The world was bright and glowing. The music swelled around Sabrina, and after each light step a flower grew. She existed in a dream, a euphoric dream, and the forest mist kissed her skin as she danced and spun for her friends. She climbed atop a tree stump and to everyone's delight, began twirling again. They all cheered her on. Amazing! Wonderful! Beautiful!

With each spin, birds flew up from underneath Sabrina's dress. She watched as the doves swirled around her, singing as they climbed the height of the lush canopy and through to the bright blue sky. Everything was warm. Everything was glowing. But, something was wrong.

In the dark of the forest, two glowing eyes watched her. Curious, Sabrina stopped spinning to watch. Was it another friend? But no, something felt very wrong. They were coming closer. Closer. They were running now.

Something's wrong. Something's wrong. Run. Run. Something's wrong, her friends began to chant.

What is this? A new game?

Sabrina jumped off the trunk, looking to her friends for guidance. But they weren't smiling anymore, and their chants were growing louder. She took a step back, then another, then finally turned to the dark of the woods. Her steps started smooth and graceful as she leaped over knotted roots and under branches.

But then, suddenly, she began to lose her footing. With each stride, her steps became clumsy. She tripped once, then twice. Then the glow began to dim. Black and orange leaves began to fall from the upper canopy. They started softly at first, then the leaves turned into billowing waves. As they passed her ears, they began to hiss, softly at first, then turned into a low spine-twisting hum. Her vision began to blur, and the branches grew tight around her hands and ankles.

"No, no!" she screamed, "Not yet. I don't want to go back yet."

But Sabrina was back.

She found herself in an unknown alleyway, sitting among the waste, next to a full dumpster. It smelled awful, but it was the noise that hit her first. The buzz of the cars above was like little wasps digging into her ears and needled into the corners of her brain. The shouts of the people in the street rattled her further, stealing her breath away with every violent shout echo in the damp corridor. Her hands shook as she brought her slim white fingers to her ears. She began to rock and sway. It was too much. The sights, sounds, smells, everything. Too much. But she needed to get home. Home is safe.

She reached into her dress pocket and grabbed a small curved clear piece of plastic and placed the lens over her right eye.

"I... need... to go... home..." she whispered, shakily grasping the dumpster to pull herself up from the ground. "Please."

From her right eye, a glowing green path appeared at her feet, pulsing towards home. She steadied herself using the rough brick alley wall and focused on slowing her breath. Her eyes narrowed on the pulsing line.

I can do this. Ignore the sounds, ignore the smells, ignore the people.

She covered her left eye with a trembling hand and focused on her dirty bare feet.

One step at a time.

Shoulders of strangers pressed up against Sabrina, pushing her left and right and away from the glowing trail. Smells of synthetic musk, bleach, and o-zone stung her nose and she strained quick breaths through her clenched teeth.

Closer, closer, almost there.

With each step, loose pebbles found her feet from the cracked and ancient pavement, sending stinging pain up her legs.

Why didn't it last as long this time? Did I not take enough?

As her head started to throb, she quickened her pace to a jog.

Not much further. Not much further.

Finally, the glowing trail stopped and turned into a blinking light on a smooth chrome surface. Sabrina only braved a quick dart of her eyes upward while frantically waving her wrist at the door.

Open! Open!

Sabrina lived in The Roe. When there was no more room to expand outward in the water-locked city, architects expanded up, and sometimes through the existing skyscrapers. The clear tubing-like elevators wrapped around the outside of the multi-story towers and ended in the cloud line, leading to a web of interconnected translucent and transparent orbs attached closely to the buildings. The delicately connected crystal balls were living quarters, each pod housing another citizen. The appearance resembled fish eggs, leading to the name The Roe.

With a soft hydraulic purr, the doors parted, revealing the smooth glass interior of the elevator. She stepped in, waving her wrist at the ceiling sensor. Nothing happened. She began to wave it again when she noticed a hand blocking the door.

"Going up?" a low voice spoke.

