[Author's Note]: Another long chapter. Sorry! >_< I really need to work on learning how to cut down.
Beam and Forth finished eating (they argued over who would pay. Forth won) and decided to walk around to see the many shops and vendors along the street. Many vendors were selling food and Beam would have bought some too, but he was so full from the meal he just had. One thing he did like about western food was that their portions were so large; even in comparison to Thai portions.
There were vendors selling art, sculptures, home supplies, clothes, jewelry, and many other things. And Beam could tell that everything here had a much higher quality than the night market near his university. There were many things here that he knew his mom would like and he began to wonder why she had never brought him here. She dragged him everywhere else when she needed to go shopping. Although she didn't ask as frequently anymore since he was away at university.
As they walked on, they crossed an intersection and Beam peeked down one of the roads. His eyes landed on a large building with colorful ribbons and balloons decorating the entrance and people walking in and out. The words "Grand Opening" were printed across the large ribbons.
"It's the new game center! I've heard about this. I didn't know it was going to be on this side of town." Beam said excitedly. He turned to look at Forth.
Forth could see his excitement by his eyes and how bright his expression was. "Would you like to go check it out?"
Beam nodded enthusiastically.
Forth stuck his hand out in front of Beam as he stepped off the curb and looked both ways down the street before crossing. Beam felt a little funny inside when he realized what Forth was doing. He was trying to keep Beam safe in case of cars, scooters, and songtaws. It was something that a parent would do with their child...or what a boyfriend would do with their girlfriend.
"I'm not afraid to cross the street, you know." Beam said quietly. Forth looked a little embarrassed when he realized what he had just done. He really hadn't even thought about it. It was just that in the moment, protecting Beam felt like second nature. He felt a little embarrassed now that Beam had called him out on it but he recovered quickly.
"Well, you're not always the most coordinated person around." Forth raised his eyebrows.
Beam's mouth dropped open and he looked at Forth. "I am not clumsy!" He yelled, giving Forth a shove. Forth chuckled.
"I never called you clumsy."
"You just said I wasn't coordinated."
"But I didn't call you clumsy." Forth said, holding his finger up to make his point.
Beam rolled his eyes and pouted. "Whatever..." He grumbled.
Forth still laughed. "Awe, don't be mad." Forth nudged him with his shoulder. Beam said nothing. "Don't be mad, na."
"...."
"Naaaaa, na na na naaaaaa." Forth playfully whined as he got all in Beam's face, poking at him and pinching his cheeks. It didn't take long for Beam to start smiling again.
"Okay! Sheesh." Beam pushed Forth's hands away. "Don't be so pushy."
Forth smiled as they walked. Beam was cute when he pouted. He poked his little pink lips out like a child and any masculinity he had completely vanished. And in that moment, he was just cute little Beam. Cute little pouting Beam.
"Welcome to Game Center. Please enjoy your stay and visit us again." The host at the door greeted them, smiling brightly. Forth and beam walked in and Beam was in awe at the sheer size of the place. There were three levels and at the very top in the ceiling was a sky light to see outside. Games were everywhere! Traditional arcade game machines, air hockey tables, dance revolution games, car racing games; there were so many to count.
Beam's inner child woke up and his excitement began to take over. "Look! I'll play you in basketball. Come on!" Beam grabbed Forth by the wrist and pulled him off as he ran towards a basketball shooting game.
"Um...I don't think..." Forth began as they arrived.
"Don't think what?"
"I'm not so sure basketball is a good idea."
It's not that Forth wanted to keep dwelling on the incident, but seeing Beam laid out on the cement with blood pouring from his nose was an image that haunted Forth. The word 'basketball' seemed to always trigger the mental image. And knowing it happened because his own elbow slammed into Beam's face is what was keeping the guilt around.
Forth started looking around for another game to play when suddenly Beam grabbed him by the face and turned him back around to face him.
"Forth. Listen to me closely. I'm not going to say it again."
Forth completely lost his breath at how close he was to Beam and the fact that he was holding his face right now.
"It. Wasn't. Your. Fault. Do you understand? Let. It. Go."
Forth looked him in the eyes and tried to swallow but his mouth and throat were too dry. Could Beam hear his heart beating right now? Because he sure could. In fact, that was all he could hear. Forth looked at Beam's mouth which was moving again but he couldn't understand what else he was saying. His heart was making too much noise.
