Pus Junkies

by Shane McKenzie

  “Your…your face. I swear to god I just saw it moving. The pimples were like… beating.”

  “Oh, real nice, Zak. Like I’m not self-conscious about them enough already?”

  “I was looking right at you, Kip. They moved, I’m serious.”

  Kip kept his head turned, willed his flesh to calm, to relax. After a few minutes it did, and he turned back to face his cousin. “You’re seeing things.”

  “Oh yeah? Then why wouldn’t you look at me?”

  “Because I’m embarrassed, okay! I know how awful my skin looks, and seeing you staring at it like that kind of made me feel like a freak.”

  Kip, of course, knew Zak was telling the truth. But he didn’t know what to say. He didn’t know why his skin acted the way it did, knew it wasn’t normal for acne to pulsate like that. His acne was different, special. Super human.

  “You’re right, man. I’m sorry. Didn’t mean anything by it.”

  Kip waved it off. “Don’t worry about it. I’m the Toad, remember? I’m used to people staring and laughing at me.”

  “Does…does it hurt? It looks really painful.”

  “Nah. Not really. I can hardly tell it’s there until I look in the mirror. Or, you know, when people stare. But it doesn’t bother me too bad.”

  “Well, I’ll get you some clothes that are so sharp, nobody will even notice the zits. Bet on that.”

  “Okay. Yeah…that sounds good.”

  They went straight to the mall then, and Kip spotted a lot of students there from their high school. All enjoying Senior Skip Day. Kip couldn’t help but wonder if anyone at all showed up to class, if the hallways were empty. He imagined tumble weeds blowing through the halls, teachers looking lost and confused.

  Zak dragged Kip into a few different stores, Kip feeling uncomfortable and out of place in every single one of them. Every shirt, every pair of jeans Zak picked out, Kip shook his head.

  “I’ll look stupid in that.”

  Zak had clearly been doing his best to remain patient, but now he looked exhausted. He massaged his temples, spoke with his eyes closed. “Kip…cousin. The point is you want to try something different, right? Different means it might feel uncomfortable at first. But you gotta trust me. I’m picking something…right now…and you don’t have a choice, understand?”

  Kip tried to protest, but just lowered his head and nodded. Zak was trying to do something nice for him, he knew that. But he couldn’t help but feel like a complete idiot. He just knew he would be the laughing stock of the entire party when he walked in wearing a button down shirt and khaki slacks.

  You’re going to be the laughing stock of the party no matter what you wear, Toad.

  “Here,” Zak said, forcing a smile as he thrust the new clothes into Kip’s arms. “Go try this on.”

  “All right.”

  Kip had to admit, the clothes looked pretty damn good once he had them on. Not nearly as bad as he had thought. And he didn’t look as skinny in that shirt, couldn’t see his pimples poking out like hard nipples all over his torso.

  When Gwendolyn sees me in this, she’ll freak. She’ll notice me for sure.

  Kip was suddenly overcome with excitement for the party to start. He knew the other kids would give him a hard time at first, even with Zak there with him, but he didn’t care. Before the night was over, they would accept him. They wouldn’t outcast him anymore, wouldn’t spend so much energy making sure he was miserable every single day of the week.

  Kip stepped out, trying not to grin too hard.

  Zak whistled. “Damn, cousin. If I was a chick, I’d totally fuck you and have your babies.”

  “Shut up. Does it really look okay?” Kip turned his hips, held out his arms.

  “Looks great, man. How do you feel?”

  “I feel pretty damn good actually. I’m kind of getting excited.”

  “That’s what I’m talking about, cousin. Yes! You’ll never forget this night, I promise.”

  Kip hoped he was right.

  ***

  “I wanna see you again.” Chuck paced back and forth in front of Jade’s house, the cell phone pressed hard to his ear. Her dad’s car was in the driveway, but he didn’t give a shit.

  “Well that’s too bad. I’m getting ready for the party right now.”

  “We’ve still got over an hour before it starts. Can’t we spend some time together first? Come on, Jade. Don’t fuck with me like this.”

  “Call your girlfriend, asshole.”

  Click.