Sabrina heard the metallic clink of heavy toed hoes hit the floor of the elevator and she stepped back into the farthest corner. She kept her eyes to her feet and held her arms tight to her chest, making herself as small as she could manage. There was a soft chime and the elevator doors shut with a hum.

She closed her eyes.

This is not safe. This is not safe.

The stranger let out a deep sigh. "Run out early?"

"Huh?" She looked up.

The stranger nodded towards her feet.

"You gotta make sure you wear tighter shoes next time. You'll be less likely to take 'em off when it first hits ya," he chuckled. His wide grin revealed rows of shiny metallic teeth.

The stranger was a slim and wiry man with synthetically bright red-orange hair that stuck up in sharp points. His posture was relaxed as he leaned against the glass wall, his hands barely fitting in his tight jean pockets.

"Thanks," Sabrina turned back to the floor, "I don't think there will be a next time though."

"Why's that?" he asked, head cocking to the side.

"That was the last one," Sabrina shrugged then looked back up at him, smiling, "It's okay though. It never seems to last long enough, anyway."

The elevator chimed and hissed to a stop.

"C'mon," he motioned, "Ya look like you've had a rough day. I can get ya somethin' better." He winked, holding open the door with one hand.

"Oh, no, I..." she stammered, waving her hands in protest.

"C'mon!" he demanded, playfully.

The stranger then grabbed one of her arms and pulled her out the door. She heard the doors hiss close behind her.

The stranger pulled Sabrina forward with a light hand through the glass tunnel that winded tightly around the tower. She had to step quickly to keep up with his long strides. He seemed to notice her struggling and slowed down, giving her an apologetic shrug.

To her right, she could see the sprawling city skyline outside. She placed a finger on the window, tracing the highest points as she walked. The thick air made it difficult to make out the details in the distance, but she could still make out the soft silhouettes in their artificial light. Did the city ever stop? She knew that water surrounded it, but she had never made it to the shore.

"How long have ya lived here?"

"Huh?" she asked. She had zoned out. They had stopped in front of one of the many doors that lined the narrow winding halls..

"I haven't seen ya in the Roe before," he said, placing his wrist to the doorframe.

With a hiss, the metal door slid up through the wall.

The suite was bigger than Sabrina's place. The main room had steps that led down to a large white couch. It sunk low below the doorway and curved with the rounded wall. The thick, one-sided glass walls of the cylindrical room had been written on with a thick black marker. It was filled with crude phrases and child-like doodles. Usually, the state-run broadcast or other program would be playing on these walls. Sabrina guessed that he wasn't a fan, judging by the rigged pocketknife wedged in the socket that provided it power.

There was a white box in front of the couch. The stranger crouched in front of it and looked to Sabrina with wide-eyed excitement.

"This! This is the good stuff," he winked and slapped the top of the container.

There was a chime as the box recognized the chip in his wrist. There was a click and the sides of the box opened to reveal rows of small, color-coded capsules.

"They're so pretty," Sabrina whispered, joining him on the floor.

There were blue canisters with little flowers, red ones with black diamonds, pink ones with hearts. They looked like candy. She sat on her hands to stop herself from reaching out and grabbing one.

"Which one did ya try last time?" he asked as he scanned through the different rows, opening and shutting different drawers with deft fingers.

"Uh," Sabrina fumbled through her pocket and grabbed a small empty silver canister.

"This one. I'm out of refills," she said, handing it to him.

He inspected the canister, twisting it in his fingers carefully.

"Where'd ya get this? I haven't seen any like this before."

"It was in my apartment when I moved in. It came with a set of refills," she answered.

She remembered it clearly. In the center of the room was a silver briefcase containing the small silver canister and several rows of the aerosol refills, neatly laid out and sorted. She had avoided them at first, unsure on how to use them. But when she figured it out, she couldn't stop. Every day, as soon as she woke up, she pressed the small needle underneath her tongue and inhaled deeply. The smoke swirled into her lungs as the small poison dripped and danced through her system. The first sensation was like stepping into a warm pool of water during a cold storm. But with every dose Sabrina took, its impact weakened. Her trips into the dream-state used to last through the entire night. Recently though, she found herself wandering the city right before nightfall, fully awake and sober to the overwhelming sights, smells, and sounds. Today wasn't the first time she had to walk, barefoot, back to the safety of home. Back to another dose.

