The sounds of laughing were everywhere in the room. "No, but really, is that what you used to do there?" I looked at Chris, sitting just opposite from me on his mom's bed. I smiled. Yeah, we're a bunch of idiots. His mom then burst into her room and looked at us.
"Okay, you guys! It's a little too loud. Go to the store, or something. But if it looks like it's gonna start raining, you need to get back here." She said.
"Yeah, okay, mom." Chris said as he held his hand out to me. "C'mon, Kyouya, let's go."
I nodded and took his hand as he pulled me to my feet. We walked out the front door of his house and looked around. "I bet you five bucks that it's gonna rain."
"No way, didn't hear anything in Geography today?"
"Me, pay attention? Nah."
I chuckled. This was so unlike me. Until I came here from Japan, I never acted like this. Like a teenager. "Rain shadow effect, my friend." I smirked and shook his hand.
We made our way down the sidewalk. We passed a few restaurants with the smell of many different types of food filling up in my senses. We were almost to the store when I noticed someone waving at us from a few blocks away. I stopped. Chris stopped and looked at me. "What is it?" I pointed over to the two people waving and smiled. "It's Dunamis and Titi."
We made our way over to the two. "Hi, Chris." Dunamis said.
"It's Yoyo!" Titi said and hugged me. I smiled slightly. Sure, I didn't mind getting away from Gingka and the others. Sure, I didn't mind living in the same town as a few old friends of mine... But being called 'Yoyo' is definitely not on my Top 10.
We talked for a few minutes, then decided to go ahead and go to the store. Titi was going to stay, but Chris and Dunamis were going to accompany me. We walked the rest of the way, jumping some ditches for fun and making dumb facial expressions at the people in the cars passing us. We bought some fries, ate, then went on our way again. This time, on the way back, we saw a bus from a rivaling school making their way down Main Street. God. As much as we hated that school, we waited for them to cross the street. Besides, who would be there to kick their asses in football if we had gotten smushed into human salad on the street?
When we finally got back to Dunamis', we just sat and talked. Chris and I finally decided we'd get going. Dunamis was leaving with his family in a few minutes and Titi was going home, too. We said our good byes and made our way down the street. "Where to, Chris?" I asked.
"Dunno. Let's go to Ricky's?"
"He's not home. He and Dustin went out of town with their other brothers and parents."
"Oh, yeah..."
We made our way along the lonely street, towards our empty friend's house. We walked straight past until we reached a small shed. "Hey, Chris?"
"Yeah?" He asked. I pointed into the shed with a stupid smile on my face. I went into the shed and came out kicking a mini-skateboard along ahead of me.
"You should try it. You know how to ride the real ones, after all."
"So do you!" He laughed.
"Yeah, I just don't wanna bust my ass yet!" I chuckled.
We both took turns on the small thing. After a few failed attempts to ride it, we gave up. "Fuck this piece of shit." Chris said as he got off it, giggling like a small school girl.
"Eh, leave it here. Someone'll run over it in the middle of the night." With that, we walked away sniggering as the sky above us grew thicker, and darker. The air around grew colder and a small breeze began to blow. I reminded me of a Harry Potter movie when the Dementors came out. I shivered.
We walked into a lot owned by the school and trespassed into "The Basement." The Basement was just a place where the school used to either A.) Store stuff or, B.) Use as a tornado shelter. Now, it was empty and was just a place for us idiots to hang if we didn't want to go home.
There wasn't much there, so we left and walked through the hotel, called "El Oso Flojo." This was probably the nicest hotel in this whole town. It had an old Mexico setting with a fountain in the center. Spanish tile roofing with the stucco walls, Spanish music playing softly from unseen speakers, and authentic Mexican flowers and plants growing all around us. I loved this place.
El Oso Flojo was located just across Main Street from Chris's house, so we made our merry way back across the lonely road and into Chris's lawn. We sat out in the back yard listening to music as the rain began fall, only sprinkling as though we were in a snow globe with all the glitter falling back down to the bottom of the clay setting.
"Okay, guys, c'mon! My boyfriend's here and the ribs are ready!" We heard. Chris's mom. Knowing her, we obeyed. We walked into the dining room and stared at the feast ahead of us.
"God, this looks amazing." I said.
Chris's mother looked at me and smiled warmly. "Thank you!"
We sat and ate, then Chris and I migrated back into the living room where 21 Jump Street came across our minds to watch. That's when Miranda walked into the room. "Chris, Kyouya, I need to tell you something."
"Yeah, mom?" Chris said and paused the movie.
"I'm going out of town for a few days and am staying with Jarrod. The house is getting renovated, and you're going to need to stay with someone, too, Chris."
He looked at me. "Well?"
"I'll call my mom, don't worry. I'm sure she'll OK it." I said and pulled out my phone. I unlocked it and dialed for my mom as Chris went to pack his bags. Miranda had gone outside, but came back in as soon as I hung up with my mom.
"I think you lost that bet, Kyouya." She said, half smiling, half smirking. I looked out the window. She was right. It was pouring, now. "So, did your mother say it was okay?"
"Oh, yeah, she said she'd be here in about two minutes."
"Oh, that's great." She said. "CHRIS! Hurry! Kyouya's mother is coming for you and I don't want her waiting!" She smiled at me and left the room. Whoa. Who knew she yelled? I stayed on their couch, laughing occasionally at Channing Tatum calling Jonah Hill "Slim Shady" and their "drug bust" in the park. Chris came out of his room with a bag slung over his shoulder. Miranda had been in and out of the house bringing stuff in from the porch that might get wet or ruined. She came in once and looked at us. "She's here." I paused the movie and looked at Chris. "Here, Chris, take an umbrella. It's pouring out now." She handed him the duo-toned shield.
"Bye, mom," Chris said and stepped out onto the porch.
"See you later," I smiled and walked out the door.
Chris opened the umbrella as me stepped off the porch and into the rain. "Goodbye!" Miranda said as she stood at the door with her boyfriend, Jarrod. She waved and smiled once more, then disappeared through the door along with Jarrod.
We walked out the gate of their front yard, to the gravel driveway and into my mom's car. "Hi, guys," she said. "Isn't the rain lovely?"
"Sure is," Chris said from the backseat.
My mom backed the car out of their u-shaped driveway, past their peach tree field (it was only about the size of their front yard), and onto Main. The short drive back to my place was spent in silence.
We pulled into our huge driveway and my mother turned off the car. "You'd better get everything you need out because my shift for tomorrow is scheduled at 4:30 AM." She got out.
Chris and I followed after getting the books we'd need for our wonderful weekend homework. Sarcasm on the wonderful part.
"So, we already ate and we were halfway through 21 Jump Street... We could finish watching it in my room," I said as we made our way up the sidewalk.
"I didn't bring it with me though..." He said.
"It's okay, we have Netflix," I smiled and opened the door.
"Oh, okay then," he said. We almost made it out of the tile walkway and into the carpeted living room when we were stopped by my mom's voice.
"Don't forget to take your shoes off!"
"Okay, mom, we will," I said, slipping my boots off. Chris followed my action, then we made our way to my room through the living room, and a sharp turn to the left. I turned my light on and set my books down on a table next to my bed. I turned my TV on and plopped down on my bed, staring at the screen saying "Westinghouse" until the channels came through only a few short seconds later. I was about to go to the Netflix guide when... The electricity went out.
