Psychedelic Milk Escapade

Woke up feeling like a mush. My brain, barely managing to function only taking in the visual information right in front of me, as I slowly piece together the information into conceivable facts. The house, the living room, the red sofa I was slipping on, the ps2 which was (and is) stuck on startup as I stared at it the whole night. blinking consciously, hoping the next time I open my eyes it will fix itself. Yep, it’s all coming together. I need a cold cup of water.
“Mark! Bring some milk”
“What?”
“Deaf are you? You get some milk.”
Mothers’ voice. I hated hearing something like that first thing in the, wait what time is it? And why is everything so damn blurry?
“Yep mother. On it. Wait should I get milk or like I should get milk?”
“Here I wrote it down for you.”
“What?”
“Normal Milk. Get it from the supermarket.”
“Supermarket? To get milk? Alright, I’ll just go wash my face fi-”
“Get the damn milk first how many times do I have to tell you!”
“I will I just need to-”
“GET!”

I jump out of the sofa, and I land on my feet, the blood failed to get to my brain on time, I black out and I almost fell but grabbed the clothing holder just in the nick of time, why is this in the living room? Strange thing to keep.

“Why are you standing around for?” Said mother, I think. It was more of a scream though.
I walk out the door and was wearing my shoes,
“Hey, where are you going without this?”
“This?”
“I wrote it down.”

A slip of paper. I take it.

“It’s just milk I don’t need a note to remember it, I’m coming straight back home.”
“Read the damn thing.”
I look at her with confusion. Actually, my whole look since I woke has been confusion. I read it, ‘Normal Milk 200ml.’
“So, just milk?”
Slap. I just got slapped on my right cheek, the reverberation through my head woke up some of my sleeping brain cells, but the sudden knock on the door made them angry, and as retaliation, my head started to sting in the worst sort of way.
“Read it, out loud.”
“Normal milk 200ml.”
“Yes.”
“So just milk in a 200 ml carton.”
Slap again, this time left hand, on my left cheek, this one hurt more.
“What?”
“Read it.”
“Ok, so I have to bring normal milk 200ml.”
“Good”
What does normal milk mean? That’s just milk, right?
“Wait normal milk just means, normal milk right? or is it milk from the ‘normal’ company? Or is ‘normal milk’ a name for the 200ml carton?”

The door closes, fast with a large thud. Right in front of my face. I close it. I don’t want to get slapped again.

I still feel like mush. Trudging through the lanes I know so well. It’s nighttime, the strange blue kind, somehow dark and glowy all the same. It feels ominous and strange. I look around, the park I used to play in all the time back when I was a toddler, I refuse to go now though. Not even sit on the swing when no one is around. The empty seats, slightly swinging from the wind, all cold and hard. Even thinking of it gives me shivers. Why does the thing I love so dearly when I was young give me the most unsatiable kind of dread?

I’m at the supermarket now. I climb up the stairs to the automatic gate, I take a trolley, even though I’m just here to buy, fuck what I was supposed to buy?
Oh, right I have it jotted.
I stop. The doors. They won’t open. These are automatic doors, right? They should open as soon as I’m near. The hell. The store isn’t closed I can see people in there and it’s open. The door opened. It took its time.

I get inside, the ac is on and the smell is different inside. Much more artificial. I don’t hate it. Before I could start my hunt a young man not much older than me, someone who works here, came to me with his head down.

“What do you need sir?”
“Oh I just ne-”
I decided to take the help that is given to me. I give him the note, he takes a good look at it, he then looks up to me and then again at the note. I was expecting a question, an inquiry of the specifics of what was written on that note.
But the man held the note and dashed out of the shop. A dash as if his life depended on it.

The word dumbfounded must have been created for the writers to use in this exact moment.

I looked around me, as I was making sense, seeing if anyone else saw it, but to my dismay they went along their shopping just like that. I sprant right after him in that instant, but again, the door didn’t open. I screamed at the door to open but it refuse to even though when he ran it moved like butter.
Before I lost it the door opened and I ran out jumping down the stairs. Of course he was no where to be seen. However I saw someone else and forgot all about him.

