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🔴 TRIGGER WARNING - DRUG USE 🔴
80's rap music was playing loudly through the room while I was picking up empty beer cans that were scattered throughout the floor in Michael's apartment. He sat back on the couch eating a bag of chips and drinking a Steel Reserve. His mom paid me $100 to clean his apartment again. Although I've felt as if I had been cleaning for the past 8 hours, the floor could still barely be seen.
Michael had given me a few Ritalin to help me come down from dope and give me some motivation to clean. I hadn't smoked in a couple of days. I didn't have any money and Ty, Matt, and Gio were all MIA. I had taken 3 pills and still had 2 more in my pocket. The high from Ritalin wasn't anything like meth. At this point, it was just like a cup of coffee; a quick pick-me-up.
Michael laughed at the T.V. and threw his empty bag of chips behind him into the floor. I glared at him but didn't say anything about it. I never understood how someone could live in such a way.
"Dude, I've been cleaning all day and there's already 8 bags of trash. How do you do this?" I said getting frustrated.
"Oh my God, how many times do I have to tell you! Are you stupid? I have fucking brain damage that prevents me from cleaning up after myself! I just can't do it!"
"Uh, huh, okay."
I rolled my eyes and went back to uncovering dirty dishes and towels from underneath the trash. I stopped for a moment to check my phone and saw that I had a Facebook message from Danielle. This is the first time I've ever heard from her outside of being around Gio. I stopped what I was doing to check and see what she wanted.
"Emily, do you have any diapers? I'm babysitting my cousin's baby but we ran out of diapers."
Babysitting? At a trap house? How? Why? Why would anyone let her take care of a baby when she's high? I just couldn't wrap my head around it.
"No, I don't have any, I'm sorry," I wrote back.
I looked back at Michael as he popped another pill. He just got his prescription refilled, so he was feeling pretty generous. I sat down the bag of trash and went to grab one of my Sam Adams I had left in his fridge. As I took a drink, I felt my phone go off again.
I looked at my phone to see Danielle message me again. It read: "Could you take us to the store to get some? I really need a Mountain Dew and cigarettes too. Our car doesn't run and I don't know anyone else who could help."
I took a look around at the filthy apartment I was standing in. I knew I had to clean it because I was already paid for it, but I had been cleaning for hours now. I knew that baby was already in a bad enough spot being stuck at their house and I felt guilty by saying no. I wanted to help, but I knew Michael would flip his lid.
My phone went off again. All I saw was "Please. We really need you,". I shoved my phone in my pocket, downed the rest of my beer and walked over to Michael. He looked like a drunken squirrel. He was fidgety but nearly falling over just sitting on the couch.
"Hey man, I need to go. I've got to do something important."
"You can't leave! I paid you, well, my mom paid you to clean up and you haven't done SHIT!"
"Excuse me, asshole, I've been cleaning since 10:00 this morning and it's almost 9:00! Danielle needs some diapers for a baby she's watching. Sorry, but I'm putting that baby first!"
"Who the fuck do you think you are leaving me like this. I will sue you for stealing my money. I will come after you, my mom will come after you! We had an agreement!"
"Well maybe if you'd man up and act like a fucking adult and clean up after yourself then you wouldn't have to worry about people cleaning up after you all the god damn time!"
I kicked his globe across the room. It hit the wall and caved in on one side. I walked away quickly, grabbed my purse and headed down the stairs as he was still yelling that his mess was all my fault. I made it down to my car when I heard his footsteps coming down the stairs. I panicked. I locked the car and frantically searched for the keys.
He wasn't going to catch me.
I wouldn't let him hurt me.
Not again.
I found my keys, turned the car on and floored it out to the street as soon as his feet hit the concrete. I took in a deep breath of relief as I drove away. I sent Danielle a message that told her I was on my way. I had only been back over there a few times since we met. So far, they were incredibly nice to me. They always shared their dope with me, even if I had nothing in return. I know when I met them the first time, they said they were trying to quit, but that didn't last long.
I drove up the driveway and waved to the camera hanging down from the trees. They always had their TV on and hooked up to their surveillance cameras, so I started waving so they knew it was me. I pulled up to see a strange-looking man pacing the ground by the house, yelling at someone on the phone. As soon as he saw me, he ran into the woods.
I got out and was greeted by the dogs, some wagging their tails, some barking. I walked up the stairs and knocked on the partially opened door. The dogs ran past me and into the living room.
