A Good Night

Sawyer tries Shrooms for the first time and is excited to have the time of her life, but things take an excepted turn and her good night goes sour.

“Here you go, Lil Bit,” the rotund biker said as he handed over the small plastic baggy. “Since you been such a good friend to my boy you can have these for free. The rest you fuckers had over twenty-five bucks!” The big bellied man roared with laughter as one by one the rest of the group started pulling out their cash.

She sat back in the couch, looking over the small brown mushrooms. Her heart pounded in her ears. Sawyer had never done anything like this before. Pot yeah, but shrooms? The only reason they sounded interesting was because she had read online that they left a person more creative after. To an artist and a writer such as herself that sounded like a pretty good deal.

Lonnie plopped down next to her, a big grin spread across his face, “Just pop ‘em in, Saw,” he said, taking another hit off the pipe that had been going around.

Lonnie had been her best friend for almost nineteen years. Ever since before grade school. He was a tall, lanky guy with shaggy muddy brown hair and a goatee. Skater type who, in Sawyer's opinion, was at the perfect height for hugging. Her head fit right under his chin, her cheek could lay against his thin chest. The scent of his body spray made them even better- musky and manly. He was dressed in one of his gamer shirts, a pair of baggy jeans with frayed holes in the knees and behind the heels, and worn black Converse. On the left side of his lower lip a ring glistened in the dim sunlight. It clicked when he pressed the glass bowl to his lips.

The stink of the marijuana filling Sawyer’s lungs as the flame from Lonnie’s lighter lit the bud. Sitting back he tried his best to suppress a cough that threatened to break free. Once that was under control he added with the exhale, “You might want to do what Cara is doing and put them in something.”

“Yeah, these things are hella f*****g nasty, Sawyer.” Cara was Lonnie’s fiancee. The word made Sawyer sneer internally. She was in the kitchen preparing a heavily flavored sandwich. Cara was a bigger girl with long tight curled black hair. Her near black eyes were aided with thin frame glasses that sat on the bridge of her nose. She was definitely a step in the opposite direction from Lonnie’s previous girlfriends. Those girls had all been stick thin and obnoxiously preppy. Cara was more laid back and more goal orientated which was a breath of fresh air, but Sawyer still turned a shade a green when she was around.

“Nah, just pop those suckers back, Lil Bit.” Sawyer turned back to face the leather vested biker, Lonnie’s dad Jedediah. He scratched his dark grey goatee and smiled at her, “Take a drink after you chew them up real nice. Take the whole gram, that’ll get you going real nice.” He ruffled her cropped brown hair and watched as the other kids started tossing back the shrooms.

Among them were two teenage boys who had taken to sitting in a couple dining room seats. One had close cut blond hair, the other dark brown curls that hung over his eyes. This was his first time taking mushrooms as well. He was already munching on his gram, a look of utter disgust lining his face. On the second couch sat Jedediah and on his right sat his youngest son, Ray and his girlfriend Kirstan. Ray was a heavier more obnoxious version of his brother. More of a frat bro than a gamer, though. He always wore snapbacks and baggy shorts, and had this laugh that made you hate him because it sounded so condescending.

His girlfriend was the epitome of vapid, brainless arm candy. Though Sawyer has to say Kirstan was a cute girl, with long, straight, brown hair and bright green eyes that stared out into space. She nestled up against Ray with this empty smile spread across her face. The two of them had been pre-gaming before they came to Lonnie’s house. In other words, that poor girl was already so far gone she didn’t need anything else but that sure didn’t stop her from popping her own baggy.

Sawyer shrugged, scratching at her knee. She always started scratching when she was nervous. Removing her hand from her bare knee she unsnapped the bag and tossed back the stems and caps. She gagged and almost spat them back out because good god they were vile. Cara was not joking. Lonnie slapped Sawyer on the back a few times, urging her to continue chewing and that it would all be over as soon as she swallowed. That got everybody laughing as she struggled to smile through the disgusting taste. As soon as the last bit of mush slithered down her throat, Sawyer snatched up her soda and chugged as much as she could. Anything to get that s**t out of her mouth.

