"Hi! I just need you to pretend like you know me."
Mike jumped as a complete stranger ran up to him and grabbed his arm. He jerked away and stared at the skinny figure grinning nervously at him.
“Uh, ok.” he said without thinking, too startled to react otherwise.
nezclaw
Mike paused as he saw the security guard approach the front door. He knew he wasn’t supposed to be there, and was going to leave, until he caught a glimpse of the guy the guard was escorting.
“Micky?” he said in surprise as the two of them exited the building.
Fortunately, the guard didn’t have any trouble hauling Micky out of the building. The odd young man put up no resistance as he pulled him down the staircase and out the main doors. The patrol car he called for would be here soon and then he could go back to reading his magazine at his desk.
“Wow…the sky is sure pretty tonight,” Micky nodded, his words slurring.
“Sure, whatever, pal,: the guard said, shaking his head.
Yeah that was definitely Micky. Mike bit his lip as he approached. Micky seemed spacier than he was used to, staring up at the sky with a vague grin on his face.
“Uh.. excuse me sir…” Mike began, addressing the security officer.
The guard looked over and sighed. This one didn’t look totally wasted which was a welcome relief.
“Yes, young man, did you want something?” he said.
Micky looked over at him and grinned. “Hiya Mike!” he said with far too much enthusiasm.
“Hiya Micky,” Mike replied, a little awkwardly, before addressing the guard again. “Uh, well I was just out for a walk, and I noticed uh, well he’s my roommate and I was hopin’ I could take him home without too much of a fuss, y’dig?”
The guard rolled his eyes. He suspected that he was a friend of the one he had in custody, but had held out hope that he was wrong. No such luck.
“Listen, I’d like to do that, but I’ve already called for a patrol car to pick him up. It wouldn’t look good if I just let him go before the cop shows up. You’ll just have to pick him up at the police station, all right?”
“Hey Mike, I went to a party,” Micky announced. “It was super groovy.”
“That’s nice Micky.” Micky was tripping on something, from the looks of it. “Look sir, can’t we, I don’t know, explain it to the guy when he comes by?” Mike didn’t have a car, and he actually wasn’t sure where the station was, either.
“I’m sorry, but I can’t do that,” the guard insisted. “Look, you want me to lose my job or something? This guy was trespassing on the roof and I gotta turn him in. Now, I’m sure they’ll let you take him home after they talk to him at the station, but I can’t just send him on his merry way, all right?”
“You should have been there,” Micky added. “Then we could have flown into the colors together.”
“Yes sir. I understand.” Mike bowed his head in acknowledgement and sat down on the curb facing the street to wait.
A couple minutes later, the patrol car showed up and the policeman took down the guard’s story and then loaded Micky into the backseat. The guard went back inside and then the cop turned to Mike.
“I understand you’re this guy’s friend,” he said. “Well, you are lucky because the guard said that the owners won’t be interested in pressing any charges as long as this doesn’t happen again. So you’re welcome to take him home after we stop by the station for a report.”
“Yes sir. Uh… pardon, but I’m still kinda new here… how far is the station, exactly?“ Mike asked.
“About three miles west of here,” the cop answered. “If you want, I can give you a lift there. Then we can call you a taxi from there.”
Micky leaned his head out the open window in the back. “Hey Mike, we’re going on a road trip. Isn’t that groovy?”