The Power of Five

Tabitha  was hiding in the bathroom, smoking a cigarette, when we first met.  I was shocked. With her wild, frizzy, light brown hair, piled on top of her head and the goth look, she was pulling off, there was no way she looked old enough to buy cigarettes.

Seeing what she calls a "tattle" face, she blows the smoke in my face. Just to be ignorant, I think. I don't want that putrid stuff polluting my lungs so I cut through the smoke waving my hands.

"Oh, you don't like that." she smiles, and I know she has something worse planned than blowing smoke in my face. Word around the school was this girl was trouble. With a capital T. So I admit I was a little scared. But I didn't want her to know that.

So I kindly told her where she could stick her cigarette, but that really hadn't helped. She took one last drag of her cigarette, before she ashed it out on her arm. Horrified at what she had done, I grab her arm and shove it under the cold running water, at the sink.

We've been friends ever since. I'm still trying to get her to quit smoking. Though I doubt that will ever happen without getting her boyfriend Jose to quit as well. The two of them make quite the pair. Tabitha, with her wild hair and dark gothic clothes, and Jose, with his poofy afro, black hair and clean cut clothes.

We were a bit of a triangle until Erik came along. I had been in crazy about him for so long and it was like one day he finally saw me. The best day of my life was when he rolled down the window in his '91 Chevy Blazer and asked if I needed a ride while I was walking home with Tabitha and Jose. Stunned, I didn't say anything, until Tabitha gave me a little push and I stuttered "Ss..sure."

Opening the door and hopping in I tell him where I live. He smiles and I almost melt. His hazel eyes light up as he notices my reaction and I am so embarrassed. Slumping in my seat, I wait for the ride to be over. Erik glancing at me when he stops at a traffic light. "What's wrong?" he asks, frowning. When I don't answer, he lifts my chin with his finger and places a soft kiss on my lips. He starts to pull away, until I thread my fingers through his silky, chestnut brown hair, pulling his lips back down to mine.



His rough stubble scratches my skin as his lips consumes me. A moan escapes, as his lips leave mine to trail kisses along my neck. Weak with desire, his hand cradles my head. I have dreamed this moment so many times but never like this. His kisses set me on fire and I want more. Giving into my desire, I pull his mouth back to mine.

HONK!

The moment is over. Blinking my eyes open I notice the light had turned green and a line of cars were behind us. I turn to Erik and find him watching me. "Erik, the light's green." I tell him.

HONK! HONK!

As he puts his car in drive, the light turns red and ends up driving through it. Red and blue lights flash behind us and Erik pulls over.. Pulling out his insurance and registration, he waits for the cop to walk up to his car. "Do you know why I pulled you over?" The police officer asks him. Erik shakes his head no. "You ran a red light." The officer informs him, writing out a ticket and handing it to him. Then he walks back to his car and drives away.

Holding up the ticket he says "Worth it."  Which had my blushing like crazy. The car  is drenched in silence, until he stops in front of my house. He jumps out of his car and opens my door for me, letting me out. I hide behind the strands of my long dark brown hair, too embarrassed to meet his eyes.

"Cassandra," he says, brushing the hair from my face, lifting my chin so I would meet his eyes. When my eyes finally lifted to meet his, he lowered his head, brushing his lips against mine. "I'll pick you up tomorrow morning." Then he gets in his car and drives away. Leaving my dazed and giddy.

And that's how Erik and I began.

Then there's Bob. Who is Erik's new radical friend that brought all of us here. Talking of magic and charged energy.  Forming a circle, Bob's hand is in my right and Erik's in my left. Erik, the only skeptic, insisted on measuring our energy with an ohm meter.  So in his left hand he holds the red positive probe. Jose holds the black negative probe in his right hand and Tabitha's in his left. Connecting the circle is Tabitha, holding Jose's and Bob's hands.

The ohm meter spikes to 2000 volts as soon as the circle is complete. I feel the energy from Bob's hand zip through mine. Then Erik breaks the connection, dropping my hand. "This is crazy." he says before storming out of the room. The circle is broken, but the energy is still there. I could feel its charge before I release Bob's hand.

"Let him go!" Tabitha shouts as I run after Erik. I finding him in the front yard, the snow melting as he walks away.

"Erik!" I shout, "Wait!" He keeps walking but then spins around to face me.

"I don't want to be apart of that kind of crazy shit ", he shouts, "and I don't want you to be either!" His hazel eyes glowing brightly.

"Erik," I cry, " your eyes!"