Shaking herself she grinned to the others who applauded her. She was then rewarded with one of the pipes that had been floating around. Once a lighter had found it’s way to her hands, Sawyer put the pipe to her lips and lit up. The harsh smoke hitting her lungs made her feel ten thousand times better. With luck these shrooms would prove to be as beneficial as she had read.

***

About an hour had gone by and Sawyer had still not felt the effects. Disappointment had begun to worm it’s way inside her as she sat squatted on her seat. She had transferred from her spot on the small couch to a desk chair just in front of the television. Jedediah was entertaining them with a story about some road trip he had taken a few months back. He described the sights and sounds, even the smells of the road in vivid detail. The whole room had taken a great interest, especially the two teens who had scooted closer and were on the edge of their seats. Sawyer could see the slight dilation of their pupils even from her spot across the room. Looks like their pack had started to take effect. With a huff, she leaned forward resting her chin on her knees when she felt the weirdest sensation.

Glancing down at her hand, she turned it back and forth. Yeah that was her hand… but at the same time it didn’t feel like it was her hand. She couldn’t feel her hand and yet it moved when she commanded it to. Reaching over with her other hand Sawyer pinched and caressed her skin. Nothing. The feeling began to creep its way up until her entire left arm was almost detached from the rest of her.

“Whatchya doing over there Lil Bit?”

“My… My hand.”

Jedediah chuckled, “What about your hand?”

“It’s not my hand but it is!”

Lonnie and Ray cackled. A noise like that would have caused her to jump in a sober state but instead it felt like she looked up at them in slow-motion.

“Sawyer you high as f**k bruh!” Ray slapped his knee, his face and eyes red from both laughing and smoking.

Sawyer sat stroking her arm, laughing with Ray. She wasn’t sure what she was laughing at. But he was laughing so she figured she needed to laugh too. Something must have been funny.

Lonnie leaned forward from his spot in Cara’s arm and looked Sawyer in the eye. This was definitely not something she would have been comfortable with sober. The thought of someone looking her in the eyes gave her an anxiety attack. Yet, she couldn’t help but stare back into the deep recesses of her friend’s eyes in absolute wonder. His hazel eyes were like a galaxy exploding from the black holes that were his pupils.

“There they go. Your pupils are starting to dilate.” He chuckled as he scooted closer to get a better look. “Man Sawyer, your eyes look like... Like ice or something.” Suddenly a thought struck him, “Hey, you guys want to stand outside? I hear a storms rolling in soon and it’s supposed to be a f*****g howler!”

The whole room sucked air like that was the most profound and exciting thing anyone had ever said to them ever. Soon people were rushing to put on shoes, or at least attempt at it. Some just gave up and marched/wobbled their way out the front door. Jedediah’s heavy boots thundered on the wood floor, shaking Sawyer like she was in an earthquake. He patted her on the shoulder and asked if she was coming.

Shaking her head she forced words to come out, “N-no… I think… Going- Going to stay here. Inside.” She blinked and wondered how in the world she botched such a simple sentence.

The older man laughed and told her to take it easy, “Oh and remember, if you go to the bathroom don’t look in the mirrors.”

With that, he followed the rest of the group outside. Just before the door shut a gust of wind managed to hit her in the face causing her to stare blankly at the door. She wondered why the wind felt the need to be so violent. What a weird thought.

Right. Mirrors made you freak out or whatever. Something about seeing yourself really scared a person who was completely out of it. No way was she going to put herself through that. This was going to be a good night.

*buzz buzz*

Without looking away from the door, Sawyer reached into her pocket and pulled out her phone. Before reading the message she decided her small desk chair was far too uncomfortable. So, she gripped the metal frame and ever-so-slowly slipped one foot to the ground. Once she was sure it was planted firmly, the other foot went down to join it. Then she scooched over to where her butt was just barely on the edge and carefully slid over to the small couch.

