Chapter 16

I was just putting on my zebra print high tops when Yani texted me saying she was outside. I hopped up to my feet, left my room, and said goodbye to Umma and Appa before strolling out the front door. Yani's car was parked by the curb. When I got in the passenger's seat, I could feel that confident, 'boss-ass-bitch' vibe from her again. She was back to wearing precision done makeup and she leaned back in her seat like she was the coolest diva alive. She is to me.

"Hey, gringo!," she greeted me happily.

"I take it you're appreciating your freedom," I remarked with a smirk.

"Uh, yeah I am," she chimed as she put the car into drive, "Geez, I'm never getting drunk off my ass again..."

"That's good."

"Well, I don't know about college but..."

I shook my head. "And there it is..." The both of us laughed as the car cruised smoothly down the street.

"You've got Oscar's address, right?," I asked her.

Yani nodded, keeping her eyes on the road. "He's not too far. He's ready, right?"

"Yeah, definitely," I replied. I couldn't help but think about what had happened when I told him Yani wanted a double date with him...

...

It was Saturday and we had been gaming together online. So far, Oscar had been beating my ass with his high-scores.

A match had just ended and Oscar was cheering to himself, I could hear it through his mic. I chuckled and started, "Hey, I've got some news that I think you'll like."

"Yeah? What is it?," he asked. He sounded a little breathless.

I leaned back into my chair as I propped my feet up on my desk. "Well, Yani wanted to hang out tomorrow with Eli and I so she could 'assess his person'."

"Okay."

"And, we both thought it'd be awkward if it was just three of us," I continued, "so she wanted to invite you so we'd have a double date...!"

There was silence on the other end.

"Oscar? Buddy?"

"A...d-double date?"

"Yup! And she thought of you immediately, too. What do you say?"

"She...thought of...me...?"

"Yeah!"

More silence.

Then suddenly my computer screen gave me a pop up saying 'TitMaster007MLG has gone offline'.

I blinked. "Oscar?"

A few moments of nothing passed.

'TitMaster007MLG has joined the server'.

"Sorry, I didn't want you to hear me scream my fucking soul out," his voice wavered out from my headset.

I smirked and responded, "So, I take that as a yes?"

...

Yeah, the guy is definitely ready.

Oscar's house really wasn't that far and we arrived within ten minutes. I texted him saying we were here to pick him up. Without a reply, Yani and I waited in the car until the front door opened.

Oscar came out onto the front steps looking a little exasperated. I wondered why until Riley came out with him. I could hear them arguing with each other though I knew Oscar wouldn't win.

Oscar: "Ri, it's fine. You don't need to come out with me."

Riley: "I want to meet this other girl you mentioned."

Oscar: "She's completely cool, trust me."

Riley: "I'll see that for myself"

Oscar: "Ri, please...! No, don't walk up to the car--agh!"

I rolled down the window instinctively and greeted the older woman with a big smile. "Hi, Riley!"

"Hey, glasses," she retorted. Even though she only wore a t-shirt, pajama pants and had no make-up on, she looked as hardcore and punk as ever. She leaned down to see Yani and waved. "Hello, you must be Yani Hernandez."

Yani smiled and held out her hand for a shake. "Yes, I am."

Riley smirked and shook Yani's hand in front of my face. "Riley Rhodes--Oscar's big sister."

"It's nice to meet you," Yani chimed, pulling her charming smile. (You can barely tell if it's a regular smile, but I've known her long enough to distinguish it. She usually pulls it when she's meeting new people and the encounter is important enough to her.)

Once they stopped shaking hands, Riley stood straight and crossed her arms against her chest. "Both of you take care of Oscar for me."

"We will," I chirped.

Riley narrowed her eyes. "I'm talking especially to you, glasses."

Oscar finally stepped in and said, "Let that go, Ri. And we've gotta go now, Calvin's boyfriend is probably waiting for us."

"You call me if anything happens...and then call mom," Riley ordered.

Oscar nodded and opened up the backdoor on my side of the car. Once he got in, his exasperated demeanor faded away and made way for his flustered self. "Sorry about that, you two," he murmured as he buckled up.

