The next day we hung out around Elias' part of the town, this side of town I wasn't familiar with. He drove his dad's fancy 2014 Chevy truck High Country edition, that was paid off, since it was used, and has all the bells and whistles in it. Leather seats, big touch screen, soft-touch dash. Sunroof. Large center console. It even drove far nicer than that 2004 Yukon they had just bought yesterday.
It was Wednesday, halfway through our spring break. I was mainly worried of running into any kids who I went to school with, and there are many places, even in this part of town, that they can hang out in. Then again, with my new look, I was sure they wouldn't recognize me, if I blended like the locals of this town. Especially hanging out with Elias. This part of town looked more upscale, and cleaner, than the other side.
We drove into downtown, with the mountains looming in the distance, not my mountains, but the ones with the towers on its peaks, as mines were behind us, and they don't have any towers on them. My dad didn't say when he was going to pick me up, or for that matter, the time, as I just sat in the passenger seat, while Elias drove down this busy 6-lane highway, until we came to this one interesting intersection, that when upon entering, it looked like the other drivers were driving on "the wrong side", facing us, and these crazy assortments of traffic lights, which then connected to the normal, 4-lane street.
It may be 2017, and with Elias' 2014 Chevy truck, we stood out, compared to those old cars entering and leaving the intersection. Its like we were transported back to the early 2000's or something, as Elias mentioned it was there before we were born, as we waited for the light to turn green. The green arrow light turned on, and we made a right-hand turn through the weird intersection, then continued on...
Our first "date" was this bowling alley I have never seen before, it made sense since I never knew this part of town, but I have heard kids talk about this part of town. And, to be perfectly honest, there are some really hot-looking kids hanging here. Especially at this bowling alley. And I was taken aback as Elias controlled the big truck in the tiny parking lot, and only using the mirrors when backing before perfectly slotting the truck between two compact cars, an old beat-up 80s-era Ford hatchback with a 'FOR SALE' sign at the back glass, and a Toyota hybrid.
Believe me, I can barely see over the truck's front end, and from where I'm sitting, it looked like he was about to hit the Toyota, but he didn't, and left a good gap between each of the cars.
"Ready?" Elias asked, holding out his hand as he made his way to the back of the truck.
"Sure." I say, and nervously take his hand, as we entered the bowling alley.
And IT was huge. We entered through the doors, holding hands like a couple, to a packed alley beyond the large plate glass.
A kid caught my eye, with his friends, as he stood at the registration counter.
I didn't know who he was, or if I have seen him before, but he was intently staring at me as he filled out some papers at the registration counter. And his friends also were staring at me, but Elias grabbed my hand, like an excited date, to sign us up at a different counter. We paid our admission, put on our shoes, and headed through another glass door, into the alley.
Despite the balls hitting the pins, and the overall ruckus of the place, this song played overhead as we entered the alley.
This place is much bigger than the one back across town, and far more modern. This place also had more lanes, so that meant there were more people here. Meanwhile the boy I saw earlier was tying his shoes, but at the same time, he kept staring at me, while his equally skinny friends were gorging on pizza, mini hot dogs, fries, and Cokes. He licked his lips in a seductive manner while he stared at me, before adjusting his glasses.
OR I thought he was staring at me, but to make sure, I looked in the direction he was looking. Nope. Like the kid back in math class, he placed his fingers to his eyes, and pointed them at me, before making this "kissing" gesture at me. He opened his mouth, and licked the top of his lip in a seductive manner once more, before his friend shoved a mini hot dog in there. I guess he was watching his friend the whole time, and waited for the right moment to do so.
It was a far cry from that day back at the Home Depot.
There was one lane open, and luckily for us, we had that lane to ourselves. I haven't bowled in a while, as I watched Elias' skinny form delicately hold the ball, then threw it down the lane. Gutter ball. I heard choking coming from the next table. It was that kid, taking out the hot dog out from his mouth.
"Chew your food, you're an animal!" Someone shouted, but he finally got out his food. Another friend patted his back, before Elias tapped my shoulder. Now it was my turn. I tried out how he handled the ball, until he tapped my shoulder once more.
"I'll get us some snacks." Elias says, then he left. No sooner than when Elias had left is when this kid showed up. He's tall, but nowhere near as tall as I was. And he was also skinny, but looked like he was into some sort of athletics. Without telling me he wrapped his arms around my waist, and "coached" me on how to hold the bowling ball. It made sense since I have never bowled in a long time. The boy rubbed my stomach, took a whiff of my scent, and at the same time, guided me on how to stand, and get ready to throw the ball.
"Okay, stand here like this -" He placed my legs, in a pose before I got ready to throw the ball. "- and you'll throw the ball like this." He guided my arm, still holding onto my slender body, and told me to roll the ball like so.