As soon as her body fell back into the cushions she gasped and smiled at how comfy they were. She nestled herself deeper into the sofa then clicked the unlock button on her phone. The bright LED light caused her to blink. Too bright, too bright. Unfortunately, at that moment she had forgotten how to turn the brightness down. So she sat squinting at the small words, trying to read them as the started to wave on her screen.

“Hold still words…” she heard herself mumble.

Shooting back a quick reply, she turned off the phone and sat back.

So quiet.

Very quiet.

No sounds- Wait. What was that? She snorted when she realised it was just her breathing. That was loud. She ran her hands over the soft fabric of the couch. How come she never knew this was so soft? She had sat on this couch dozens of times and never felt it like this. Soft. Silky. Her hair was soft too. Sawyer tugged on a few strands trying to see them in front of her face. It was too short for that and her rational mind knew that. She patted the couch giggling at the dull pap sound her palms made. Pap, pap, pap-a-pappapap. What was taking that person so long to reply? It's been a least forty-sixty-forever since her phone last went off.

*buzz buzz*

Finally! Yanking her phone up to her face she blinked at that stupid light again and sent back a reply. This time, she checked the times of the messages before shutting down the screen:

Nicole- 7:46 p.m.

Me- 7:49 p.m.

“What..? No. No that can’t be right.” Her heart skipped a beat. As she stared at the times moving the screen towards and away from her face. “No, no, no, no, no.” Then suddenly another terrifying thought struck her mind.

The door opened. Cara was just barely inside when Sawyer grabbed her arm in one hand, holding up her phone in the other,

“Cara,” she squeaked, “What does this say?!”

“Wha-”

“Is everything spelled correctly?!”

Cara stared at Sawyer before glancing down at the phone reading over the messages. “Yeah,” she assured, standing back up, “Everything’s fine, Saw.” Her eyes became concerned and she moved a bit closer. “Are you alright? You look really freaked out right now.”

Sawyer sighed and sat back nodding. Her heart was still pounding in her ears and she could not stop the pain in her lungs. It felt as though she couldn't get enough air. But still she nodded. This was going to be a good night once she was calm again.

“Do you need me to go get Lonnie or Jed?”

“Nah.”

Cara didn’t buy it. “Look stay right there, I’ll be right back.”

She was out the door before Sawyer could even get in the right mind to form a protest. Cara could move faster than the speed of thought. How did she do that? Sawyer snorted as she struggled to breathe. That girl worried too much and damn Sawyer really had to pee! Where in the world did that come from? One moment she’s fine next her bladder is full to bursting.

She struggled to accomplish the art of standing. The couch really didn’t want her to leave. Once on her feet, she had to remember why she stood. Right, she had to go to the bathroom. Walking was easier said than done. With the added struggle of trying to breathe, Sawyer did everything in her power to not collapse on the ground. Or puke. That would be embarrassing. Maybe not as much as pissing her pants when she fainted. OR BOTH! Puking and wetting herself would be horrifying!

The room waving around wasn’t helping either. Right foot. Left foot. Right, left, right, rig- No! Left. It was too dark. Pitch black. Light, light, light switch! She flipped on the kitchen light and continued her pilgrimage to the bathroom.

Stopping in the middle of the kitchen she turned and glanced back to the living room. Not even twenty feet she had to walk and yet it felt like five miles. Squinting her eyes she lifted her finger and pointed to the room. It needed to chill out and stay put. F*****g room just… Being a- Place! Turning she wobbled her way to the bathroom, turned on the light and shut the door.

“GAH!”

She nearly jumped out of her skin when she saw herself on the back of the door. “No!” she shouted, while looking down at the floor. “You can’t be here!” Three. Three mirrors. He had three in that little room.

Unbuttoning her pants, she lifted the seat and sat down. At least she had enough sense to do that! She had to avoid looking straight ahead at yet another mirror that hung on the wall. Nope not gonna look. Nope, nope.

Nope.

That word sounded funny. NooOOPe! She popped her lips a few times before cleaning up and flushing the toilet. Tugging up her pants and buttoning them she sidled over to the sink, careful not to look at the mirror that sat above it.

