taco bell tragedy

The journey was harrowing, I’m not sure how many of us made it. There is no way to know for certain, we had lost too many to distinguish the casualties from the deserters. None of us knew how much longer we had, not until we saw the beacon. The shining, shimmering light. It drew us in, called to us. Its sweet beckon lulled us into a renewed sense of purpose. We had a mission. The letters shown brightly: Taco Bell.

After seven hours at six bars, Taco Bell was the only light at the end of our tunnel. We had passed several mirages on the way, restaurants that left their lights on but their doors locked. It was a terrible hour for our excursion, many places closed several hours before we started on our journey. We were surprised that none of the bars served us any food.

Just as I saw the beacon, Mickey collapsed behind me in a drunken tumble. The group came to a halt, we all tried to help him off the ground. “Mickey, we’re so close. You can’t give up now.”

“Leave me, save yourselves. My cause is lost, my hearth is extinguished,” Mickey slurred from the sidewalk. The rest of the group looked to each other. They were going to leave him here, I knew they would. I would not stand for it. Not another, we will not lose another. I picked Mickey up and heaved him over my shoulder. He immediately puked down the back of my shirt. I trudged forward, towards the beacon. They will have a warm welcome for us, I thought to myself. They will all surely recognize our deeds, our struggle. They’ll see it in our eyes, and we will immediately earn both their respect and their deference. The fryers would be turned up to max flavor, and the nacho fries would all be on the house. Surely, this would be so.

As we crossed the threshold of the parking lot, we found the devil. The purple shirt-cladded employee walked to the door. He looked us in our weary eyes, stared us down. It took us a moment to understand what was happening, but by the time it became clear it was far too late. In what seemed like slow motion, the man reached up for the lock and turned it. Then he flipped the lobby light switch. It was all for nothing.

This time it was I that collapsed, and Mickey came tumbling with me. I found myself on my knees, cursing the heavens. After all we’d been through and everyone we’d lost, it was all for nothing. I lost touch with myself, I heard screams. I wondered who was screaming, although in the face of this terrible tragedy I could not judge them. After some time, I realized it was me that was screaming. I woke up strapped up in the back of a cop car, blood on my hands. Not again, not here.

The world is an incredibly unjust place.