"Donald, what time is it?" Asked the driver of the van to her friend in the back.
"Don't call me Donald. you know I hate that, ~Torah~," She responded.
"Fine, you will be Dawnisour," She said and spat out some hair that had gottn into her mouth from the wind rushing through the open window.
"Why does she get to be the Jewish holy book? I wanna be the Jewish holy book," Said the third friend.
"Cause the Jews love me; I am their prophet,"
"You get to be the Quran,"
"I'm not even Islamic, I'm Hindu,"
"Are you not from Saudi Arabia?"
"I'm Inidan, idiot. It's like you don't know me at all,"
"Torah, pull over we have a stranger in our vehicle,"
"I have a tire iron in the back, should I use that?" She suggested.
"My weapon of choice would be spiked knuckles, but hey, it's your van,"
"It is my van. You can tell cause I wrote my name in sharpie in the corner of the windsheild, and who the hell changed it to Torah?"
"I did. In the last three seconds we were talking about it,"
Those three riveting young ladies were driving to an airport to visit their good friend in Brighton, England, whose family had a beach home there. The driver of the van was Norah Handley. She was driving much past the speed limit down a single lane road. All around for miles were fields of wheat and grass. She had the window open and her hair flipped and twisted around vigorously, continously getting her dark brown hair in her mouth and in her blue-green eyes. Multiple times she took her concentraion off the road to straighten her glasses and has swerved and almost driven off the road into the shallow ditches lining them.
The two passengers in the back of the van did not mind at all, they were all rather reckless and unscrupulous. Sitting up against the side of the red interior was Dawn Reddick. The entire time of sitting there she was playing with her short, curly, brown hair by parting it and having it hang in her small, circular face,"Look, you can't see my eyes. I'm so dark and edgy," Like Norah, Dawn talked with a low monotone voice that always sounded flat with no emotion.
"Go overdose on vitamins, emo," Their other friend was Jala Kapur, who was constantly the center of Indian jokes. The heat in the van swelled and she put her almost black hair up in a ponytail and fanned her slim, tan face. She had more emotion in her voice, or at least would change the volume of it.
"We should play some music," Norah said to break the silence and turned on the radio,"What do you guys want?"
"Christian death metal,"
"Dubstep," Dawn said at the same time as Jala's answer.
"I think we need some DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Funky Time Gang," Norah said with a laugh and turned to the station playing jazz mixed with funk.
"This physically burns my ears," Commented Dawn.
"I'm not even listening; I'm reading on Wattpad. I don't actually read the the stories, I just read the Mary-Sue names. I'm never disapointed, especially with names like Aurora Valentine or anything with Blaze,"
"I hope they all die in the end," Said Dawn.
"Why must they always die at the end?" Asked Norah.
"Cause somebody has to die, Torah!" Dawn yelled close to her ear.
"Sit your punk ass down," She told her.
Dawn sat back down but kept yelling,"Somebody has to die! Somebody has to die!"
She finally shut up when they hit something in the road and they all jerked foreward. Norah stopped the van,"Hey guys, I might of killed a hippie," She said camly.
"This is what your erratic driving has caused us, Torah," Dawn responded with no concern with the possibly injured person they just hit.
"This is what you wanted, Dawn. Somebody had to die," Jala reminded her,"I say we pickpocket her,"
"Nevermind, she's alright," Norah said nonchalantly when she saw the blonde girl they hit stand up, seemingly unharmed.
"Dammit," Jala cursed under her breath.
Dawn stood up and got right next to her ear again,"Drive, idiot, drive! We don't know what kind of lawyers she has! Go!"
"I say it's time to make a new friend, guys," Norah said and opened the passenger door.
"Dude, no, we gotta get to the airport in like forty minutes. We are not even close to it," Dawn argued with her.
The blonde hippie girl got in the passenger seat and closed the door, then Norah started up the van and drove down the road,"Hello, friends. I am Poppy, I'm on a spiritual journey across this sweet, plentiful land," She had high voice that sounded sweet.
"Sooooo, you're not mad that we hit you?" Asked Jala.