"You got it?" Beam gave Forth's face a little shake. Forth nodded even though he didn't get anything.
Beam let go of his face and there was a brief moment of silence.
"Good...now, uh...go get us some coins so we can play."
Forth nodded again and quickly rushed off to find a coin machine.
When Forth was out of sight, Beam sighed and clutched his chest. "I can't believe I just did that." He said aloud.
****
Forth returned with a small bucket filled with coins.
"Goodness Forth! You didn't have to get this many. We'll be here all night." Beam looked in the bucket in amazement.
Forth shrugged. "Fine by me. We could also always come back if we don't use them all."
Like on another date? Beam wanted to ask, but he kept his mouth shut and nodded instead.
"Let's play." Forth took six coins out the bucket and gave Beam three. They inserted their coins and suddenly the game lit up with lights and the voice of a game announcer filled the area. Soon, the game started and Beam and Forth were shooting their basketballs at the net, each hoping to get the most points.
After three missed shots in a row, Beam began to tease him. "Come on, Forth. Do you need glasses or something? You're missing shots like you can't even see the net."
"Meeehh, so we have a trash talker on our hands." Forth said, never taking his eyes off the game. Beam smiled and kept on shooting.
Beam launched a shot but missed and the ball actually bounced off the rim of the net and landed in Forth's hoop. The game counted the shot.
"Nice shot!" The game voice hollered out.
"No way! That was my shot!" Beam exclaimed.
Forth laughed. "It's mine now!"
They both continued shooting as the timer counted down. "5 – 4 – 3 – 2 – 1." A loud buzzer sounded off, signifying the end of the game. "Player 1, you win!"
"Whoohooo!" Beam cheered and pumped his fist in the air. Each shot was worth two points and he ended up getting 30 points while Forth only got 18. Beam jumped around in Forth's face teasing him.
"Are you sure you can call yourself a basketball player? Tsk tsk."
"Still trash talking eh?"
"It's not trash talking if you can back it up."
"Let's see how much you trash talk in the strongman game."
Beam picked up the bucket of coins. "Strongman game? Pshh, I can...win."
Forth burst out laughing at Beam's blatant lie. "Show me how strong you are then. Come on."
They walked over to the strongman game. A guy was just finishing up with his girlfriend standing nearby cheering him on. When they walked away, Forth swept out his arm.
"Ladies first." He smirked.
Beam curled his lips and shoved the bucket of coins at him. "Ladies my ass. I'll show you who's a lady." He grumbled.
Beam inserted his coins into the game and watched as all the lights travelled up and down the console. He picked up the mallet and practiced how he would hit a few times. Forth scoffed.
"Shut it, will you?" Beam said as he concentrated. He brought the mallet up over his shoulder and swung with all his might, slamming it down on the bottom. The light floated up, blinked a few times, and then slid back to the bottom. Beam's strength number flashed at the top: 86.
Beam stared in dismay. Only 86?? But he swung so hard! How did he only get 86?
"Excuse me, miss. It's my turn." Forth gently pushed him out the way, handing him the bucket of coins. Beam snatched the bucket and squinted at him before taking a step back to give him some room.
Forth put in his coins and waited for the game to reset. When the lights lit up for the final time, telling him to go, he didn't even do a practice swing. He swung the mallet and brought it down with so much force, there was a loud crack as the game light soared all the way to the top, touching the bell, causing it to sound off loudly.
"You win! You win! 100. Congratulations!" The game shrieked.
Beam stood with his mouth hanging open as he stared at the game. Forth placed the mallet back in its spot and turned to see Beam, still staring, open mouthed. Forth approached him and took his finger to push Beam's mouth closed by his chin.
"You might catch a fly if you don't close your mouth." He whispered. Beam snapped out of his trance and turned to focus his gaze on Forth.
"What was that you were saying about winning?" Forth smirked again.
"Whatever. This game clearly cheats." Beam huffed and Forth burst out laughing.
"Such a sore loser!"
"Yea, well..." Beam poked his lips out.
"Don't worry, we'll find another game you can win." Forth kept laughing as he threw his arm around Beam's shoulder and they walked off to find another game to play.
