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"There are poisons that blind you, and poisons that open your eyes."
-August Strindberg
~
We walked into the gallery to see a painting of a square on a wall.
"With competition like this, you'll win for sure," Michael told me as he looked at the painting in confusion.
I reached out slowly and rubbed my hand on the painting.
The dried paint on canvas felt funny on my hand.
"Sir, please don't touch the work." A man with a clipboard told me softly.
I looked at him slowly before placing my hand on the boring square painting again.
"Don't touch the artwork." He said again.
I pulled my hand away slowly before smirking at him and rubbing my hand wildly on the painting again.
Before the man could yell at me Devon grabbed my hand and pulled it to my side.
"Knock it off, Daniel." He snapped.
"K-k-ay pop-pa." I all but yelled as I grinned at him.
"You guys go ahead, we'll catch up," Devon said holding me in place as I reached out for the painting again.
Rebecca looked at me in worry before nodding her head and leading Emma and Ian away.
Michael stayed behind with us.
Devon and Michael stared at me as I stared tiredly at them.
Stars and shapes were alive and zooming across the room.
"Yupug see the pr-pretty sh-apes too?" I asked as I reached out and touched Devon's ear.
His ear just looked so soft.
"You're high," Devon stated as he frowned at me.
I grinned tugging his ear before giggling.
"He is so fucking high. Like higher than the Empire State Building high." Michael said saying too many words for me to understand.
Just then I heard a voice from behind me declare "You look like crap."
I turned to see Levi and Ashley.
"Bluer" I said reach out for her bright blue hair. I wonder if it would hurt if I pulled her hair. Is her hair always that blue? Was she born that way? No, that's silly. It's not silly if she were part fairy. Maybe she's part fair-
"Why are you here?" Devon said glaring at Ashley and breaking my train of thought.
"I don't have to explain myself to you, Sanders." She said addressing him by his last name.
I wish I had a last name. Wait, I do have a last name! I thought happily.
What was my last name again?
Ashley turned to me.
"Did you take one of the pills I gave you?" She asked me softly.
I quickly shushed her but nodded.
"I knew when I saw you walking over here that this was somehow your fault." Devon accused her.
She rolled her eyes.
"We have a problem," Levi said softly as he looked away from us.
"Bigger than Daniel being higher than a kite right now?" Michael said doubtfully.
Everyone was talking and moving too fast for me to understand.
I could feel my heart beating fast enough that it might just burst out of my chest.
"Yes, because his mom is walking this way," Levi said slowly.
Everyone quickly turned to face the direction Levi was looking. I slowly turned too, being the last one to see my mom making her way across the room to us.
"Momma," I whispered softly as I waved at her.
"She can't see him like this," Levi said nervously.
"We need to sober him up and quick," Devon said looking back at me.
"How?" Michael asked doubtfully.
"Leave it to me," Ashley said taking my arm.
"You meet me at the men's bathroom with a cup of coffee in 5 minutes and you two distract her," Ashley said quickly to Devon before finishing her sentence looking at Levi and Michael.
They all nodded before quickly walking in separate directions.
I slowly reached out to touch the painting again now that Devon was gone, but was pulled back.
Ashley took my arm again and dragged me into a crowd of people.
"Out of our way," Ashley said shoving people rudely to get past.
She pulled me into the men's bathroom.
"Get out." She said rudely to a man washing his hands.
He glared at her but still did as she said and left.
She locked the bathroom door shut behind him before turning to me.
"Wash your face." She ordered me as she turned on the sink.
I wet my hands under the pouring water before pulling them away quickly.
"It's cold," I whined as I stuck out my bottom lip. She rolled her eyes. "That's the point." She answered swiftly.
I sighed before leaning down and splashing water on my face and through my hair.
The cold water felt great on my boiling head.
I pulled my head out of the water and look into the mirror; my reflection stared back at me.
I looked a mess. My eyes were red and my skin looked, sickly pale, as dark circles began to form.
The longer I looked at myself the more I felt like this was all just a dream.
Was any of this real?
"Here take these," Ashely said pulling two white pills out of her purse.
I didn't feel like taking any more drugs tonight or ever again but I still took the pills as she handed them to me.
"W-wa-what's tis?" I slurred, barely speaking English.
"It's acetaminophen." She said as she looked at herself in the mirror.