I threw the ball, like he had told me, and just like that I got a good "strike" on the first try, by knocking the white pins down into the hole, before the bar drops down to sweep the empty lane. Just then, Elias showed up with the snacks. But... he didn't seem... jealous.
At. All...
He... seemed... to enjoy what this complete teenage stranger I've never seen, or met before, was doing to me.
Out of nowhere, this song began to play overhead...
"Hey, Kira." Elias waved at the kid who's still holding onto me. Kira soon rubbed my neck, first with his fingers, then the back of his hand, which felt like it was long. Then, out of nowhere, he gently kissed there, at the middle of my neck like I was his girlfriend of sorts. He soon saw Elias, putting our snacks down on the table, and I felt his grip around my waist get even more tighter. To my surprise he placed his chin and neck on my shoulder, as if I belonged to him. Even though I was wearing a hoodie and a t shirt under, I could feel his skinny, long and rough neck on my shoulder, and a part of his "double chin" on my collar bone as well.
His adams apple bobbed and moved through my shirt as he swallowed, and he pressed his neck down on my shoulder even more...
Kind of reminds me of Sequoia's long, slender neck that day...
Only this kid's neck was hard, and like I said, I could feel almost every bump at the front of his long neck.
"Hey, Eli. How's the school you're in?" Kira asked, his adams apple bobbing against my shoulder and his chin on my shoulder blade. He made sure I could feel his neck as he talked, as he pressed his neck down even more on my shoulder.
"I hate it. Really. There're no boys there. At least not the good-looking ones. I miss you. A lot."
"Yeah, everyone still talks about you there. Especially 'Mac'." Kira says, still holding onto my waist in this firm grip, as if he didn't want his prize to get away.
"McKenzie?"
"Yeah. He's always talking about you. But he says he's going to transfer to a school up in the mountains this fall. And I might go with him. I've heard there's some really hot boys up there, too." I felt Kira's eyes on me, as he took another sniff of me, and kissed my neck once more. He wrapped his arms around my chest, and still had his chin on my shoulder.
"Why? Is he's talking about me..."
"He says the school sucks now. Too many fights drugs and lockdowns, but there's nothing up there, just a gas station and a small store I heard. I think it's because of the slow pace than here. But this kid named Ryo lives near a store. And he told me the school there is pretty big. Mac says he's hoping you're transferring to the school as well."
Oh, that Ryo. And it's true that school is big. By our town's standards. Even then, the school still sees fights every now and then...
"I haven't thought about it. If there are boys there, I might consider it. But if Mac's going there, then maybe, I might." Elias says, also looking at me, with Kira's arm around my chest.
"Good. I'll tell him on Monday."
"Wait. I'm not too sure yet."
"Mac says to let him know before we get back to school. He says there's lots of good-looking boys there. The boys that go up there all came from the school. And he says you won't believe the ones that live up there." Great. Now I got lumped. I'm one of those locals. And Tristan. And Rae and Dylan. And Ash. But at least it was nice knowing about it, and it made me feel proud.
Kira's starting to remind me of Ryo, as he speaks perfect English, and he must also be a Japanese transfer to Elias' old school.
Just like Ryo...
Speak of the devil, I see Ryo, along with his friends, and a couple of kids I don't recognize, entering the alley, all with their shoes and balls in tow. I took one quick, but long enough look at Ryo. Just like Kim, that's the first time I've seen Ryo look like this, since we went to Sequoia's house...
He looks so much better than seeing him in his school clothes, and his work clothes as well...
He looks like a Yakuza leader looking for business, not bowling.
I quickly bolted out of Kira's grip, which is pretty strong for a skinny kid, and ran to the restroom. My heart was racing, and I was sweating, as I tried to hide out in one of the restroom stalls, and carefully balancing myself on top of the toilet seat. Even though the restroom had a thick wooden door, I could still hear that song playing, though a bit muffled.
Did they see me? If they did, word will get out... I was totally freaking out. I began to shake uncontrollably. My head felt light. My heart raced even faster now, as I heard the heavy door creak open, and some boys entered, conversing with each other. I heard the unmistakable Japanese as the boys did their business in the restroom.
Is one of them Ryo? Kira? I don't know... They sound the same...
Come to think of it, I never heard Ryo's speaking voice in Japanese, only English. My legs were beginning to cramp, as I sat hunched over the toilet seat (imagine L from Death Note). And at the same time, it felt like I was part of a villain movie, like a secret spy, an agent, eavesdropping on conversations, but in this movie, I don't understand their language, and I hope I didn't get caught... My foot slipped off the seat, and the plastic seat made a loud clacking noise, and soon, my heart stopped. The conversations stopped, but unlike the movies, the boys stopped in front of the sink, and just washed their hands, as I peeked through the tiny crack between the door and the stall.
