Fallout (Crank 3)

Shit. If I say hot dog,

my groupies are gonna

howl. I turn my back

on them completely.

“Want some lunch?”

I gesture toward

the gathered X fans

all happily munching

Polish sausages. Nikki,

red-faced, shakes her head.

Her mom, all stuck-up,

slides her arm around

Nikki’s shoulder. No.

Her dad looks slightly

amused, but his voice

is stiff. We already ate.

“Oh. Okay.” How do

I make this right? “Nik,

can I talk to you a sec?”

She starts to say no,

but if I don’t fix this

now, it might be unfixable.

“Please?” I take her

arm, pull her away

from her mother’s grasp

and off to one side. “Hey.

Those girls are listeners.

You are the one I love.”

I NOTICE HER MOM AND DAD

Watching us. Standing