I placed the cold metal barrel to my temple and pulled the smooth trigger. The heat and fire surged down its length, exiting with a clap and jerk; I smelled flesh and hair burn and reality fade, the sun dying on the horizon of time and space.

                                                         -

     “Be happy, you only have a few more days left of school honey.” She said, her hands quickly making a sandwich and placing it in a little bag.

     “Yeah, I know.”  I said. She’s right, what do I really have to be worried about, I have exactly 48 hours left of school, and then, I’m a free man. Not like it’s going to kill me to relax a little.

     I put my hands in my pocket and toed the bottom panel of the kitchen island while she grabbed a soda out of a fridge. School had been fun this year, I had to admit, and I loved all my teachers, especially Professor Cecil, she was awesome, always lending a helping hand, always willing to stay a little late to help you out if you needed it.

     But the one thing that was not great about this year was Lindsey Enzo. She wasn’t a bully or anything she’s far worse, she’s my addiction. She is every man’s nightmare…  Lindsey is seduction on two legs. But what the hell would I know about seduction right; I’m just a senior in high school.

     The plan was to ask her out the last day of school, I realized we were all going on vacation but I figured one last ditch effort couldn’t hurt. I was male after all, we never think clearly. I figured since we had been friends for so long, I was an absolute shoe-in for the job of a la boyfriend.

     The fridge door closed and my mom left the room, headed to go watch her HGTV on schedule. I grabbed my backpack off the counter and headed up the stairs, MySpace called and I was heeding its howl. I reached my room and slowly closed the door. The blinking box of quick fulfillment awaited my spidery fingers and who was I to deny the addiction? I logged in and immediately went to her page. Damn she was a goddess if ever there was one. This totally beat free porn as far as I was concerned. Just don’t tell my buddies. God knows they couldn’t take a shot that hard to their frail male egos, but I’m the art, not the artist here.

     I just have to get up the nuts to ask her. I mean the words should just come to me you know, naturally, nothing fancy, just straightforward and sound like I mean every lick of them.  But how do you go about asking one of your best friends, who until recently was just one of the guys, but now is so damned hot you don’t know what to do. Went from a muddy-faced tomboy to a dolled up, training-bra-filling sexpot that I am totally in love with. How do you find the right words, I mean my stomach is doing gold metal winning gymnastics here just thinking about it.

     I figured my best course of action was to sleep on it. Throw caution to the wind and just ask her the simplest way I could, after all if she says no, what’s the worst that could happen right?

     I lay down on my bed after shutting the computer down and stare at the ceiling. When I was a younger kid I use to think that I could spot animal shapes on it, now as a young man, well they have all but disappeared. It was getting late so I figured I might as well call it a night and see if I could get my nerve up for tomorrow.

                                                        -

     I could feel myself slumping over, my eyes growing heavy, my limbs not wanting to follow the orders I gave them. I never experienced a gun shot in my life, I was relatively sheltered as a kid, a teen, a young man, but it was nothing like I expected it to be. I felt what I thought was water on my cheek, but I wasn’t crying so I didn’t know what it was, maybe it was somethi…

                                                        -

     A knock came at the door. At first it was a gentle rap. Then after a moment it came again, this time more urgent. Lindsey placed down her science homework, placing the pencil in between the pages. She walked to the door and peeked out the peephole. There standing on the steps was a police officer.

     She opened the door a little ways, and the officer smiled at her a grin masking unpleasant and damaging news. The officer asked if her mother was home and she said she was. A few moments later they were all seated in the living room. The television was turned off and Lindsey sat with her knees drawn into her.

     “Are you sure you didn’t know a boy named Billy Bonds?” His tone was serious and without question of the authority he carried.

     “Of course I’m sure,” Lindsey said, “I never met him in my life, honest.”

     “Officer, is there something wrong?” Her mother quickly turned, “Lindsey baby, is there something I should know?”

     “I don’t know what’s going on, I’ve never met him, I don’t know who he is. I wouldn’t lie about someone I don’t know. Not something like this.”

     While the Enzos were finding out about how mentally gone Billy Bonds turned out to be, and how he persuaded himself into believing that he and Lindsey were best friends since the seventh grade, he was chilling out in the morgue, keeping his cool for when the time was right to ask Lindsey out.