Rock-And-Roll Eyes

Chapter Twenty

Three months of playing these grueling hours and none of us have gotten used to it. The best we can do is stay high on drugs and play with all the passion we could muster. Afterward, we would crash, and sleep for hours. What sleep we got wasn't good because the drugs we took caused realistic dreams. They kept us active even when we were asleep, leaving us in a constant loop of exhaustion.

Even the drugs were beginning to stop working. I was up to four pills, the rest of the lads had all passed six. We were becoming more and more tolerant of the drug and less and less energetic each day.

The greatest days were Sunday. On those days, we could finally take time apart from each other and have a day of rest. It was my favorite day of the week. Sundays were the only days when I could take a step back and breathe.

That particular Sunday, I had started by calling Molly. We talked as long as two shillings would allow. When that was done, I found a comfortable bench at a nearby park and opened the book I had been dying to start.

It was a beautiful day. The sun was out, the sky was blue, it was beautiful, and so was the city. Summer had come and gone, and now, winter was fast approaching. Fall was still lingering for as long as it could, however, like a stubborn child at his favorite playground. All of the leaves had changed color, and most had fallen off. It gave the city hues of red, orange, and brown.

Even the air smelled sweeter here than in Bristol. There weren't as many factories in Dublin as there were in Bristol, and the air was clean of the pollution they produced. There was no smog, there were no ashy smells, and there were no foul factory workers. The only stench was the occasional whiff of hard liquor or the walk of shame, but even that was scarce. Everything was peaceful.

I was enjoying my peaceful reading. All I heard was the singing birds and distant cars. For the first time in several weeks, I actually relaxed. All of my muscles released the tension I held. My body felt the pain of holding the tension for so long, it made me groan slightly. After a few seconds, that pain was replaced with relief.

Nothing lasts forever.

"Lia!" a voice echoed through the park.

I sighed deeply, "Oh no."

Only one person ever called me that. Vincent, Oscar, Benedict, Clyde, and Lyra were all hurrying from the front gates. They all looked happy, excited even. It was a big contrast to that morning when they all looked pissed off. Just three hours ago, Oscar had threatened to break my drumsticks if I didn't go away.

"What the hell do you want?" I asked, "I'm trying to get away from you gits."

Oscar ignored my comment, "We're gonna revolt, Lia, you in?"

"What the bleeding hell are you on about?"

"IT's these hours they've got us on," Clyde put in, "They're ridiculous!"

"You're just now realizing this?"

"For the love of fuck, Melly," Oscar groaned, "Will you just rebel with us already?"

I stared at them for a moment. They all looked at me eagerly, as if they expected me to say yes without giving me any sort of details. I slowly closed my book, 'You're gonna have to tell me more than that to convince me."

Vincent grinned, "We're gonna confront that wanker right in the face!"

"And get him to change our hours," Oscar nodded.

"Really?" they all nodded enthusiastically, "And how are you gonna do that?"

Oscar hit his palm and grinned menacingly. Clyde pushed down his hands and smiled, "Democratically, of course."