The water felt absolutely amazing on her skin. Cold. Shiny skin. What would a shower feel like right now? Maybe Lonnie would let her take one. Yeah Lonnie would let her do that. He- He would-

She closed her eyes. Her chest still heaving and her head spinning. Thoughts were too hard to create right now. Thinking really, really didn’t help her breathe. Shaking her head, Sawyer turned off the water and tried to remain calm.

Wiping her hands off on her pants, she unlocked the door. The knob had a nice texture. Smooth and beveled. She ran her fingers over the dents as if trying to decipher some hidden meaning behind each bump. Sawyer grasped the cool handle and turned it. The soft click was loud in her ears and caused her breathing to shorten once again. Sawyer closed her eyes and grabbed at her hair telling herself to calm down. Her heart beat like ten-thousand drums in her ears and the darkness of her eyelids caused only more tension. Deciding she needed to get out of there, Sawyer yanked on the door only to panic more when she realized it refused to open.

Tugging on the handle a few times the door rattled but stayed jammed in place. Releasing the handle Sawyer took a couple steps back. Her chest now tighter than ever and heart pounding at an alarming rate. She looked around the incredibly tiny room. For what she had no idea but her eyes just flew across the room scanning for something. Taking another deep breath, she stepped up one more time and gripped the handle yanking as hard as she could to try and open the door.

“Ah what's the matter little Sawyer? You stuck?” she heard her own voice say. But she didn’t open her mouth! Turning her right, she broke the rule and looked at her reflection. What she saw was this thing that was her but not. It was looking at her with this big creepy smile spread across it’s face. The pupils were huge and encompassed the entirety of what should have been blue. The whites had faded to a dark grey making the red veins in them glow bright. The freckles on the reflection’s skin were moving all over her face like millions of ants.

"Why don't you stay a while, with me?" The mirror Sawyer lifted its hand and it appeared like it was going to reach through the glass.

Too scared to even scream, Sawyer ripped open the door and ran out of the bathroom. She could feel the bugs crawling on her arms and face. Wiping at her skin trying to get the invisible pests off on her, Cara jumped out and caught her by the arms,

“Sawyer where the hell have you been?! I told you not to move from that spot!”

“B- Bat- Bathroom..? I was- Just five minutes.”

Cara let go of one arm but held tight to the left, leading Sawyer back to the living room, “We couldn’t find you for twenty minutes. Man you scared me half to death!”

The living room was so much darker. What happened? Sawyer stopped in the archway between the living room and dining room and stared at everybody. They had all come back inside, talking about how the wind was just going outside, but their voices. Sawyer didn’t like the drop in everyone’s voice. Low like demons. Even Lonnie’s was too deep for comfort. The room itself was lit like a high contrasted photo; Really dark in some places and really bright in others, no inbetween.

Faces of her friends were in the same light. The shadows on their faces made them looks like skeletons, their eyes hidden in the recesses of the darkness. Glancing back at Cara Sawyer noted that she looked just fine. Same old Cara. Good. Good. Something normal.

Scooching over the long couch, Sawyer took a seat next to Jedediah. He was the second least terrifying of everyone there. He patted her on the head and asked her how she was holding up.

“Bad. Shadows. They’re everywhere one everyone. The room is filled with shadows and dark spaces.” She fell into incoherent mumbling as her eyes scanned the room.

The brunette boy was sitting in his old seat, staring into the void. He looked both startled and content at the things only he could see. Ray and Kirstan sat on the small couch huddled together. He was trying to get her to freak out by saying there was something under her seat. She swatted his arm and spoke in gibberish. He laughed as she struggled to form words that made sense. Lonnie and the other boy took Cara in the kitchen. They talked about the wonderful colors the oncoming storm was providing them in their delusional state. Their arms moving to show the flow of what they could see. But to Sawyer, it looked like a dance of demons.

“Come on sweetheart.” Came the low thundering voice of Jedediah, “Let’s get you some fresh air. That’ll make you feel better. Oh and take your shoes off, cool air on the toes will help.”