"Don't worry about it," Yani assured and turned her head to smile at him. I glanced at him, too, and if Yani knew that his skin tone is always pale, she'd be able to see how hard he was blushing. Luckily for him, she didn't notice and waved goodbye to Riley as she pulled away from the curb.

"So, Oscar, my man," I started, "have anything in mind for us to do together?"

"Uhh, n-no," he murmured back, "I'll be fine with whatever we do."

"In that case, let's hit up Spencer's again!," I blurted excitedly.

"No..!," Yani and Oscar denied me at the same time. Knowing he was probably blushing again made me grin.

We were at the mall within another ten minutes. It took a few more minutes to find a good parking space at the lot in front of the JCPenny's entrance. Eli was already waiting inside by a sitting area.

All three of us exited the car and made our way towards the mall. As we walked, I lagged behind a little to be next to Oscar. When I bumped his arm, he just barely seemed to notice I was next to him.

"You okay?," I asked him with a smile.

He blinked at me, then glanced over at Yani who walked in front of us, then looked off towards the building. "Y-Yeah, I'm good." I draped an arm around his shoulders as we walked and that seemed to loosen him up some.

It became a mission to find Eli once we entered the JCPenny's entrance. We rushed by customer service and more to get to the other side. Yani, being her usual self, kept making stops to admire a piece of clothing and I had to tug her away.

While we walked, I kept texting Eli to find out which sitting area he was at. Eventually, after passing by a bunch of stores and slipping our way past a few bunches of shoppers, we got to a sitting area in front of Macy's. Eli was leaning against a couch looking around with his phone in his hand. As soon as I raised up my arms excitedly, he spotted us and smiled.

I didn't waste any time in rushing up to him and tacking him over onto the couch cushions. He groaned but still held onto me and laughed when we got up. "Hi," I said, hugging him again.

He chuckled and replied, "Hey, babe."

A pet name! Adorable!

Eli reached into the pocket of his jacket and handed me a gold and brown toned bag. "On my way in, I saw Godiva and thought you should have a little something," he said.

I beamed and looked into the bag, finding an assortment of different shaped chocolates. I gasped and looked up at him with big eyes. "I love Godiva! And chocolate! Thank you!" Eli gave me a kiss on the forehead and I felt myself blush.

I got up on my knees and leaned over the back of the couch to see Oscar and Yani. "Look how good my man treats me!," I exclaimed, waving the bag around.

"Hi, Yani," Eli greeted as he stood up. When he saw Oscar, he held out his hand for a handshake. "Hello, Oscar."

Oscar stared at him for a moment, not even blinking. Eli stared back at him. When he realized what he was doing, Oscar stifled a wavering chuckle and shook hands. "Hello, Eli.."

"He doesn't bite," I remarked nonchalantly to my chestnut haired geek.

"I mean, unless it's Calvin," Eli murmured.

"Oh.~"

Yani face-palmed and groaned, "We're not even ten minutes into seeing each other and you two are already making sexual innuendos."

"This is nothing compared to other crap I've said," I laughed.

"Yeah, he's done way worse," Oscar remarked awkwardly.

Yani smiled. "Oh, I know he would."

"So, what are we doing?," I asked, climbing over the couch.

Yani shrugged. "All I know is, we're going somewhere to eat later. Let's just see what happens."

"Sounds good," Eli commented as he came around the couch to stand with us. I felt his hand grab onto mine and I intertwined our fingers.

The four of us began walking around the mall looking for shops to visit and hang out at. Yani mostly led the way, and Oscar was a little behind her. Eli and I tagged along at the back, holding hands and chatting about minor things. At one point, Yani ended up gasping and running towards a clothing store off to the right. Oscar was just as puzzled as we were so the three of us followed after her.

When we found Yani, I tapped her shoulder and asked, "Hey, what's up with yo--?"

"Calvin, the mall finally got Floral and Frill!," she squealed.

"Eh?"

"Floral and Frill," Oscar piped up behind me, "It's this womens' department store that sells a bunch of cutesy clothing for decent prices. It's a store that's been online only but now they're getting actual shops."

"It's my guilty pleasure," Yani sang, then turned to Oscar. "I didn't think you'd know about this store!"

He managed a smile and turned his gaze down. "It helps sitting next to Floral and Frill fan girls in Physics..."

