Sworn (7 page)

Rachel felt awful.

“Sorry guys, you can still go, I’ll have my mom pick me up,” Rachel cringed as the words came out of her mouth.

“Nah, we’ll do something else,” said Emily.

As the girls walked outside, they were (spewing out?) different ideas of what to do instead.

“We could go to Jess’ house,” Jen said. “She wasn’t allowed out tonight because she got in trouble in school.”

“Her parents won’t let us in,” Emily replied, “she’s grounded.” “I have the BEST idea,” Taryn interrupted. “We are going to the city to get Rachel a fake. I know of a good place in the East Village.”

Rachel could tell that Taryn was a bit of a rebel and knew a lot of places from her older brother Ben. Taryn had told Rachel that Ben just started college at NYU in the city, and his dorm was on 7
th
street, right in the heart of the East Village.

“Awesome idea!” said Emily.

As the four girls got back into Taryn’s car, a wave of nervousness and guilt swarmed through Rachel’s body. Rachel never lied to her parents and the thought of DRIVING into the city terrified her. What if they got into an accident? What if they weren’t back by 11pm? What if her parents found out she wasn’t really at the movies? It was almost too much for Rachel to bear, but she knew that if she spoke up, she would be cast off back into her world of solitude.  So, she said nothing.

Taryn started the car and turned up the music. The station was set to Z100, which was apparently the best radio station in New York. They broadcast from the top of the empire state building. Rachel felt the car accelerating as she pulled her seatbelt tighter across her chest. She took two deep breaths, quietly, so the girls wouldn’t hear.

Rachel tried to stay calm in the back seat of the car. She didn’t let on that she was worried or that she would be in BIG trouble if her parents knew what she was up to. She wondered why the girls didn’t think it was a big deal to head into the city on a random Friday night. She was surprised none of them called their parents to let them know their plans hand changed or to ask their permission.

Rachel was feeling more and more out of place. This was not what her friends back in Pennsylvania would do. Rachel never disobeyed her parents. She may not have agreed with them, but she never disobeyed. It was clear to Rachel that her world was about to change.

As the car drove over the Triboro Bridge, Rachel could see all the bright lights of Manhattan glistening in the distance. She felt bad she was doing this, but she also felt excited. She always wanted to go into New York City and had only been there a few times before, to see Broadway shows and do touristy things with her family.

The girls arrived at their destination safely and got out of the car. Rachel looked up at the street sign above, which read “St. Marks Place.” She looked around and clutched her bag closer the throngs of people passed in all directions.

 “This way,” Taryn said as she pointed towards a sign that read, “2
nd
Avenue.”  Rachel’s heart beat faster and faster as they walked down the street. She felt like a rebel and she kind of liked it. After all, it was her fault that they were in the city in the first place. If she had had an ID, they would be happily munching on popcorn at the movies right now in Bedford. So she couldn’t be mad. Taryn and the girls were doing her a favor: they were helping her get a fake, which would get her into all the “cool” places.

Rachel struggled with her inner battle of feeling cool in the city and feeling guilty about lying to her parents.

“So, where’s this store?” Rachel asked Taryn.

“It’s a block away, on St. Marks Place and 1
st
Avenue. It’s in a costume store, but it’s tricky to find because you have to go into the basement. I’ll show you.”

Rachel followed as the girls entered the costume store. It was a peculiar place, and not your average costume store. There were black leather chaps hanging on the wall right when you walked in and a red feather boa hung above them. She saw platform black boots with spikes coming out of the sides and belts with metal rivets. She definitely felt out of her element. This was a combination; Halloween, porn and goth store, and she didn’t quite know what to make of it.

As the girls made their way down the musty smelling basement steps of the store, Rachel saw a black curtain. A heavy-set bald man, wearing a tank top, came out from behind it.

“What do you want?” he snapped skeptically as he peered behind them to make sure nobody was following.

“My friend needs an ID,” Taryn said as she pointed at Rachel.

“Come, quick,” he said, as he whisked the girls behind his black curtain.

The man handed Rachel a large black binder to look though. She opened the cover and started flipping through the pages of sample IDs.

“Which state?” he asked her.

“Um, I don’t know,” Rachel said, and she turned to her friends.

