Read Online Survive the Night by Danielle Vega - Free Book Online Page A

how breathless and girlie I sound.
    â€œCatch!” He tosses me the shoe and I awkwardly lunge to catch it.
    â€œThanks,” I say, slipping my shoe back on. Sam gives me a thumbs-up. I’m not entirely sure how to respond to a thumbs-up from the only boy I’ve ever loved, so I just nod.
    â€œAw, it’s like an incredibly awkward Cinderella,” Shana says. She pulls another cigarette out of the pack of Djarum Blacks that she steals from her corner market, and strikes a match. The blue-orange flame flickers over her pale skin and pink-tipped hair. Silvery smoke snakes around her.
    â€œDoes that make you my evil stepsister?” I say, once Sam’s too far away to hear.
    â€œAre you kidding? I’m your fairy godmother.” Shana winks and taps her cigarette, sending a shower of orange sparks to the ground.
    â€œWhat does that mean?” I ask.
    â€œYou’ll see.” She squeezes my shoulder, then hurries up to walk with Woody and Sam. I lag behind, turning the comment over in my head. Shana is like a firecracker: bright and sparkly and fun—but if you set her off in the wrong direction, she’ll light everything on fire.
    The platform stretches for another hundred feet before ending at a white-and-green-tiled wall. A staircase cuts through the middle of the concrete, leading deeper underground.
    â€œWhere now?” I ask, peering down the stairs. Particleboard and two-by-fours seal off the door below, and caution tape winds around the handrails. This place is a freaking maze. I wonder how deep it goes.
    Woody hops off the platform, motioning for us to follow him down onto the tracks. Sam climbs down next. I hesitate, looking at Julie, Aya, and Shana.
    â€œLet’s do this,” Shana says, jumping into the tunnel. Three rusty train rails cut down the center, surrounded by red Solo cups, empty PBR cans, and Snickers wrappers. Rows of thick white candles line the walls. The steady bomp bomp bomp of techno music echoes toward us. I can’t help bouncing a little as I walk. I want to dance .
    â€œIs it true what they say about the third rail?” Aya asks, hopping down next to me.
    â€œYou mean, is it electrified?” Woody picks up a plastic cup and tosses it at the far rail. It rolls away, unharmed.
    â€œThey turned the power off, remember?” Julie says. “Because of the hurricane?”
    â€œWhatever.” Woody kicks another plastic cup at the rail.
    I wrap my arms around my chest, shivering. Party sounds seep up through the floor and ooze out of the walls, reverberating through the soles of my shoes. The ground trembles with music.
    We turn the corner, and the tunnel opens into an underground station with an arched ceiling and graffiti-covered walls. People crowd on top of a concrete platform, waving yellow and pink glow sticks that leave trails of light as they dance. Two lanes of subway tracks stretch past the platform on both sides before disappearing into dark tunnels just like the one we’ve come out of. Strobe lights flash from the ceiling, and hundreds of candles line the walls, dripping pools of white wax.
    â€œWhoa.” Julie runs a hand through her hair, sweeping the black curls off her face. “It’s like Christmas. But for ravers.”
    â€œRavemas,” Aya adds, giggling. She tugs off her cardigan, revealing the plunging neckline on her fifties-style dress. She folds the sweater into a tiny square and forces it into her pink faux-fur clutch. She wobbles toward the party, once again balancing on her painful-looking heels.
    â€œHow long before she finds the newest love of her life?” Julie asks, twisting the onyx ring on her finger.
    â€œMaybe she’ll find someone great tonight,” I say. Aya’s always looking for her next epic romance. Julie gives her shit, but I can’t help rooting for her. I steal a glance at Sam, heading down the tunnel.
    â€œYou think there’s a VIP room in this