Buck adjusted his shades with a small sigh as Sour Cream sulked. "Dude, you need to relax."
"Sorry for killing the vibe guys...I just wish he'd get off my case." Sour Cream flopped down onto the grass and stared up at the sky ruefully; Jenny and Buck looked at each other and exchanged small smiles.
"At least your dad isn't constantly hovering over you." Buck supplied as he lounged back on his hands; his sunglasses reflected light from the sunset, making it harder than usual to read his expression.
"Yeah, but at least your dads aren't task masters." Jenny laughed wryly. "I swear, all my dad ever thinks about is pizza, like, I do have a life outside my job, you know?"
Sour Cream continued to stare up at the pink and orange sky, a small frown still on his lips. "He's not even my dad, not really."
Jenny bit her lip. "Well, I don't know about you two, but I gotta get back to work before my dad has a cow." she rose up and stretched as she walked toward the car parked near the bottom of the hill. "Ugh, goodbye new perfume, hello anchovy smell. You guys coming or what?"
Buck stood up and strolled down to the car with a brief nod, but Sour Cream stayed where he was.
"Nah, I'm just gonna chill out here for a bit longer."
Jenny shrugged. "Alright, see you later."
The sounds of the engine faded as Jenny and Buck drove back to town; Sour Cream sighed lightly and sat up, his arms wrapped around his knees. He looked down at Beach City and couldn't help admiring the view, though his pleasant mood was diminished when he remembered he'd get an earful from both his parents once he got home. He knew he shouldn't have walked out like that, but it was too frustrating to handle.
"At least mom supports me….why can't he just get I don't want to spend my time on a stinking boat all day hauling in slimey fish?!" Sour Cream groaned and tucked himself further into a ball.
"Actually fish aren't slimey."
"Huh?"
Sour Cream quickly unfolded his limbs and twisted his head around; there was a girl standing not far behind him, her hands limp at her sides and she seemed surprised for some reason. Maybe she hadn't meant to say anything?
Whatever the reason, the girl smiled awkwardly. "Sorry, I was walking around and I just got here when I heard you….fish aren't really slimey, it's just the water that makes them feel that way…"
"Oh. Cool."
There was a pause; neither really seemed to know what to say next.
"What's your name?"
Sour Cream started; after the silence her voice seemed so abrupt. "Uh...they call me Sour Cream."
"I'm Jade. Sorry." she tried to grin bracingly. "I didn't mean to walk in while you were…"
"No, don't apologize." Sour Cream said; he gave her a small smile. "It's not like this is my spot or anything."
The girl laughed politely. "Yeah."
Another brief silence; Sour Cream debated on whether he should leave, but for some reason he found himself speaking unintentionally.
"How do you know about fish?"
Jade looked a bit surprised. "Oh, I think I read it in a book or something. I figure it's good to know a little of everything, right?"
"That's cool." Sour Cream picked at the zipper on his pants cuff. "Um, you don't look familiar. Are you here for tourist season?"
"Mhm." Jade nodded. "Me and my family are here for summer vacation. It's a pretty nice town."
Sour Cream shrugged. "If you like fish maybe."
She didn't laugh, but Jade grinned sincerely. "What do you have against fish?" after a moment of hesitation she sat down next to him with her legs crossed.
"Nothing really," Sour Cream explained. "It's just my stepdad's a fisherman and he thinks it's the greatest job in the world or something and he wants me to be one too. I sort of got in a fight with him and my mom and walked out..." he felt childish saying it aloud to someone else; as a matter of fact he wasn't even sure why he was telling this to a stranger in the first place...still, it didn't feel weird. It felt right to be telling her these things.
"Wow, really?"
Sour Cream cocked his head in slight confusion. Jade was smiling broadly, her face shone with enthusiasm; maybe it was just the dim light hitting her that made her cheeks flush with color and her eyes sparkle-
"Y-yeah." Sour Cream managed to croak out. "It's so lame."
"And he's your step-dad?"
He nodded feeling more baffled. "So?"
"I just think it's sweet." Jade tugged at the hem of her shirt. "I mean, him being your step-dad and all, but he still wants you to follow in his footsteps."
Sour Cream looked down toward Beach City. "Huh…."
"I can see why you'd be frustrated though." Jade continued with a wry smile. "I'm on vacation, but my parents still want me to get into some 'extracurricular activity' while we're here."
"Bummer." Sour Cream replied. "Why are they making you do stuff during summer vacation?"
"It looks good on college applications." she rolled her eyes. "I know they just want to help, but all I really want to do is relax, you know? I wanna talk to my friends and watch T.V., listen to my music-"
"I know right?!" Sour Cream said excitedly. "It's like whenever I'm trying to jam out my step-dad starts bugging me about my music career. I wish he would just let me do what I want to do with my life."
"You're a musician?!" Jade beamed at him. "That's so cool, do you have a band?"
"Nah, it's just me." Sour Cream turned his face away from the sun before his cheeks could turn redder.
"What's your favorite band?" Jade was suddenly very vocal. "Mine is a tie between Purple Lloyd, Deaf Leopard, and The Tumbling Rocks!"
"Uhhh," Sour Cream stared at her blankly. "The who?"
"No, that band's called The Why." she corrected. "They're pretty awesome too though, especially in person. The best bands can play live and still sound good."
Sour Cream perked up. "Hey, what about coming to one of my shows sometime? Get a taste of the coolest scene on Beach City?" he attempted a dashing smile.
"Really?" Jade's eyes widened; Sour Cream shifted in his spot as he felt an odd something squirm in his chest and nodded quickly. "Yeah, totally!" he chuckled and looked down at his lap. "Just you wait til you see my mad DJ skills!" his smile turned sheepish. "And, uh, I'll save you the best glow stuff…"
The girl's brow furrowed slightly. "Glow stuff?"
"Yeah, for the rave!" Sour Cream cheered; his wide smile disappeared at her nervous expression. "What's the matter?"
"It's just…" she began tentatively, one hand ripping at the blade of grass. "I don't really like rave music. I'm more of a rock and roll fan? Techno kind of hurts my head…but I still-"
"Well, I don't just DJ." Sour Cream said quickly.
"You don't?"
"No, I can-play the guitar!" Sour Cream said brightly; Jade smiled in awe.
"How long have you been playing?"
"Oh, for a while." Sour Cream coughed slightly. "Yeah, I write my own music and everything. I'll play for you sometime, if you want..."
"I'd love to hear ." Jade stood up slowly. "It's getting late, I should get going. It was really nice meeting you."
"Same here." Sour Cream replied as Jade turned on her heel and walked down the hill; as he waved goodbye she began jogging back up the slope, her mouth quirked in a smile.
"I can't wait to hear you."
As soon as Jade and her flushed cheeks were out of sight, Sour Cream collapsed on the grass and stared up at the fading sun's light through his fingers.
"Oh boy." he put his hands over his own burning face. "Not good."