I didn't hide my confusion as I asked "W-what?"
She sighed turning to look at me. "It's Tylenol," she said slowly.
"I no wanna," I said trying to hand her the pills back, but she wouldn't take them.
"They will help calm you down." She said simply.
I wasn't so sure as I popped the pills into my mouth and swallowed them. Taking pills from her is what got me into this mess in the first place.
"Open your eyes and lean your head back." She ordered me again.
I did as told; feeling too tired to fight her on it.
I could feel a sting as she poured eye drops in my eyes making me quickly move away from her.
"W-what the heck?" I said forming an actual sentence.
She rolled her eyes before gesturing towards the mirror and saying "You should be thanking me."
I turned to look at my self.
My eyes were no longer a bright red.
"Here." She said handing me a paper towel. I dried my face.
She pulled out two tubes of makeup and a brush from her purse.
"Stay still." She ordered me as she tilted my face down towards her.
It was weird as the makeup covered brush danced across my face.
There was a knock on the bathroom door. Ashley stopped what she was doing and opened the door to see a long line of men and in the front stood Devon holding a white mug.
She took the mug from him before slamming the door shut and locking it again.
Even with the door closed, we could hear the line of men complaining from outside.
She handed me the mug.
"It's coffee, drink it." She said.
I quickly took a sip. The coffee burnt my tongue as I drank it. It was hot and bitter but I kept drinking because I was both thirsty and slightly afraid of what Ashley would do if I didn't.
I finished the whole glass before setting it down. With that done she got right back to applying makeup to my face.
I was more than surprised she was doing all this to help me. I wouldn't lie though, I felt soberer already.
"Why are you helping me?" I asked breaking the silence that had built between us.
"Because I like you." She said simply as she continued to apply makeup to my face.
"I have a girlfriend," I said turning away from her slightly.
She sighed as she put her makeup and brush back into her purse.
"And, here I thought you and I had something special." She said sarcastically. Or at least I think it was in sarcasm I was still a bit too high to tell.
"I love her," I said talking about Emma.
I was met with cold laughter before Ashley finally said: "No, you don't."
"Excuse me?" I asked as she took the mug and filled it with water from the tap.
She handed me the water-filled mug. "You just think you love her." She said as she gestured for me to drink.
I quickly gulped the water down before asking "What do you know about love?"
She took the mug from me before filling it with more water.
"I know falling in love is for losers." She said handing me the mug once again filled with water.
"That's not true," I argued. She frowned before ordering me to "drink."
I did as told and sipped the water. Once I was finished I handed her the cup again but she quickly filled it with water.
"If I drink any more I'll piss," I explained in distaste. "That's the point." She said softly not looking at me.
I took the mug from her and began drinking it.
"Falling in love is just an illusion. All you're really doing is giving someone the power to hurt you. And, half the time you don't really love the person you just love the idea of loving that person." She said suddenly.
"That's not true."
She rolled her eyes as she filled the cup again. "trust me, I've been hurt enough times to know." She said as she handed me the mug.
I set the mug down.
"Who hurt you?"
She mumbled, "I think it would be easier to ask who hasn't." As she avoided my gaze.
"You're avoiding my question. You can't just stay a mystery forever." I said placing my hand on her chin and forcing her to look at me.
Her eyes searched mine. "Some people are better off staying mysteries." She mumbled as she pulled away from me.
She walked over to the bathroom door and stopped like she had something else she wanted to say, but didn't say anything as she unlocked the door and quickly walked out.
I looked into the mirror to see the dark shadows under my eyes long gone and life brought back to my skin.
I quickly used the bathroom as guys rushed in one after the other.
I slowly washed my hand. I picked up the mug and looked down at it.
Man, my life is such a mess.
More specifically, I was a mess.
I walked out of the bathroom and to the nearest bar. I sat the mug down before turning and looking into the mob of people looking at art.
Admittedly, I still felt like I was walking on clouds. But, at least I was sober enough to control myself.
That's when I spotted my mother looking at a painting.
I walked closer to see her staring at the first painting from my life collection. In the painting, my mother held me, as a baby, into a sea of blue and purple.
"Hey, Mom," I said softly as I stood next to her staring at my art.
She turned to me. She had tears in her eyes.
"It's beautiful." She said sobbing slightly. She tried to wipe her tears, but there were too many for her to stop them from streaming down her face.