"Who is it?" I heard Danielle yell.
"It's Emily!"
"Come in!"
I walked past the laundry room and into the living room. Danielle was in the chair holding a happy, giggling baby. There was another dark-haired girl on the couch. She wore old pajama pants and a tank top. She was holding her arm straight up in the air and rocking back and forth. I looked over at her confused, then sat down next to Danielle.
"This is Oliver, isn't he such a sweetheart!"
"Ohhhh my gosh, he's adorable!"
"Yeah. Him and his momma are staying with us for the weekend and we need some diapers and milk. We've got everything else we need. I think Troy has some money if you could run him to the store."
"Sure, you don't want to go?"
"I don't leave the house unless I have no choice. I'm running from the law right now."
"Oh, I understand. Where's Troy?"
"He should be down the hill cutting down trees. That's what he's been doing all day. If you see a skinny red-haired guy, that's just Dustin, pay him no mind."
"Okay, I'll go look for him. Is there anything else you need while I'm out?"
"Troy has a list of stuff. Thank you, sweetie."
"No problem!"
I walked back outside and down the front yard to see Troy taking an ax to a huge oak tree. He was drenched in sweat almost robotically hacking at this tree. His eyes never left his target, but somehow he still noticed me.
"Emily. Did Danni send you down here?"
"Yes, sir."
"Alright," he said as he threw his ax into a stump nearby. "Let's go, I have more shit to do when I get back."
I ran up the hill trying to keep up with him. He got in the front seat as I got the car started and backed out of the driveway.
"You got any money?"
"A little. I just cleaned my friend's house and I have some left."
"Good, 'cause I don't have anything. You need to buy all this stuff."
"No problem," I said, but honestly I was a little frustrated. Who was he to say I had to spend my money? I didn't really mind since they have been better to me than anyone else has been, and it's for a baby, but I didn't take kindly to being told what to do by someone who sounded like an asshole all the time.
"Danni seems to like you. She kept asking me to send you a message to come over. To be honest, I think she has diapers. I think she just wanted to see you. She don't have any friends really. Always stuck in the house because she's an absconder."
"Oh, really? She seems really nice. Thanks for letting me come over and everything. Sorry I intruded the first time."
"Not your fault. Gio has a big head. He thinks he's the shit and he runs this town. He's always bringing people places he shouldn't thinkin' he can get away with it. I like you though."
"Thanks, I guess."
We arrived at Walgreens, just down the road from Michael's house. I was hoping he wasn't here by chance. I grabbed some diapers and milk while Troy grabbed an armful of honey buns and some mountain dew. We checked out, but the cashier kept glaring at Troy the whole time.
As we walked out I wanted to ask him if he knew the cashier, but he was busy on his phone.
"You said you had Ritalin the other day, right?"
"Yeah, I got it from my friend, why?"
"If I give you some dope when we get back, would you want to sell them?"
"Yeah, these don't do anything for me anymore."
"Good. In that case, I've got a friend who lives right down from here in an apartment complex. He has to take Adderal just to walk. He's in a wheelchair all the time, but he can walk with stimulants. I'm not giving him dope though."
"Yeah, no problem. Can you check the glove box for an empty cigarette pack?"
Michael had left an empty pack with Ritalin in it the other day. I was hoping it was still there because I only had two left in my pocket. He opened the glove box and luckily, it was still there. He poured them out into his hand and counted 7 pills.
"So with that and what I have on me, I've got 9. How much do they sell for?"
"Mmm, probably about $2.00 apiece, but he really needs them. Sell them for a dollar."
"That's fine with me. I'm happy to get rid of them. The crash is awful anyways."
He called his friend and told him we'd be right there. We drove right past Michael's apartment and further down the road to an old school building that had been turned into an apartment complex. I parked right up front and saw a wobbly, tall man walking towards us. He had to be at least 6 1/2 feet tall. He came towards us unsteadily with a cane in one hand. He smiled a genuine smile when he saw Troy and me in the car.
"Sam," Troy yelled, "Come here, I know you can walk faster than that!"
"Not much faster," he yelled back.
He made it to my window where Troy introduced me and told him about the Ritalin we had. I handed them over and told him I didn't want any money. I got the feeling that Sam was actually a genuinely nice guy. I could be wrong, but I wanted to help him. I felt like I had to.
He walked back inside and we headed back to Troy's house. We both walked inside but Danielle and the baby were nowhere to be seen. I stood in the living room, arms full of stuff, not sure what to do. Troy walked into his bedroom and back out with Danielle.
