"You look like you got hit by a truck." Trish grimaces.
"We really took acid, huh?" He looks at us with wide eyes.
We both nod.
"What's the plan?" I ask, sitting down beside them. My legs cross beneath my skirt, and I run my hands down the length of it, attempting to get the wrinkles out.
"No plan." Neil shrugs.
I frown.
That's the thing. I really don't want to stay here. These people seem nice, but this isn't something I want to do long-term. I don't want to trip on acid for the rest of my life.
I didn't come all this way to lose myself.
"I want to leave," I whisper.
Trish looks at me, the same look on her face.
Neil frowns, confusion lining his face. "What's wrong? Did something happen?"
I shake my head, not really sure. It just doesn't feel right to be here. It doesn't feel like it did in Arizona or in San Diego. This doesn't feel like home. This feels like a stop.
And I'm ready to go.
"Little birdie looks ready to fly away." Comes from behind Neil. I look over his shoulder, seeing Crow staring at us.
"What was that?" I ask, confused.
"You. You look like you want to leave. Didn't you have a good run last night?"
I bite my lip. He doesn't seem angry, more so just curious. But there's something in his tone that puts me off. It worries me.
"It's just not really my thing." I cringe.
He shakes his head, pressing his hand into the ground so he can sit up. He goes into his bag, grabs his little dropper from last night. Sticking his tongue out, he lands two drops onto his tongue. He closes his eyes like it tastes like candy, even though I remember from last night that it was flavorless.
He gets up, walking over to me with his dropper in hand. He stands right in front of me, looming over me like a mountain. I stand up, and Neil and Trish do the same. We're all a little leery now, a little hesitant.
I look down as Crow opens his hand, leaking the rest of the dropper into his palm. Bringing his hand up to his mouth, he mumbles at me, "Fly away, little birdie."
Neil shoves me out of the way, just as Crow inhales deeply, blowing the entire palmful of acid in Neil's face. He coughs, stumbling, falling to the ground, wiping the oily liquid from his face.
"What the hell?!" Trish shouts, kneeling in front of Neil. He looks disoriented, a little confused.
I stand there, shell-shocked at the scene in front of me.What just happened?
"Bummer. It was meant for little birdie." He shakes his head, turning around and settling back down next to Danae, who hasn't even stirred.
Come to think of it, Willie is still passed out as well.
I look over to Neil, who hasn't said a word. He's barely blinked, actually. He's just staring, looking confused. Lost.
I walk up to him. "Neil, are you all right?"
He looks up at me, wonder in his face. His eyes travel around my head, down my body and back up again. He doesn't say a word.
"We need to get him out of here. Before they do something else," Trish says, a tremor of fear in her voice. "Help me get him up, would you?"