Fire Island National Seashore. New York. July 7th, 1999.
Matty Demaret and Taylor Reese were playing volleyball, one on one. It was the weekend and Matty was itching for some fun; which, for him, always involved sports and his three friends. Matty had first contacted Taylor, then contacted Scarpa and told Scarpa to invite Marbles. Matty ended up going to Taylor's, then the two drove off in Taylor's 1999 black Dodge Ram Van. Now they were waiting on the other two, and there was no knowing when they'd show up. They were almost always late to these things.
Matty served the ball over the net, away from Taylor, but the muscular man was fast and alert and bumped it back over without much effort. Matty didn't let it hit the sand, and he bumped it back over, and they went back and forth. Over and over, and the longer it went, the more difficult it became. It started turning into a real challenge, with both men running back and forth, bumping and digging and hitting.
Matty had seen Marbles and Scarpa behind Taylor only briefly. He didn't pay them much attention as he was very focused on the game and wasn't willing to lose.
Taylor had heard Marbles greet them, but didn't even turn to look or acknowledge the other men. His brows were creased and his lips were pressed together in determination. He and Matty went back and forth, back and forth. Scarpa was smiling, watching with interest and finding it funny how Matty and Taylor were so lost in the game; so Hell-bent on winning.
"We might be here a while Marbles," he said, putting his hands in his pockets. "You know how they get."
"Yeah, how could I forget? Taylor nearly buried me 6 feet deep last time," Marbles responded, referring to the time that Taylor accidentally bumped into and tripped over Marbles, falling on him and crushing him into the sand. It had been a good laugh for Matty and Scarpa, but Marbles and Taylor had been less than pleased. Marbles was upset that Taylor wasn't careful enough and Taylor was upset that Marbles had gotten in his way.
With that, Matty laughed. Taylor smiled slightly and he ended up missing the ball by a mere inch as it hit the sand.
"Hah!" Matty exclaimed, thrilled that he'd won. "Whoo!"
"Aahh..." Taylor made a noise, somewhat disappointed that he'd lost, but smiling all the same. "Good game," he said, looking over at Matty.
"Yeah, you too," Matty responded. He smiled and finally turned to look at Marbles and Scarpa.
"Hey fellas," he said, his cheeks red and sweat gathering on his forehead as he stepped over to them. He put the ball under one arm as he extended his hand to shake both Scarpa's and Marbles'.
"Sup, Matt," Scarpa said.
"Hey Matty," Marbles greeted.
"What're you wearing?" Matty asked, looking at Marbles, brows creased. Marbles was wearing a Hawaiian beach shirt and rainbow colored, floral swim shorts.
"That's what I said," Scarpa added, as Taylor stepped forward and they shook hands.
"What? It's beach wear. We're at the beach, aren't we?" Marbles said in his defense.
"There's no excuse for this..." Matty said, just looking Marbles up and down with what almost appeared to be disgust. He then shook his head back and forth and looked up.
"You guys wanna beer?" Matty asked, raising his brows as he turned and walked over to the cooler. Scarpa and Marbles agreed and so Matty tossed a beer to the two of them. He then took one for himself and Taylor. He popped open Taylor's bottle and handed it to him, then popped open his own and took a sip.
"Alright, we gotta pick teams," Marbles said. "After what happened last time, I'm not goin' with Taylor."
Matty laughed, bumping the back of his hand against Taylor's chest as he looked at him. Taylor raised a brow, looking down at Marbles.
"You tripped me," Taylor said.
"More like you ran me over!" Marbles responded. Matty continued laughing, looking at Scarpa who smiled at his friend then shook his head back and forth.
"Hey, it's not his fault you only go up to his knees," Matty said, which made Taylor laugh. "Big guy didn't see ya down there."
"He's got a point," Scarpa said. Marbles glared at Matty and Scarpa which just earned more laughter before Marbles continued.
"Ha-ha, very funny, I can't stop laughin', really!" Marbles responded, sarcastically. His face then changed. "I'm serious. Come on, how about me and you, Matty?" Marbles asked. There was a hope in his voice that Matty found comical.
"No way, man! You're the worst. I'm with Taylor," Matty replied.
"Come on, that's no fair," Marbles responded in return.
"I agree, completely unfair," Scarpa pitched in, looking from Matty to Marbles. "How come I've always gotta be with Marbles?"
"He's your cousin, man," Matty responded.
"Not by choice!" Scarpa replied.
"Ouch," Marbles said.
So now it was the four of them. Marbles and Scarpa on one side of the net and Matty and Taylor on the other. Matty served and Marbles hit it; not too bad. Taylor bumped it back over and Scarpa got it. Matty, Scarpa, Taylor, Marbles. It went back and forth, over the net, never hitting the ground. Matty took advantage of Marbles' inability to play and spiked it way behind him, causing him to fall over onto his back. Matty laughed, victoriously, then turned toward Taylor and gave him a high-five.
Just after, Matty lifted his shirt over his head, just in front of Taylor. Taylor's lips parted as he looked his friend up and down, nearly immobile; looking somewhat dumb-founded as he stared. Matty's skin was smooth and pale and hairless and wet with sweat. His nipples were soft and pink, his hips were jutting out from beneath his shorts. His stomach was lined with abs. Taylor clenched his jaw and looked away, over at Marbles and Scarpa. Both of which were looking at Taylor with small smirks on their faces. Taylor's brows lowered, giving him an angry appearance.
'The fuck, they laughin' at me?' he wondered. He looked away, trying not to let his anger get to him as he lifted his own shirt up and over his head and threw it where Matty had thrown his own beside the cooler.
