Watching the idiot resist the officers while demanding they give him a cigarette, I think it must be either the mark of the devil, or a brand given to demons from hell sent to drag me screaming into the fire.

  I scowl when the officer grazes my ass while patting me down. I smell burnt fumes from Okimoto’s motorcycle. Looking further down the road, smoke billows from it as it lies in a wreck underneath a police car that’s crumpled against a tree.

  After the two of us are thrusted into the backseats I stare past the glass barrier into the rear view mirror. The Hollywood sign is missing all but one letter as it shimmers in the night sky.

  “Ahh shit they got my precious Cinderella!” Okimoto whines as he sees an officer slip his pink revolver into a translucent bag. “Don’t be so rough with her you piece of shit!”

  I lean my head back as I close my eyes. Unlike him I won’t be getting charged for brandishing an unlicensed firearm, I at least was dumb enough to leave my gun behind with the septuplets. Instead I will be charged with vandalism, some variation of grand larceny and domestic terrorism alongside him. I wonder, will they try me as an adult? I sure hope not.

  It’s crazy how much your life can change in twenty for hours, I mean it was literally only yesterday that I ran away from detention after getting in to a fight over a girl. That was so mundane compared to this. So mundane compared to what I did a few hours later. I remember the Hollywood letters tumbling down the hillside like a massive stack of cards. The maniacal smile on Okimoto’s face that was soon followed by even more maniacal laughter.

  That’s right! We were the ones responsible for the destruction of one of America’s most iconic landmarks. I honestly can’t tell you why we did it. Well for Okimoto, it was probably just for the sake of it. He’s a true agent of chaos, after all it was his idea in the first place. As for me I guess I wanted to start my high school years off with a bang, or at least that’s what I’ll say to the judge.

  Two officers slide into the front seats. I avoid eye contact and look outside the window.

  Even now I still can’t get her off my mind. I don’t have a crush on her or anything, hell biracial Asian girls aren’t even my type. Nah, it’s the favour I asked of her that’s fresh on my mind. She might be the only thing left that can save me now.

  The feeling of deja vu intensifies as I wonder what she’s doing.