Ecstasy

Mark looked down at the substance that had been placed in his hand. He wasn't exactly sure what to even call it. It had just been handed to him, giving him no chance to question or object. It was a strange mixture of purple and green, somewhat swirling fading of colors, and it felt like it could be torn in two if he so much as moved his hand the wrong way.

He glanced around and saw other people holding the substance, popping into their mouths and washing it down with a glass of whatever it was they were drinking. He didn't want to be the only one still holding onto it, looking like an outcast, so he reluctantly dropped it into his mouth and tried to swallow it down with water. Despite the liquid, it felt dry going down his throat, like it was trying to grind out a fire on the way down, and he covered his mouth, trying to hide the sputtering cough that was threatening to overcome him.

The moment it hit his stomach, he began to feel weird. Colors in his eyes began to swim, and while he stayed steady in his seat, it felt as though the counter under his hand was moving up and down, like a wave on an ocean. He looked desperately around at the people he had seen previously taking the substance, only barely able to make out their shapes, but they didn't seem to be having any problems. In fact, they seemed to be even happier than they had been before.

Mark moved out of his seat, but the floor wasn't there to catch him, and he fell hard on his face. Almost immediately, two sets of arms were set around his own, lifting him back onto his feet, and holding him steady. Mark tried to look at them, but their faces were muddy, almost like they were melting away. He was in a state of panic, but he was beginning to find that his jaw hurt. He had fallen on his nose and forehead, but the pain was absent from that space.

"Take a seat, buddy," their voices came to home, but not from their faces. Forcefully, they pushed Mark back into the seat that he had been occupying. "Think you should just ride this one out."

Mark slumped against the counter, placing his hands on his face to realize that he was smiling uncontrollably, and his jaw was hanging open. He was able to think clearly, but his body was going on its own. It was like the part of his brain that experienced was going on a wild journey, while the part that thought was being left behind.

He was becoming scared. He didn't know how to deal with what was going on. But as the world around him became increasingly more bizarre, he concluded that the only choice he had was to let go and go with it. And as he did, the thoughts in his brain began to muddle as well. Like a wall that he had been holding up had abruptly fallen away. And he disappeared into the haze.