1971, it was the summer of drugs. In a small semi rural town called Sunland/Tujunga Merril Graves discovers life through hallucinogenics and the horrors of the mind....
When Michelle beeped, the two girls jumped up to greet her. Before she even got to the door they had made it outside to give her a hug and welcome her to come inside. I just stood back and observed as they all came toward the door, it was a cute girlfest! I held the door as they came in, Michelle gave me a kiss as she passed and I followed them into the kitchen.
Gale pulled some beers out of the fridge and opened them on the counter and passed them around. They were all chittering about Heather and Dale and Turtle and such, while in between talking about their outfits and whatever. Girls communicate with each other differently than they do with men. They get all up in each other's space and look each other in the eye, gently touching each other's hands or adjusting each other clothing.
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It was obvious they all knew each other pretty well; finally moving to the medium sized dining table beneath a walnut wagon wheel chandelier with fake hurricane lanterns around its edges. There was a little holder on the table with coasters that had Harley Davidson eagles emblazoned on them that the four beers were placed upon. I pulled a chair out for my angel and took the seat next to her. "Now don't he have manners!" Quipped Gale, about my pulling out the chair. "He must really like you Michelle."
"He'd better," She answered, "He's my Fella and I'm his best girl."
"You guys make a cute couple," Said Carrie, "I put the moves on him before I knew he was yours and he wanted no part of it, it must be love, I mean Look at this!" She stood and spun around with her hands in her hair, showing off her perfect figure and bronze skin.
Michelle then made one of those gasping sounds only girls do, "HAAAAA!" and told her, 'You are a scandalous bitch Carrie, is that why you guys picked him up?"
"To tell the truth, we were looking for a little party time, but all he wanted to do was get to you, even after he did the blackout thing in the bus. We sort of strong-armed him here, he needed to chill the fuck out for a while, we still had no idea you guys were connected."
Gale then said, "That was until he mentioned Dale at the arcade and stuff. Getting him to talk about that is like pulling teeth."
I was finding it difficult to squeeze a word in edgewise; holding Michelle's hand under the table and feeling Dale's stupid head on my lap, blood running down my legs, jaws working. I gripped her hand harder and she looked at me as I glanced down at my lap and back at her. She knew what I was trying to tell her. "They said they want to know everything," I whispered to her and she shrugged her shoulders as if to say, "Whatever you think is best."
I gave my final disclaimer and tried to let them know in no uncertain terms that they have no idea what they were getting themselves into and that they would most likely think I've gone quite mad, but both Gale and Carrie leaned in closer around the table and Gale just said,
"Give."
So once again I told the whole long story that led right up to where I sat that very moment while they listened with rapt attention whilst sipping their beers and smoking their Marlboro Reds from the box. The whole time I had Dales head doing the hokey poky on my lap, trying to chew my balls off, thank goodness for Levi Strouse!
It was the quietest I had heard them since climbing aboard that VW bus.
"That deserves a bong load!" Carrie said breaking the silence. She left the table to gather the paraphernalia while Gale looked back and forth from Michelle and me as if trying to figure out if we were playing a joke on her.
"So you two met how again?" She asked, which I found a peculiar first question after my tale of woe.
"He used to come in with Dale, when he came to visit Heather, he was always very quiet and shy and though he might be a little younger than me, I had an instant crush on him." Said Michelle, "but as he said, he had a pretty big crush on Heather and she loved to make him blush, you know how she was."
"I'm sitting right here you know," I said, feeling embarrassed.
"And you say you have Dale's head in your lap right now?" Gale asked, half believingly.
"Yes, I'm afraid I do."
Carrie arrived with the bong and sat back down in the place she was before and wasted no time lighting the pipe. She inhaled deeply then passed it to Michelle. Not being a girl who passes up an opportunity to get high, she followed suit, exhaling in my face as she gave me a kiss.
"Damn Girl! That's some good shit!," She said as she sat back in her chair coughing slightly.
"That's some of that Sinsemilla that's been going around, got it from one of my fuck buddies. So Merrill, can I call you Merr?"
"Yeah, Michelle does."
"So Merr, you say Worm is dead? I just saw him the other day."
"Sorry, very dead he is, He got in the ghost car with Dead ass Dale and they drove the fuck away."
"And you guys were eating that four-way that was going around last week?"
'Yes ma'am, that seems to be the case, me and Dale and Steve Sparks were all trip'n balls the night of the accident."
"Don't call me Ma'am, I ain't your momma, Drink that beer before it gets warm sweetie."
I downed about half of it, "So I'm sure you think I'm fuck'n whacked."
"Not so much, I'm going to have to ask you to pull your chair out from under the table Merr, I need to see this thing in your lap."
"Why, did you have some of that window pane too?"
"Well Merr, yes I did, so if you don't mind, please ease your chair back."
Carrie had a smile on her face like some kind of crazy demon, staring at the place where I told them Dale's head was. I did as she asked and eased my chair away from the table...