“Get Michigan,” Emily said, “those are the best because they scan. Don’t get New York-- it will be too obvious.”

“Michigan,” Rachel said to the man.

“Address?” he fired back.

Rachel didn’t realize she’d be asked so many questions and took out her cell phone. She opened up the map app and looked up places in Michigan to get an accurate street name.

“444 Grand River Avenue,” Rachel replied.

Four was Rachel’s lucky number and she felt like she could use some luck.

“Birthday? You want to be 21, correct?” he asked.

“November 1st. Yes 21, please” Rachel spat out.

“Stand over there,” the man said, and pointed to an X made of duct tape on the floor. Rachel slowly walked over to the X and stood on it.

The man snapped her picture.

 “Wait upstairs,” he said.

As the girls headed back up the dark musty staircase, Rachel wondered what she would need that ID for, other than movies. She didn’t go to bars or clubs, but wondered if her new friends did.

All of a sudden she heard a phone ringing. It was Taryn’s cell. Taryn picked up and Rachel wondered who she was talking to. “Cool,” “Now?” “We’re here.” She heard Taryn say.

Taryn hung up the phone and said, “Guys, let’s meet my brother, he’s a few blocks away. It’ll be fun.”

Rachel looked at her watch, it was 9 o’clock and she knew she only had two more hours until she had to be home. The man came upstairs and handed Rachel her ID; she looked at it and ran her fingers across the front.

“Nice!” she said.

“It’s $60,” the man said holding out his hand.

Sixty dollars?
Rachel thought. That was a lot of money, and she definitely didn’t think she had it in her wallet. Trying not to show her worry she smiled and opened her bag and started rummaging for her wallet.

“C’mon Rach,” Taryn said, “We have to get going.”

Rachel quickly pulled out her wallet. She found $40. She looked around the outer pockets of her wallet for the $20 her dad gave her for emergencies only.

This is an emergency if I’ve ever seen one. If I don’t use this twenty dollars then I can’t get the ID and if I don’t have the ID, I’ll have no friends. And if I tell the girls I can’t afford it, they’ll think I’m poor and I don’t want that.

So Rachel unfolded her last remaining twenty-dollar bill and handed it over to the man.

Rachel was, all out of money, in the city, lying to her parents, buying a fake ID, and now, she found herself on her way to meet up with Taryn’s brother Ben.

What am I getting myself into?

The girls walked down St. Mark’s place. Rachel noticed many outdoor vendors set up selling hats, sunglasses, socks, belts, etc. She also saw restaurants, clothing stores and stores with bongs and smoking paraphernalia in the windows. This was unlike any place Rachel had ever been. As the girls stood there on the corner of the 3
rd
Avenue and St. Marks, Taryn said, “This is it!” as she pointed to a tattoo parlor.

Rachel stood there in horror. She didn’t know what to do. The pressure was building as Emily, Jen and Taryn headed inside. Was she really going to stand there on the street, alone? Rachel pushed the door open and followed the girls inside.

“Hey T!” said Ben

“Hi,” Taryn said back. She gave Ben a hug and said hello to his friends as well.

Ben apparently knew Emily and Jen, and hugged and kissed them on the cheek.

As Ben came closer to Rachel, she waited for Taryn to introduce her, but she didn’t.

“I’m Rachel, Taryn’s new friend at AHS.”

“You have any tatts?”  he asked.

 
Of course not,
she thought.

“Nope,” Rachel replied.

“You getting one tonight?” Ben asked.

Was he serious?
Rachel thought.
Were the girls getting tattoos?

“No,” Rachel said.

“Should I do it, guys?” Taryn asked, as she turned around from the wall of tattoo designs.

“Why not?” Jen and Emily said.

Rachel looked at Ben’s arms, which were covered in tattoos.

“I’m getting Brian’s name on my back,” Ben said.

Apparently Brian was Ben’s best friend in high school, who had just died from a drug overdose.

Rachel couldn’t believe her ears, and she wondered if she really belonged here. She felt like a fish out of water.

“What should I get?” Taryn asked.

Rachel thought about what her parents would do if she came home with a tattoo. She knew exactly what they would do: they would ground her for LIFE.

“Do you guys have tattoos?” Rachel asked Jen and Emily.

“Nope, not yet,” replied Jen, “but I want to get a rose on my ankle when I go to college.”

