Dale lit a cigarette as he drove up to the zoo, following the long twisting road to the front parking lot he looked around. He signed as he looked over the empty fields lining both sides of the road. Long ago they hosted buffalo, ten foot fences kept them separated from the road, giving a glimpse of what to expect. Dale remembered as a kid staring at the buffalo in awe. Ten years ago some drunk shot and killed a buffalo calf and that was the end of that. Now the fields were empty and overgrown.
Dale finished his cigarette just as he got to the parking lot, parking, he walked over to the trailer that sat in the far corner.
"Pardon our mess!" The sign read with a panda wearing a hard hat. He smiled back at the cartoon bear and winked. " if only you knew the mess, bear. " Being the director of the zoo let him order construction whenever he wanted, and now it was working on the parking lot. Nevermind that the workers were mostly in their early twenties, whip thin and never had any tools in their hands. The parking lot was deserted now, the zoo didnt open for another four hours.
"Cookie! How you doing my man!" Dale walked into the dark, piss smelling trailer and spoke to the man sitting on the floor, staring at nothing.
"Shit he's already wasted." Dale thought.
The black man rose and gave him the thousand yard stare. Dale cleared his throat and adjusted his sleeves to hide his tattoos better.
"What day is it?"
" Pay day Cookie, pay day!" Dale walked over to long folding table and moved some chemical bottles and old take out around. Some he recognized, most he didnt. Cookie was a helluva chemist, "for a black man" he silently added, but couldn't keep house for shit. Had to be hard when you were blasted all day and night.
"Tuesday?"
"Sure, man sure." Dale laid down a thousand dollars and fished out a paper bag with a gallon ziplock bag in it.
Looking inside he saw two more ziplock bags full of the nasty brownish powder.
" I don't know what this shit is but it sure is selling. "
"Tuesday?" Cookie repeated.
"Yeah man, see you next Tuesday. " Dale chuckled and walked into the fresh Texas air. Looking around at the woods that surrounded the trailer in the middle of nowhere. He shrugged off the long sleeved coat and stretched. "Damn hot for a Friday." He said to himself and headed across parking lot to his Caviler.
Ashley woke up at six thirty to the sound of a engine trying to start. The grinding and grinding kept her from falling back asleep.
"God damn it Jim!" She shrieked and jumped out of bed. Pulling on a faded pair of jeans and a too tight blue shirt.
Storming outside she saw Jim crouched in the driveway besides his old dirtbike, tools laying haphazardly at his feet.
"You woke me up early for some dumbshit nonsense? It's not even seven o'clock yet! I-'
" Go eat some breakfast, put on the ten pounds of make up you usually wear and I'll take you to school."
"Bullshit! This is bullshit Jim!" She yelled at him. He didn't move, feeling stupid she went back inside and slammed the door.
Dale pulled up to Sweetwater High School at seven thirty am. Looking around he spotted the kids he 'gave' the sample to last week. Smoking and trying to look cool, leaning on the building. They cat called the girls coming off he bus, insulting the boys, spotting him they elbowed each other and slowly made their way over.
"Hey man, you were right about that shit it was-" the kid in the blue blurted out from five feet away. Cowboys jersey today, not great taste but at least it was the right state. His buddy elbowed him in the ribs and hissed at him to shut up as they came closer.
"Yeah boys. Glad you like."
"We need more. Hell we could probably sell it for you-" the boy caught another elbow to the ribs.
" okay boys." He grinned a serpents grin. "Not interested. I got some I can sell YOU though."
"Ill give you two hundred for three pounds. If it's as good as your last we can set something up.' Joe sweated, that two hundred was what him, Gina, and Blue could scrounge up. There wasn't going to be anymore for quite a while.
" Two hundred gets you, oh, half pound. Take it or go." Dale looked the kids up and down. "Dont. Sell. It. Don't share it, don't nothing. You smoke it and you leave it alone."
"Yeah, for sure for sure. We just want it for personal use." Blue lied.
Dale tried not to smile, he knew these two fuck heads would have it flooding the school in no time. That's the only reason he even talked to them today. His smile died on his lips, if they didnt get it sold he might soon be out of business. Doctor Hazel had been questioning him about the missing ketamine for a couple days, and he knew it would only get worst. If she knew what was going on in that trailer she'd do more than question.
"Asshole." Ashley stomped as she walked to school, cussing her brother for flaking on giving her a ride.
She noticed the guys from the gas station riding their bikes her way about a quarter of a mile away. She was thinking about crossing the street but decided she needed a confrontation. Steeling her self she marched towards them.
"Yo. It's that gas station chick!" Blue's jersey flapped as he pedaled.
Joe nodded and pedaled faster towards her.
"Listen you fucks, my brother told you the other day-"
They blocked the sidewalk on their bicycles, staring at her.
"Fuck your brother. Fuck the other day. You want to get high?" The one she recognized said. "Joe, that's right." She remembered.
"Why not?" She shrugged.
"You got money?" The other kid asked.
"Yeah." She shrugged. "Why not?" She repeated.
It was two weeks until the end of the world.