Matty looked Taylor up and down, then looked away, down at his beer. He picked it up and took a sip, one hand on his hip as he looked anywhere but at Taylor. Taylor picked up his own beer and had a sip and then the two placed their bottles back down.
"You ready?" Matty asked, not looking.
"Yeah," Taylor replied, also not looking.
As the game continued, they switched teams. Matty went with Marbles, which he was none to happy about because he lost them the game. Marbles ended up playing with Taylor, which Matty apologized to Taylor for. But surprisingly, Taylor won them that game and Matty made it clear that he was impressed.
After a while, the four took a break. Matty and Taylor and Marbles sat in the sand and enjoyed the sun, sipping on beer while Scarpa was talking to some beautiful woman. Matty and Taylor sat so close that their sides and legs and feet were touching and Marbles was a few feet away from them, just looking at the people walking by.
"You end up gettin' that job?" Taylor asked, taking a drag of his cigarette.
"Nah..." Matty responded, despondently.
"Fuckers don't know what they're losin'," Taylor replied.
"Yeah. I mean, they all start off the same, you know? All smiles, and I keep thinkin', shit, this time it's gonna be different, this time I've got a chance, but once they pick up that fuckin' paper and read 'Gianda's Catering Hole', they go sour on me. I don't get a break," Matty said.
"What're you gonna do?" asked Taylor.
"Keep tryin'. Nothin' else I can do. Gonna hope one of these guys doesn't know Benny Chains. There are a few more places I can try..." Matty answered. It was quiet for a while before Taylor spoke.
"Good luck," he said. Matty looked at Taylor, a gentleness in his eyes.
"Thanks, Taylor..." he replied softly.
Just then, Marbles spoke up, bringing the both of them out of their own little world that they'd created, where it was only the two of them that existed.
"You guys see the Knicks game?" Marbles asked.
"What do you think?" Matty questioned in return.
Scarpa came walking back over to the group after about a half hour. He was smiling and looking downward in thought.
"Another one, huh?" Marbles asked, smiling up at Scarpa with a mischievous glint in his eyes.
"They never stop comin', and neither do I," Scarpa responded, causing Matty and Marbles to laugh while Taylor sat there, looking either disturbed or as if he hadn't heard as he looked out over at the ocean. Matty began to stand up and Taylor did the same.
"Shit, it's hot, huh? I'm gonna cool down," Matty said, walking across the sand and over to the water. "You guys comin'?" he asked.
"I'm all set," Scarpa said.
"Yeah me too. There's sharks in there, not to mention jellyfish and who knows what else," Marbles added.
"You're paranoid," Matty responded as he continued walking. Taylor looked at Marbles and Scarpa and then walked ahead and followed Matty to the water.
Matty began to run once he got close enough and jumped in, going underneath the waves for a moment before he surfaced and brushed his wet hair back off his face with his hand. The way he gasped for breath when he surfaced made it clear to Taylor that it was freezing. Taylor wasn't one who enjoyed the cold and as he stepped into the water, he decided he wasn't going much further than that.
"What's the matter, can't handle the cold? A guy like you?" Matty asked, teasingly; trying to convince Taylor to join him.
"It's fuckin' freezin'," Taylor said, causing Matty to laugh. Matty stepped closer to the shore then dared to splash Taylor with the cold water. Taylor shut his eyes and his breath hitched in his throat as the water hit his chest and stomach.
"That's it," Taylor said, and he ran into the water after his friend, bringing Matty back underneath the water with him.
Over by the volleyball net, Marbles and Scarpa stood still, sipping on their beers and watching Matty and Taylor.
"Did you see Taylor looking at Matty earlier? He was drooling," Marbles said.
"I've been seein' it for years," Scarpa replied.
"You have? And you never told me?" Marbles asked.
"Course not, you're a moron," Scarpa said.
"No wonder Taylor's always followin' him around. Does Matty know?" Marbles asked.
"It's not my business. It's not yours, either," Scarpa responded.
"But, do you think?" Marbles questioned.
"I don't think so," Scarpa said.
When Matty and Taylor came back to the other two, they were smiling and breathless. Taylor walked past them and over to the cooler and Matty watched him. He thought of the fun they'd just had, fooling around in the water, acting like a couple of kids, as if they weren't the tough guys their fathers had raised them to be. He watched the way Taylor's muscles flexed as he bent over and took a beer from the cooler, the way his skin glistened under the sunlight.
"Looks good, huh?" Scarpa asked, patting Matty on the back. Matty turned his head and looked at Scarpa, his brows creased and lips parted in shock.
"E-excuse me?" he asked, sounding nervous.
"The beer! I was talkin' about the beer! What'd you think I was talkin' about, Taylor?" Scarpa responded.
"Quiet, man!" Matty looked as if his eyes were going to pop out of his head. "What's the matter with you? He's gonna hear you."
Scarpa laughed and shook his head back and forth, stepping forward and going over to the cooler to grab another beer.
By the time the beers were gone and the sun was starting to go down, Scarpa decided it was time for him to leave. He had made plans with the woman to meet her at his father's restaurant and he didn't want to be late. Marbles ended up going with him because they'd come to the beach in the same car, Scarpa's ruby red Lexus ES. It left just Matty and Taylor there, who decided to play one more game before they left to go get something to eat themselves.
And so it ended as it began, with Matty and Taylor playing volleyball one on on, enjoying the challenge of the game, enjoying the sand underneath their feet, enjoying the setting sun, the sound of the waves.
Enjoying one another and the fact that in the end, it'd always be the two of them.
The End.