Yani smiled and gazed around at the shop. Looking at the whole thing now, it was very cutesy. The walls and decorations had pastel colors and the clothes emanated pep and fashion. Perfect for Yani. When I looked back at Eli, I almost wanted to laugh at how starkly he contrasted against the shop with his black clothes.

"You all might have to leave me here for, like, the rest of eternity," Yani remarked, bearing an eager smile and big, sparkling eyes.

I cocked an eyebrow. "Wasn't the whole point of this hang out to, I don't know, hang out?"

"Sorry..!," she chuckled.

Oscar looked over at me and said, "We could hang out here."

"No," Eli blatantly replied.

"We're on a double date, ya know," I stated smugly.

"Alright, alright," Yani sighed.

"I-I think maybe Yani should spend just a few minutes here," Oscar suggested quietly.

The Floral and Frill fangirl sharply turned to him with a smile of gratitude, which caught him off guard. Eli and I shared glances and I smirked. "Alright," I started, "You two can hang here for a while and we'll meet up at the center court."

The chestnut haired boy went wide eyed. "Wh-What?"

"Yes!" Yani cheered.

"But," I continued, "we're going to Spencer's."

"Awwww," the two of them whined in unison.

"And we're buying something from the back...!," I declared proudly.

"Uuughhhh," the two of them whined in unison once again.

Yani shook off the cringe and placed her attention on Oscar. "You don't mind staying with me, do you?"

He shook his head a little too fast and said, "I-I'm cool with it."

"Great! You can help me pick out clothes! I've seen your work from Graphic Design in front of the classroom so I know you know good color schemes. C'mon!" Without a warning, Yani grabbed onto Oscar's wrist and started dragging him away into the sea of pastel. His face was as red as it's ever been and was about the brightest thing in the shop.

I turned towards Eli and looked up at him. For a moment, I only stared at him as he peculiarly frowned at a mint colored dress with lacy flowers around the waist. It wasn't his usual scowl though. His gaze seemed more unnerved and gloomy this time. Gently, I tugged on the sleeve of his jacket and he snapped out of his little trance. With a smile, I asked him, "You okay?"

He gave me a small smile and responded, "Yeah. Too much girly in one place, that's all."

I chuckled and grabbed onto his hand again. "Let's get out of here then." Eli nodded and went along with me as I led the way out of the store. Even though he seemed okay, the look he had still nagged me.

The two of us walked around the mall, visiting a few other stores just to check them out. We remarked about certain crowds of people, or admired some of the kiosks that we passed by. One time, someone bumped against me hard and Eli got a bit annoyed by it. I only told him to forget it and move on. He did and after that incident he's held me closer at his side.

During our walk, we came across a large carousel in the middle of a hall. Young children were sitting on top of the fake horses and carriages, while a few others and their parents waited in line. Eli and I stared at the scene for a while as we walked around it. Once we passed the carousel, he remarked causally, "Ya know, this might sound weird, but I've never been on one of those before."

Immediately, I stopped in my tracks and grabbed onto him. "You what?!"

"Is that a bad thing?," he questioned.

"Um, it's a necessary aspect of childhood, love," I said over-dramatically.

He smiled and replied, "Not mine, apparently."

"You need to ride one," I stated, "You're getting on the carousel."

"What? I'm not getting on it. It's for kids."

"I'll get on it with you."

"You can get on it, but me..."

"Come on," I pleaded, tugging on his arm to lead him towards the spinning machine, "I want you to finally try a carousel! It might look boring but they're surprisingly enjoyable. It would be a lot more embarrassing if we rode a smaller one that's, like, for toddlers."

"Well, you have a point...," he murmured.

"Ride the carousel with me, Eli," I said.

He stared at me for a few seconds before sighing and giving in. I beamed and began pulling him with me to get in line. A few adults looked at us funny but turned their attentions elsewhere not long after. We waited in line for about two minutes until it was finally our turn. It's 50 cents per person so I easily paid a dollar to the ride operator. As soon as we crossed the threshold, I dragged Eli with me to the large machine and the both of us hopped up onto the platform. Eli got on a white horse across from me, and I struggled a little trying to get on the saddle of mine. Before he could help me, the carousel started and I hung off of my horse for a good ten seconds before finally getting on (I'm too small for my own good). Little kids were giggling at me but seeing Eli chuckle along with them was a wonderful sight.