She kicked off her sneakers and socks and reached out to take his out stretched hand. He led her out of the house into the cover of night. The wind whipped around them. Humid summer heat blown away by a cool southbound storm. Trees bent at dangerous angles, cable lines snapped and swung wildly testing their fixings on the poles.

Jedediah sat back in a flimsy camping chair and lit a cigarette. Sawyer stood watching the dark as it moved around her. She no longer felt as nervous but still couldn’t quite fill her lungs completely. The wind felt nice against the small film of sweat that had formed on her forehead. Smells were intensified. The earthy scent of the grass and dirt hit her nose with such force she had to sneeze but, it was so nice. Most comforting thing she had ever smelled, then her nose was assaulted with the burning smoke of tobacco. It was foul but familiar. She watched as the smoke barely had a chance to live outside Jedediah’s lungs before the wind destroyed it. But she could feel the heat of it hit her face. A sharp contrast compared to the chilled storm.

“How you feeling, sugar?”

Sawyer nodded. Words no longer wanted to form.

He smiled, “Yeah, sometimes these things bring out some really nasty s**t. Some people say that when you have a bad trip you’re really just seeing the darkness in yourself.” He took a drag, “I don’t think you’re having a bad trip though. Probably just spooked or something. Don’t worry, that’ll pass.”

The door opened, bring out a yellow white glow to shoo away the dark. Lonnie and Cara stepped out on to the wood porch causing a part of it to buckle under Sawyer’s feet. With a yelp she dropped to her knees, more than positive that it would collapse and she would fall into Hell.

Lonnie lit his own cigarette before passing the lighter over to Cara, “You alright bud?”

“She’s spooked.”

Cara sat beside her and rubbed her back. The sensation felt weird and yet comforting. The heat radiating from Cara’s palm felt soothing, and the panic Sawyer had felt began to subside. Taking a deep breath, trying still to fill her aching lungs, she stood and leaned against a support beam. Arms crossed in front of her chest Sawyer listened to the thundering of her heart in her ears. The beating felt like it could flying out of her chest at any second. The others lounged in the camping chairs, smiling and talking about the vividity of everything around them. Jealousy crept up from the pit of her stomach as her friends smiled their twisted smiles. Why couldn’t she have nice visions like everyone else? Why was everything so dark and terrifying?

Things only got worse when her phone started to ring. Yanking it out of her pocket Sawyer’s eyes went wide when she saw the name on the screen: Dad.

“Guys…” no one looked at her, “Guys!”

Lonnie turned back first, “What Saw?”

“M-my dad. My dad is calling!”

“Oh s**t!”

She ran inside and found a quiet place to answer. “H-Hello?”

“Sawyer you need to get the car home.”

Swallowing the lump in her throat she tried to control her voice “Why, why do I- I need, need to do that?” S**t.

There was a pause on the other end, “Look just get that car home. You can take your brother’s car and go back to Lonnie’s afterwards. This storm is going to be bad and I don’t want a tree falling on that brand new car.”

“‘Kay…”

“Bye.” *click*

“Bye…” She slipped the phone back into her pocket. Her whole body shook with terror. How was she suppose to drive when she couldn't even see straight? How was she suppose to walk into her conservative, no nonsense house and pretend like she wasn’t out of her gourd?!

Her chest heaved as she stumbled back out into the living room where Lonnie, Jedediah and Cara waited. Sawyer ran her hands through her hair, eyes darting all over the place. Her skin had gone cold and it seemed like this time there would be no calming down. Dropping to her knees she spewed out,

“Oh my god, what am I going to do I have to take the car home I can’t drive like this my dad is going to kill me!”

Cara jumped up “Okay, okay don’t panic. You’re going to hurt yourself if you panic!”

“Hey Sawyer, you want something to eat?”

She looked up into the kitchen where Ray and his girlfriend were sitting. They were munching on cookies, Ray was waving one in the air as an offering.

“That’s a great idea, Ray!” Lonnie stood from his seat and grabbed Sawyer from the floor. He and Cara led the trembling girl to the fridge. Opening the door he motioned to the contents, “What looks good? Food will calm you down and make you feel better.”

