Chapter 1: Bowling at Zone 28
One cool Saturday afternoon in late March 2018, I met up with my childhood friends Sarah, James, and Henri, as well as one of my other best friends, Carly Shay and her parents, Sam and Freddie at Zone 28 in Harmarville for bowling with another one of my best friends, Emily Mistle and her younger siblings Kerry, Caden, Allison, and Tony. "Hi, guys!" I greeted my friends. "Hi, Angel!" Sarah greeted back. "Thanks for coming to bowling, guys!" Emily thanked us. "You're welcome, Emily," Carly replied. While Kerry, Caden, Allison, and Tony got on a team to bowl, Emily, Sarah, Carly, and I got on one team to bowl, while James, Henri, Mrs. Shay, and Mr. Benson got on another. Emily, Sarah, and Carly all gave me advice on how to bowl since I was not very good at getting strikes and spares. Then, we all got lunch to eat. "Hi, Sarah!" Kerry greeted. "Kerry, you remembered my name!" Sarah greeted. "Hi, Carly!" Allison greeted. "How did you remember my name, Allison?" Carly asked. "Because your birthday is only 6 days ahead of mine," Allison replied. "Oh, right," I remembered. "Your birthday is coming up soon. We should have another bowling group to celebrate your birthday." "We are, Angel," Emily agreed. "On Sunday, April 22. Would you guys like to come?" "Sure, only Alex, Justin, and Max will be joining me, Sarah, James, and Henri that day," I agreed. "You're eating one of my favorite condiments, Kerry," Sarah noticed. "Hummus." "Of course, Sarah," Kerry replied. "Nachos and hummus are yummy." "That pesto was the same as I saw at Brunswick Zone Playmor Bowl," Carly noticed. "Is it good?" "Yes, spaghetti and pesto sauce is just as yummy as spaghetti and tomato sauce," Allison replied. Caden shared some chicken wings with barbecue sauce with James and Mrs. Shay, and Tony shared some pretzel bites and tapenade with Henri and Mr. Benson. I ate a hot dog with mustard, and Emily ate a chicken wrap with canola mayonnaise. Then, we played arcade games. I won some awesome prizes for me, Emily, Sarah, and Carly. However, I wandered off on a bus to the Carnegie Science Center without telling anyone, leaving my friends to worry. Sarah, James, and Henri agreed to pick me up at the Carnegie Science Center and warned me that I should either tell them or Carly and her parents where I am going to be. We all decided to eat at Napoli Pizzeria on Murray Avenue near Carly's house in Squirrel Hill. "I'm glad that we can start spending our Saturdays together again, Mrs. Shay," James remarked. "I'm glad we can see each other again too, James," Mrs. Shay replied. "I'm especially glad that you are my Facebook friend." "I never saw Michael today, though," James stated, "and I am good Facebook friends with him, too." "Bowling at Zone 28 was so much fun," Carly stated. "Can we possibly go back there again during the summer, Sarah?" "It's a possibility, Carly," Sarah replied. "We have some fun outings already planned for the summer that you guys are invited to." "Do you know who I really miss, Mrs. Shay?" James asked. "Who, James?" Mrs. Shay asked. "My first girlfriend, Phillis, that's who," James replied. "Does she have a Facebook account?" Mrs. Shay asked. "I'm not entirely sure," James replied. "All I remember is me and her eating at a pizza restaurant just like this, but I forget the name of it." Pretty soon, our dinners came. I ordered turkey sausage and spinach lasagna, Sarah ordered half a turkey and cheese hoagie, James ordered half a cheese steak hoagie, Henri ordered cheese ravioli, and for the third time in a row, Carly and her parents ordered a pizza with pepperoni, black olives, green peppers, and pineapple on top. "Are those your favorite pizza toppings, Mr. Benson?" Henri asked. "Of course they are, Henri," Mr. Benson replied. "I especially like pepperoni on my pizza." "I love pepperoni on pizza, too," Henri agreed. "Who doesn't?" "By the way, happy birthday, Henri," Mr. Benson wished. "Thank you, Mr. Benson," Henri replied. "I got cheese ravioli for my birthday dinner, since that is one of my favorite foods!" Henri gobbled down his ravioli. "Do you know what, Sarah?" Carly asked. "What, Carly?" Sarah asked. "I like Zone 28 much more than Brunswick Zone Playmor Bowl, since it has more to do and it is not a hike to get down there," Carly admitted. "I also went there several times when I started high school in the fall of 2008," Carly added. "And, I could not have a Facebook account like Mom did since she would not let me." "That's pretty neat, Carly, Sarah remarked. "I've never been to Brunswick Zone Playmor Bowl before, but I will have to give it a try and see if you are right. Where is it?" "It's in West Mifflin," I told my friends. "On Buttermilk Hollow Road." "You like all those toppings on your pizza, Carly?" Sarah asked. "Of course," Carly asked. "All four of them are our favorite pizza toppings." "This is not the only time that Carly and her parents ordered all those toppings," I told Sarah. "When were the other times you ordered pizza like that?" Sarah asked. "At Shelly Pie in Turtle Creek and most recently, at Pastoli's Pizza and Pasta, which is not too far away from here," Carly replied. Pretty soon, Sarah, James, and Henri drove me back to my mom's apartment in Highland Park. "Thanks for a great day, everyone!" I thanked my friends. "You're welcome, Angel," Sarah replied. "Bye, guys!" "Bye!"