A simple circus melody started playing through little speakers overhead while the machine spun in a gentle cycle. I hung onto the pole in front of me and leaned the side of my head against it as I gazed around. Horses and carriages bobbed up and down like they were sitting on waves, and children were laughing and making their weird noises. When I looked over at Eli, I felt my heart pound hard.

Leaning back a little, he was staring up at the lights above as they flickered at different tempos and rhythms. His eyes were transfixed and bright with awe, and I couldn't help but gawk at him. I could feel his wonder, could see the child-like fascination that he never got to experience, and it pulled me in. There was no way I could look away. He's stunning.

It took me a moment to realize he noticed my staring. When I did, I flashed him a smile and so did he. I pulled out my phone from my pocket to take a picture of him and he obliged without me having to say anything. Once the picture was taken, I gazed down at it with adornment. He looked so light and unmarred yet adorably silly on the white horse. I didn't want to look away.

"Psst," I heard Eli hiss. As soon as I looked up, I heard the camera shutter from his phone and pouted.

"Hey, you didn't warn me! No fair," I whined. "Take another one!"

"Nope, too late," he said as he leaned back a little while looking at his phone.

"Eliiiiiiii," I whined even more and he snickered to himself. "Let me see the photo."

"Nope."

"Aaaahghhhhhh."

He laughed a little louder and as much as I was "annoyed" about the surprise photo, I wanted to hear him. Awkwardly, I slipped off of my horse and dashed towards his. Instantly, Eli raised his phone high above him and said, "I'm not gonna delete it."

"At least let me see...!"

"You're perfect, alright?"

My heart skipped a beat but I kept arguing, "You say that but even my yearbook photos beg to differ!"

"You wanna see the photo so badly then come and get it," he challenged me with a smug look.

I took the challenge and started climbing up onto his horse. He was taken a little off guard and started leaning against the center column of the carousel to get his phone far away from me. He chuckled and commented, "Be careful, we might break the poor horse."

I melodramatically gasped and said, "Are you calling me fat??"

"N-No that's not--."

"Because I've worked hard for this body, and by that I mean I haven't done shit."

Eli laughed some more while shaking his head to disagree with me. I looked up at him and sighed at how gorgeous he was. Before I could give up my mission of taking his phone, he suddenly wrapped his arms under my back and legs to carry me bridal style. Out of momentary panic, I put my arms around his neck and leaned into him. Looking back up at him, he gazed down at me with the same lightness he had in the picture I took of him. My stomach was fluttering with excitement and I ended up leaning up to kiss him on the lips. I felt Eli smile as he let me pull his head down for better leverage. His hands squeezed onto my body tighter and the fluttery feeling in my stomach intensified.

The carousel came to a gradual stop as the music was replaced by a peppy voice thanking us for riding. Even as little kids were leaving their horses and carriages, Eli and I stayed on the one and held each other for a few more seconds. When we pulled away from the kiss, we smiled at each other happily.

Suddenly, the horse creaked and I blurted, "We should get off."

"Let's." Eli let me hop off first then he slid off of the horse afterwards. The both of us got off of the carousel ride and went on our way to the mall's center court after spending a good fifteen minutes wandering around on our own.

When we got there, we took a seat on a bench that was against a large centerpiece of different plants and flowers. It took a while but Yani and Oscar showed up and I wasn't surprised to see that she had a few shopping bags in her hands.

"I take it you had fun," I remarked.

Yani sighed contentedly and said, "I am very satisfied with my spendings."

"You saved up enough for lunch, right?"

"Duh, I'm not a complete shopping-maniac!," she blurted. Then she leaned on Oscar and said, "He helped me out so much! I was torn between this one dress and the other and--ah, he's just a life saver." The chestnut haired geek just smiled and looked away.

"So, what did you two end up doing?," Yani asked.

"Rode a carousel for funsies," I chimed playfully and draped my arm on Eli's shoulders.

"He insisted," Eli murmured.

"Don't even pretend you didn't love it," I retorted.

He smirked at me and replied, "It was great."