Her eyes scanned the variety of soda, greens, and precooked meals until they found it. “What’s that?”

Lonnie looked to where she pointed, “That’s a grapefruit, Saw. You hate tho-”

“I’LL TAKE IT!”

“Wha..?”

“Give it to me.”

Lonnie shrugged and offered to cut it for her. Once it was split, he handed her a half and a fork. She dove into the pale ruby fruit with gusto. The flavor exploding on her tongue. It was fantastic. So tart and full of life. For the first time that night everything inside her began to calm. Her heart and her breathing both slowed. A smiled spread across her face as relief swept over her like a warm blanket. She felt the panic drain out of her from the top of her head to the tips of her toes, like water out of a punctured balloon

Cara came over to her and asked if she was feeling better. Sawyer nodded with a smile. “Okay, good. Now if you want I can drive your car back to your place. All you have to do is tell me where to go. Are you going to stay home?”

“Oh hell no! I don’t want to be there alone!” Sawyer moved to the living room to grab her keys and shoes. “It’s really dark by my place. No way I’m staying there. We'll just grab my brother's car and come back.”

She and Cara headed out to Sawyer’s small red Ford. Once they were in and all buckled up Cara started it up and laughed at the blue lights that lined the cup holders and the floor.

“It’s like a spaceship!” she giggled.

They drove with intense concentration as Sawyer tried her best to remember where she lived. Left, right, left and up a steep hill, further and further into the dark that surrounded Sawyer’s neighborhood. The richer side of town where the town's metal sculptor lived. The lights set his lawn pieces on fire. Sawyer warned Cara about the deer that inhabited the area as the creeped closer to her home. She didn’t want the girl to get spooked if one ran out. Across the street was the public golf course. Darker than anything on this planet and with the storm rolling in it was perfect for a zombie apocalypse scene. As they approached Sawyers driveway, they saw a woman, Sawyer’s mom go up the stairs and the last light go out.

“Oh thank God!” she exclaimed. She pointed out what happened to Cara as they opened the garage door and quietly pulled in to the two car space.

“I can see why you don’t want to stay. It’s hella f*****g dark out here! Where’s your brother’s car?” Sawyer pointed out to the beat up silver Chrysler that sat under the ominous looking tree out in the yard. “Of course… Hurry up and grab those keys.”

Sawyer ran inside and quick as she could and traded keys. She hated being home anyway but in her delusional state the thought of being there was even more stomach turning. Turning on her heel she darted out into the suddenly more comforting darkness. The two sped back to Lonnie’s in silence as the rain started to pour. Sawyer watched the trees and buildings blend and bleed together in the water droplets. They looked like a strange painting. Sinking further into her seat, she gripped her knees to her chest and just wished that this night would end.

Once back at Lonnie’s house, Sawyer laid herself down on the small couch and curled up. She stayed there for the next couple of hours, immobile and oblivious to the chatter around her. A couple more people showed up later. They said hello to her but she didn’t care. They began their own journeys as they traded paper for fungus with Jedediah. The brunette boy had never left his spot on the dining room chair and had taken to staring at Sawyer. He stared at her as though he was looking into her soul. Judging her. That’s when it hit her, and the first tear dripped on to the couch. She curled up tighter and wept silently, her eyes locked with the boy’s.

Lonnie spotted her and came over to ask if she was okay.

“No…”

“Do you want to talk to me about it?”

“No.” Her best friend of twenty years and right now Sawyer wanted nothing to do with him.

He scratched his chin beard “You want to see Cara?”

That name… It soothed her even now. She nodded, her shoulders trembling. He came over and pulled her up from the couch and guided her back to the kitchen where Cara and Jedediah were talking. Lonnie called to their attention, saying that Sawyer wanted to talk to Cara. When his fiancee asked what was wrong, Sawyer just stood weeping and buried her face in her hands.

With a small “Oh honey…” Cara wrapped her arms around Sawyer and held her as the tears fell and fell. Tonight was supposed to be a good night.

Reviews

[Justin]

that was really good :) it is a story that you can build off and turn into a full book :) great job :)