Blues and Yellows

Scarlet Sunset

"All the people I've liked before were all assholes, so..."

"That's... bad."

~

Angel's rustic charm left me dazed as I tried to find the words I wanted to say. "You remember my best friend, right?" "Oh, the pretty, prissy girl? I didn't think rich people could be so kind," he commented lightheartedly as I rolled my eyes. The sun was just setting as the reds and purples of the sky surfaced, even if it was for a brief moment. I appreciated the mellower rays as I worked with Angel to sweep the crumbled roads of our neighborhood like we always had done.

His red tank top clung to his perspiring skin, but Angel paid no mind. "Why?" he asked, his hand wiping away his forehead's sweat. We'd been cleaning up the sidewalk for the whole afternoon by then, so I was catching my breath between every sentence I made. "Well, I kind of saw that you both had a spark when you first met each other," I commented. Barely was I able to speak as I dragged my now full plastic bottle bag down the road.

Milo sat on the sidelines, her judgmental stare monitoring us as she licked her black and white fur. "Really?" Angel probed. With his bag of scrap metal on his right, he looked at me with a smirk and an eyebrow raised. "Yeah?" I affirmed, despite Angel's way with words making me doubt myself for a moment. The scruffy boy had started acting differently lately, and I didn't know if it was all in my head or not. Angel walked up to me as he slung his free arm over my shoulders.

"What makes you say that?" Angel further inquired, his breath like strawberries and cigarettes as I sighed warmly. "You two are perfect for each other. I saw your eyes when you took her hand and pulled her up from the pavement," I explained and giggled. My friend kept quiet for a moment as he leaned on my shoulder while in thought. "Of course we looked perfect, I work perfect with everyone," he begged to differ.

Until then, I didn't notice nor realize how Romantic his dark complexion appeared against the red of the setting sun. "That's rich," I joked. "But why don't you give it a try and see if things work out? You're always talking about holding out for the one," I reasoned and told as Angel walked away, not mad but as if he needed time. "She's beautiful and kind, but she's not the one," he told me, leaving me confused and wondering.

When I was about to question it further though, he initiated a game. "Besides, with all the work me and Matthew have to put in, I'd have no time for her," he argued as he threw a plastic bottle for me to catch. The vehicles that passed our street were all but gone as he crossed the road so we could cover all areas. "I'm sure that won't be a problem. Anyone other than her toxic ex would be a massive improvement," I mentioned.

Catching the bottle, I then chuckled as I watched Milo's head turn left and right as the garbage was thrown around. A rusted can laid beside me as I picked it up and threw across the road towards him. "So you just want me to be her rebound?" Angel accused as he caught the can. Instantly, I froze up from his blatant call-out as he threw another plastic bottle at me. "I... Yeah, well, I guess there shall be no lies this holiday season," I admitted almost comically.

The plastic bottle ended up hitting my head due to my sudden petrification. As Angel profusely apologized with his hand wiping his flushed face, I continued. "You already know I wouldn't force you to do anything if it's not what you want," I reassured him as I grew guilty. Promptly, he went back to picking up plastic bottles on his side of the road and throwing them to me, with every bottle leaving Milo dazzled as she tried avoiding them from landing on her.

Breathless was all I was as I avoided every concrete crack so I wouldn't trip and fall trying to catch every container that came my way. "Sis, I already have someone in mind," he told me, my eyes widening as he did. "Really? What makes you say that?" I said, mirroring his questions from before. Plastic noises hit my ears when I let the bottles hit my side of the road as I wondered who he was talking about.