I beamed and looked back at Yani and Oscar. "So, now that we're all together again, let's go to Spencer's!" Yani and Oscar groaned, while Eli only chuckled.

We made our way to the Spencer's shop that was at the end of the east side of the mall. When we got there, I booked it straight for the back. I kept looking around and once everyone caught up to me, I spun around with a small box in hand.

"I want these, no questions asked," I said as I lifted up the box of fuzzy handcuffs.

Yani shook her head. "Pink fuzzy handcuffs, Calvin?"

"You're right...," I murmured as I turned around to put the box back. Then I picked up another next to it and showed it off. "Red is much more fiery and passionate!"

"Jesus fuu...," she sighed but her lips twitched into a smile.

"You want me to buy them for you?," Eli asked.

"Huh? No, no, it's fine!"

"I'll do it anyway," he deadpanned. "Are you...going to use them, though?"

"Well, I can't put them on by myself, now can I?," I purred and leaned into him. He cocked an eyebrow and smirked down at me to which I winked at him.

Yani and Oscar groaned dramatically together beside us and I couldn't help but burst into laughter.

"Well, hold onto them for now. I'm heading to the restroom," the dark haired delinquent stated.

"I need to get some water from the fountains, so I'll come with...," Oscar added in. Eli let the chestnut haired boy lead the way out of the store, which sort of caught him off guard for a moment. Soon it was just Yani and I standing at the back of Spencer's.

She looked at me and asked, "You two are obviously very comfortable with each other..." Her eyes darted toward the box in my hand and I flashed a playful grin.

"This is just to poke fun. Besides, ya never know when fuzzy handcuffs will come in handy!~"

She stifled a wry chuckle and shook her head. I tilted my head and asked, "Are you bothered by it?"

"The fuzzy handcuffs? Shit, I'd expect you to get them regardless if you had a boyfriend."

"True. Then, are you bothered by us, our relationship?"

"Well, I'd say it's moving exceptionally fast for having only been a month."

"So, you're bothered?"

"N-No, I'm totally fine."

"You mixed 'totally' and 'fine' again."

She sighed and gently face-palmed herself. "I guess I'm somewhat concerned by how your relationship is, especially since I don't know Eli all too well."

"He's wonderful," I replied assuredly.

She smiled faintly and responded, "Yes, I know he is to you."

"And not to you?"

"That's not what I'm saying..."

I stared at her with a calm expression and said, "Then, what's up?"

Her lips twisted as she thought until she huffed out a breath and answered, "I guess I've just gotten used to you being single."

"You're jealous?"

"No, that's not what I'm getting at either."

"Then?"

She narrowed her eyes at a rack of gag gifts in front of her then turned her gaze down to the floor when she realized where she was staring at. "What I mean is: I've gotten used to you being single and not dealing with dating drama. Plus, you two are moving pretty fast. I know you're very open and shameless, and Eli doesn't seem to mind, but...I don't know. Maybe...maybe I just got used to your preference being Hal."

I furrowed my brow and she rephrased immediately. "Not in that way. I mean the style of relationship and the way you deal with it. I was okay with it because Hal was mellow and I was okay with how you handled that."

"That's how it used to be, but now things are different. I'm sure Hal's changed all the way in Arkansas. I've changed since then. Eli has gone through his changes, too. I'm sure if I met him two years ago, from what he's told me, maybe I'd dislike him. Things are different now. Hal isn't my preference anymore. He rarely crosses my mind like he used to when he left.

"I'm with Eli and you've gotta put faith into us like you did with me and Hal. We're okay right now. I don't doubt that we'll have our rough times, but right now the both of us are willing to stick with each other. And just because I've got Eli, that doesn't mean you shouldn't stick with me, too."

Yani lifted her gaze up to me and I could see the resignation in her eyes. With a slow nod, she murmured, "Okay. You're right. I'll give you my faith."

I smiled and wrapped my arm around her shoulders to bring her into a hug. She chuckled and placed her arm around my waist. "So, you're really getting the handcuffs?," she asked.

"Hell yeah!," I replied excitedly. She laughed and rolled her eyes as we let go of each other.

From behind us, I heard suspicious murmuring. I turned and saw three guys hanging out by the T-shirts glancing over at us. When Yani turned to see them, she groaned and muttered, "Ugh, those assholes again."