"No, my dear brown friend, I think you hit me for a reason, we were meant to go on our own spiritual journeys together," She said with a smile. She had blonde messy hair down to her waist and multiple braids wrapped around her head. She had excitable brown eyes and light freckles right below them. Random little flowers were placed in her hair and behind her ears with multiple piercings in them. All she wore was a kind of dirty white toga like dress and no shoes. She bared a brown satchel and small backpack.
"I like her! Let's take her to England with us!" An excited Norah suggested.
"I'm not too sure Clarise would like a dirty hippie in her home. Besides, we don't have enough to pay for her ticket," Dawn had to be the barer of bad news.
"I swiped some dudes credit card when we stopped at that gas station," Jala said like it was nothing as she held up a credit card.
All was silent for a few seconds before Dawn said,"Welcome aboard to Torah's Mystery Machine, Poppy,"
"I'm Norah, by the way, not the Jewish holy book. And back there is Donald," She shot back.
"Dawn. I am Dawn,"
"Let's not forget about Jala; the one who is paying for this,"
"I'm glad you guys picked me up. I started my journey in Florida and yet to find spirirtaul closure, maybe you three can help me. I've tried talking to the trees and grass but they are not responding to me anymore. I'm afriad I might of upset them,"
"Yeah," Is all Jala said.
"I feel the same way but with a giant stuffed bear I named Bad News Barold," Dawn retorted.
"Yeah, the bear gives her good luck when shes nice to him," Norah further explained,"I am also the same but Steve Harvey is my prophet, especially hot dog face Steve Harvey. I pray to him every night,"
"I think I'm gonna give you guys spirittual names," She gestured to Norah,"I'm gonna call you Charity, since you're a nice person and picked me up,"
"She's not a nie person, trust me," Dawn said while right behind Norah.
"We've known her for a long time, she will eat your soul," Jala told Poppy.
"We are captives of hers, she won't let us out," Dawn was getting unnessaily frantic.
Jala was too,"Get out now before it's too late!"
"Sit down and shut up or you're going to bed early," Norah warned.
"Whatever, you're not my real mom," Dawn responded.
"We're gonna stay up past bed time and not use our training wheels when swimming," Jala sneered to the driver. Both girls in the back huffed as they sat crossed legged and crossed their arms like a cranky five year old.
"You, my Indian companion, will be Deva, Hindu goddess of the moon," Poppy continued.
"Shocking," Jala mumbled.
"You," Poppy pointed it to Dawn,"I get a bad vibe from you,"
"Dawn wants to be the next Hitler," Jala said accusingly.
"Bsshh, what? W-what's that? What's a Hitler, ehh..."
"Thats why I will name you Mercy, and hope you show mercy on all those unsespecting souls," She said and placed a hand over her heart.
"Yeah. Don't count on it, kid,"
"Kid? No, no, you are the child just emerging into the world for a grand beginning and adventurous journey," She rasied her hands in the air and looked upwards,"I am only a pre-teen though, so it's really not my place to say. But to become an adult, you'll need to learn acceptence and forgiveness through speaking with Mother Nature. Speak to a bird every now and then, or a pretty flower, they have much to say," She closed her eyes and smiled to herself.
"So, Jala, Torah, I hear our dear sweet little Clarise has a new boyfriend, how...surprising," Dawn sparked up a convesation to move past that hippie spueal.
"Why is it surprising?" Asked Norah.
"She's just always so busy and worries about everything," Jala answered for her.
"Yeah, she always said she didn't have enough time for relasonships. She's so stressed too, that intership is gonna be the death of her,"
Norah responded,"Yeah, but in like, twenty years she'll be a CEO,"
"That's worth it I guess,"
"Sounds like your friend needs a spiritual journey of her own," Poppy recomended.
"So are we almost there yet?" Jala asked impatiently.
"Almost." Norah answered and turned on the radio. Here I Go Again by Whitesnake started playing.
"Wow, this is perfect for us!" Jala exclamimed.
"I know! Let's sing!" Norah yelled and her and Jala started singing and Poppy soon joined in.
"Here I go again on my own!"
"You have other people in the van with you,"
"Going down the only road I've ever known!"
