Having, yet again, no suitable male nearby, Molly hugged Lisa then Chelsea, giving each a peck on the cheek. Friendship was just as good as love for the rest of the year.Everyone was cheering, blowing those silly curling paper horns and she watched the confetti fall as if in slow motion as if time itself had slowed to a crawl.
She could taste the sharp sounds, the cheers like sour cherries and the noisemakers were bitter chocolate. The squeal of the microphone cut through like chili pepper. She could smell the colors as her hands rose upwards to catch some of the confetti. Red smelled of fresh laundry, and blue was apples. Senses were confused, some part of her conscious mind kicked in. That meant bad, a headache would follow. But what she smelled and tasted were very real. It was an alternate perception.
And then the groan. It shuddered up through her, tasting of lightening and metal just as the floor tilted out from under her and time once more moved properly to Molly's awareness. No one else had experienced that. Not that she could ask through as she was screaming. Her own scream tasted of coppery blood and bitter fear.
Her body slammed into a wall with painful force and someone else landed on her arm. It hurt, but the world was topsy turvy and not at all as it should be. Side was down and up was left colors smelled and sounds tasted and the only thing left in the wake of it all was the fear. The hurts didn't matter, all that mattered was getting away, getting free, not letting it happen again.
She was sliding again, along with everyone else. The screams had overrun her taste buds and all that remained was the bilious taste of it. She was dimly aware of water soaking through her clothing and she foresaw drowning. The boat was turned over, like the movie, and they were all going to drown or burn, or not climb the Christmas tree.
Molly reached out and felt herself land on someone else. She began to weep as she screamed. She wanted her mother, but she wasn't there. She wanted her Sean, but he wasn't there either.
Once more they tumbled and Molly thought she saw a brick wall before she hit something, taking her into blessedly familiar blackness.