Whoaaaaaaaa!
Suddenly the ‘doof doof’ music that was blaring started to sound like ‘dool, dool, dool’. The blue lighting began to change into hues of purple, white, yellow and green, and I felt my feet lift off the ground as if I was floating.
I read an article once about how mind-altering substances can have an array of different effects on the brain. Some people’s minds get very clear and focused, others paranoid and crazy, while with some people, it can take them to the far corners of their mind to where dreams are made, and where imagination comes to life.
My mind had gone even further...
and it felt,
so
fucking
good.
I could feel the music. It had entered my toes and had moved from my ankles to my knees, shaking up my thighs, having a quick rest in my stomach before exploding through my heart and out of my chest. I was flying in the sky on a cloud of music.
“Noooooooooooooorahhhhhhhhh.”
Hmmm, that sounds nice.
“Noooooooooooooorahhhhhhhhh.”
There it is again. I know that voice. Who is on this cloud with me?
Samuel was standing in front of me, surrounded by all the colors of the rainbow. I jumped towards him in an excited frenzy.
“SAMUEL! You are here! On my cloud! I’m so happy to see you. How are you? Wait, can I ask you a question? If we dream within a dream, then when is a dream just a dream?”
His eyes went back and forth looking at me. He was trying to talk but I could only hear fragments of what was coming out of his mouth, which was also streaming rays of sunshine. “Norah...OK? What...wrong with…? Need…get you…help. You...find...Devon Lockley. Stop Clint.”
I giggled as his words echoed all around me. They sounded like bubbles popping in the rain and I stared off towards the lights that flickered around Samuel as his speech moved through my body, causing small bursts of shakes on my skin. I noticed the sunshine still streaming from his lips. “Your mouth is so pretty Samuel! It’s got pretty rays of sunshine coming out of it. I need to inhale that sunshine. I need light for my darkness.” I leapt forward to him so I could suck the sunshine that was coming out of his mouth. It was warm and made me feel like going to the beach. Hmmm, sunrise and sunset. Soft smooth sensual sunshine.
Something lifted me higher from the cloud I was on and away from the sunshine I was trying to consume. I turned and saw sparkly green eyes. Flashes of recognition for the handsome face flooded my stomach.
“Josh, Joshua, Joshy! You are in my dream too! This is super happy awesome yay! Are you going to help me find the white rabbit?” Josh was trying to speak now but all I could see was pinky candy coming from his mouth. I reached out to try and catch the candy, but it kept slipping through my fingers. I needed to try and catch it a different way. “Hmmm, candy. The sweet sugary goodness.” I reached for Josh and put my mouth on his mouth, trying to lick and taste the candy from his lips. As my tongue explored his mouth, I became surrounded by white fluffy clouds. “Josh, you taste like wishes and stars. And candy. Oh candy.” It felt so good and I never wanted it to stop. The pink candy was then ripped from my mouth and I lay alone on my cloud, staring up at Samuel and Josh, who were yelling at each other through sunshine and candy.
That is an interesting sight. Now where is that white rabbit?
As I scanned the clouds, rainbow-colored fireflies now appeared before me. I quickly lifted myself so I could try and chase them. The sudden rush seemed to overwhelm my senses, and made me want to go sleep. “OK sunshine and candy, I’m going to bed now and so I’m taking the pony home.”
I fell into a fit of giggles. “Aren’t ponies the cutest things ever? Why does everything come back to ponies? Huh? Why? OK, I’m taking the pony, finding the white rabbit and going home to go to sleep.”
BLACK.
Chapter 9
After the Fog
~ ~ ~
“She’s waking up,” a voice was yelling as I cracked my eyes open. My body ached and my throat was dry. I felt weak and dehydrated, but not sick in the stomach. As I opened my eyes I saw two heads. Am I seeing double? As my vision connected to my brain, I realized it wasn’t double vision, it was both Josh and Clint on their knees, staring at me as I lay on a couch.