"The road you know is a gravel one leading into more rural areas around you,"
"Like a drifter I was born to walk alone!'
"Again, there are other people here and we have a pre -determined destination,"
Norah switched off the radio,"What the hell are you going on about, Donald?" Norah said hastily.
"Well, we just need a more accurate song. All we really know is the gravel and dirt roads that we drive through green and plentiful surrondings in the redneck ridden hellhole we lived for twenty two, seventeen, and twenty one years of our lives. We've never even really left the east coast," Dawn explained.
"Wait, how are we the same age yet you just said three differnent years?" Jala asked.
"Torah has lived here her entire life, you lived in India as a baby, and I spend five years in Jersey,"
"I'm from Florida! I was born in America! And I'm only half Indian," At the beginning of always hearing stuff about India, she didn't mind, but it has gotten so common and extreme that it now bothers her.
"What I remember from my birth place has turned into nothing but soiled memories of what once was my life in the judgemental, high taxed state that is New Jersey," She spoke dramaticially and placed her embracing hands over her chest.
"Yeah, I dont really remember Florida," Jala said the much more simple version.
''I wish I was born somewhere else. I hate my family of rednecks, I don't belong here," Norah said with more emotion in her voice.
"None of us do. We never had those horrible accents." Jala assured her,"And are we there yet?" She whined.
"Yes,"
"Really?!"
"No,"
"We can take some Wow to pass the time," Poppy said and opened her satchel.
"What's Wow? I ask," Dawn did indeed ask.
"It's Wow, it does not bare a definition. Take some," She handed a small, oval, purple pill to Jala and Dawn.
"None for me, I am driving, and the only drugs I do is injecting pasta sauce into my veins. I need my fix, there's too much blood in my veins,"
Fifteen minutes after Jala and Dawn took the drug, all they did was lay in the back of the van trying to catch fairies and saying "wow" over and over again.
"They have such bad judgement," Norah was saying to Poppy,"They took a drug called Wow from a hippie with no question,"
"Wow is magnificent! But soon they will come down from their high and experience severe fear from terrifying hallucinations,"
Soon after that, Jala and Dawn started screaming and shrieking at the top of their lungs and were flailing around and clinging to each other. They were slapping themselves and each other and began to take off the shirts and pants and jumped out the back of the van into the grassy fields. They ran around shrieking more about flesh eating tape worms under their skin.
Poppy and Norah jumped out, Norah yelled to them,"Guys, you're okay. They aren't real!"
"Sing soft lullabies to them, they will go away!" Poppy told them. So the four girls sang together,"Rock a bye baby in the tree tops, when the wind blows the craddle will rock, la la la la la," Jala and Dawn calmed down after that and vowed never to do Wow again,"You can't be old and wise if you weren't once young and reckless," Poppy said cheerfully.
Dawn groaned as she struggled to get her feet through her leggings,"If you're too reckless, you won't make it to old."
Jala just finished getting her blue shirt on and sat back down on the floor,"So, you wanna do more Wow?"
A few minutes went by and after getting pulled over for speeding, the three friends and their new hippie companion made it to the small airport. Making it through security was rather easy for them, surprisingly. They were all sure one of the others would have some type of deadly weapon in their possesion and would have to be taken to customs and thrown in jail as terroerists. But, they all exceeded each other's expectations and got aboard quickly. Jala got an aisle seat up in the front and Norah got a window seat in the middle. Dawn and Poppy sat on either sides of a buisnessman in the back and did nothing but harrass the poor man for all those hours.
Once they got off and got their luggage, Dawn and Poppy each held up a buisness card,"The guy we sat with gave these to us," Poppy announced.
"It's a number to a psychiatrist. He said we needed help," Dawn further explained and looked around,"So how we getting there?" She asked.
"Clarise said she had a car for us," Norah answered.
"Must be nice to be rich," Jala commented.
"Money is just a material item and holds no real value," Poppy proclaimed.
"Except that it holds all the value. From a one cent penny to a hundred dollar bill, there is value," Dawn called her bluff.
"Sometimes you're fun but other times you just kill the fun," Jala told the cynical girl.
"I cause the fun and kill the fun," She said with an unsmiling face.
