Page 25 of Beneath the Dirt

Her eyes roll. “You were just about to drop acid, now a little weed is too much for you? Will it help if I take the first hit?”

“Do what you want.”

“Fine, I’ll take the first hit.” She brings the burning paper to her lips and jealousy strikes me as her plump lips pucker around the edge as she inhales.

She takes another hit before passing it over to me. “Here,” her eyes bulge and I can tell she isn’t going to take no for an answer. “Have some. This is my special weed. I promise it’ll get you right where you need to be.”

“But—”

She clicks her tongue. “But nothing.” Taking the joint back to her lips she breathes in and holds the smoke in her mouth. She leans over to me, taking her hand to my chin and turning it towards her. Gently prying my mouth open, she exhales a stream of bitter, earthy smoke into my mouth. I leave my lips parted, taking in every last drop until the smoke clears.

“Good boy,” she claps, excited. “Now it’s your turn.”

Against my better judgment, I take it from her and suck in a hit. My lungs burn as I hold it, and unlike the steady line of smoke she poured into my mouth, mine is staggered as I cough it out.

“Good enough.” She takes it from me, taking one last hit before chucking it out the open window. “Mask,” she reminds me, tipping her head down to my mask that’s still in my hand.

“Right.” I finish switching gears. Draping the mask over the top of the steering wheel, I rip off the tag but notice a rough, muddy texture coating my hand.

Gross.

I open the window button with my elbow, shaking my hand and throwing the tag out. A wind gust fills the car, and Araceli’s wig almost falls off.

“Close the window!” she shouts, voice competing with thewind.

I press the button but as the window takes its sweet ass time lifting, I try to get more of the dirt off my hands, and out the window.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing there was just dirt on the tag. Must’ve been stuck in the back room or something.”

“Yeah maybe.” Her tone is off. She stares at the dirt on my hand, studying it before she plugs her phone into my car to connect the GPS to the speaker.

“What’s the name of the road?” I ask.

“Uh, hold on.” Araceli fumbles for the invite in her pocket. “Fuck, the GPS is just spinning.”

Of course.

“Well hurry up, I don’t know where I’m driving to.”

“No shit,” she bites at me, sounding as frustrated as I am.

Taking my eyes off the road, I reach over her for her phone. “Give it to me.”

She pulls it away from me. “Just keep driving.”

Shifting my gaze back to the road ahead, I offer her a glimpse of my periphery. “Where would you like me to drive if I have no idea wherever the fuck I’m—”

I slam on the breaks. The car skids to an abrupt stop, tossing both of us forward, and testing the restraints of our seatbelts.

A stunned silence creeps over us as we watch someone run at lightning speed across the road.

“Did you see that?” Araceli’s voice trembles.

My pulse thuds in my ears. “No shit.”

The road around us is so desolate it makes it impossible to determine what’s around us. “Should we go see if they are okay?” I ask Araceli, keeping my gaze on the driver’s side window, trying to see where they ran off to, but it’s so dark out, I can’t see a damn thing.

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