  “Shit!” Chuck slammed his fist into his chest, stared up at Jade’s bedroom window. Her shadow moved back and forth behind the drape, and even from that distance, he could see the shape of her body. God, he wanted her so bad.

  He knew his night was going to be filled with Chelsea’s babble, her and all her cheerleader friends. And when they got drunk it was even worse.

  It was Jade he wanted. Yes, he wanted to fuck her. He never wanted to stop fucking her. But he wanted more than that. He wanted her all to himself. And as soon as she said he could have her, he would break it off with Chelsea so damn fast…

  Fuck.

  “What’s the deal, Chuck? Can we get goin’ or what?” Jerrod said, fixing his hair as he stared into the side mirror.

  “Yeah, come on. How long we gonna sit out here. She ain’t comin’ out, man. And who gives a fuck. There’ll be plenty of pussy at the party.” Cash ignited his lighter and touched the flame down onto the bowl he’d been smoking. He offered the glass pipe to Chuck.

  Chuck took a hit, held in the smoke as he glared up at Jade’s window. He blew it out, handed the pipe back to Cash. “Y’all shut the fuck up. We’ll stay out here all fucking night if I say so.”

  Neither one of them talked back, but they smacked their lips, clicked their tongues.

  “Fuck it. You’re right. We can have our pick of the ass tonight. Right, fellas?” Chuck slapped hands with both of his friends as they agreed. “Fuck this bitch. I’m sick of her shit.”

  As they drove away, Chuck let Jade dissolve from his mind. Chelsea too.

  It was Zak and Toad that filled his thoughts now. They were all he’d been thinking about for days. He dreamed about them, jerked his dick while he imagined stomping their fucking heads in.

  And tonight, he would show Jade who the real man was. He would show Jade that she picked the wrong dude.

  You’re mine, bitch. He can’t have you. Nobody can.

  —7—

  “What’d you bring that for?” Kip had opened the glove compartment when Zak told him he had a pack of gum in there. As soon as it was open, Kip could tell Zak had forgotten about the gun.

  “You weren’t supposed to see that.”

  “But why did you bring it?” Kip knew it was for Chuck before Zak said it. His cousin couldn’t even look him in the eye. “So when you told me not to worry about Chuck and his friends…this is what you meant? That if he messes with us, you’ll what? Kill them all?”

  “No!” Zak’s face was red and his knuckles white as he squeezed the gray steering wheel in his fists. “It’s just to scare them. And it’s only a precaution. If they don’t fuck with me, with us, there won’t be a problem.”

  “We should leave. This was a bad idea.” Kip rocked in the car seat, staring out the window as the other kids filed into the house. Kip didn’t even know whose house this was, but he recognized all the kids. The “cool kids,” the same kids that were the worst to him every single day.

  And now I’m here to, what, hang out with them? Who am I kidding?

  “Don’t blow this out of proportion, Kip. I’m not going to hurt anyone.”

  “Oh yeah? So say Chuck and his friends start something. And you pull your gun out. But they don’t stop. Then what? You going to murder them in front of all the jocks and cheerleaders?”

  Zak didn’t answer, just stared blankly out the windshield.

  They stayed silent, only the sound of their breathing and the tiny voice on the radio.
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  “I won’t bring it inside, okay? You’re right. It was a bad idea.”

  “Zak, maybe we should just leave. Seriously. You don’t know Chuck like I do. There’s no way he’s going to just let that fight go. No way in hell. Him and his buddies have probably been devising a plan to get us back since it happened.”

  Zak only smiled, pulled his Camels from his pocket, lit one. He offered one to Kip but Kip refused.

  “That asshole is not gonna ruin our time. No way.”

  “Zak—”

  “I’m not kidding. I learned a long time ago that the only way to make someone stop fucking with you is to show them you’re not scared. We run now, Kip, and we’ll always be running. I know that sounds fucking corny, but it’s true. You’re sick of being the Toad? Show this motherfucker you are. Show all of them.”

  Throb…throb…throb…

  Kip couldn’t help but be scared, but the pulsating euphoria began to ease his mind, and his cousin’s words started to make more and more sense. A low moan escaped his lips, and even when Zak raised an eyebrow at him, Kip just smiled, ran his hand across his chest and let his eyes roll.