"I agree with Dawn, money is so much more important. And the two personality thing is just the Gemini in her," Norah said to Jala.
"Yeah, I cant help it, I'm a Gemini. Like how Noarh can't help that she is a stubborn Taurus who needs to accept change more,"
"No," The Taurus said firmly.
"Yes,"
"No,"
"Okay, you win. But I also win, cause Dawn wins every tim,"
"Jala, what are you doing?" Norah now turned her attention to the Inidan girl that was stroking a doorframe and had one of her legs up on it.
"There wasn't enough atterntion on me," Was her answer.
"Goddamit, Jala, we're in public," Dawn cursed to her.
"I will stroke a serurity guard if I have to. Also, I got your van flown over here, you're welcome," Jala said smugly.
"What? How?"
"Indian mafia," Dawn answered.
"My dad's friend owns the airport, I got him to fly it over. It should be outside,"
"Airport. Perfect cover for an Indian mafia boss," Dawn went on.
"Any more about any Indian stuff and I'm gonna punch you," She said aggressively,"Okay, Donald?"
"Call me that again and I rip you heart out with my teeth and devour it. Something like that is worth getting punched for,"
"Ladies, please, let's all join hands and take a deep breath," Poppy linked their hands together and did some deep breathing.
After that, they left to get to the van. They speeded a couple miles to their friend's family's beach house and marveled on how amazing it looked. It was three stories tall and pale blue in color. It had two flights of stairs leading to the front door and two seperate garages. There was a private walkway to the beach, large decks wrapped around it, and a tiki bar out back. They entered onto the first floor and had to go up two more flights of stairs to get to the top floor. By the time they were at the top, the out of shape girls were huffing and puffing and immediately dropped their luggage. On the top floor was a large kitchen with all granite counters to the left, and a long dining table next to it. To the right was the living area with white whicker couches and chairs and a flat sceen on the wall. There was also a bathroom, a bar, and the master bedroom over there. Doors to the deck and windows overlooking the water were in front of them.
"Hot diggety damn," Norah exclaimed.
A girl walked out while putting her earrings on, she was wearing a tight blue dress to her knees and heels. Her short auburn pixie cut was perfectly centered and each hair placed accordingly to suit her oval face and jutted out chin. She looked up and jerked back a bit, startled to see people standing there. Norah flung the speeding ticket at her and told her to pay for it.
"Oh, I didn't think you guys would get here so early. I haven't even bought food for the place yet," She put on half moon glasses.
"Or stocked the bar. Get on that, Reeses Pieces," Dawn said and flopped down on the couch.
"Reeses Pieces, I guess that's better than Stuffy," The girl said, she had a quiet voice.
"No, you're still Stuffy, dont forget it," Norah remined her and sat down on Dawn,"I certainly won't let you,"
"I had allergies," She said in her defense.
"We all had allergies, you had a problem," Jala then took a seat on Norah, who was on Dawn, who was struggling to breathe.
"Ah, I am just so stressed. I don't know if I have enough money, the maids haven't come yet, I have a meeting on Tuesday that I am not prepared for, an- who are you?" She stopped and looked questioningly at Poppy.
Poppy took her hands in both of hers and shook them,"Penelope Violet Paloma, but you can call me Poppy, or Violet, or Paloma. Just not P.P, I hate that. It's so nice to meet you,"
Jala, Dawn, and Norah rushed and stumbled to get to th other two and grab the stressed girl's hand in both of theirs and shook it vigorously,"Sooooo nice!" All three of them bellowed out.
"I am Clarise Tucker, call me anything but Stuffy,"
"Okay, I will call you Fortune, cause you are very fortunate to live such a luxurious lifestyle and very generous to share your possessions with others. Would you like some Wow?" Poppy then asked her.
All three girls on the couch all yelled "NO!" at the top of their lungs.
"No, thank you. I am sorry I have to do this, but I didn't get here too long ago and have yet to buy any food, so I am gonna have to ask one of you to go do it. Sorry, I know you're guests, but-"
Jala and Dawn were back on the couch but got up again and rushed back to Clarise,"Reesey's, no problem, we got this. Jala, accompny me on this excursion," Dawn turned to say to her.
