PURE HEROIN

III.

O3 | Pure Heroin

"Thank you for everything Miss Loretta" Exodus said running her fingers through her damp hair.

"No problem sweetie. I'm just glad that you are finally getting yourself together now" She smiled, her eyes glassy.

About a year ago around the time her addiction had progressed severely, Exodus had first met Miss Loretta at the diner that she owned. Which was conveniently a few blocks from the alley where she would usually get high in.

In her mid forties Miss Loretta was slightly heavy set with smooth brown skin and a smile that would make even the brightest light envious. Her personality was much the same, which had drawn Exodus to her like a moth to a flame.

Miss Loretta always made sure that Exodus had a proper meal and let her make use of the private bathroom in the back of the diner when she needed to freshen up. In truth, Exodus felt as if she owed Miss Loretta a lot more than a simple "thank you" but her gratitude was the only thing she had left to offer.

It had been a little over a month since AJ's shooting and three weeks since Exodus has used crack. Some days it seemed as though the withdrawals were slowly driving her insane. Her mind and body in an endless tug-o-war. She wanted to be steadfast in her resolve to beat her addiction but her body longed again for the comforting effects that only her glass dick could provide.

Then there were the nightmares. As soon as her eyelids closed, her brain was a scratched record, her conscious replayed that day of the shooting over, and over. She was drug addict turned insomniac.

"So where do you go from here?"

Exodus's gaze shifted out the window. She watched a few children playing outside, her finger absently tracing the rim of the coffee mug as she mulled over the question.

"..I guess I'll go ...home"

Home. The word sounded foreign even to her as it rolled off of her tongue. The home that she remembered was thousands of miles away in New York, but it felt as if it had been a hundred years since she had been back there.

Exodus hadn't talked to her parents in almost two years. What would she even say to them? How could she tell them that she was battling an addiction brought on by the very thing they had prepared her for all her life?

Miss Loretta rubbed her back reassuringly," I'm sure your parents will be overjoyed to see that you are back home and alright."

Exodus sipped the now cold coffee, relishing in its bitterness. She simply shrugged her shoulders in response.

"Well whatever you decide I just hope you call or visit an old woman from time to time."

Exodus left Miss Loretta's Diner a little after the sun had set. Adjusting her frayed knapsack across her shoulder she crossed the street, her mind full.

As she walked a few more blocks she passed the alley where Aj was shot. A shutter ripped through her body before she quickly sped up her pace.

The sun was almost completely gone now and the streetlight had already began to turn on. As Exodus walked, she couldn't shake the nagging feeling in her stomach. The hairs on the back of her neck stood straight up. She was consumed with the feeling of being watched.

Nervously she glanced over her shoulder doing a quick scan, her eyes darting everywhere and nowhere. there was surprisingly little people out on about and everything seemed normal. However, the feeling remained.

Exodus shook her head. Your just paranoid Ex' relax. Exhaling, she continued her journey.

Eli drove slowly his eyes never leaving her back. 'That's her."