“How long was I out?” I asked, as I tried to pull myself up so I could sit upright. Two sets of hands went around me as I tried to do it.
“I’ve got it guys,” I muttered, annoyed that they were treating me like an invalid. They ignored my resistance and continued to help me sit up.
“About nine hours,” Josh said, as both he and Clint took a seat on either side of me. Clint had not said a word yet and was staring at me with uneasiness. I looked around quickly to get my bearings. I was back in my apartment.
“Someone must have spiked your drink Norah. What do you remember? If you remember anyone or anything, you need to tell us.” Josh sounded concerned and angry. Clint remained silent, just staring at me pensively.
I held my hand to my head as I tried to piece together the fragments of the evening that were floating in and out of my mind, unable to connect. The memories and visions were flashing vividly, but no recognizable faces appeared. Just weird images of rabbits, sunshine, candy and ponies. What the fuck?
“Ah I remember something about a white rabbit, ponies, fireflies, ummm...” I just said the words that were associated with the images as they popped into my head. I had no idea why they were there, and what they could possibly mean.
“Is she still drugged? We should get her to a hospital.” Clint finally spoke up, not making eye contact with me, but sounding worried about my mental state of mind. He tried to move his hand onto my lap, but stopped and pulled it away. It was as if he wasn’t sure if he could touch me.
“Think Norah. What else do you remember about last night?” Josh pressed me. I rubbed my eyes as I tried to clear the fog in my head.
“I’m going to get her a glass of water,” Clint stated, “maybe that will help.” Clint got up and went to the kitchen.
I rubbed my head again. Think Norah, think! There had to be an explanation somewhere in my mind fog. “I remember...I remember...candy...and...oh fuck!” I looked at Josh, whose eyes bulged as he looked back at me. He knew I had just remembered kissing him. My mouth opened to speak, but Josh held up his hand and shook his head, as if secretly saying, “Don’t say it.” I just nodded back at him. The skin on my body pricked up with goose bumps as the image of my tongue down Josh’s throat was now all I could see in my head. Shit, this was bad! Very very bad!
Clint entered the room again. “Candy? That is weird. Anything else?” He handed me the glass and sat down next to me again. He sat closer this time, and my heart began racing. Sitting between these two boys felt very awkward, especially given the events of the past few days. I finished drinking my water and handed Clint the empty glass as I leant back on the couch and searched my head for anything else. A face, a name, anything. Hmmm. Light. There was a stream of effervescent light. A familiar person was there. It made me feel warm. There was sunlight, and it was on my mouth as well. Oh...crap. It was SAMUEL. I kissed Samuel too!
Don’t say anything Norah - just smile and pretend that you didn’t make out with two guys in one night that were not your boyfriend. That’s right Norah - just smile.
I sat up and forced an uncomfortable smile hoping it would hide the guilt I was sure was visible on my face. Both guys were still looking at me, waiting for me to speak. What do I do? What do I do? I’ve got to say more. Something. Samuel’s face was still in my head trying to talk to me. He was saying something about Clint, something to do with another name. It was...it was...
“Devon Lockley.”
Suddenly Clint dropped the glass. It didn’t break but the sound of the thud was enough to bring the room to an eerie standstill.
“What? Do you know that name?”
Clint yelled, “NO!”
His reaction was enough to show he wa
s lying.
Lies. More fucking lies. Arrgghh!
I rolled my eyes at both of them, making it very obvious I wasn’t a fool. Clearly the meaning of the name was going to be kept a big fat secret. He was probably a member of the Lappell or linked to it in some way. Whatever the connection might be, Clint looked like he could not discuss it any further or was forbidden to do so. There must be something to the name, given Samuel was trying to tell me something about it. I looked at Clint suspiciously.
“Yeah OK. Whatever you say. Look, I’m going to take a shower and try and clear my head some more. Alright?” I went to stand, and Josh’s hands shot out to help me up. Clint eyed him and Josh sat back down, withdrawing his hands.
