We’ve finished laughing at the room. We’ve examined the funny fake ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs that they’ve plastered everywhere. We’ve made jokes about the huge Jacuzzi right next to the window, and we’ve peered out at the array of flashing neon lights, and crowds of people milling aimlessly around taking photographs of each other. It’s not even dark yet, but most of them seem drunk already. I’ve never been anywhere like this before.
It’s hot, so he’s taken off his shirt, and I sit, watching, as he sets up the pipe, puts the rock in the small bowl at the end and holds the butane lighter underneath.
“I just do this to maintain now, not for the buzz.”
Smoke begins to cloud the inside of the glass. After a second or two, he raises the mouthpiece, and I can see the tattoo on his upper arm as it flexes and moves in time with the muscles there. The red Kool-Aid in the larger bowl bubbles as he begins to inhale. I tentatively lift my arm, because I want to reach out and touch his skin, run my fingers over the image. But then I think it might disturb him, so I let my hand fall back to my side.
“Did you try to stop before?” I ask.
”Cold turkey? Didn’t work. I was really ill. This is the way to go - slowly tailing it off.”
He puts the pipe to his mouth again and the bubbling noise restarts.
Last summer. That was the first time. I think he’s probably forgotten, but I haven’t. I remember the first email when he mentioned it - the wonderful new toy he’d found. “When you come over you’ll have to try some – if you’re game,” he’d said. “You’ll love it.” Then he’d disappeared for days and when he’d resurfaced he’d explained how it had all gone a bit wrong, how he’d done too much and it’d made him feel awful. “I’ll be okay from now on though. I’ve learned my lesson. I know my limits ..”
The bubbling noise stops and he looks at me.
“Want to try some? – It’ll wake you up.” He holds out the pipe, “totally up to you..”
I hesitate. I’ve turned it down before, but we’ve run out of heroin now, and I’m so tired – it’s been a long drive from California to Vegas…
“It’s not like the speed we used to do?” He’s already told me this, but I want to hear it again.
“Nothing like – this is much smoother – not so harsh.”
I think for a while, and then I hold out my hand.
“Ok.”
He passes me the pipe, but keeps hold of it at the bottom.
“You don’t inhale deeply, like a cigarette, or black, but take as much as you can in one go.”
I wait for the whooshing noise of the butane lighter and then when the smoke fills the glass, I put my lips to the mouthpiece. I’m clumsy at first. I inhale too deeply and it makes me cough. I make a face at the bitter aftertaste. He nods.
“Yeah – that’s why you add the Kool-Aid”
I persevere and eventually I get the hang of it. It’s just as he said it would be. Not harsh, like the sulphate and blues I remember. There’s no rush. I just feel suddenly good.
I get up from the floor where I’ve been sitting, and walk through into the bathroom, over to the counter by the washbasin. I take the eye pencil from the makeup bag and redraw the line underneath my eyes. Then I go back into the room and open my case to find the Moschino skirt. It’s tight, short and just the other side of vulgar, like most Italian fashion, though it’s understated for here. I put on the shoes I can’t really walk in – they have comedy wooden wedges so high that you have to really concentrate not to topple over. I’m ready for anything now.
He’s changed his shirt, and put some shoes on instead of sneakers. He hasn’t shaved for a few days and it almost looks as if he has a beard. It suits him. I look at his face and something flutters inside me, so I lean towards him and he turns and we kiss. I love him for what he is, all of it, and this is where and how I want to be. We pull apart, and he opens the crook of his arm, so I can slide mine through it, then we leave the room to see what Vegas has to offer.
Comments
MistakenMagic | July 25, 2010 - 16:12
Great little sketch, insert. I love the interplay between the two characters and how we get a few hints at their history to piece together. Another brilliant read ;)
Magic xxx
frankle | July 25, 2010 - 16:45
I love the pictures you paint and the subtle way in which you create atmosphere. It's laid back but edgy at the same time. Great!
Frankle
insertponceyfre... | July 25, 2010 - 17:45
thanks very much Magic and frankie, I'm pleased you enjoyed it
celticman | July 25, 2010 - 19:15
very, very good. I can see story of the week, story of the month, a Hollywood movie. After Vegas that will be a come down. Well done!
insertponceyfre... | July 25, 2010 - 20:03
thanks Celticman - two verys and a hollywood movie - It'll go to my head : )
chuck | July 25, 2010 - 21:45
Damn, I can't improve on celticman's comments.
insertponceyfre... | July 26, 2010 - 11:35
thank you Chuck : )
rjnewlyn | July 28, 2010 - 23:46
Certainly an intense read but then I guess that's Vegas. I have to admit it's a place I've never felt any desire to visit, despite what so many people say, and it will be interesting to see whether what follows (assuming there's a part 2) makes any difference (I try to keep my mind open to these things).
