Another curious soul has been admitted to The Infinite Library, and it is my pleasure as Keeper to welcome them as a loyal patron!
Silver Slip Holder: Ondra Lasák
Welcome to the halls of the Infinite Library; may you always find a story worth reading!
I looked up from my computer as a soft groan broke the silence, “Welcome back to the land of the living, sis.”
“A-Adrian?” Rue muttered as she sat up in my bed, her hair a mess and her eyes barely opening, “W-what happened?”
Turning around in my chair, I stared at Rue, “You were stupid and nearly raped by Fez’s supplier, who forced you to take fentanyl.”
“Shit,” Rue groaned as she collapsed back into my bed, “Why did he have to call you?”
“Because you don’t have anyone else, dumbass,” I replied coldly, “You isolate yourself from everyone around you to avoid taking responsibility for your actions.”
“Oh my god, Adrian, can you please stop with this psychoanalysis bullshit?” Rue swore as she pulled a pillow over her face, “I was almost sexually assaulted by a drug dealer; the last thing I need right now is you giving me the fourth degree.”
I scoffed, “You don’t get to play the victim card, Rue.
Beyond that fucker being a piece of shit, you’re the only other person to blame for the situation you found yourself in.”
“Oh, so it’s my fault that someone tried to rape me?” Rue asked as she sat back up and glared at me.
“No, but it is your fault that you were in Fez’s apartment looking for drugs,” I hissed, doubling down as I leaned in, “And the fact that you’re trying to argue and guilt trip me instead of being thankful for the fact that Fez and I made sure you were safe says a lot about you as a person, Rue!”
“Oh, so that’s what you want!” Rue muttered as she glared at me, “You just want to be praised and thanked for being the big, strong man!
What, did you think that I would wake up and see you as my savior?”
I let out a dark bark of laughter as I met Rue’s glare, “Of course not.
I stopped expecting anything from you the day you OD’d.”
Rue’s chest hitched and I could see the pain that she immediately pushed down, “Then why did you come get me?
Why did you make sure I got home safe?”
“Because I’ve accepted that there are two possibilities with you Rue, if you keep going down this path,” I stated as I held up two fingers, “Either you’re going to kill yourself, or you’re going to eventually realize that you’re drowning and want to live. You are reading on novelping(.)com, the official source.
The only thing I can do is make sure you stay above the surface long enough to reach out for a lifeline.
But I’m not going to let you pull me or anyone else down with you.
Rue’s jaw clenched, “I thought you didn’t expect anything of me?”
“I don’t; those are just the two most likely outcomes.
I’ve accepted that both are equally likely and that ultimately I can’t influence what happens in the end…I know it’s only a matter of when not if you do something that no one can save you from.”
I sat back in my chair and let the exhaustion I was feeling show on my face, “Now, It’s almost five in the morning and I’ve been up all night looking after your dumbass.
So either go to your own bed or make some room.”
Rue was quiet for a second before she stood up and silently left my room, closing the door behind her.
Letting out a sigh I stood up, walked over to my bed and promptly collapsed into it not even having time to get underneath the covers before I passed out.
[Fez: I’ve got ur stuff, come pick it up at Milk.]
[Adrian: Alr be there after school]
Stepping into the small convenience store that Fez sold out of, I found him at the cash register and gave him a nod, “You got it?”
Fez nodded and reached underneath the counter before setting down two sealed plastic packets with one labeled ‘Purple Kush’ in bold purple lettering and the other ‘Lemon Cookie’ in bright yellow.’
I picked up the packets and gently felt around inside, feeling the four small round seeds in each, “Seems good…what’s the damage?”
“180,” Fez answered as he leaned against the counter and looked out the windows, passively scanning for any onlookers.
“Hmm, cheaper than I expected,” I muttered as I reached into my pocket and pulled out my very limited savings.
“How is she?”
I paused mid-count and glanced up to see Fez looking at me with a concerned look in his eyes, “I think she’s taking a break from things…what happened rattled her more than she liked to admit… though it’s only a matter of time before she finds something she needs to escape from.”
“I know…I’m not looking forward to it,” Fez muttered with a dark look in his eyes, “I regret it you know…selling her pills to begin with.”
That made the drug dealer pause, and he looked up at me just as I grabbed the two seed packets off the counter and stepped away, “I’ll see you around man.”
Headed out the door I was distracted as I felt my current expenses update with my latest purchase and thought I was snapped out of it by a startled gasp.
Looking up I saw that I had nearly sent the door flying into someone and a second later I realized who that someone was, “Shit, my bad, Kat, didn’t see you there.”
“Y-you know my name?” Kat’s voice was tight and stressed, which made me pause, “Um, yeah, you used to hang out with my sister, right?”
Kat blinked before she seemed to piece something together and blushed,”O-oh yeah, right of course.
I mean, why else would you know who I am?”
I blinked, and when my vision focused again, wisps of green- and yellow-tinged smoke floated around Kat’s head, “Well, there’s always the possibility that I’m interested in you.”
That made Kat freeze for a second as she glanced up at me, “Interested…I-In what kind of way?”
“You’re kidding me, right?” I asked as I blatantly checked Kat out, letting my eyes roam up and down her plump and curvy body, focusing on her large chest, thighs, and hips, “Just know that if I had seen you before BB…then she wouldn’t have been the one spreading rumors.”
Kat turned bright red as she caught on to my innuendo, and I could see the racing thoughts behind her eyes, “W-what are you talking about?”
The smoke around Kat condensed, turning into a thick vapor, and tinges of pink and red appeared along the very edges of the cloud.
In an instant, the stress of the week caught up to me, and my need for catharsis won out as I grinned and took a step closer to Kat, “I’m talking about how you would have been the one getting pinned against a mattress instead of BB.”
Kat’s heavy breathing was audible as her eyes went wide with shock and no small amount of arousal, “W-why are you messing with me…y-you don’t really mean any of that.”
“What, you need a live demonstration?” I asked sarcastically as I took a step forward closing in on Kat until less than a foot separated us, “Because if there’s one thing I hate, it’s being called a liar.”
An almost barely noticeable shiver passed through Kat’s body, and I watched the smoke around her thicken into a cloud as her knees trembled and her plump lips parted, “C-can you g-give me some space… p-please, you’re like s-suffocating me right now.”
For a second, I hesitated before ultimately taking a step back as I reached into my pocket, “Fine, but at least let me get your number if you ever change your mind.”
Kat looked down at my phone and bit her lip before shakily reaching out and taking her phone, and I watched her put in her number, “T-there, are we good now?”
“Let me just check one thing real quick,” I muttered as I called the number and, a second later, heard a ringing from Kat’s pocket, “Alright, looks like we’re all good here.
I’ll see you around Kat, and if you ever need proof that not everyone likes skinny girls who are all stick and bones… well, you know how to reach me.”