The stranger looked puzzled, then laughed, "Maybe a welcome gift from the last owners? How much did ya last take?"

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"How much? One breath? Two?" he chuckled.

"I take one a day," she answered.

"One breath? That's probably why ya woke up out there," he gestured out the curved window and smiled.

"No, one canister. One canister a day."

His mouth fell open.

"A can should last ya at least a week! Especially someone your size." He shook his head, "This thing's gotta be defective." He popped out the aerosol and looked closely into the silver cylindrical applicator. He then frowned. "Do ya mind if I take a look at this for a bit? I've never seen one like it. Let me grab ya a fresh one."

A bottom drawer opened on the white box, revealing a row of new and sealed canisters. He turned it to her.

"Pick yer favorite color," he gestured with a smile.

Sabrina hesitated at first, then grabbed a metallic pink one closest to her. She carefully peeled the plastic away, then opened the small cap to inspect the fresh needle. It danced in the light as she twisted the canister in her fingers.

"It's so beautiful," she whimpered.

He looked at her and let out a laugh.

"We haven't even got to the fun part!" He gave a mischievous smile, flashing his metallic teeth, "Any plans the next 24 hours? Or do ya just need somethin' to get ya through the night?"

Sabrina hesitated. She hadn't slept for at least a week and she knew it was taking a toll on her body. The headaches between her morning doses have gotten worse and her eyes burned more than usual. But the sight of all the delicate, colorful rows, promising new, fantastic dreamscapes were so tempting.

"I don't have plans," she answered.

"Lucky gal," he winked. He flicked through the drawers, and finally picked up two different aerosols, one blue with silver stars, the other purple with small violets, "I think you'll like these."

Sabrina put out her palms eagerly.

"Thank you!" She could barely contain herself from jumping up and down.

The stranger's smile faltered. His coal-black eyes seemed to search her face for a moment, taking in her gaunt appearance.

"Maybe let's save these for tomorrow, okay? Get a little bit of sleep tonight," he smiled again, but there were new lines of worry between his brows.

Sabrina nodded, "I promise..."

She was about to take them from his hand when she hesitated. She looked at the silver chain hanging on her wrist. Her credits. Did the stranger want her to pay for these? Was he giving them to her out of kindness?

He saw her hesitation then flipped her wrist back over while cupping the two canisters in her hands.

"Don't worry 'bout it. Just promise me you'll come visit here next week, okay?" he kept his hands clasped over hers, "And! Only one inhale in the morning, two if you need it... This is strong stuff."

With hesitation, he slowly let go of her hands. She took the opportunity to jump to him, her arms wrapped around him, hugging tight.

"Thank you," she managed to say through her excitement. She was overwhelmed. She had never met somebody so kind.

The stranger was surprised but gave her an awkward pat on the head. "Alright, little weirdo. Go home and take a bath. Ya stink."

---

It was dark by the time Sabrina got back to her room. The time she had spent awake had caught up to her. She placed her new toys in the now empty briefcase and collapsed into the small bed. Her place was small, but the view of the city from this height made up for it. She didn't need much space, though. Sabrina only had a few possessions -- just a few pieces of clothing that were here when she moved in.

She traced the large, curved glass wall that her bed was against. She placed her fingers over the fuzzy lights of the grey skyline and their trail left small prints in their wake. She could see most of downtown at this height.

It was nice to finally lay down underneath the heavy covers, but she was hesitant to sleep. Her dreams, her real dreams terrified her... But it had been a week.

But maybe tonight would be different.

Maybe tonight she wouldn't dream at all. Maybe the night would wash over her, like a long sigh, and she would open her eyes refreshed and renewed with the morning light. Sabrina smiled to herself at the thought, then finally shut her eyes, letting sleep finally take over.