BADLANDS

hold me down

"but it's the devil that's trying to hold me down."

2:36 AM

the room was misted with clouds of smoke, filling the space and everything she could see. she made out muffled laughter and talking underneath the blanket of fog.

the scent hits her as soon as she opens the door. she takes a breath of clean air, and steps inside.

the hotel room was fairly large and run down, brown plaster cracked and filled with holes, carpet stained with blood and who knows what.

there were about five people scattered in a circle in the center of the room, passing around a bong and letting smoke unfurl into the air.

she trails behind zack as he makes his presence known. she watches as he staggers over to the people in the circle, throwing a half assed, "hey" out as he slides down against the bedpost. he throws his head back and groans.

he's passed whatever drug they're getting high off from a girl with long, black hair covering her face, throwing her head forward in a laugh, eyes glowing. ashley draws her possessed eyes off of zack's face, trying to forget the last hour.

she slowly sits down in their circle, licking her lips. her chest starts to tighten, she feels so out of place.

but they don't seem to notice or care that she's there, as if it's normal that people come in and out of their circle. the thought makes her shiver.

"hi," she blurts out quietly after there's a pause. their eyes are all stained red, lids drooped down, smiles easy.

"hey," most of the group mumble back. she starts to choke on the thick smoke, making the one girl burst into bubbly laughs.

"wait," the black haired girl narrows her rich brown eyes at her, "you're her, aren't you?" she says with a giggle, clapping a pale hand over her mouth. "shit, sorry."

her throat dries up.

"what?" she asks, confused.

silence fills the room. her heart pounds in her ears. the girl's top hangs off her bare shoulders, and she takes another drag of what she's smoking.

"the new talent," she looks directly at ashley. she held a look in her eyes that wasn't entirely unfriendly; more sympathetic than anything. hollow.

she clung to a little bit of spine, breathing in the fog. zack avoided her eyes, and a new conversation arose between the other boy and him.

"i guess." ashley shrugs, tracing the bruises on her skin.

"i like your songs," the girl bobs her head in her direction. she froze, feeling suddenly dizzy. "they're so- i don't know, heavy."

she smiled slightly at her, so akin to her old friend's that her heart wrenches.

she says nothing, but feels a senseless, attached feeling towards her lyrics being shared.

her memories, emotions, moments flooding through the pages being passed for these people to see, souls tainted with unspoken evil.

"want to try?" the girl says, pointing at the bong. "you can call me mel."

but her head is swirling with too many thoughts and flashbacks, rooting inside of her brain. her nausea turns to panic. her friends dead face stares back at her.

"ashley," she gasps out. "no, i think im just going to step out." she's aware of zack, mel, and the other boy staring at her, but she gets to her feet unsteadily and makes her way to the balcony.