Scribbles and Drabbles

Notebook Drabble 26 - Jumper

It took longer than it should have to notice he'd slipped through to somewhere different. In his defence, the stuff Jonas passed him before they'd left the docks hit hard. He used to be able to drink it all night and barely feel it in the morning. Naden's tolerance fell while dating someone who didn't drink. She didn't like the taste on his lips. 

Another swig, and he settled back against the brick wall behind him. The burn rushed through him and warned his fingers and cheeks. His forehead twinged, and his tongue buzzed, wanting another taste of heaven. The heavy weight on his shoulder disappeared, and everything lifted, leaving him untethered and unmoored. He blinked slowly as colours shifted from dim shades of blue and grey to shades of orange and mud brown. Street lamps must have been fixed, was the explanation his mind gave. 

Easier to fix them when there was more money from firing dead weights. 

He didn't notice the fact the grey blues that came from the building being built from metal and concrete changed to mud brown because the materials changed. The buildings that surrounded him were made from mud bricks. The grinding pain of resting against the coarse brick instead of smooth metal should have shoved the fact that he'd shifted dimensions into his face.

The temperate warmed despite the cold night. The chill as winter approached vanished under the heat of alcohol, and the mist of the night vanished with a dry haze. The air changing from damp to dry failed to kick his mind in gear too. 

What clued him in? The moon, or rather two round orbs, blinked up in the sky. He rubbed his eyes. He wasn't seeing double. There were in fact two separate moons in the sky. 

Another swig of booze. Oh well, it wasn't like he needed to go home tonight.

His girlfriend left him yesterday for the man who fired him today. Several unpleasant words came to mind, worse when he considered the man who'd fired him. Apparently, the office didn't need someone like him anymore. The technology could do his job far better than anyone breathing. His years of hard work and loyalty to the company meant nothing to progress.

His boss didn't try to help him. Jonas did. He argued that they could put him on the floor. Extra hands who knew the job were always wanted. Naden helped in the past during busy periods.

The bastard laughed. 

Naden didn't have the strength required for the work. That hurt more than losing his girlfriend to the man. No one argued the fact. They accepted it and moved on with life. Jonas got his stuff packed; Naden got pushed around the men for a quick farewell before the man kicked him out on his arse. 

Slipping through never brought good things. Tonight he'd risk them all. Getting home fast only applied when his job waited and his girlfriend would worry. Did returning home mean anything if he had nowhere to return to?

A string of stars glowed under the two orbs like a smile. He grimaced and took another swig, or tried. The bottle didn't have anything left in it. Naden put it on the ground next to him and stretch out. His steel-toe boost belonged to him. He bought them early on when he realised how often he needed to go out onto the warehouse floor. 

Fancy computers couldn't do that. They couldn't reason with men with calloused hands that worked for scraps of money. They couldn't comfort a man who'd lost his daughter to cancer or calm Rory down when the sounds grew too much for him. The computer spat out cold facts, not reasons. 

He twisted his ankle and tapped it twice against the opposite foot. His muscles ached, tight and unhappy with the strain he'd forced them through, even with his shoulders light and carefree. He should try to get home. He didn't know where he was, and he needed somewhere safe to sleep this off. Everything buzzed, not quite numb but getting there. He shivered as the wind turned cold and sprayed beads of sand over him. He wiped his eyes clear, and his mind followed.