"Again?"

"When Oscar and I were leaving Floral and Frill, those guys catcalled me," she grumbled, "I wanted to say shit but didn't want to make a bad impression on Oscar, so we just left."

I pursed my lips and glanced at the guys again. I caught one of them biting their lip at her and narrowed my eyes. Without any warning, I told Yani, "Let me handle this."

"Calvin, don't--."

"Hey there, boys," I chimed with a flamboyant voice. Tossing the box in my hands, I kept going and said, "You all peering over at lil' old me? I don't mind the attention. In fact, I've been wanting to get some fresh meat for while now..." Yani was containing her laughter behind me as I topped off my performance with a sexy wink.

The guys all reeled back and glared at me with disgust. One of them uttered a grumbled, "Fuckin' fag," before they all left the shop. As soon as they were gone, Eli and Oscar finally came back.

"Honey, I missed you!," I chirped to my dark haired boyfriend.

"I was only gone for like seven minutes," he said, but nonetheless smiled anyway.

"And in those seven minutes my heart weeped for thee.~"

He shook his head, leaned forward and kissed my forehead. "C'mon, let's buy you those handcuffs." I fist pumped the air as we all made our way to the cashier's counter.

Eventually, we were out of Spencer's and heading for a place to have lunch. It was decided that we'd eat at one of those connected restaurants in the mall instead of the bustling food court. It wasn't long until we got ourselves a table and we had a waiter asking us what our drinks would be. While we waited for our orders, Yani took this time to interrogate Eli.

"Hmmm, do you have a middle name?," she asked.

"Nope," he answered nonchalantly.

"Got a job?"

"Yes."

"Where at?"

"A daycare. Auntie Ruby's, to be exact."

Yani nodded with approval and kept going. "Any brothers and sisters?"

"Only-child."

"Why'd you change your sexual preference?"

"Girls never stuck."

"Your hobbies?"

"Hanging out at the daycare or driving around the city."

"What are your favorite foods?"

"Everything."

"Do you like dogs?"

"Yeah."

"What breed?"

"All of them."

"Cats?"

"Sure."

"Why do you like Calvin?"

"Because he's cute, funny, sweet, clever, caring and a beautiful, beautiful man."

"Awwwweeeee," I cooed loudly.

"Plans for the future?"

"Not decided."

"Understandable," Yani commented, nodding again.

Eli leaned forward in his seat and questioned her, "Let me ask you some things, too."

She was taken a little off guard but agreed to it anyway.

"How did you and Calvin become friends?," he asked.

Almost instantly, her and I glanced at each other and shared cheeky smiles.

...

I can remember it all as if it were yesterday. The first words I ever said to Yani were: "Holy shit, I'm so sorry!!!"

Then the second set of words I told her were: "Remember me from last week? Yeah, listen I'm sorry I tackled you over onto the ground. I just...had to take the most wicked whazz of my life."

That's not really how our friendship started though. If it were only that, there would be nothing else to the story. I guess those first couple of awkward interactions were only the lead up to the moment when our friendship had the chance to take off. Yani's girl friends at the time weren't too pleased with me considering I nearly broke her nose when I shoved her out of the way, plus they disliked my poor regard for the 'TMI rule'. Still, Yani was nice enough to forgive me and brush off everything like it wasn't out of the ordinary. Really, it all could've just ended there, but it didn't, and it's all because of one chocolate bar.

In my first year of middle school, I was the new kid. My family and I had just moved to a new city in Cali for Appa's work, so I knew absolutely no one. I'm surprised I had lasted the first month without any real friends. I wasn't the easiest kid to handle, so I'm lucky no one screwed over the little eleven-year-old with the stupid-ass bowlcut-undercut hairstyle (I swear to god, I can't ever look back upon my middle school years without gagging out my fuckin' lungs).

One day at lunch, I was in line at the school concession stand to buy myself a chocolate bar. I tossed two quarters around in my jacket pocket since then getting a snack had only cost like 50 cents (oh, good times). Unfortunately, that day when all I had was the two quarters, the school decided to up the price of snacks from 50 cents to a dollar each. Why the people running the concession stand couldn't be bothered to put up a sign (didn't even have to look pretty), I don't know. What I did know was that I was pretty embarrassed when I was turned down for not having enough money for a damn chocolate bar. So I awkwardly scooted my way out of the line, feeling flustered.

