Reading: "Altar of Incantation" from COVEAL OF THE HEDONIC (A.Glass 2025)

 

“The Halos gallery on E 2^nd Street, usual place.”
“I’ll be there…” Nalina leans forward, as the both embrace again. “...You take care.”
He begins to walk off, holding up the bottle. “Good days sweetie, good days.”
Nalina blows him a kiss.
Whilst walking she reaches into her bag, lifting out the small glass vial, pausing briefly, she gently pops open the plastic cap, leaning her head back and administering three drops of 2CB.
Securely pushing down the cap, she carefully places the vial back into her bag.
Ah, yes, Nexus is super quick. I love it! She notices the first stages of the psychedelic, with the street lights flickering, and streaking across her vision, the reddish hue of the sky pulsating within its vivid illuminated. “Fuck, color blindness. Everything is colorful, in the darkness.” Nalina begins to laugh in a restrained way, feeling euphoric at the beginning of the trip. She nears Tompkins Park, as the Nexus begins to ascend to its peak. Gotta watch crossing this road. Looking in both directions, noting that there are no cars, she crosses over Avenue A. Giggling to herself, as she views a dog running towards her, which looks like it’s running backwards.
“That South West breeze…” Looking up at the American Elm trees swaying. “…So peaceful.”
“Nalina!” A female voice is heard, turning to her right, she see two women and a man, sitting on a blanket, as one of the women is walking her way and waving.
“Jacky?”
“Nalina, what are you doing?” She asks, leaning over the railing with both hands, as Nalina quickly approaches her, albeit in a careful manner, as the metal railing looks like it is made out of rubber. She embraces the woman. Looking at the blond haired woman, slightly shorter than her, admiring her features, which seem to radiate under the street lights.
“I’m trippin’. Got some Nexus.”
“Oh fuck, can we have some?” The woman asks, as Nalina nods.
“Of course, it’ll be awesome!”
“Walk around to the gate”
“Nah, I’ll hop over this railing, use these chairs,” Nalina replies laughing, as she attempt to try and scale the hip high railing, leveraging herself up with the seating, she topples over, laughing lying flat on her back onto the other side. The other woman, also laughs assisting her up.
“Nothing broken?” She asks.
In a self mocking way, Nalina pogo’s up and down. “I’m all good.”
They start laughing again, as they walk towards the two other people sitting.
“This is Nalina, and this is Carrie, and Scott.”
“Nice to meet you both…” Nalina, promptly sits down, placing her bag to her left side, as the woman called Jacky sits beside her. “Now, I got some Nexus, so lets all trip out…” Nalina takes out the vial again, removing the cap. “...Whose first?” Jacky tilts back her head, opening her mouth, sticking out her tongue, as Nalina places three drops onto her tongue, she does the same to the Two other people. She then places another three drops onto her own tongue.
“Alright! Already feeling it,” the man says, looking at his hands, and then up at the street light on E 7^th Street.
“I know, it’s quick as,” Nalina replies, as Jacky begins to nod, and then laugh, relocating in her thoughts of Nalina falling onto her back earlier.
“You laughing about me!” Nalina says, still holding the vial of Nexus in her right hand. Jacky, leans down onto Nalina’s lap, as she continues to laugh.
“Yes, I hope you didn’t break nothing.”
Also laughing, Nalina shrugs her shoulders. “Will know in the next few hours or so. Fuck it!”
The two other people begin to also laugh, as Carrie flops down, looking up at the last of the twilight.

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Reading: "Altar of Incantation" from COVEAL OF THE HEDONIC (A.Glass 2025)