While Nikki enjoyed her time in Myrtle Beach, she was glad to get back to Mark and into her routine again, even if it meant going back to school. Although, she wasn’t necessarily ready to get back to the cold weather.
She made the decision to upgrade her plane tickets to first class during the week to avoid going through any fiasco at the airport, but it didn’t change the fact that she would be forced to abstain from smoking for most of the day.
Nikki had to make a tough decision while getting ready to leave. She had to decide whether to dress warmly for when the plane landed and tough out the hot sun before getting on the plane or be cold when she got home.
In the end, she chose a tight black t-shirt, tucked into a dark blue pair of bootcut jeans and tied together with a thick black leather belt. She also decided on her black high-heeled boots and would carry her leather blazer folded neatly over her arm.
When they pulled up to the airport, Nikki chained three cigarettes in an attempt to keep up her nicotine levels on the flight home. Alas, it lasted through the first leg of the flight. By time the plane landed in Buffalo, she was ready to crawl out of her skin in order to smoke. She was off the plane as soon as the announcement was made to allow it, and she threw on her leather blazer as she trotted for the baggage claim doors, heels clicking the entire way.
She finally lit up, a seemingly endless stream of smoke permeated from her mouth and nostrils. Nikki engulfed her first cigarette and it wasn’t until she was nearly finished with a second that the nicotine began to rush through her body like an orgasm. She knocked off a third before returning to the baggage claim to get her luggage. Her parents pulled the car around as Nikki smoked another cigarette, she put the freshly lit Marlboro Red Label 100 between her lips and lifted her bag into the trunk before climbing in the back of the bar and rolling down her window to dangle her wrist out.
Nikki’s parents hoped a week away would put some distance between her and Mark, but it didn’t take very long to realize that it hadn’t. They weren’t home for an hour before Mark’s truck pulled into the driveway and Nikki trotted into the kitchen to grab her belongings.
In fact, she was increasingly falling into the outlaw lifestyle. Nikki had been accompanying Mark on his pick-ups and was thinking more and more about trying to create a business for herself, a tough task to accomplish in a man’s world.
That night Nikki told Mark what she wanted to do and he told her that he would help her get something on the side, as long as she didn’t try to operate in club territory and he get a piece of the earnings. Now she had to come up with a way to get started.
______________________________________________________________________________
It took her several days to think of a plan to set out on her own, but one day during school, Nikki was in the bathroom when she heard two younger girls -- Melissa and Stacy -- talking about the upcoming prom and how they would be able to afford a limousine.
Then it clicked.
“I’ll help you with that,” Nikki offered.
“Really?” Stacy responded excitedly.
“Of course. I’ll front you the money and then you can pay me back,” Nikki said.
“Oh my god! That would be so awesome,” Melissa squealed.
“I’ll give you exactly a month to pay me back,” Nikki told her.
“OK, that seems fair,” Stacy conceded.
Nikki told the girls to meet her later that night in the Walmart parking lot and she would give them the money.
When she pulled into the dark parking lot that night, the girls were already there. Nikki put a freshly lit cigarette between her lips and stepped out of the car. Her high-heeled black leather boots allowed her to tower over Melissa and slightly look down at a normally taller Stacy.
She took the cigarette out of her mouth and blew a large plume of smoke, flicking a rogue ash off the shoulder of her leather blazer.
“OK, here’s $200,” Nikki told them, handing them an envelope. “Let’s keep this between us.”
“Oh my god, thank you so much!” Stacy said.
“Remember, you have exactly a month from tonight to repay me,” Nikki told them.
Just as she turned to leave, Nikki stopped, turned around and took another big drag on her cigarette.
“Ladies, you don’t want to be late on your payment,” Nikki told them as she casually walked towards them, a stern tone in her voice. “If you’re late, the payment doubles. If you’re late longer than two weeks, it triples. After two weeks, well, you don’t want to find out what happens.”
“Oh, well we can’t afford that…” Melissa said nervously.
“Then don’t be late, honey,” Nikki said with a condescending smile.
“Here maybe we shouldn’t take your money,” Stacy said as she held out the envelope.
Nikki walked up to her, getting close to her face and she whispered in her ear.
“The deal is done. You already took my money,” Nikki said viciously. “I suggest you pay me back. If not, I’m going to take it out of your ass.”
Nikki blew the remains of her cigarette in Stacy’s face and backed away.
“Enjoy the prom, girls,” Nikki laughed wickedly.
This would be her plan. Nikki would use money she had money made with Mark to loan to other kids for various things, using a high interest rates. She figured prom would be a major money maker for her and she was right. Along with the limo, Nikki agreed to finance a pair of parties and supplied alcohol or drugs for them. It wasn’t a bad start for a girl who had just turned 18 years old.
______________________________________________________________________________
Nikki was now concerned with her profits from the prom, but she had not seriously thought about going. It was a month away when she got an offer.
She had sparingly hung out with her friends in recent months and hadn’t thought of it very much until they approached her in the hall one day.
“So, we know we haven’t been on speaking terms lately,” Cara began.
“So?” Nikki responded.