"Right behind ya,"
"I have to go. I was called in on a work emergency," She sounded sorry.
"You work too hard," Norah told her and put her feet up on the glass table,"But I know someday your dad is gonna make you CEO of Insert Company Name Here,"
"Fantasticly thriving company that help enturpenuers launch their own companies," Dawn said in an uppity manner,"Now it's time for food,"
"What are you guys taking?" Norah questioned.
"Your van. I stole your keys," Amitted Dawn.
"And I stole them back," Norah went to reach for her keys in her pockets but found them missing and sighed.
Jala held up the keys and jingled them,"And I pickpocketed what you pickpocket that Dawn first pickpocketed,"
Dawn clapped once,"Once again, the Indian won. You guys sure are crafty. Almost as devious as my pants dealing ring,"
"She pants's people, pushes them down, and pries their pants off their kicking legs," Norah explained to Poppy.
"But devious noe the less,"
"You're about to get punched," Jala snarled.
"You know, I have a ring that was made in India, maybe one of your cousins made it." Dawn held up her hands to show that she was wearing seventeen different rings, ten on one hand, seven on the other.
"Oh my god, Dawn," Norah exclaimed.
"Oh your gäd, Torah,"
"Im Pagan, Dawn. You're Pagan, we converted together, we held a ritual. We almost sacrificed a virgin,"
"Ah, yes. Good times as I recall,"
Clarise jumped in on that,"Not good from what i remember. I was the virgin you almost sacrificed. Still haven't forgiven you guys,"
Dawn and Norah got in front of Clarise on their knees,"Please forgive us, dearest friend," Dawn pleaded.
"We were only trying to please our gods," Norah argued.
Clarise stood there with her arms crossed firmy and a unforgiving look on her face,"Name one Pagan god and I'll forgive you,"
Dawn and Norah went silent and dropped their eyes to the ground, Norah said,"I did so much research, but the gods were not apart of that,"
"Anubis," Dawn half guessed.
"Egytian," Clarise said back.
"Zeus?" Norah went.
"Greek,"
"Apollo?"
"Roman,"
They were silent for a few more seconds,"Deva!" Norah said confidently.
"Hindu. Seriuously guys?"
"I know this, I know this. Selene! Moon goddess, boom!" Dawn shouted and she and Norah high fived and stood up,"Our convertion was well reasoned,"
"My mom converted to Hiduism for my dad after dating for two months, cause go big or go home," Jala told them.
"I belive in pure Scientology," Poppy included.
"Oh jeez!" Dawn and Norah both went at the same time.
"Come on, Jala, let's get away from here,"
"And I really need to get to work, I'll see you guys later," Clarise then walked down the stairs and left.
"We should get jobs; be normal twenty two year olds," Jala sugested.
"Heh, how about no?" Norah layed her head back,"I got a bachelor's degree, what more do you want from me?"
"What about you?" Jala asked Dawn.
"I'm taking a year off," Was her answer.
"Its been four years,"
"I'm living at home till I'm thirty, lets go," Dawn grabbed Jala's arm and pulled her down the stairs.
Norah sat on the couch with her left arm over the back of it. Poppy sat with a big grin on her face at Norah who stared back blanky,"So, my most lovely Charity, let us talk about your spirit animal,"
"Steve Harvey is my spirit animal,"
"No, a spider is your spirit animal. Spiders gifts are creativity, balance between past and future, and physical and spirit. Spider is the combination of strength and gentleness, they are the keepers of the prodomidal alphabet and can do all they do creatively. Their figure eight bodies and eight legs signify infinite possibilities and creation. Does that sound like you?"
Norah continued to stare blankly,"Spot on," She whispered.
"That's what I thought, that's the immediate vibe I got from you," Poppy took the other girl's hands in hers, closed her eyes, and hummed quietly,"Mhh, mhh. Yes. In your past life you were a bird, a peacock. You are honorable and have much integrity. You defend your beleifs no matter what and stand up for yourself. You are completely trustworthy, self-confident, and are no fool to be taken advantage of. You are bright and colorful but use your shield like tail to cover and hide from the ones you have deemed unworthy,"
Norah pulled her hands away,"Damn, how do you know all of that?"