  “Kip?”

  “You’re right. Let’s go.”

  Zak slapped the steering wheel so hard, the horn honked. Some of the kids walking into the house turned to look, a few of them noticing that their class Toad had come to their precious party. Some of them frowned, but most smiled, knowing that if Kip was there, they would have plenty of entertainment for the night. They could all get drunk and make fun of him.

  Not tonight. Not ever again.

  ***

  Zak didn’t really know any of the students from Bowie High. Mostly the girls. He’d never had a problem with the opposite sex, and as soon as he stepped foot on campus, they took notice. Jade pretty much claimed him right off the bat, and Zak went along with it purely off her looks.

  It was the same back home at his high school. The girls loved him, the boys wanted to hang out with him because, well, the girls loved him. So he never had a problem making friends. He could tell the same thing was happening now, and he hoped to use it somehow to help his cousin.

  As they walked toward the house, Zak could feel the anxiety radiating off Kip like heat waves. The poor kid could barely look up, appeared on the verge of having a panic attack. The other kids stared, and even though Kip said he was used to it, that it didn’t bother him, it was already pissing Zak off.

  “Hey, ladies,” Zak said to a small congregation of girls, all sipping from red plastic cups. They giggled, faces turning pink, but when they saw Kip, their smiles faded away and were replaced with revulsion.

  “What’s he doing here?” one of the girls said, her eyes riding Kip’s new clothes.

  “He’s my cousin, and he’s with me. Is there a problem?” Zak placed his hand on Kip’s shoulder, could actually feel the zits under the shirt.

  The girls’ eyes widened, and Zak could see a change in their attitude right away. They weren’t jumping Kip’s bones, but there was something different in the way they looked at him. As if he was just slightly less disgusting to them.

  “Hi,” Kip said.

  The girls bust out laughing, turned their backs to him.

  Or maybe not.

  “Well, you bridge trolls have a good night. Let’s go inside, Kip.” Zak smiled as the girls gasped, mouths hanging open.

  Kip snickered, looked over his shoulder at the group of girls. They were pretty, but Zak wasn’t there to pick up girls. Not tonight. Tonight was all about Kip, and Zak wasn’t sure how he’d pull it off, but he was determined to get his cousin laid. At the very least, a phone number.

  As soon as they stepped into the house, music blasting, kids all shouting to be heard over the beat, all eyes turned on them. Conversations were cut off on a dime, and they all stared, whispering to each other, wrinkling their noses.

  Zak thought for sure Kip would drop his head again, maybe wander off to a corner where he could hide, but he just smiled, waved at them all. Nobody waved back. Their eyes darted back and forth between Zak and Kip, clearly confused as to what was happening.

  “Don’t sweat this shit, Kip. Let them stare, they’ll get over it.”

  “It’s fine. I expected this, expected worse actually.”

  Zak didn’t know how it could be any worse really. If he was in Kip’s shoes, he didn’t know how he would handle it. Would probably be suicidal or something. But Kip just smiled at them all as they stared, not a single one of them trying to hide their disgust.

  Zak wanted to flip them all the double bird, but figured it would do more bad than good. Zak would have to take this slow.

  Then he saw her. Jade already had her eyes on him, and she stood across the room with her two slutty friends, surrounded by guys. Each one of them rattled off their lines, doing their best to impress her, but she didn’t appear to be hearing them at all. She had eyes only for Zak.

  “Hey, cousin. Why don’t you see about scoring us some drinks? Probably in the kitchen.”

  “Okay. Um…what kind?”

  “A soda or something for me. You should have a beer.”

  Kip looked ready to refuse, but nodded instead. “Yeah okay. A beer…yeah.”

  Kip trotted off, all heads turning to watch him go. Jade was already on her way toward Zak leaving her group of hopefuls behind, all of them watching her go with either longing or anger in their eyes. Even her girlfriends looked annoyed.

  She looked fucking great. A tight, black dress that showed every curve, cut low to display her perfect cleavage. As she weaved her way through the living room, every male in the place noticed. Every female did too, only they eyed her up and down with disdain contorting their faces.

