What's a Heart to a Soul

1.10 U Scream I Scream

Anna was now beside me as we walked along the path back to the same table I had been sitting at seconds or days ago, depending on how you look at it. She sat on the same side as me and smirked as she plugged in her headphones before passing one to me.

"It was a bit tricky to get it right but I think it turned out really well." She stated as she clicked at her phone screen.

I smiled, "Thank you again I really appreciate you helping with this. You're the only producer at this whole school I would trust with it."

"Of course," her  smile was genuine, "glad to be in your extremely small circle of trust."

I rolled my eyes looking away for only a second as the scene was replaced by the four walls of my room. My bed was sloppily thrown together and Anna's made perfectly, as always. I sat at my desk, scribbling down lyrics and crossing out lines as I replaced and interweaved the replacements. My phone buzzed and I pulled it out noticing it was just a notification from one of the games I had loaded onto it. I set it on the desk face down and let out a sigh as I drummed my fingers on the wood. It had been two months since we'd last spoken and I still couldn't help but think about her every single day. Smoke fogged my vision and I was now on my roof, Devin beside me with a weary look as I held out the blunt to her. She skeptically took it, holding it awkwardly and looking at it as though it would burn her if she weren't careful. She put it to her lips, taking a small puff before exhaling the silver smoke into the moonlit sky.

She coughed slightly as she passed it back, "How do you not cough?"

I shrugged and put it tightly between my lips, taking a drag and holding it in before breathing out, the cloud of smoke dissipating away slowly. I was in a daze, numbness clouding my system and slowing  the world around me to a tolerable pace. Devin on the other hand seemed anxious, jittery as she tapped her feet against the shingles.

"I'm leaving tomorrow." I stated matter of factly as I leaned back, my hands flat against the scratchy roofing with the blunt held between my fingers.

She nodded, "Yeah I know."

"I uh, I think it's best that we have a little space for awhile." I paused looking over at her wide eyes "I'm not saying forever but I think we both have a lot to figure out and it seems like we keep fucking it up."

"I don't know that space will necessarily keep us from fucking up." She half whispered as she wrapped her arms around her knees.

I bit my lip and nodded before taking another puff and then breathed out, watching the smoke blow into the wind.

"I think it's what I need." This time my voice was even and stern.

She nodded, her voice shaky, "Then I'll give you some space."

I let out a breath equally as shaky and then put the blunt back to my lips, inhaling deeply. I then exhaled, watching as the smoke seemingly filled the air, stinging at my eyes. I fluttered my hand to try and clear it but it was to no avail as it just got thicker and thicker. My lungs burned and my mind was a dazed haze of paralysis. The smoke cleared, memories flashing before my eyes like a collage of  home videos. The images glitched, double vision of the same thing in two places and then reverting back to a singular existence. My mind felt like it was being ripped in half, dissected and then sewn sloppily shut. I saw a small tear in the fabric of the projector screen and reached out, an ice cream cone now in my hand as a small girl with curly pigtails took it and smiled at me.

"Thank you." Her voice was muffled, glitchy like bad connection.

She turned to walk away, her figure scattered into the air and then gone altogether as rain poured down, thunder booming from all directions. I turned and focused on setting up the register, counting the bills and change and coming up with the correct amount marked on the sheet.