“I’ve got it from here Hollows,” Clint announced, as he assisted in pulling me up. I glared at Clint, pulling out of his grip. Suddenly I didn’t feel so comfortable with him being possessive. The parts about our fight beforehand were not lost or forgotten in my head, and I still hadn’t decided how I felt about the things that we said to each other.
“I’ll show Josh out then,” I said, feeling defiant. Clint only watched as Josh and I headed for the front door while he took a seat in the lounge.
As we neared the door, and Josh stepped into the hallway, he turned to give me a hug before leaving, but my palm went up before he could pull me into his embrace. I inched towards him, speaking very quietly. “I remember seeing Samuel last night too. Did you see him and talk to him?”
Josh leaned in to me, keeping his voice very low. “Only for a second before he took off. He was trying to tell you something, but when he saw me, he bolted.”
I sighed, and lifted my eyes to meet Josh’s. I had another question on my mind. “Josh...Did we?” I asked, in a voice low enough so only Josh could hear. He knew I needed confirmation about our kiss. Josh grinned, the beautiful charming grin I knew him best for. He gave me a quick hug and whispered in my ear, “I hope you feel better Norah.”
Oh, I totally made out with him.
I shook my head. I closed the door as Josh left, and I returned to the lounge room where Clint was now standing. I walked right up to him and stood face to face. I went to talk, but Clint drew me into his chest, his arms wrapping around me tight.
“I’m so sorry Norah. Sorry for the way I acted and what I said. I love you so much and it hurts me to think something bad could have happened to you. I can’t even think properly right now because I’m so angry someone did this. If I ever find out who did this to you...I’d, I’d...” Clint breathed heavily. “I’m just so sorry. I love...”
I moved out of his clutches so I could stop him, mid-sentence. “Clint, I’m alright. Look, we both said and did things we shouldn’t have, but let’s just be adults right now and forgive each other. OK.” He shook his head, surprised at my ease to meet him in the middle. Admittedly, the guilt from kissing Josh and Samuel helped me to be very forgiving too.
“Really? You are not angry about the burlesque bar or Melanie?” Clint asked, pulling away from me and searching my face to check to see if I was being serious.
“Clint, I’m still not happy that you have meetings at a strip club. I thought that would be the type of information you would share with your girlfriend. I mean, not telling me just made it look...”
“Secretive.” Clint finished what I was going to say. He already knew how it must have looked and what I must have been thinking.
“Yes. Like you were hiding something. It just hurt me that you could do that again. And then I saw Melanie...” I didn’t want to bring up what happened in Morewell, but it was in the back of my mind like a warning signal.
“I didn’t know how to tell you about that place. I don’t want to go there, but I’m kind of forced to. And I know how it looked with Melanie, but I’m not cheating on you Norah. I swear. I would never cheat on you. You are all I want, and all I need.”
I could tell he wasn’t lying to me. His voice and his eyes said it all. He looked like a lost puppy, desperately seeking confirmation that I believed him.
“I believe you Clint,” I said, turning away from his face, now wondering whether or not I should come clean about kissing Samuel and Josh in my drug-induced state. Would it really help if I did? It didn’t mean anything, right? And what would Clint’s reaction be? I mean, there must be allowances for this sort of thing when you have absolutely no control over what you are doing. Telling Clint would start World War III, and with things already starting to crack in our relationship, I knew if I told him, the repercussions would be atomically explosive.
“So we are OK then?” he asked me, a small hopeful smile beginning to grow on his face.
“Yes,” I said. “I love you Clint.”
And I’m sorry for kissing Josh and Samuel.
“Oh Norah. I love you so much,” he responded with such overwhelming sincerity. “And I won’t ever go back to the strip club again.”
We held each other for a few minutes as we allowed everything to reconnect within our hearts and our heads. I sighed into his chest, feeling relieved that he wasn’t cheating. That was one assumption I could now happily push aside.
