The Reality of Muerte
(Outro)
By
Robby Richardson
“I don’t understand, you just leave the hotel room and come back off your rocker? Then we drive all the way back and you don’t say a word the whole journey. Then by the time we get back you say that you are dropping out of college . . . does that pretty much sum up the situation”? Jason kicked a stone absent mindedly, “it’s just the vacation did me some good made me find my purpose in life”. Jason watched his skinny friend shake his shaggy surfer blond hair out of his face, “we were all hammered and trashed the previous night and that morning you go out to explore . . . come back and find religion”. “Yeah well it was like an epiphany you know? The fresh air did me good,” his friend Erik acted like he hadn’t even taken a break. “And it’s not even a healthy religion, one of those creepy voodoo hoodoo religions”. Jason stepped up closer to him growling, “It’s not mere hoodoo or voodoo, it nothing your little mind could even wrap around.”
Watching his friend take a step back from his sudden aggression, he seemed to freeze a little, “whoa man look don’t get testy with me, just remember I got better grades than your stupid ass in high school”. Snarling still Jason said, “This is Muerte, only those who seek to achieve a higher level of being travel down this road”. “Somebody’s really got a hard on for their new philosophy”. Shrugging Jason turned, “I guess I better take the car back to my sisters, first requirement of Muerte is maturity”. Jason turned from Erik, who raised his hand, “yo man you aren’t going to sit there and tell me that you think you’re more mature than me”. Jason just smiled, “I guess so after all I plan on being a full out oracle de Muerte”.
Retreating to his car, he found his friend mumbling slightly as Jason opened the door. “Wait Jason,” he stopped as he stared at his tanned friend. “Look man we have been best friends since high school and I don’t want to loose you over something so petty.” He nodded slightly, “You won’t but this is important to me”. Erik couldn’t hide his curiosity, “Look man I’d be willing to try it, what exactly does it entail”? Jason smiled, “I’m sorry dude but I don’t think you are ready for something like this, you can’t just accept it like that. This will truly change your life”. Erik nodded “alright if it is so eye opening then let me try, you know me always down for the next ride”.
Jason rolled his eyes, “You see that is why you aren’t ready. It’s not a ride, it’s a . . .” Jason waved his hands, “a mystical journey”. Jason smiled wider, “well it’s not that cheesy”. Erik crossed, “either way it’s a religion and anything that helps you find a higher power is a religion”. Shaking his head, “no there is no god, no commandments, it helps you discover yourself and become who you are meant to be. To live the way you want to live.” Erik waved his arm, “that’s easy, I just want to live under the sea”. Jason pointed at him, “If you surfed anymore you might as well be growing gills”. Retreating into the car Erik cried, “wait man, I am dead serious, I really want to try it. And I know what you are going to say but I am serious if it means this much to you.” Jason paused as he reached into his pocket and removed a black satchel. “I don’t know, it’s not to be taken in lightly”. Erik smiled, “please dude you know I can handle it whatever it is”.
The seconds seemed to tick by as Jason seemed to really dwell on the subject. He seemed wracked with several emotions, but after what felt like several lifetimes. Jason tossed the black sack to Erik who caught it in one hand. “What am I supposed to do with this,” he asked as his hands ran over the velvet smooth fabric. “Use that pipe that you were using all week to inhale that poison inside you,” “poison,” snapped Erik. “You weren’t calling it poison the night before your so called religious enlightenment.” Jason shrugged, “we all got to grow up sometime, call me when you’re done”. He nodded in reply, “call you in five”. “Ha,” barked Jason, “I’ll talk to you in eight hours”. And with those final words, he slammed the car door leaving Erik standing by his car clenching his black bag.
“What a joke,” he sneered as he turned towards his house and headed around the back. His baggage weighed him as he made his way around the house slamming the small silver gate. “Mom,” he bellowed loudly as he grabbed for the door knob. It was locked which meant that she had left for work. “Oh come on,” he yelled as he tugged on the door knob harder. He dropped his bags as he made his way over to the side of his house. He passed by his gold grand Marquee and watched it gleam like a freshly polished brick of gold. He moved over to a rock that hopefully contained a spare key. He inched closer to it hoping that his sister didn’t grab it before she left for work last night. He uncovered the red rock and swore loudly. He threw the rock down in his frustration and gazed at his watch. He was slightly thankful his sister would be getting off her graveyard shift in two hours. Growling he began to pace the yard disappointed in his nap that he was hoping to partake in.
His hand reached into his pocket as he withdrew the black bag, He fiddled with the silver tie and smiled down at it, “I guess it was almost meant to be”. Withdrawing his keys he unlocked his car door and entered the driver’s seat. “Talk about the true meaning of a wake n’ bake,” he began to untie the bag as he watched the sky turn bright orange as if stretching from a slumber. Removing his pipe from the car lighter which coincidentally resembled a car lighter, he twisted off the bottom as the contents of the black bag began to become visible, a strange gray powder was inside. “What the hell is this shit,” his fingers traced over the powder. They ran through it as it felt exactly like flour, “and you want me to smoke this Jason”? He began to laugh as he looked down at it. He brought it up to his nose. “I am not a snorter Jason,” he began to laugh a little. “Well I guess this is going to need a little help”. He smiled as he reached into his pocket to reveal the final dub sack that he was supposed to smoke with Jason before they went their separate ways. He laughed again, “Leave it up to Jason to all of a sudden to get religious.” How many times had he told him chasing those religions would get him into trouble?