"The baby and his parents are asleep in the other room," she whispered.
"Oh, okay. Well, I can just drop this stuff off and leave you be."
"No, no, you're fine! Come to our bedroom for a minute. Do you smoke or bump? I can't remember."
"I only smoke it."
"Damn, do you have a pipe on you?"
"Yeah, I've got one in my purse."
"Awesome. Troy will hook you up then."
I walked into their bedroom. There were several dressers topped with tubes, glass bottles, tools, and an array of other random things. They had a huge king size bed that took up almost the whole room with clothes and trash all over the floor, just like Michael's house. Danielle sat down and patted the corner of the bed. I sat down and Troy grabbed a scale and a Ziploc bag full of dope from a little compartment handing above his bed.
I looked up to see another surveillance camera pointed at their door and 3 computer monitors all showing different videos of the yard or another part of the house. It made me wonder if they saw me the first time I ever came here to pick up Ty.
I looked back at Troy who was weighing some shards on the scale and put them in a baggie for me. He then grabbed two syringes, but I looked away. I didn't know they shot up, and I didn't want to find out how to do it. I was afraid that if I knew, I would end up doing it too.
"Here's half a gram. Keep this for yourself. Don't be sharing with Ty or anyone else. This is just for Emily."
"Got it, thank you."
I got my pipe from my purse, took a little shard out of the bag, and put it in the pipe. I reached over to grab my lighter and I got a glimpse of Troy leaning over Danielle. Her arm was outstretched and I watched as he pushed the plunger down on the syringe and the bloody looking liquid went into her arm. I looked away, but the image of what I saw was burned into my mind.
I picked up my pipe and got it ready to smoke. I took a hit, but this tasted almost sweet. It was like a mix of cleaner, but slightly sweet with something I couldn't quite put my finger on. It looked the same as regular dope. The crackback was the same. The color was the same. It just seemed different, but I couldn't tell if it was in a good or bad way.
I sat there on the bed for a while smoking while Danielle got up and changed clothes several times. I could tell she had just gotten high by the way she was running all over the place. Troy did his bump, then went back outside to cutting trees in the dark.
I said my goodbyes to Danielle as I headed back home. As I was leaving I checked my phone to see 17 missed calls and several messages from Michael. I wasn't going to let him manipulate me into me thinking everything was my fault again. I sat the phone down and kept ignoring him.
I drove home with every intention to finish the dope that Troy had given me. I'd stay up all night and watch videos or something. I'd do anything except talk to Michael.
That's the end of Chapter 24.
I will go ahead and say that the baby was fine. It makes me sick to my stomach that I was around this situation... I knew the family of the baby though and they were in good hands. Apparently the mother didn't get to keep him all the time.
Michael still to this day tells me he is going to sue me for the $100 I owe his mom. I did end up finishing the cleaning job, but he will never let it go that I "fucked him over". One of the last things he ever told me was "when you see me again, it will be to get my money" and that was just this year! The incident was over 5 years ago now.
Anyways, this came up on my TimeHop yesterday and it gave me a good laugh and will lead up to an interesting story. So, later on in the story, I adopt the name Emo-li and become Troy & Danielle's "security guard" and official rep of the T.T.F.
Any guesses on what that might be? Give up? Tweaker Task Force. Yeah... it was a thing. The flashlight, needle, bag of money, and knife are all symbols of what a tweaker was, at least for me. What an interesting time. This was obviously when meth was still fun and new. Well before all fo the drama and hurt came into play.
Here's some other pictures I found related to the story.
The ax! His trusty ax that cut down, literally, hundreds of trees. This was always in random spots in the house.
All of the spots on the floor are from dog pee and poop... you can imagine how bad it smelled...
One of the many times we were cutting down and burning trees in their front yard. That was Danielle, but thankfully she's covered up & blurred out so no one can tell who she is.
Although the picture sucks, this is Troy and his favorite dog. He was reading something to his dog. I remember it being really sweet so I took a picture.
This picture was looking out of their room, into the living room. I remember why I took this very random picture. There came a time when no one was allowed in there but me, Troy, and Danielle. Not even people he called family, or people he's known for several years. I was the only "extra" person allowed. They trusted me, and with Troy being the person he was, this was a big deal. I remember taking this as proof that I was there. That I held the authority to be there and no one else did. I wanted to remember where a lot of my story took place... I just wish I had gotten more pictures.