  “Hey. You didn’t call.” She leaned in for a kiss, and Zak kissed back, but only because he didn’t know how else to react. She hugged him, wrapped her arms around his waist, slid her fingertips into his back pockets. “I missed you.”

  Zak wanted to shove the crazy bitch away from him, but didn’t want to make a scene. And he knew this girl could cause one hell of a scene if she wanted to.

  “I thought you were pissed at me,” he said. “You sure as hell acted like you were.”

  She kissed his neck, writhed against him slightly. “So what if I was? Just because we had an argument doesn’t mean anything. I still missed you. Where’s your car?”

  “What?”

  “Your car. Where is it? We should leave. This party is fucking boring. I’d rather be alone with you anyway.”

  Now Zak did push her away, but gently. “Look, Jade. I told you before and I meant it, okay? I can’t see you anymore. Not in that way.”

  “That’s bullshit. Who could you possibly be fucking that’s better than me, huh? You know I can have any fucking guy I want, right?”

  She sounded like a child.

  “I’m not stopping you. Take your pick.”

  She bared her teeth, and Zak braced himself for the onslaught. He figured he might as well get it over with. Maybe she would storm out afterward and then he and Kip could work on having a good time.

  Before she could even start, Kip returned with their drinks. He handed Zak a bottled water, a cranberry wine cooler in his other hand. “They didn’t have any soda. And I found this in there. Says here on the label it’s got more alcohol than a beer…and I bet it tastes a lot better too.”

  “Thanks, cousin.”

  Jade spun around to face Kip, tried to press her ass against Zak’s groin, but he backed away. He had never seen a girl be so aggressive before.

  When Kip caught sight of Jade, he visibly flinched, eyes widened. He smiled at her, but his stare coasted toward the floor by his feet. Zak didn’t blame him for this one—Jade was one intimidating bitch.

  “Toad? What the fuck’re you doing here?”

  “He’s here with me, Jade. And I told you I don’t like that nickname.”

  She looked over her shoulder, bit her lip, raised an eyebrow. “Oh you don�
�t? Did I hurt Toad’s little feelings?”

  “N-no. No you didn’t. It’s…um…it’s totally fine.” Kip hopped from foot to foot as if he was about to piss himself, then seemed to realize it and stood stock still. He took a drink of his wine cooler, made a face like he’d just taken a spoonful of cough syrup.

  “You say I should take my pick, Zak? What if I pick your cousin, huh?”

  When Jade stepped into Kip, wrapped her arm around his neck, Zak didn’t know what was more amusing: the look on Kip’s face or the look on everyone else’s.

  Jade pulled Kip’s drink out of his hand, slammed it in a couple of seconds. She placed the empty bottle back in Kip’s hand, then she ran her fingers over his chest, the other combing through his hair.

  “What do you think, Zak? Did I make a good choice?”

  Zak tried to hold back his smile, but couldn’t possibly. Kip looked like he was in the clutches of a grizzly bear, his eyes wide, slightly rolling as Jade ran her nails over his scalp, caressed his chest. Kip looked at Zak for a split second, but then his attention moved back to Jade’s cleavage, which was pressed right up against him.

  Zak figured this was probably the greatest moment in Kip’s life, and he felt bad because he knew Jade was only doing it to try and get a rise out of Zak. It was only a matter of seconds before she did something to humiliate Kip, and Zak was trying to figure out some way to intervene, to stop it from happening.

  Not a single person spoke. Even the music had been turned down a few notches. All eyes and ears were on the hottest girl in school and the Toad.

  “I think you made a great choice,” Zak said. “What do you think, Kip?”

  Before Kip could answer, before he could even open his mouth, Jade slammed her face into his, locked lips with him.

  Kip dropped the bottle and it shattered on the floor.

  And then Jade shoved him away screaming.

  ***

  Kip had been concentrating on keep his erection at bay. Jade had her breasts mashed against his chest, and from where Kip was standing, he could see right down in between them, could see the peach fuzz on her belly. A scent rolled off of her like raspberries. The fingers running through his hair and against his scalp felt good. But it was her hand rubbing his chest that was creating the issue in his pants. The acne there sizzled with passion.