“No, don’t really want one,” said Emily.

Rachel felt better hearing that she wasn’t the only one that didn’t want a tattoo. She didn’t understand, though, why this was no big deal to these girls. Was getting a tattoo an ordinary occurrence? It was as if nothing fazed these girls.

“A unicorn!” Taryn pointed to a picture of a unicorn on the wall. “This is it, I’m getting it!”

“Are you sure?” Rachel heard herself ask.

“Um, yeah, why wouldn’t I be?” Taryn said, with a little attitude.

Rachel didn’t reply. She didn’t know why she even said anything in the first place.

Rachel watched as Taryn sat down in the chair and the tattoo man rubbed her back with alcohol. The smell infused the room. Rachel cringed as the man took out his tattoo pen, changed the needle and filled it with black ink.

“Hold my hand.” Taryn said.

Jen went over to hold her hand.

Rachel listened as Taryn was screaming with pain.

“It’s not that bad, T,” said Ben. “Man up!”

After an excruciatingly long 45 minutes, Taryn was finished. The man put a white bandage on her back and taped it up on the edges.

Rachel looked at Taryn and thought she looked a bit out of it. Her face was flushed.

“You okay?” Rachel asked.

“Been better,” Taryn replied.

Ben and his friends were still getting their tattoos when Taryn said she felt sick and wanted to leave.

Rachel looked at her watch: 10:45pm.

Oh no
.

How would she ever make it home in fifteen minutes? Rachel felt bad that Taryn was sick but she was also relieved that they were heading home. As the girls walked towards Taryn’s BMW Rachel tried to hurry them up. Emily and Jen walked slowly down the block looking at the many things the street vendors were selling.

“C’mon guys, Taryn’s sick.” Rachel kept prodding.

As they approached the car, Taryn said, “I can’t drive, my back hurts and I’m dizzy.”

Now what?
Rachel thought.
Who was going to drive them back?

Rachel didn’t have her license and wasn’t turning 16 until November, and Jen and Emily did not have their license yet either.

“Maybe Ben will drive us,” Taryn said.

Taryn took out her cell phone and began texting with Ben.

“He’ll take us, but we have to wait for them to finish their tatts,” Taryn said.

I’m done. My parents are going to kill me. My life is over.

Time crawled by slowly as they waited in the Starbucks for Ben to finish. Rachel kept checking her watch. 11, 11:05, 11:10, the time was rolling on and she was late for curfew. At 11:25 Rachel’s phone buzzed.

1 New Message:

Dad: Where are you, young lady?

Rachel didn’t know what to do; she wished she could be transported from that Starbucks in NYC to her house in Bedford, New York.

Rachel: I’m running a little behind, movie is just letting out.

Rachel didn’t know what to respond, but she knew if she didn’t respond, her parents would drive to the theater to look for her.

Dad: When are you going to be back?

Rachel: ASAP, I’m sorry.

The text conversation ended and Rachel’s nerves grew. How could this be happening to her?

Rachel heard a knock on the window of the Starbucks; she looked over and saw Ben standing there with his friends. Ben poked his head in and said, “I need to stop by my dorm quickly. I’ll just be a few minutes.”

Rachel felt a panic attack coming on. She’d never had a panic attack, but if she were ever going to get one, it would be tonight.

“Hurry,” said Taryn, “I’m really feeling nauseous.”

As Rachel sat there and watched Ben leave towards his dorm, she wondered how long he was going to be. For a second Rachel thought maybe she could offer to drive Taryn’s car home; she didn’t think it would be that hard to learn. Then she realized that was a terrible idea.

Ben  returned to the Starbucks twenty-five minutes later smelling of smoke.

“Ready?” he said.

The girls got up and headed to the car. Taryn sat in the front and Rachel, Jen and Emily sat crammed in the back seat. The car reeked of smoke and Rachel knew she was going to be in BIG trouble. Not only was she going to be late, but she would also come into her house smelling of smoke.

Rachel looked at the orange-lighted clock on the dashboard: 12:08.

BUZZ. Rachel felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. Rachel hoped that if she didn’t open it that it would just go away. 12:12 Buzz, another buzz. Rachel flipped open her phone and held the screen away so that Jen and Emily couldn’t read it.