#e. dreamscape

    “there’s something off about you ,” mack mused while nursing a cup of something strong and mixed together by a reveler far more experienced than her . she’s messing with christian because of course she is . “i can’t quite put my finger on it ...” she kept the bit up , brown orbs raking over his person . though they flicker back up to his bruising face ( go max ! ) every now and again - not addressing the obvious in an attempt to be cheeky . “y’know what ? maybe it’s the matching pink hair and pants . you’ve been waiting to pull this fit out , huh ? you’re like an edgy pink panther .”

    admittedly mack was a little confused . when she had originally asked around about where she could get her hands on some drugs , she figured someone could give her a more straight forward answer . but all she got was a load of he-say-she-say before eventually being pointed in the right direction of a supposed dealer . but when she made her way over all she spotted was jamie - coworker and partner in hypothetical crime , having only talked about breaking into jerry’s house without any follow through ... yet . despite the confusion , she greeted him casually . “hey , how’s it going .” her gaze darted around in search of anyone else that fit the image of a dealer she had in her mind . “uh ... you haven’t seen a dude with some dope around here have you ?”

    “you look incredible by the way , i don’t think i told you when we were back at high volume ,” mack commented with her arm linked with talia’s as they walked onto the scene . it was LOUD and crowded which normally summed up places mack would rather avoid . but she remained optimistic about the night ahead of them , starting off strong with one of her favorite people by her side . “i think i might need some more of that liquid courage if ’m going to survive tonight ,” she admitted softly , as if it was a secret meant only to be shared between the two of them . the corners of her lips upturned as she looked to talia with a hopeful gleam in her eye . “you ... me ... shots ? like the good old days ?”

    mack felt akin to a child caught with their hand in a cookie jar . her brilliant multitasking of drinking and dancing ( if you could call it that ) came to a stretching halt the moment she made eye contact with josie . she wasn’t really doing anything wrong . or at least she wasn’t partaking in anything everyone else around her wasn’t . but she suddenly felt worried about the other seeing her like this . as if she had to act prime and perfect just because josie always seemed to be . so she lowered her drink and cleared her throat in preparation to speak up loud enough to be heard over the sound of music blaring . “uh , hey , fancy seeing you here !” not that it was a real surprise . “you good ? no one trampling all over you ?” blame the alcohol in her system for sounding even slightly concerned for the other’s wellbeing .

    “are you having fun ?” that seemed to be the question of the night . it was sorta endearing that despite all the land before them and the large sum of people at the event that the dedicated losers working at high volume seemed to gravitate towards each other . in mack’s case , it was justified because she knew few others from woodstock personally . but when directing the question at kem , she was genuinely hoping for a positive response . she figured he was a good sort who deserved a good night . “i dunno how the rest of them are doing it . like , where are they storing this endless amount of energy ? i’m getting tired just watching them ,” she jested .

    she’s pretty certain her body hasn’t ever moved this much . her legs feel like jelly but she powered through , bouncing along without any real rhythm but mack certainly had the spirit . “i know that my body is moving but i can’t feel anything !” she raised her voice to shout over the music in order to be heard by her dance partner , kc . “i think i need a break !” with that she jerked her head to an opening in the field not far off . a spot where she could cool off , actually feel the summer breeze against her skin rather than the heat radiating off of sweating , moving bodies . gravity does its job well and pulled mack down to the ground where she happily sat , giving her feet a chance to take it easy . “how are you not dying ? where are you getting all this stamina from ?” she questioned with a light laugh .

    it doesn’t take long for mack to come running towards the door upon blair’s arrival , jumping at the excuse to evade the bizarre ( a term not used likely in the forester household ) conversation she’d been trapped in with her grandmother . “never have i ever been so relieved to see your face .” a boldface lie . there was in fact a time where mack was even more relieved to see blair in the flesh . but they don’t talk about it . while ushering her friend into their humble abode , she spoke in a hushed tone . “i mentioned that you were coming over to turn me into some rave-tastic barbie and ‘mona went off on one about her raving glory days . the mental images painted for me today are the stuff of nightmares .” the unamused expression on her face spoke volumes but she shook it off quickly in favor of joking with the other . “what d’ya bring ? any costumes from la la land ?”