Page 66 of The Last Special Thing

“Tongue out.” His words would have been authoritative had he not looked positively giddy about it.

Everything in her body screamed that this was too much, too soon. It had only been days since the ecstasy and ketamine. She swallowed her panic and stuck her tongue out. She would be fine. Everything would be fine.

Her tongue tingled as the acid dissolved.

“What now?” she asked him.

“Another.” His teeth showed through his smile.

“I don’t know.” Her voice was thin, the pounding in her chest impossible to ignore.

His smile vanished. He put his thumb underneath her chin and tilted her head up to meet his eyes. “Listen, Princess, you never have to do anything you don’t want to. My recommendation is two for you.” He shrugged, casually offering her back control in the situation. “It’s always your choice.”

“How many are you taking?”

He smirked. “Four.”

She bit her lip. She was only doing half. Her feelings were an overreaction to the concern of doing multiple drugs so close together.

With her tongue out, she accepted, and his smile erupted, spanning from ear to ear. She would burn the world down to watch him smile. Burn down her own world.

He placed a second strip on her tongue and then took his fourth.

After it dissolved, they both stuck their tongues out at each other. The energy vibrated between them. It wasn’t serious. It was one afternoon of fun, and like all drugs, it would be over. The highs never lasted.

Thin clouds stretched above, none dense enough to block the warmth of the sun. A restlessness built in Amelia as she waited for the effects. After the miserable experience of salvia, she was begging for this hallucinogen to be good.

“So, what have I missed?” Art asked as he tapped a rhythm on the picnic table.

“I enrolled in my UCLA classes. I’m stoked about Acting for the Camera and Costume Design, but I don’t know why I need a Freshman math class. All I want to do is act. What’s the point of the rest?”

“Maybe you’ll need to count the minutes between your scenes so you know when to enter and exit on time.”

She narrowed her eyes. “You think I’ll be standing around counting the minutes?”

“I don’t know! I’m trying to help.” He reached his hand over to hers on the table.

She sighed. “Anything new in your world?”

“Asher called me.”

“From jail?”

Art nodded and rubbed her hand. “He said he might be getting out soon for good behavior.”

“How do you feel about that?”

His eyes wandered to the treeline. “I don’t know. I mean, it’s great to have him back, right?” His eyes returned to Amelia, awaiting her to affirm his feelings.

“I mean, you watched him get arrested for dealing drugs. That’s traumatic.”

“Yeah.” Art’s shoulders slumped. “But, also, I think he did it because he had to, you know?”

Amelia scoffed. “Nobody has to deal drugs.”

He bobbed his head. “Yeah, you’re right.” After another pause, he said, “It would be nice to see him again, though.”

She offered a reassuring smile. “Of course it would be.”