The Last Apothecary

Chapter 18.

To say I was a zombie by the time I stepped out of my house would be an understatement. There were no bags under my eyes, because at this rate they were full out purple hiking backpacks, with nineteen hidden compartments to hold every wink of sleep I hadn't gotten. I practically dragged myself to the bus stop, only to raise my head to see a perfectly fine Dustin.

"Hey. Good morning!" he chirped.

"How are you fine?" I asked, ignoring his greeting. There was nothing 'good' about how I felt. "You had to drive back to your house after dropping us off. You should be more tired than anybody!"

He blinked in response before holding up an entire thermos. "If you boil a cup of instant coffee into two cups of ten hour energy instead of water, you get energy juice. Anyways," he continued, as if he hadn't just revealed that he belonged in a mental institution. "I made you something."

"What is it?" I asked, watching him hold his hands cupped in front of me. Then he opened them, showing a black creature the size of a dime there.

"WHY THE HELL DO YOU HAVE A SPIDER IN YOUR HANDS?" I screamed in an assuredly manly fashion.

"...Crow. It's not real," Dustin said calmly before holding it closer for me to see. "See? It's clay. I made it for you."

From here, I could tell it was an earring, with a hook leading into a thin, clear thread, and a small spider figurine attached to the end. It looked exactly like the aquatic-themed ones he kept hanging on his car dash mirror.

"T-thanks. It's well made, but why?" I asked. I awkwardly flipped it around in my hand, inspecting it.

"I just thought it was weird for you to be afraid of them, so I made a cute one so maybe you'd learn to like them. Look, he even has a little smiley face." He pointed to the barely noticable indent in the otherwise smooth, black charm. "It would fit your style so well!"

He looked so eager, and with no reason to be afraid of a piece of clay, I gave in, hooking it through my left piercing. It hung down almost to the end of my neck, but it wasn't heavy and sat well enough.

"It looks great on you! I hope you like it." His eyes crunched up into a smile.

"I do, but..." As grateful as I was, something wasn't adding up. "When did you even have the time to make this? You only learned this yesterday, and we got home and went to bed late..."

"What bed? I drank ten hour energy and coffee. This is hour four."

"...right."

When the bus pulled up, I could see Blyke waving to us through the window, and with a look at Dustin, who just shrugged, we went and sat by him in the back. I didn't remember falling asleep, but at least Dustin was kind enough to shake the two of us awake once we reached the building for the second time that morning.

"Do you guys want a sip of my drink?" Dustin offered, holding up the canister. "I won't be there in class to keep you up."

"No, thank you. It's just Science, so I won't be missing out much. Besides, I kinda have this thing against dying," I answered, only half joking.

"Wait, this stuff kills you? Lemme have a go at it." And with that Blyke already had the thermos in his hand, taking a large swig.

"Stop! You don't even know what's in there," I shouted, trying to grab it out of his hands, but he was well out of my range. Why is everyone I know a nutjob?

He stopped drinking for a second, sticking his tongue out a bit as he handed it back to Dustin. "Man, that stuff tastes awful. What's in it anyways?" he asked.