"Thanks," I said feeling slightly embarrassed as more people walked over to look at the painting.
My mom linked her arm with mine as she walked over to the second station for my collection.
She gasped as she looked at it.
"Amazing, right?" A voice from next to us said. We both turned to see my art teacher Mr.Schindler.
My mother blushed slightly as she looked away from him and back to the painting before turning redder.
"Mom this is my art teacher, Mr.Schindler. Mr.Schindler, this is my mom." I said awkwardly introducing them.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mrs.Fisher." He said holding his hand out to her.
She slowing placed her hand in his.
"It's just Miss. But, you can call me Sandra and the pleasure is all mine." My mom said with a weird dazed look as she finally looked Mr.Schindler in the eye.
Ew, I think my mom might be trying to flirt with my teacher. I'm going to be sick.
They were too busy talking to one another to notice my disgust. I took that as my sign to get away from the madness, so I slowly walked away from them.
That's just gross. I'm definitely gonna have nightmares about that, I thought shaking my head softly.
Yea, my mom deserves to be happy. But, she doesn't need some dude and that dude can definitely not be my teacher.
I walked through the crowds to see Rebecca and Devon looking at the third and fourth works in my collection, which so happened to be framed side by side to one another.
Trees, my roots to earth.
Rebecca glanced at me for a moment before looking back at the paintings and hugging Devon tighter to her.
"You may be a trash person 98 percent of the time, but you actually have a grain of talent." She said in a snobbish tone.
I playful gasped.
"Wow, was that actually somewhat of a compliment?" I asked although I already knew the answer.
"Can't you two just play nice for once?" Devon asked tiredly at us. "I was just about to compliment him on not looking like a crackhead anymore if that counts." She said looking at him.
Although it was harsh and she said it just to bother me, it was true. But, also too soon as I felt like I had been slapped in the face.
I frowned.
"Rebecca, you can't j-" Devon said trying to defend me, but she cut him off.
"Why do you always defend him? You can't be serious right now. Are you really going to act like you aren't as pissed as I am about the shit he pulled tonight?" She said raising her voice slightly as she pulled away from him.
"Of course I'm pissed off, but you aren't being fair," Devon said raising his voice right back at her.
I stood there not knowing what to do but knowing that this was somehow my fault.
"Me, not being fair? That's ridiculous. I've given him and all your other stupid friends countless chances, but they are a bunch of fuck-ups. I've done everything I can to make this work. I even came to this stupid show because you wanted me to. Why can't you just admit that your friends are the problem? It's their faults you got suspended. It's their faults that everyone thinks you are just some fuck up too. And, it's their faults that you and I are over." She said poking him in the chest as she glared at him.
He just looked down at her with sad eyes.
"I think the only one who is the problem is you, Rebecca. This whole relationship all you've been trying to do is change me into some guy I'm not. You never thought I was good enough for you and you never let me forget it." He said calmly.
She turned away from him and me. She looked at my painting.
I could see tears rolling down her cheeks ruining her makeup. I seem to be somehow making everyone cry tonight.
She bit her lip before turning to look at Devon. "I never meant to make you feel like you weren't good enough." She whispered before turning and disappearing into the crowd of people.
Things were silent for a moment.
"Devon, I-" I started to say but he cut me off.
"Don't"
He turned back to my painting and avoided my gaze.
"I'm sorry," I said looking at him, but he wouldn't look my way.
Although he tried to look like he was fine, I could tell he wasn't. He was hurt and struggling to keep it hidden.
"Why don't you go find Emma?" He suggested as he looked at the trees.
As his friend, I knew I couldn't leave him like this.
"dude-" I started to say, but he cut me off as he turned to me. His eyes were red as he held off tears.
"I just need some space, okay?"
"It's gonna be okay." I nodded in understanding as I patted his back slightly.
"Maybe, maybe it won't." He said indifferently.
Once again I noticed a head of blue hair in the distance behind someone. As I squinted to get a better look I noticed Ashley and Emma talking to one another.
This night just keeps on getting worse...
[Published August 23rd, 2017]
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A/N: One relationship starts as another one ends. So tell me who's side are you on?
#TeamRebecca
Or
#TeamDevon
Next Update (the final art gallery chapter) coming soon.
If you liked it, I would love it if you could vote or comment what you think!