Somehow, I managed to stay in that position, one foot outstretched on the floor, the other still on the toilet seat, my arms holding the stalls between me, and I was still hunched over, but I was getting cramps, and I felt burning in my legs. Especially the one that was still on the toilet seat.
Finally, what seemed like eternity, the boys left the restroom, after they dried their hands at the dryer, and I slowly eased out of my uncomfortable position from the toilet. Just for giggles, I flushed the toilet. No sooner than when I left the stall there was another boy, standing in front of the mirror. I realized this was a different one, and he did this move while standing in front of the mirror and stainless-steel sink, with the water running...
Then he washed his hands, before seeing me in the reflection as I approached the sink. He had this scowled look on his face as he turned from the mirror, looking at me before storming off, without drying his hands, and angrily flung the wooden door open with a loud whoosh, even before the automatic door closer had time to react to the boy's strong grip to the door. The vacuum from the sudden opening was so strong it even pulled the aluminum trash can closer to the door, and at the same time, it activated the hand air dryer. Usually, those things had a good resistance, but I guess it got too weak, as it finally closed the door, albeit slowly.
I saw myself even more disheveled as I looked at myself in the mirror, my hair was a huge mess, and my hoodie had all kinds of wrinkles in them. I looked like a messy kpop singer after performing a long show. It all came from Tristan's videos that he saved. One that he wished I would look like, and now, here I am, along with my growth spurt.
I finished washing my hands and fixed my hair the best I could, when no sooner the door opened once more.
Oh, crap! My heart began to race once more, and my chest tightened. Elias flinched, let out a small yelp, before he recognized me.
"Hey, what happened to you?" Crap! I struggle to come up with an answer. The only one that came to mind was "that I had to go"... Yeah, maybe I'll use that one. Good one, Elliot. Bravo.
I heard a slow clap in my head...
"I-I just had to go. That was all."
Nice. More slow clap...
He simply crossed his arms, and raised an eyebrow.
Uh oh. He's not buying it.
"Eh, okay." He shrugged, and washed his hands as well, even though he didn't do his business.
"Hey, your hair's a mess. Here. Let me fix it for you." Elias reached up, and ran his wet fingers through my hair like a comb. He then teased my hair, until it looked a bit puffy. And it looked like it had even more volume than before.
"Kira's really into you. He likes you, too. A lot. Said he's never seen a kid like you around here, and you're different."
"Really?" I kinda played dumb a bit. He was liking me. A bit too much for my liking, but nowhere near creepy.
"Really. He wants your number, too." Oo-o-kay...
"M-my number? What does he want with it?"
"You silly dolt! To talk. Don't tell me nobody approaches you and asks for your number." Nope. Nobody does. Not before yesterday... Elias looked at me like I came from another planet.
"He says you're funny, too."
Huh?!
"He says you're really cute, and attractive. That's better." He says, admiring it like some kind of art work in a museum. Soon, we left the restroom, and returned to our game, just the two of us.
This song greeted us as we entered back into the alley. Kind of reminds me of the other bowling place, and all it played were 80s and 90s dance. Like this one. Only this place played 2000s and a bit of early 2010s dance songs, since this place is modern, in addition to those 80's and 90s songs.
Without Ryo and his friends ever noticing we were in the same building, I got lucky, and Elias and I bowled for a few minutes more. Kira's eyes beamed, and his smile as equally as bright. He quickly wrapped his arms around my waist once more, even tighter than before. And, he put his neck on my shoulder once more, feeling the bumps in front of his long neck as he swallowed, and his chin as well.
And of course, Kira kept hanging around, and still has his arms wrapped around me, and soon, all three of us bowled.
*************************
Soon, we were done, and we strolled the parking lot. Yep. Ryo's definitely here, as I recognized the big blue Suburban, in a sea of small cars and big trucks. I recognized its temp tag on the rear gate. Even the mud from Sequoia's was still on the side of the vehicle, and the tires. From that day they pulled out Daniel's Dodge.
I later found out Ryo's Suburban came from that same used car lot my dad bought that Ford flatbed truck from. And Elias' Yukon.
Kira and his friends also left the bowling alley, and he shyly wave to both of us, and especially to me, before he shyly looked away, to his friends.
I took a deep breath. Elias seemed to take note at what I was about to say, as he turned to me.
"Listen, I have something to say." That was a bad way to start it, but what can I say?
"Hm?" was all he said. I just threw a fastball at him.
"I'm from the mountains."