He nods, impressed. “That was kinda hot.”
I smile and wink at him. “I could do the other line—”
“No. See how you feel after that. You said you want to function for your test tomorrow, so don’t try to go overboard.”
“Party-pooper.”
It only takes minutes before this intense wave of sensations hits. I get pretty dizzy at first, and Atlas holds me up, taking me into his room and putting me on the bed. He lies down next to me, watching to see how I react. This warm tingling sensation washes over my body, and it feels like someone just wrapped me up in a tight blanket. A feeling that would normally make me feel claustrophobic feels…comforting. My heart rate slows, and I lie on my back, staring up, smiling at my reflection in the mirrors on his ceiling. “Damn.”
I hear Atlas chuckle beside me. “Right?”
I turn my head to look at him. “This iswaydifferent than the Molly. I…” My words start to slur and are harder to get out. “I feel…” My eyes close, and I let the numbness take over. “Damn. Wow. Everything feels…floppy.”
“Floppy?” he asks. “That’s a new one.”
My eyelids feel too heavy to open back up. I just lie there and enjoy the wave I’m surfing on, focusing on every sensation I feel—not a single thought in my head.
43
Lydia
When I wake up to my phone buzzing, I’m in my bed, in my dorm.
I don’t even remember leaving Atlas’s place or coming home last night.
I answer the phone, trying to sound normal.
“Hello?”
“Hey! I just wanted to wish you luck on your midterms,” Sarah says over the phone. She sounds so…awake.
I yawn, still trying to get my bearings. “Oh, morning, Sarah. Thank you. I’m just waking up, getting ready for them soon.”
“I won’t keep you then. Just wanted to check in and tell you good luck. Let me know how they go, okay?”
“Okay, I will. I’ll talk to you later.”
“Talk to you later, sweetheart.”
I hang up, trying to get my eyes fully open still. That high was so…different. So peaceful. Mostly because I just remember feeling nothing. Plus, I feel fine this morning. I really expected to wake up feeling shitty, but I’m pleasantly surprised. I look over and see Lani and Simone still sleeping. When I go to get up, I feel slightly sluggish, but nothing crazy. Nothing like the comedown from Molly. Maybe a little obvious brain fog and tiredness, but nothing an Adderall can’t fix before my tests today. Speaking of Adderall…I look around, spotting the jeans I wore last night, and pick them up. I pull out the little zip-lock bag from the pocket and see that there are several Xans in it now, along with the Adderall.
Always coming through for your girl, Atlas. Thaaank you.
I smile and tuck the bag underneath my mattress. Once the girls wake up, we all start getting ready for the long day ahead of us.
“Thank goodness today is the last day of midterms,” Lani drawls out. “I need a damn break.”
“I second that,” I say, walking over to my dresser and pulling out clothes for the day.
“Where did you go last night?” Simone asks, watching me from her bed.
I pause, quickly trying to remember the lie I had planned. “Oh, yeah. I was…at a late-night study group at one of the girls’ dorms that’s in my intro to sociology class. I needed to jam in some last-minute studying before today. It’s the test I’ve been feeling the least ready for.” I try laughing lightly so I sound casual and she hopefully believes the lie…‘Cause that’s all I got. Don’t ask me for any more details.
She gives me a mindless nod. “Oh, that’s good. So you’re ready for today?”
“Sure, yeah…I hope so.”
Lani butts in, thankfully changing the subject. “Are we still all going to the party together tonight?”
