Cigarettes and Smokey Rooms

The air hung low in the room, weighed down by the thick smoke that slithered through the haze filling the small room with sultry odor. A young man sat in the room’s darkest corner rolling a hand made cigarette with cheap rolling paper and even cheaper tobacco.

“I don’t understand how you can do that man.”

The young man looked up from his work briefly, to gaze at his friend before quickly turning his eyes back to his work.

“Do what?” he asked.

“That.” The second man said pointing at the cigarette. “I couldn’t do that if I tried.”

The first man smiled and placed the cigarette to his chapped lips.

“It takes time and patience, I’ll teach you if you like but at the end of the day it’s you who has to learn.”

“Boxed cigarettes taste better.”

Both men turned to look at the speaker, a rough girl in black leather and worn cotton. She reached into one of the pockets hidden inside her coat and pulled out a rumpled pack of cigarettes and a box of matches.

“Now that I don’t understand,” said the first man nodding his head to the girl. “How a girl like you can defend f*****g Pall Mall lights, those things are f*****g foul.”

“Honestly Jen, Aidan has a point, I mean smoking is one thing but you don’t need to add insult to injury.”

“Shut up Tristan. At least I can make my own god dam choices.”

“Easy ladies, lets not start s**t that doesn’t need to be started.” Aidan said reaching for his lighter.

“Hey I ain’t no lady until I put on my little miniskirt, and then your girl better watch out cause I’ll steal you away.” Tristan laughed an easy joyous laugh both bold and brash and full of humor.

There was a soft click and smoke flowed upwards from Aidan’s cigarette, he looked up at Tristan and for a moment his emotions were as raw and painful as a fresh wound.

“What’s wrong?” the words slipped from Tristan’s mouth as the tears slipped from Aidan’s eyes. Aidan sat perfectly still, not breathing or blinking, pulling himself closed and preparing his words.

“Laura left me.” He said pausing to drag breath into his lungs by shear force of will. “She said there’s someone else.”

“I’m so sorry.” Tristan leaned forward pulling Aidan into a tight hug. “I’m so sorry.”

“She was a b***h.” Jen said as she lit her cigarette, the sharp smell of sulfur briefly overpowering the sickly perfume of old cigarettes and fresh pot that filled the room.

Aidan turned to Jen, and Jen sat staring back.

“You are the most noble, chivalrous man I know, any woman should be glad to have you.”

Aidan tried to smile, a weak pathetic attempt for his friend’s benefit but his lips failed and he took a long heavy drag on his cigarette.

“The worst part,” He said the words climbing from his throat “is that I need her, like a drug or a cigarette. I don’t know how I’m going to go on without her.”

The palm of Jen’s hand crashed into Aidan’s cheek like a cool gust of wind on a hot day, snapping his head to the side and knocking his cigarette to the floor.

“Shut up.” Jens words came out like glass, smooth and clear but with a sharp edge and ragged tone that betrayed her deeper emotions. “You act like your f*****g life is over. You’re only f*****g twenty three, and you’ve been dumped by a f*****g b***h you had a crush on. Get the f**k up and move on, she’s not mourning your loss, don’t mourn her.”

Jen stood breathing heavily for a moment just staring at Aidan, and then suddenly without warning all the air left Jen like a balloon and she seemed to fall inward on herself.

“I’m sorry” she breathed, the words barley more than a whisper. “I shouldn’t have said that.”

There was a moment of silence, where no one spoke and no one dared breathe but then it was broken and Aidan spoke.

“No.” he said “You’re right.”

He laughed then, an uneasily sound that was simply to let he tension ease from his shoulders and was empty of humor. He reaching down and picked up his homemade cigarette with an uneasy hand.

“It went out.” He said holding the f*g up for everyone to see.

“Here,” Tristan said holding up a bic “Let me.”

“No.” Jen said pulling out a match. “Let me.”

 

Author's Note

I welcome comments with open arms.

Reviews

[megaluv92]

I like this a lot. The only thing I would change is that Jen says "f**k" too much when she is talking to Aidan about his ex. It's almost like she is trying to say it on purpose instead of sounding like she is used to saying it all the time.

[Michael X]

a creative bit of irony, i like the stark attributes of detail, it really takes the reader to the conversation, you have talent, keep it up