Hope you're feeling better
Rob
insertponceyfre... | July 29, 2010 - 05:29
not sure that it will do anything about your desire to visit. I do know what you mean, but it's certainly interesting and not like anywhere else on earth. I am in the middle of part two. Thanks for reading Rob
rjnewlyn | July 29, 2010 - 21:05
They say that people get married in Vegas and divorced in Reno. Somehow I've always found the idea of Reno more interesting - I have no idea what it's like but it comes so often into dark songs where bad things happen. So I'd have gone there instead ...
insertponceyfre... | July 29, 2010 - 21:20
oh yes that does sound interesting doesn't it - i wonder where it is. Off to google maps to see
rjnewlyn | July 29, 2010 - 21:27
Quite close I think - same state, anyway.
insertponceyfre... | July 29, 2010 - 21:28
it looks like it would be a two day drive, it's quite a bit further north. You could probably do the whole thing in a week - start to finish.
rjnewlyn | July 29, 2010 - 21:45
No way 2 days, unless very leisurely. I did St Louis to Denver once in a day and a half (although perhaps could have taken more time over that one). I'll get there at some point, if only to just to see what a name on a map (and countless songs) really means.
insertponceyfre... | July 29, 2010 - 22:02
wow - ok, I see what you mean in that case (how often did you stop on that trip? blimey) It is interesting seeing places one's heard a million times in songs isn't it. We saw loads
rjnewlyn | July 29, 2010 - 22:12
The best stop-off on that journey was somewhere just beyond Dodge City, Kansas, where you can still see (slightly with the eye of faith) the original track marks made by the wagon trains. Those, and the wide rolling grassy horizons, were very moving indeed for someone brought up on Westerns. The journey was possibly a bit over-ambitious and I could have done with some daylight trying to find accommodation in Denver at the other end. But I wouldn't have missed it for the world. It's an amazing country.
insertponceyfre... | July 29, 2010 - 22:18
it sounds like an amazing journey. The thing that made me catch my breath was how huge it all is - the endless desert, and all the mountains - they just went on and on and on. When are you off on another leg then?
rjnewlyn | July 29, 2010 - 22:29
No idea. Sometimes work takes me there and I make the most of it ...
tcook | July 30, 2010 - 12:54
This is our Facebook and Twitter pick of the day as well as our Story of the Week.
Join us on Facebook at ABCtales.com
Join us on Twitter @tcookabctales
insertponceyfre... | July 30, 2010 - 14:45
thank you very much tony!
celticman | July 30, 2010 - 17:23
Ha, told you so!
rjnewlyn | July 30, 2010 - 22:32
Well-deserved.
barryj1 | August 2, 2010 - 18:38
barryj1
Really good writing. Great attention to detail. A lot of the stuff caught me off guard, because this is a universe I am totally unfamiliar with. The characters are very engaging and I'd be curious to see where, after leaving "the room to see what Vegas has to offer" they ultimately end up.
insertponceyfre... | August 2, 2010 - 21:10
Thanks very much barryj1 for reading and commenting. I'm glad you enjoyed it. The next part is on here too, if you want to know what happened next.
barryj1 | August 2, 2010 - 22:30
I used to read the Pushcart Press and American Best Short Story anthologies over the years until I realized that virtually all the writers were stodgy academics with nothing terribly new or interesting to say. A lot of the writers here on this website are light years ahead of that sort of hoity-toity, MFA scholarly drivel (please disregard the lengthy, adjective string).
Your writing is a such a refreshing change. It’s innovative and, as already mentioned, cutting edge. The internet may very well be the proverbial ‘new frontier’ for first-rate fiction writers with something meaningful to say but lacking the proper ‘pedigree’ to publish in the snooty mainstream press.
insertponceyfre... | August 3, 2010 - 05:18
The thing about ABC is anyone can post, and they do, so you will find every kind of writer on here - from the established and published to the just started thinking about it. That's why it's so good. There are many other sites, but this is the one I like best. Have you only just started looking on the net? - there is so much out there!
Thank you again for taking the time to comment on my stuff, and I've just realised that I haven't read anything you've written - I'll do it today!