****
Forth and Beam had almost spent all of their coins on games but they were growing tired. They walked up to the third and final floor but there were no games on this floor, just exhibit rooms.
"Look! A constellation room." Beam pointed. Forth followed where Beam was pointing and on the other end was a room with a worker standing outside of it. Forth didn't even have to ask if Beam wanted to go inside. He already knew that he loved to look at the stars, and the excitement in his voice gave away that he did, in fact, want to go inside.
"Let's go then. " Forth led the way.
"Ten coins please." The worker said to them after they approached.
"Wow, ten coins? It must be one of those interactive rooms." Beam whispered.
Forth looked down in the bucket then just handed the whole thing over. They only had ten coins left anyway. The worker let them inside and Beam gasped as they entered the room. The room was extremely dark and the only thing that could be seen was the make shift galaxy in the ceiling showing the many different constellations.
"It's beautiful." Beam said in awe as he walked on, leaving Forth behind. Forth followed after him.
The room didn't have many people in it, they were probably all down stares playing the arcade games. So Forth and Beam walked around to the different consoles that spoke when you pressed a button, and it would tell you a brief history and interesting facts about the different constellations. Beam was in astronomy heaven. Forth was just happy to be experiencing this with Beam.
Towards the back of the large room, there was a door that lead to another room. Beam opened the door and peeked inside, there was no one in it so he walked in with Forth trailing behind him. Next to the door was a tray with three remotes on it and in the center of the room there was a platform, surrounded by a rail so that whoever stood on it would not fall off. And there was a large padded cushion in the very center for sitting. Beam toyed with the remote.
"What's this for? There's no screen in here." Beam said aloud. He pressed a random button and suddenly the entire room lit up to show a sunny beach side with crashing waves. There must have been speakers somewhere because they could both hear the waves as if they were actually at the beach.
"Wooooaahhh." Beam and Forth echoed in unison.
Beam pressed another button and the scenery changed to a sunny desert with miles and miles of sand. There was even the light sound of a breeze that was blowing the sand along the multitude of sand dunes.
"This room is amazing! The entire room is screens!" He pressed another button and the scenery changed to outer space with stars and planets slowly drifting by. Beam dropped his arms by his side and stared openmouthed as he slowly walked towards the center of the room. Forth watched him as he slowly walked up the stairs of the platform, circling the cushion before finally sitting down. Forth walked over and took a seat next to him.
"You really like space don't you?" Forth asked quietly. Beam nodded, never taking his eyes off the imagery surrounding them.
"My grandfather was a university professor and he taught astronomy. He died my freshman year of high school. When I was younger, he would always let me flip through his textbooks and he would act like I was one of his university students and teach me. He would give me quizzes and everything." Beam chuckled a bit at the memory. "I would just pretend like I knew what he was talking about even though I didn't understand a thing. And he would always give me an A on my quizzes."
"How did he die?" Forth asked. He didn't know if that question was too personal or not.
"He was just old. Couldn't stay healthy. Any little thing could make him sick. Allergies would turn into a cold. A cold would turn into the flu. A tiny scrape could create a humongous bruise. Most of his time was spent sick in his retirement years. One day it was just too much."
Forth watched Beam for a moment before turning back to the stars. He didn't know what to say. What do you say to someone that just shared something so special about them? But he didn't have to say anything because Beam started speaking again.
"After he died I always secretly believed that he became one of them." Beam said laying back on the cushion with his hands behind his head.
"Them?"
"The constellations. His favorite was Orion. The hunter. 'The warrior in the sky'." Beam imitated his grandfather's voice and smiled. "That's silly isn't it?"
Forth turned his body to face him and looked down at him. "I don't think that's silly at all."
And that was the truth. Forth knew that everyone went somewhere when they died. Who's to say people don't become a part of the cosmos? Space, earth, heaven. As long as their souls were at peace.
Forth leaned down on his elbow still facing him. "Do you think about him a lot?"
Beam nodded. "I was closer to him than I am to Phana and Kit. I don't know too many kids that can call their grandparent their best friend.
"When he died, I was so angry. I thought he left me on purpose. But I know now that was a silly thought."