Before I could go any further, someone grabbed onto my arm. When I looked up, there she was: dark, olive skin; warm brown eyes; long, wavy hair; and full, pink lips. I never got to properly take in how gorgeous she really was because I had tackled her and briefly apologized the following week after the incident. Looking at her now, I was stunned that someone so pretty would forgive my dorky ass.

"Here," she said briefly and opened up her palm to reveal four quarters to me. I blinked at her then murmured, "N-No, you don't have to."

She stared at me for a moment before walking up to the concession stand, requesting a chocolate bar and handing over the quarters in exchange. Just when I thought she was going to walk away, she gave me the chocolate bar and said, "You can have it." I stared at her, wide eyed, as she quickly flashed me a smile before walking away. Even as she left, I still stared at her in awe. It was then that I got an idea and looked down at the chocolate bar.

The next thing I knew, I was sauntering up behind the girl and tapping her shoulder. When she turned, I handed over the wrapped up half of the chocolate bar while the other was in my hand. "Take half, at least," I told her, a tad bit flustered. She looked up at me with surprise, then bore the smile that I would later recognize as the smile that meant the world.

"Okay," she chuckled, and took the halved chocolate bar from my hand. Just when I was about to turn away, she asked, "Do you want to sit with me?"

If it weren't for the fact that I was utterly lonely, I would have declined her offer at the time. Maybe I still would have declined. But the moment she gave me that smile, I felt like there was no way I could turn her down. So, I nodded and replied, "Sure."

That's how our friendship started.

...

Eli snickered and remarked with a snarky grin, "A bowlcut?"

"Shut up! My mom thought I looked cute that way...," I whined.

"You did," Yani giggled.

"No, you can't tell me that--I looked like a cringey lil' asshole!," I argued, completely changing my stance on my doofy, eleven-year-old haircut.

"Not even I'd stoop to that level of dork," Oscar commented before sipping his drink snidely.

"Stop it, all of you...," I grumbled.

"Oh, I'm sure you were the most adorable kid," Eli stated as he placed his arm on my chair.

"Anyway," I muttered, "I'm glad you bought me that chocolate bar, Yani."

"I am, too," she said, smiling genuinely.

A few minutes later, we all received our food from the waiter and spent the next ten minutes or so making small talk while eating. After we were done eating, I decided to head to the restroom to wash up. I walked into the mens' restroom and went for the sinks. While I was busy washing my hands, the door opened and I turned to see who was coming in instinctively. My movements faltered as soon as I saw the three guys from Spencer's.

"Hey," one of them grumbled, "look, it's that faggot from earlier."

"Oh, yeah," the second guy said.

I looked away from them to turn off the sink and dry my hands. As soon as I reached for the paper towels, the third guy slammed his fist against the wall beside the dispenser, startling me. I stood there, frozen, and let my hands drip water.

"Hmmph, what happened to your big talk earlier, fag?"

"Listen, I was only looking out for my friend," I muttered.

"That hot piece of ass?," the first guy chortled and I saw him nudge the second guy in the mirror's reflection.

"Don't talk about her that way," I corrected him.

"Is she your girlfriend?," the third guy said, leaning closer to my face.

"No--."

"Then it doesn't fuckin' matter. She's hot, alright?"

"This is more about you being disrespectful about your opinion."

"We're in America. Freedom of speech, buddy. Are you supposed to keep your mouth shut back in fuckin' China?"

I glared at him while his friends laughed.

"There's a difference between freedom of speech," I started, "and unwarranted stupidity and using freedom of speech as an excuse for it."

"Shut the fuck up, fag," the third guy growled.

"Like I haven't heard that insult before...," I retorted sarcastically.

He stepped forward but was suddenly interrupted when a familiar voice piped up, "What do you think you're doing getting in my boyfriend's space?"

The third guy turned around and I was able to see Eli past his shoulder. I smiled but the dark haired delinquent's focus was on the jerk in front of me. The third guy chuckled and said, "You're this faggot's boyfriend, huh?"

"Yes, that's what I just said, dumbass. Are you deaf?," Eli growled, stepping closer.

