Purgatory circle chapter 2
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Previously on Purgatory Circle Chapter 1;
"First off get bent, and second you don't know how you got here?" He spit out sounding concerned at the end.
"No, I stepped in a hole." I flat lined.
He braced himself, "Baby don't have a cow but you're dead."
Purgatory Circle Chapter 2
The pine trees and the leather clad boy
"Wow you must think I'm an idiot huh?" I sighed flopping back onto my rat's nest of a bed, I really didn't need nine pillows and four throw blankets.
" I don't think something like this would be a big tickle, " He sighed sliding his hands across his greased-up scalp," You might be a closet case if you're this fine. Then again all closet cases do have a classy chassis."
"Did Naruto put you up to this? Is he mad because I cut him off? " I shot to my feet rage filling me up to the brim, " It isn't fair that he got to keep looking forward and he's upset I didn't die trying to catch his dust!"
Shaking with a new-found rage mixed with a deep humiliation in my core at for unloading my inner feelings onto a stranger I cowered, " I didn't, I just."
His hands went up in a sign of mock surrender, " Wow, wow now Dolly. Cut the grass and listen, I know you're drowning and confused but just follow me outside. There's something you'll need to cast an eyeball at."
Grabbing my wrist, he yanked me out of bed and went straight for the rickety stairs. The Livingroom caught my vision but only in a fast-motioned blur and my heart seized. All of my cringe worthy childhood paintings were gone from the mantle, in fact there wasn't even a mantle. Why were the walls painted mint green like cheap toothpaste? The stranger now kidnapper or well adult-napper noticed my hesitance and pulled hard on me again towards our secret destination.
Purgatory circle had been the personification of mismatch. None of the muted cookie cutter houses greeted my nervous stomach or creased with concern eyes. Every house was different, the build, shape, color, and hell even the grass was different shades and was that snow on only half a yard?
A deep electric violet late 1950's "A" framed house starkly stood out along with its enormous amount of paper flowers littering the grass and any surface flat enough to hold them. A woman with a mop of choppy short purple hair laid in the middle of an immense pile almost being swallowed by them. My heart skipped a beat, my photographer's fingers itching to grab my camera.
"Didn't know you swung that way cherry head, making me feel real low at your direction." He chuckled going towards the beginning of our neighborhood near the street sign engraved with Purgatory Circle.
" It's not Doll, Dolly, Baby, or hell even Cherry Head no matter how cool that sounds. My name is Sakura Haruno, say it with me, Sa-Ku-Ra Har-uno." I huffed annoyed puffing my cheeks out.
"So that's your handle huh? Mine's Sasori, " He clarified, " Cherry head." He grinned turning back at me.
His leather clad back smacked into my slightly upturned nose swiftly as he slammed to a halt at his destination. He leaned against a pine tree staring at the dense tree line that appeared where the gravel road broke into crumbles onto the dirt ground.
I shifted my weight onto one foot as I crossed my arms, " Where's the rest of the road? This isn't my neighborhood."
He rubbed his neck either from nerves or annoyance I couldn't tell, "Well Cherry Head to get with it you're going to need to eyeball this yourself. Just shoot low, they're riding Shetlands."
Sensing he wouldn't give me any more information or well more cryptic advice I trudged on. The prickly colored glass flashed in the back of my mind and I held a death grip on any passing tree trunks due to fear of falling again. The forestry only lasted a solid two minutes at best before turning sparse and ending in sky, only literately. My left foot went an extra step in cat like curiosity and dangled off the crumbling earthen ledge. Fear flashed in my heart sending white speckles across my vision causing me to slide onto the ground momentarily arms still looped around the thin pine tree, they were an unbreakable padlock and I wasn't unlocking them any time soon. Arms wrapped around my torso trying to pry me from my spot, but I was planning on taking on roots.
"Just Shoot Low, don't you listen nosebleed?" Sasori ground out trying to pry me from my new anchor.
" What kind of bullshit is this you fucking prick!" I screeched watching a pebble fall and fall, it kept going off the edge and I couldn't hear it hit bottom or water.
"Don't get salty I said just shoot low!" He ground out still pulling me at the seams, I'd honestly rather burst than fall down with that damned pebble.
He sighed heavily and leaned his chin on the crook of my neck, hot breath fanning across my collarbone, " I could just take a nod here Cherry Head."
Flustered I sputtered and reeled back accidently knocking the flat back of my skull into his roman nose, the only feature about him that cried man, not boy. He ducked against a pine trunk holding his nose in one hand as he grinned.
"I just knocked you after I could've died, why are you smiling!" I said pointedly while throwing my hands in the air from aspiration.
"First off too late, you're already dead remember and I'll clue you, " He grinned bigger " I got you to let go of your safety anchor."
"You're a basket case, " I sighed pinching the bridge of my nose as I slid back down to the warm grass, " So I died alone in the reject hole, nobody saved me?"
I brought my knees to my chest sinking my face to rest atop them as he blankly stared out at the infinite skyline, "No, sometimes your flip-top doesn't make it home."
I don't know how long we stayed there because the sunset hadn't even begun yet but the shadows grew longer showing the lapse of sometime passing. He just stared fixated on some invisible point in the distance only he knew, I wished I had maybe seen Naruto one last time. I would have apologized and sobbed hugging him trying to memorize his scent but honestly my pride wouldn't have let my mouth admit why I let us get this way.
Sasori suddenly stood dusting the dirt and invisible grime off his dark jeans, "Let's go drop you off at paper shaker's pad, she was real radioactive in school. Maybe she can answer your questions since you seem to be writing a book. Just remember to compliment her ego sometimes, say something nice about her nest or stomach."
Mistrust nagged at the back of my mind in a tiny voice repeating the word 'High school', " So even in death I need to feed miss popular's ego?" I groaned slightly annoyed.
"The paper shaker's straight, a good kiddo. Just here's the word from the bird and don't repeat it okay, " He paused looking over my expression, " She got here by starving herself until one day she nodded off in the tub. So just say something about her nest, she takes pride in braiding it and such. Be extra good to the kiddo and never push details on why someones here. They'll tell you if they're ready."
Greaser Glossary for Chapter;
Big Tickle: Really Funny
Closet Case: Someone to be ashamed of
Cut The Grass: Be Quiet
Drowning: Baffled
Low: Depressed
Handle: Name
Just shoot low, they're riding Shetlands:
Nosebleed: Stupid
Salty: Angry
I'll Clue You: I'll tell you about it
Flip Top: Convertible