It was Jullie. From school. She was just standing there. Now she’s looking at me. It was surprising to see her is all. But I can’t tell why. She was looking fine. I loved her fasion. Flashy looking knee high boots, a red jacket over black tank tops, a tight black skirt, flashy ear pearcings, deep black eye lashes and a slight make up bringing out her black lips.The chain dangling on her hips perfected it. She had this first date thing going on. Wait was she coming from a date?

“Mark?”
“Hey,JK.”
“What are you doing here?”
“Shopping. In the-uh super market, just right there.” I point at the supermarket just right behind me.
“For what?”
“Milk.”
“Milk?”
“Yah.”
“Right.”
“Well a specific kind of milk. It was written on paper. But the clerk ran with it.”
“He ran with it.”
“Just dashed away.”
“Damn”
“I know right.”
“Do you remember what was written?”
“Of course I do, it was normal milk 200ml.”
“Oh alright. Then lets go.”

I simply followed her up the stairs without asking, the doors opened, no problem.

“Ah, what are you-”
“Let’s find that milk! It’ll be easier if its two people doing the search.”
“Really? You’ll help?”
“Sure. I’ll check this side, you check that alright?”

She then started walking through the aisle, looking at everything diligently.
It was then I noticed, there wasn’t a single person in the whole market. Not a single soul. The hell I just saw it was bustling like a damn bazar. I was about to ask JK about it but then I decided not to. She hasn’t noticed yet and I don’t want to spook her. I’m just happy she’s helping.

I started looking around. I decided to check upstairs. I memory serves the 2nd floor was filled with home decor. Memory failed however, no home decor just beauty products aisle after aisle. But what I noticed was much, well much. It was a pool just like the one we have at school right beside the beauty products. Is that a thing now? Do supermarkets have pools in them? Why would they have that though?

I rush down the stairs, calling out to JK, so we could take a dip in the pool. I called for her but I didn’t hear any response. I didn’t go bother to look, if I see she’s not down there it would hurt me.

I went up again and sat near the pool. Slowly dipping my toes, it’s cold but fuck it I don’t care. I slowly ease myself in, the water was only up to my navel. I, rather comfortably sat there, thinking of nothing, just sat there. The coldness felt like a song soothing me.

Suddenly I felt like I need to pee. I still sat there, because it was too comfortable, I didn’t want to lose this perfect spot. So I sat there. It was not until I felt like my bladder had enough of my bs that I stood. I searched the second floor for a bathroom but didn’t find one. I went downstairs and didn’t find one. It was then I felt a bit at risk. I ran to the door, I’ll just run to my house it isn’t far and the door isn’t opening. It wasn’t opening damn it. I started bash it with my hands, I tried to breaking with my legs. The hell is this glass. I went up the second floor, then the third, I didn't even notice what was up there I found no bathroom, no doors. I ran back down, bashing the door, I tried breaking the transparent walls that divided me from the outside to no avail. I ran back to the 2nd floor, tried breaking glass walls there. Failed again. I ran back down rushing to the door. LET ME OUT. LET ME OUT JUST LET ME OUT PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE. I ran to the third floor nothing. The walls seems to change color. I can barely understand when and how I go up and down these three floors. Sometimes I’m in the first then in the third then in a place I’ve never been. JUST TAKE ME OUT. I NEED TO GET OUT PLEASE. I NEED-

—

I wake up with cold sweat. I feel wet. I remove the blanket on top of me. My whole lower half feels wet. I touch my wet pants and smell it. Just sweat. I was sweating like a pig. What a strange dream.

“Did you get it?”
JK. I know that voice, it was JK, she was sitting right next to my bed. In the same get up in my dream. I check her up and down everything from the lips to the boots. Why is she wearing the boots inside my house? Wait, she’s missing the chain. It sort of ruins her whole getup. A serious lacking. She stands up and tinkered something on my desk.

“Did you get it?”
“What”
“The milk.”
“Milk?”
“MIlk.”
“Milk?” I say again, emphasizing every letter.
“Milk.” she says with a nod, with the same note in her voice as before.
“Milk??”
“Milk..”