The Cascading Waves of Caden Lee

28

CADEN LEE

Despite my past anti-drug ideals, one of the things i've always been the slightest bit curious of was magic mushrooms—or, shrooms—as most call it.

So when we're all laying in the trunk of my jeep; roof and doors removed, and Leah reaches into her bootcut jeans pocket and pulls out a plastic bag filled with obscure-looking mushrooms, my mind instantly knows what they are.

Scarlett and Katie's jaws automatically drop. Katie whispers harshly, "Leah! What the fuck?"

Leah rolls her eyes, "They're just shrooms, love. None of you guys have to do any if you don't want to, but I thought it'd be fun tripping at a drive-in movie theater."

Just as Katie says, "Just shrooms?!" Asher speaks up for the first time since Leah revealed the baggy from her pocket, "How would we drive back home after the movies over, though?"

Leah pulls the plastic bag open and grabs one of the mushrooms. "The movies three hours long, if we take these now and hide our keys we can drive home an hour or two after the movie ends. Theres no security guards or anything."

Surprisingly, I speak up before my mind can register that I'd even opened my mouth in the first place, "I'm in."

Leah cheers, swaying sideways and knocking her shoulder with mine, "Knew I could count on you, my one and only true friend."

Asher smiles broadly at my words, saying, "If Cade's doing it, I am too. I mean, it's natural or whatever too, right? Not like we're shooting up meth. People in California eat this shit for breakfast."

"Yes," Comes the sarcastic murmur of Joseph, "People in California are constantly tripping balls while eating their morning bowl of Lucky Charms."

Leah turns to her right, "You joining, Katie?"

"Nah, im good. You guys need someone to watch you anyways."

I laugh, "You sound like we're seven years old and you're our babysitter."

"I practically am most of the time!"

Before I can retort with some sort of lame defense, Scarlett clears her throat before saying hesitantly, "How are we gonna dose these to make sure we don't, like, take too much or something."

Something sits in the gleam of Leah's eyes, something beyond understanding, "I have a mini scale in the car, Scar'. We'll use that, and besides, you can't overdose on shrooms."

"Oh, okay, then I guess I'll take some too."

"Sweet, Joseph?"

He shakes his head, "I'm good."

Leah nods before stumbling out of my car's trunk and pulling open Scarlett's back seat.

Asher smiles; laughs a little, "I've always wanted to do shrooms." Joseph gives him a disapproving look, but says nothing.

I don't say anything, either. Because I know it'd be alarmingly out of character for the Caden they know.

Leah is back, a mini digital scale gripped in her pale, slender fingers. As she sets the scale on the trunk's floor, she says, "These taste way better in a chocolate bar, but these are all I have. So brace yourselves."

I'm not too worried. Im sure the bitter taste of Hydrocodone dissolving on my tongue is miles worse. The aftertaste that coats your tastebuds and takes a strongly-flavored drink to mask the pills remnants.

She measures out two grams for each of us and we all collectively grab our sodas we bought from the concession stand. As I twist open the blue cap of my Pepsi bottle, light illuminates from the giant projector stationed in the front of the packed parking-lot. Trailers start to boom through the speakers. I thought there wouldn't be trailers at a drive-in movie theater, but I guess I was wrong.