A blue and purple galaxy slowly swirled past, speckled with thousands of stars and Beam sighed. Forth looked down and just watched him. This really wasn't the right time to be thinking it but in that moment, Forth really wanted to kiss Beam. His pale skin changed colors as the colorful galaxy swirled past, and in his eyes was the reflection of all the stars directly above them. Forth allowed his eyes to trace over Beam's face. He spotted a few specks of glitter from one of the games they had played (another game that Beam lost and threw a mini tantrum about).
Before he could even think twice to stop himself, he reached over and gently brushed the glitter off Beam's cheek with his thumb. Beam turned to face him and they both lay quietly, not speaking. Just like in the cartoons, Forth felt like he had a good angel and a bad angel on both his shoulders.
Kiss him!
No, don't kiss him! He's reminiscing about his dead grandfather.
Just do it! It's now or never.
Don't do it.
You both are in this beautiful room alone. Look how close he's letting you get to him.
Forth just wanted clear thoughts again but that was growing increasingly more difficult the more Beam occupied his brain. Forth could feel himself lowering and he didn't want to stop. He wanted to kiss him.
Why isn't he stopping me? He thought to himself.
But before he could get any closer, a group of people loudly burst through the doors. Both Forth and Beam jumped up from their positions, hearts pounding in their chests.
"This is the room I was telling you guys about! Look at it, it's amazing! These walls change scenery, see?" A girl was practically screaming to her friends. She snatched up one of the remotes and pressed a button. The walls and ceiling shifted back to the beautiful seascape.
Forth and Beam looked at each other briefly but neither of them could look the other in the eye.
"Maybe we should get going." Forth said. He was no longer speaking in the soft and gentle tone that only seemed to come out when talking to Beam. He was back to using his every day deep voice.
Beam nodded and they both stood up and quietly made their exit. Beam placed his remote back on the tray next to the door.
****
The ride back to the university was a quiet one. Neither knew what to say about what just happened. Maybe it didn't happen. Maybe it was all in their heads. But neither wanted to bring it up to make sure their imaginations weren't going crazy.
They walked up to their floor and Forth stopped at Beam's door with him as he dug for his room key.
"I guess I'll see you later." Beam said as more of a question than a statement.
"Yea. And maybe next time you'll be a little bit stronger and can score an 87" Forth joked. He still didn't know if now was the right time to make jokes but he wanted to lighten the mood. Beam took the bait.
"87! I'll show you. I'll score 100 easy." Beam got so excited as he spoke, he dropped his large ring of keys.
They both rushed down to pick it up and ended up knocking heads.
"Ahh." Beam let out a yelp and Forth flinched and grabbed his own head.
"Sorry, I was just trying to help." Forth said, handing Beam his key.
Beam took it. "It's okay."
They both stayed crouched looking at each other until Forth finally mustered up his courage. After a night like tonight, it was really now or never.
Forth leaned forward and instantly Beam's heart started pounding in his chest. It's happening. It's happening! He's going to kiss me...
Forth placed a gentle kiss on Beam's cheek then drew back to look him in the face. The key ring slid right out of Beam's hand and back on the floor.
Silence.
There was a door slam at the end of the hallway that startled them out of their trance. Both boys jumped up, Forth snatching the keys again. He handed them over.
"Thanks." Beam said. He was looking down trying to hide how red his cheeks were surely turning. Forth could feel his own ears getting hot but in this moment he was grateful for his tanned skin or else his face would be as red as Beam's.
"H-have a good night." Forth squeaked out. Growing even more embarrassed, he cleared his throat.
"You t-too." Beam stammered.
They both turned at the same time, Beam to unlock his door and Forth to walk to his room at the end of the hall. Beam struggled to unlock his door as his hands were shaking but he finally got in and shut the door. He rested his back against the door and couldn't control the crazy grin that took over his face. He squealed happily, jumping and squirming in place before sighing and resting back on the door.
He turned back around to open the door and peak back outside. Forth was just entering his room and closed the door. Beam leaned against the doorway staring down the hall with a small smile on his face.
He really likes me. Beam thought happily.
Then suddenly, he heard a door click and Forth's head popped back out. Both boys jumped as neither was expecting to see the other still in the hall.
Beam awkwardly looked around, gave a rushed wave, and scurried back in his room.
Forth waved awkwardly as well and slowly retreated back into his room. He closed the door and leaned against the wall, eventually sliding down to the floor.
Thank you for a wonderful night, Beam. Forth smiled to himself.