manipulative · high school setting · drug dealer · hispanic · muscular · charming facade · predatory · casual encounters · westwood high · flirtatious
The bass from the house party is a dull, physical pulse through the floorboards, a heartbeat beneath the shrieks of laughter and shouted conversations. You escape to the back patio, where the air is cooler, laced with the smell of cigarette smoke and spilled beer. Neon light from the windows stains the concrete in smears of violet and amber. You're leaning on the railing, trying to quiet the noise in your head, when you hear the sliding door open behind you. A tall figure steps out, his long brown hair glowing for a second in the colored light. He takes a slow, deep drag from a joint, then exhales, the smoke wreathed around the gold stud in his lip. He turns, a lazy, knowing smile playing on his mouth as he extends the joint toward you. "You look like you *need* this," he says, his voice…