Page 59 of Gemini
Hunched forward, I padded over to the kitchen and took out a bag of food and a bottle of water. I devoured the chicken wrap and small salad and emptied the bottle. By the time I was finished, the hint of a headache was gone.
Leaving Lez’s apartment, I carefully made my way downstairs. Even as I heard commotion coming from the garage, I didn’t search for him right away. I’d gotten a good look at myself in his bathroom mirror and knew I needed to get over to Dom’s first, badly needing a shower, a good mouthwash, and a new pair of clothes. Thankfully, I didn’t run into anyone in the club and Dom’s apartment was still unlocked.
When I gathered some fresh clothes, I found my phone charging in the bedroom and nearly jumped when I saw it was four in the afternoon. I had a few text messages, one from my mother which thankfully had only been sent an hour ago. I responded quickly that I was still unwell but would call her later. I took a long hot shower before changing into a pair of shorts and shirt with the sleeves hanging over my shoulders. I strapped on my leg braces and slipped on a pair of tennis shoes, grabbed my bag with my phone, and headed downstairs.
As I snuck back through the club, I ran into the bouncer from last night.
“Lookin’ for Leslie?” they asked. When I nodded, he pointed outside. “Garage.”
I turned toward the thrum of music. An old cargo van was sitting out front, blocking the garage door. As I got closer, I heard the back of the van shut.
Leslie appeared from one side, keys in hand, cigarette hanging from his mouth. When he saw me approaching, he flicked the cigarette away and smiled. “Sleep well, cupcake?”
I smirked at him. “As well as one can on a couch,” I said.
“You were out cold for a while.”
“I think I have you to thank for that.”
He let out a breathy laugh that tickled my insides. “Call me the sandman ’cause I’ll put you to sleep in more ways than one.” He opened the driver door. “Alright, let’s roll.”
“Where are we going?”
“Got some errands to run.”
“In this?” I gestured to the van.
“Yeah. I got some inventory to drop off.”
I crossed my arms. “What sort of inventory?”
He gave me a sly look. “I’m betting you can guess well enough.”
“Maybe.”
He closed the door. “Come on, I’ll show you.”
I followed him to the back. He swung open the doors and stepped back so I could see.
“A bunch of boxes...” A strong pungent scent hit me, making me crinkle my nose. “Oh, is that…”
“You guessed it.” Leslie opened one of the boxes and inside were canisters of weed all labeled accordingly. “We promised Micheal we would try to be good citizens. But we still have business to run. This strain is rare and in demand, so we grow and stock it for several dispensaries and dealers.”
“Let me guess though, no license to grow and distribute.”
“Oh no, we got the license.”
“Color me surprised.”
“For the weed anyway,” Lez said, closing up the box. “Can’t say the same for these.” He slid over a different box and opened it. Inside were bags of stringy gray and brown looking sprouts. It took me a second to realize what they were.
“You’re growing shrooms? Really?”
Leslie closed up the box. “It sells well if you can believe it.”
“Honestly, I can.”
He closed the doors and stepped around me. “It helps pay for some of the expenses at least.”