“Well, we would like you to come with us to prom and hang out after,” Hannah said.
Nikki raised her eyebrows in surprise.
“Wow, I didn’t think you guys wanted me around anymore,” Nikki said.
“That’s not true,” Cara said. “You’ve just changed a lot and I don’t think we were ready for it.”
“It’s the last dance we’ll go to, especially together so we want you to be part of it,” Nicole L. said.
“Well look, I appreciate it and all, but I don’t want to be judged all night,” Nikki said truthfully. “I really just don’t want to deal with that shit.”
“We promise we won’t judge you,” Nicole B. assured her.
Nikki stood there and thought about it for a second and finally said, “Fuck it. I’ll go.”
The girls all cheered and they gave Nikki the plans for the night. She had to admit, she was even a little excited about going. She just had to see if Mark wanted to be her date.
______________________________________________________________________________
Nikki was disappointed to learn that Mark wouldn’t be able to attend the prom with her because he had already turned 21, which was against school policy. This meant she would have to go stag.
They day of the prom, Nikki got dressed, wearing a white dress that came down to her mid-thigh, with white five-inch stiletto heels to match and she put on her black leather dress coat that fell around the same length as her dress to prepare for the cool May air.
With just a month left before graduation, she was in a mindset in which she simply no longer cared what anyone thought of her. That was evident during pictures at the high school before prom.
Because the limo would drop them back off at the school, Nikki drove herself and would meet her parents and friends there. Much to the dismay of the parents in attendance, when she arrived, Nikki stepped out of her car, freshly lit cigarette dangling between her lips. As if it were nothing, she waved to her friends and the rest of the parents there. She would spend much of the time there chain-smoking in preparation of having to go hours without, only stopping when it was her turn to take a group picture.
The rest of the girls wanted the picture with just their dresses, so Nikki took off her leather coat and handed it to her mother, revealing her tattoos, which even her friends had not seen yet since she had to cover them up at school. Aside from her parents, it was a shock to everyone in attendance. Again, Nikki went on like she was oblivious to the stares.
Nikki would spend much of the prom waiting for it to end. She had some fun dancing with her friends, but she was growing tired of fielding questions about her tattoos and she wanted to spend the night with Mark, like her friends got to with their boyfriends. It also didn’t help that she was craving a cigarette.
It was after prom when she knew things would pick up. Nikki fully intended to have a great time at the after party, but she had to attend a few others first to collect some debts owed to her. As soon as the prom was over and the limo returned to the school, she practically leaped out to light a cigarette and informed her friends she would meet them in a bit. First, she had to handle her business.
Unbeknownst to anyone, the trunk of her car was filled with several cases of beer and a few bags of marijuana. Nikki had to supply three different parties and since underage kids would pay anything for alcohol, she charged them double the price for it. All told, she would make a cool $500 for the evening.
As she made her last delivery, Nikki noticed Stacy and Melissa were there. She also knew they were late on their loan payment. It was time to collect. She walked up to the two sophomores with a smile on her face.
“Hey ladies, how’s your night going?” Nikki asked politely.
“Great!” They responded in unison.
“Well I’m glad I could help make that happen,” Nikki said as the smile on her face began to fade away. “Why don’t we step outside for a smoke?”
Sensing it would not end well, Melissa piped up. “We were just had one.”
“Well either you can step outside now, while I’m wearing a white dress, or we can do it later when I’m not,” Nikki said sternly. “And I really hope you know what I’m getting at.”
The two girls reluctantly stepped outside in a quiet country yard as Nikki followed. She lit a cigarette and offered a light to the girls, who declined as they pulled out their packs of Marlboro Lights.
“Look Nikki, we told you we couldn’t pay you so quick,” Stacy blurted out. “Please just give us some more time.”
Nikki laughed. “And I told you to figure it the fuck out or I’d take it out of your asses.”
The girls just stared at her blankly, fear in their eyes.
“OK, I’ll give you another week,” Nikki said. “Is that fair?”
“Yes! Thank you so much!,” They answered.
“Great, I’ll see you in a week then,” Nikki smiled.
Just as she was about to turn away, Nikki stopped took one last drag on her cigarette and flicked it away, blowing out a stream of smoke in the process. In one motion, she turned and caught Melissa hard in the gut with hard right hand, dropping her to her knees. As Stacy stood shocked, Nikki socked her in the gut as well. Then she squatted down to talk to both girls, the bottom of her leather coat inches from the ground.
“Are you both stupid?” Nikki whispered. “I have a business to run here. I warned you not to be late.”
“S-s-s-orry,” Melissa gasped.
“Is sorry going to put money in my pocket,” Nikki asked.
The two girls nodded it wouldn’t.
“Like I said, I’m wearing a white dress,” Nikki continued. “This is as far as it goes for now. Like I said, I’ll see you in a week and you owe me $400. And girls, I can assure you that I won’t be wearing white the next time.”
Nikki stood up and stalked off. She headed to the party with her friends and enjoyed the rest of her night as if nothing happened, a wad of cash in her purse.
Comments
Post a Comment