The third guy stepped up to him too and hissed, "Oh, what are you going to do? Hit me? I'll file charges and your boyfriend won't be enough to defend your pathetic ass. You can't and won't do shit."

Eli nodded slowly. "Yeah, you know what, you're right." He looked around the restroom, then proceeded to sit down on the floor. "You're totally,"--he laid down while the three guys stared at him funny--, "one hundred percent," --he raised a leg in the air--, "absolutely right."

Suddenly, Eli kicked at a restroom stall and a loud boom echoed, startling everyone, including me. Then he kicked again and again with extreme force, surprising me as he started making shouts and grunts. Eventually, he stopped doing what he was doing and curled up on his side, covering his head. I was confused as to what he was trying to do, until the waiter for our table came into the bathroom looking concerned. When he saw Eli on the floor, he asked, "What's going on in here?!"

Realizing what Eli meant to do, I took immediate action and kneeled down next to him. With a distressed tone of voice, I whimpered, "Th-They started hitting him against the stalls, a-and I couldn't do anything! I think he's gonna pass out! Help me, he's hurt! P-Please! Please!!!"

"What the hell, no we didn't..," the second guy started protesting.

The waiter glared up at all three of them and told another server who came up behind him to call for security. The guys, now freaked out, booked it out of the restroom, shoving past the waiters and cursing us on their way out.

While they did that, I kept playing my act and hugged Eli while he still lay on the tiled floor. Our waiter rushed up to us and asked, "Hey, are you two alright? Do you need me to call someone?"

"Are those guys gone?," Eli grumbled under his arms.

The waiter blinked and answered, "Y-Yeah, they bolted."

"Great," Eli said and casually sat up in his spot.

The waiter stared at the two of us, confused. "B-But, I thought..."

"Thanks for your concern, man," Eli praised him as he stood up. He helped me to my feet and I stood with him, smiling. Eli reached into the inside of his jacket for his wallet and handed the waiter a five dollar bill. "Here's a tip. Thanks for serving us, by the way."

"Th-Thank you...," the man murmured holding the bill like he wasn't sure what to do with it. I patted him on the shoulder as Eli led me out of the restroom.

As soon as we were back into the restaurant, the both of us started laughing aloud. Yani and Oscar were giving us curious looks by the time we arrived at our table. "What's up with you two?," Yani questioned.

"Yeah, and why do I have a feeling three dudes ran out of the restaurant because of it?," the chestnut haired geek remarked.

"We'll explain later!," I chimed innocently.

"Calvin has A-one acting, just putting that out there," Eli stated proudly.

"You do too, love," I purred as I caressed the side of his face. "You're so clever..! I love it.~"

"Do you now?"

"Oh, yes.~"

"Oh, god," Yani and Oscar, again, groaned in unison.

Soon enough, after talking about our adventure and paying for our food, we all had to leave to go home. Eli took the time to walk us to Yani's car even though his Camaro was in another parking lot. We made it to the car and I had Oscar take the front seat this time. He was a bit flustered, but he warmed up to the idea faster than I thought he would. Before I hopped into the backseat, I gave Eli a hug and tiptoed to reach for a kiss. He ran a hand through my hair and held me close, making me want to stay with him longer. When the kiss was over, Eli leaned his forehead against mine and I smiled.

"I'll see you tomorrow," I murmured.

"Yes. Call me when you get home."

I nodded and he planted a kiss at my cheek. We said our good-byes and I watched him walk away for a few seconds. Upon turning around to get into Yani's car, I found her staring at me with a peculiar look. Before I could ask her what it was for, she managed a smile and said, "He is wonderful." Then she ducked into the car to get into the driver's seat.

Feeling even happier, I stifled a light chuckle and opened up the backdoor to get in. Within a few minutes, we were on our way out of the parking lot and heading back to our homes.

•••

"I kind of got the vibe that Yani didn't like me," Eli was telling me over the phone.

"Yeah?"

"Well, she seemed very closed off and disregarding."

I managed a light chuckle and said, "Don't worry. She's only being that way because she's looking out for me. But trust me when I say she'll open up soon."

"Why is that?"

With a pillow hugged close, I turned over in my bed and replied, "Because...you're wonderful."