"Just a vibe," She said with a shrug of her shoulders,"So how about some Wow?"
Clarise returned about the same time Dawn and Jala came back with the food. Clarise kicked off her heels and tiredly sat down. The elevator next to the bathroom dinged and the door slid open. They looked and suspected to see Jala and Dawn, but instead looked to see bags upon plastic bags filled with fruit. Jala and Dawn ran up the stairs with big smiles on their faces,"We got ~all~ the fruit," Dawn said.
"Guys, you spent all of the money on fruit?!" Clarise ran her hand through her short hair.
Jala and Dawn brought all the bags of fruit to the kitchen counters and dumped them out. Jala counted,"Fourteen pears, seven peaches, five plums, ten kiwis, nine apples, four pineapples, two coconuts, twenty three bananas, four containers of blueberries, and strawberries, and eight oranges,"
A window was open and the plastic bags were floating across the counters and floors,"That's a lot of plastic bags," Poppy comented.
Norah took a bite of one of the apples,"And alot of plastic fruit. These are plastic, guys,"
"Are you telling me that you guys spent three ~hundred~ dollars on fake fruit?!" Clarise bellowed out with her face turning slightly red.
"Calm down, Stuffy, I was joking," Norah revealed the inside of the real apple,"Jeez, your allergies aren't the only reason we call you stuffy, Stuffy,"
"We have no money now, people!"
"Just get daddy to give you money," Dawn told her.
"I already exceeded my usage," Clarise started breathing heavy and put her hand on her chest. Poppy sat her down had her sit straight. The hippie girl told the worrisome girl to hum as she hummed. They hummed a melody together until the panicky girl seemed to calm down some,"Oh, guys, I forgot to tell you. My cousin will be coming over for dinner later, well they were coming over, but since we have no money and nothing but fruit..."
Norah came up with a seemingly good idea,"Lets go to the beach and beg people for money like the orphans we are,"
"That'll be easy for Jala, she really was an orphan," Dawn got a death stare from Jala. That was the last straw. Jala punched Dawn lightly in the nose, it wasnt enough to break her nose but it was enough to hurt.
"Aw, hell! Jala my darling, why?!"
"No more Indian shit, I'm sick of it," She spoke in a firm tone to Dawn.
Poppy lit a candle,"This is a peace candle. Hopefully this will calm your senses and make you all feel les hostile and more passive,"
Jala's brown eyes looked Poppy straight in her brown eyes as she put out the candle with her thumb and forefinger, she then shook her head at the blonde who lit another candle,"Let's go be orphans,"
The five girls walked down the private beach walkway to the gazebo looking out over the beach, all they could see was the water, "Oh, that's nice," Dawn commented.
"I wonder what it's like to be rich," Jala wondered aloud.
Norah said to them,"Remember guys, we're orphans, we don't even know what money looks like,"
They half slid up the dune and were ready to beg for cash when they got to the to the bottom of the other side. When they did reach the top of the dune they were a little more than disappointed. No one was there.
"Well, this is what happens when you to the beach right before winter," Norah said as she observed the empty beach.
"Well, this sucks," Jala sunk her shoulders.
"Don't think as this as bad! We have a deserted beach to be our own personal playground to frolic around and do as we please!" Poppy cheered and throw her arms in the air.
Dawn pointed to some people down the beach,"It's not deserted, look there's people,"
Clarise squinted her eyes to see,"Oh hey, that's my cousin," Clarie got their attention and waved them over. When they got closer, they other girls could see who those five boys were.
"Wait, is that...are they..." Jala maneged to get out.
"No way in hell," Dawn said as she realized who they were.
"And why didn't you tell us this?" Norah asked.
"I didn't know how you guys would take it," She said shyly and gingerly looked away,"But, Loius Tomlinson is my cousin and he just so happens to be in-"
"Don't say it,"
"One Direction,"
The four girls groaned.
Clarise gave a small chuckle and smiled darkly,"Don't groan yet, ladies. You haven't heard the reason I've invited them over,"