Clint pulled me off his chest so he could see my face. “Are you sure you are feeling alright Norah? Because I would really like to take you out for dinner. There is something special in the city that I think you should see tonight.”
I buried my face in his chest as the other problems now popped up in my head, reminding me that I was still trying to avoid reality. I had cheated on Clint while I was high as a kite; I was becoming more and more drawn to Josh, and I had just learned the name of someone who I think was part of the puzzle with that note. I knew the threads to this relationship were quickly coming undone and all I could do was hold onto Clint tightly, trying not to think about what was going to happen next.
I moved my head so I could breathe into his ear. “Yes Clint, take me out.”
I was choosing ignorance.
It was supposed to be bliss.
~ ~ ~
The smell of garlic tickled my nose as Clint held my hand, leading me down to what I believed to be a hallway and to a room. It’s funny when you lose one of your senses, that all the rest become heightened. I guess that’s why I noticed the smell of garlic first as well as the smell of freshly cut flowers, which I think were roses. Such an odd combination of scents surrounding me. I couldn’t see the source of the aromas because Clint had blindfolded me, insisting that I needed it for the surprise he had in store. I was secretly praying the surprise wasn’t of the small box variety and that Clint knew that we weren’t in ‘that’ place in our relationship right now.
“Not too much further,” Clint said, sounding happy and excited as we walked hand in hand, his body guiding mine. I had been blindfolded since we left the apartment that evening. I was wearing a deep-plum colored cocktail dress by Gucci and Clint wore a stylish pinstripe navy blue Tom Ford suit. I assumed we were heading out to dinner, but apparently Clint had different plans.
“I meant to tell you about this earlier in the week. I’m actually kind of happy you didn’t pick up the paper on Sunday, because you would have seen...”
We stopped walking. Clint’s body was up behind my back. His chest pressed onto my shoulders. He slid his hands up my arms to my shoulders, and then to my hair where he gently untied my blindfold.
“This.”
He dropped the blindfold so I could take in the sight. Of course I instantly recognized what I was looking at and where I was. We were at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and we were staring at one of the most beautiful pieces of artwork on the planet, The Kiss by Gustav Klimt.
I sucked in a short breath, and smiled. Clint’s hands gripped my shoulders as his mouth moved to be close to my ear. “It’s on tour from Vienna. You mentioned to me once how much you loved Klimt. When I saw it would be in the city, and you hadn’t mentioned coming to see it, I knew that you didn’t know it was here on display.”
This. Was. Absolutely. Amazing. “Clint
, this is...I have no words.” I turned up to his face and kissed him, long and hard and without the thought of anyone and anything in the back of my head. This moment, my kiss in front of Klimt’s kiss, was just for Clint, full of love and appreciation for such a heartfelt gesture.
“How did you get access to this place at night?” I asked, but I then I internally cringed. I should have known better than to ask such a dumb question.
“There are some perks being in the Lappell, Norah,” Clint stated. It was great we finally could make use of at least one.
I thought about how much power and sway the Lappell had, and how many doors it could easily open. “Yes, it’s a world where no boundaries exist, isn’t it.”
Clint laughed at my comment, but it felt absolutely true. Their reach felt endless.
We both turned to stare at Klimt’s Kiss once more. I had stared at it many times before online and on post cards, and in magazines and books, but like all artwork, when you see the real thing, it has a magical impact that just takes your breath away. The detail, the color, and the effect it has on you when you are actually in its presence. It will move you like you’ve just seen it for the very first time.
“What do you think Clint? I know you see the beauty in art the way I do.” I wanted to hear his thoughts and interpretations.
Clint stared the way one does when they are truly captivated and moved. It was one of my favorite things about Clint and one of the reasons we fell in love. He loved art, and wasn’t afraid to see the romantic optimism of pieces, and what’s more, wasn’t afraid to express it. When we first met, we both had the same appreciation of Chagall’s Three Candles. It’s extraordinary how much you can tell about a person from their interpretations. It can show you how they see the world, and how they might see you.
Pieces of Truth Page 8