my vape is dying

my vape is dying

The Procedure

short fiction

Emma Newman-Holden's avatar
Emma Newman-Holden
Jun 07, 2025
∙ Paid
56
11
7
Share

The first thing I did when I found out the news was chug a seven-dollar bottle of rosé. Then I smoked a cigarette butt I found hiding in my trash can and fucked my downstairs neighbor. I figured it was fine, considering my intended plan and all—that being said, I didn’t tell him I did any of that.

I was, in many ways, naive for thinking I’d have the power just because I was older. That was never the case with Gabe. We were in the same Race in Film class. I remember when I found out about his early graduation and obscene SAT score, thinking, why would you choose to study something as fucking stupid as movies with a brain like that?—I never asked that, I was sure he had gotten that question enough from his other hook-ups and selfishly, I wanted to stand out. He was precocious—a term I’d never thought I’d use, never wanted to use, to describe a lover of mine.

Keep reading with a 7-day free trial

Subscribe to my vape is dying to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.

Already a paid subscriber? Sign in
© 2025 Emma Newman-Holden
Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice
Start writingGet the app
Substack is the home for great culture