Taking out his bowl and filling it halfway with marijuana and then taking small amounts of the mystery powder. He began to pour more into the bowl until it was filled. He screwed on the bottom piece and raised it to his lips. “What is this called again,” he asked himself as he thought to himself deeply. “Umm,” he asked as he bit his lip in concentration, “it defiantly started with an m . . . right”? He withdrew a lighter and waved it in the air, “come on Jason! What was it . . . Muerte, yeah that’s it”. He flicked his lighter, “well I guess it’s time to get a little religious”. He watched the flame near the other half of the pipe and prepared for his enlightenment. He felt the flame enter the pipe and soon smoke began to flow into his mouth. He inhaled deep from the pipe and heard almost a sizzling from the contents of the bowl. The bowl heated up faster than normal and soon became too hot to handle. The smoke seemed to fill up his lungs to its capacity. His lungs seemed to balloon out to fill up his entire mid-section. He held in the smoke and felt almost his lungs sizzling from the inside. It seemed to burn the longer he held it in and felt only relief when the smoke expelled from his mouth.
The smoke was thicker than anything he had ever smoked before. It seemed like a literal cloud was taking shape inside his vehicle. His esophagus burned like acid reflux as he rubbed his chest softly. “Jesus Jason talk about a harsh hitting product”. He took the pipe again, and raising the lighter he took another hit. This one wasn’t so massive but made him choke into his hands. He coughed until salvia ran over his hands, pipe, and lighter. He coughed until mucus began to form a golf ball sized wad in his throat. He spit it on the floor and gazed up to see that the car’s smoke was thick like a fog.
He waved his hand through the mist but nothing seemed to penetrate it. His head felt funny as his brain seemed to be filled with nothing more than helium. He seemed to float a little in his seat as he continued to breathe in the “toxic” air. “Oh my god,” he said as he rested his head back on the head rest. “Wow is this stuff good,” the whole car seemed to disappear as if the whole world was blinded by it. Finally submitting to the smoke he lowered his hand and felt the bowl fall from it. “Man this stuff is good, no wonder he got all religious,” he felt his eyes beginning to narrow as his head almost detached. His body was made of pillows and he felt a smile cross his face.
“Oh my god, this is what life is all about . . . this is all I want in life,” his head slouched as the smoke almost seemed to dissipate from his nostrils. His body seemed limp as a noodle and he couldn’t move even if he was able to. “I hope nobody comes home early now,” his eyes narrowed and closed. “Stupid Jason, I wish he would’ve told me about this sooner”. He felt his words beginning to mumble and soon his speech died into faint whispers. Blackness surrounded him as his body seemed to drift out of the smoke. Although he felt the fabric of the chair and it seemed to keep his body from floating away.
He awoke with a startle when a soft cry echoed through the car. The bright sunlight and smoke were gone to reveal a picture that he couldn’t place. He seemed to breathe harder as he rubbed his head to try and remember how he had gotten to the bottom of the ocean. The water reflected as the sun shone through the water. His eyes were wide now and his shock had slain his “high” with a crude chainsaw like effect. His attention seemed more focused than he had been the time he went in to take his A.C.T. test.
Words seemed to fail him as he stared out at the scene. “I’m in,” he repeated several times before he finished, “in the ocean”. He began to feel his lungs begin to constrict at the impossibility of this. He saw fish lazily gliding by his window as he saw a giant brown one dive into the sand and burrow under the silt. Seaweed and coral took up several areas as it reminded him of a desktop screensaver. A loud cry echoed through the water and upon closer inspection made the water waver slightly. He turned to see a large whale passing by his car gracefully and as it moved out in front of him. It made its way up to the top which only seemed about 100 feet above him. “This is unreal,” he exclaimed as he began to smile watching the suns rays light up the clear blue ocean. He smiled as he clapped his hands together as the realization of his dream seemed to sweep over him. “I’m under the ocean . . . I’m living in the ocean,” he clapped his hands harder. As he straightened up in the seat all he wanted to do was to get out.
He felt the urge growing inside of him, he just wanted to grab his board and head out into the water. He wanted to swim and feel what corral actually felt like. He wanted to swim and do cartwheel and drift with a tide. He watched as his hand outstretched towards the glass, “this is amazing”. His hand reached forward and the coolness of the glass began to press upon his hand. He smiled wider as the water seemed to beckon to him. Soon he wasn’t craving his dream, he yearned for them. His hand connected with the glass and his head felt a jubilation that he had never felt before. Fireworks were exploding as his head and the coldness of the glass only seemed to keep him from floating away in happiness. “Your beautiful, I could stay here for . . .” but his words failed as he watched the glass around his hand begin to crack. The lines began to stretch as he quickly removed his hand. The cracks grew and began to grow wider and increasing every second. “Oh no,” whispered Erik. The cracks grew longer and more jagged, “please don’t”.
The horror of the situation began to intensify as water began to drip out of the cracks. It began to run down the glass and run over the dashboard. “Oh shit,” he yelled as he reached over and placed his finger over the hole. The water halted only for a second and soon his fingers was pushed away by a stem of water from a hole the size of fingerprint would be. “No, oh god,” he yelled as in his haste his hand scrapped against the driver window. He recoiled in horror as a scratch appeared on the window from his gentle graze. “Shit,” he exclaimed as saw to his horror the water beginning to run down the stereo and fill the bottom of the car. “Shit,” he closed his eyes, “this isn’t real . . . it’s not real”! He sat curled in the driver’s seat of his car watching the water slowly seep into the car. “This isn’t real,” he repeated as he closed his eyes and shook slightly listening to the water slowly fill the car. “It’s only the high, it will go away,” he tried to remember how long Jason had said the high was. “Come Erik you gotta wake up. Come on wake up . . . . WAKE UP”!
The End?