bob
Malarkey, Skip and Alex had two nights in London before returning back to Aldbourne for Nelly. And the four of them packed a bag each and left for Brighton. It was a three-hour bus journey to the coastal city. But with them talking nonstop, the trip went by quickly. The bus let them off by the pier and the four friends basked in the large rollercoaster, the smaller rides and of course, the big Ferris wheel. They could smell popcorn, cotton candy, fish and chips and other food stalls cooking away in the summer heat. But before they could explore the pier, they had to locate a place to spend the night. Hotels along the pier were expensive. So, they opted for a hotel two miles away from the beach and pier. And they picked a double room – a room with two double beds. They didn't mind sharing – they were used to it by that point.
"Where's the – "
"down the hall, three doors to your right". Skip answered Nelly's question before she finished.
With a nod, Nelly set her bag down and left the room. Their hotel room was simple and partly floral – with its floral printed curtains, walls and bedsheets. It was only a room; they didn't have their own private bathroom like the expensive hotels along the pier. Malarkey mentioned it was like his Grandmother's home. It even smelled of his Grandmother Malarkey's home too.
"This place is nuts!" Alex grinned.
"Right?" Skip shared his grin. "We 'gotta do all the rides".
"For sure!" Alex eagerly agreed. "And eat everything!"
Malarkey chuckled at his friend. "Of course, you would think about food, Penky".
Alex shrugged and the grin remained on his face. "What can I say? I love food".
"We know". Skip and Malarkey both replied.
"It's like Boardwalk at Jersey". Skip said, "With all the rides and food".
"I've never been". Malarkey said, "But it sorta reminds me of the pier close to me".
"Well, I ain't ever seen nothing like it". Alex smiled. "I can't wait to explore everything".
The moment of excitement slightly dwindled when they thought of their often-anxious friend, who was still inside the bathroom. Skip asked the question they were all thinking, "Do you think she'll be alright?"
"No matter how much fun we're having, we leave if she's not happy". Malarkey said.
Skip and Alex both agreed.
"I mean, she was fine on the bus". Alex added hopefully. "Maybe she'll enjoy herself".
"Man, I hope she does". Skip said through a little sigh. "Not for us but for her, you know?"
"Yeah". Malarkey said, "Guess we'll find out soon".
The door opened and Nelly stepped inside the hotel room with a small smile. Closing the door behind her, she held up her jacket. "Will I need this?"
"I don't think so". Malarkey said, "It's pretty warm outside".
With a nod, Nelly walked over to a bed and set her jacket down. "Well...I'm ready". She said to them softly.
"Great". Alex smiled, "Let's go".
...
The pier was noisy, busy and bright. And Nelly was quiet. But she didn't look distressed. Her eyes were busy taking in everything around her. The huge, wooden rollercoaster roared like incoming shells and the four friends didn't expect to feel their shoulders tense upon hearing the sound. For five or so minutes, they walked along the pier and discussed what they should do first. Of course, Alex mentioned food. But Skip wisely pointed out.
"A full stomach before a coaster? Are you insane?"
So, they all decided to ride the wooden rollercoaster first. Paying their way, they lined up and waited for their turn. Alex nervously admitted to Nelly, "I've never been on one of these".
"Me neither". Nelly said to him softly. And she took his hand. "It'll be okay...Alex".
Smiling at her words, he pressed a kiss on the side of her head. Soon, the cart came to a stop and passengers got out of their seats. Skip and Malarkey boldly took the front seats, and Alex and Nelly sat behind them. Bringing the bar down, Alex set it securely against their laps. The young man was sweating. Nelly gave his hand a squeeze. Grinning, Skip looked over his shoulder.
"You two okay?"
"No – "
"yeah".
Skip sent Alex a puzzled look. "You're scared?"
"Shut up, Skipper...". Alex mumbled, "I've never been on one of these before".
"Aw, buddy...I wasn't poking fun at you". Skip said, "But don't worry, we ain't 'gonna fall out or crash or nothing. Our planes more likely to crash".
Alex bobbed his head. "Great – thanks". He remarked.
Skip chuckled. "Hey...anytime".
With a jerk forward, the car began moving along the rusty tracks. They moved out from under a cover and began climbing up a tall hill. Leaning back, Nelly enjoyed the view. She watched the people on the ground turn into little ants. With a small smile, she faced Alex and discovered his eyes were closed. "Oh, Alex...". She said softly. "It'll be okay".
His hand held onto hers tightly. "I can't open my fucking eyes...". He mumbled, "I'm never doing this again, Nelly...".
The car reached the top of the hill, stilled for a moment and then raced down. The feeling caused Nelly's stomach to reach the inside of her throat. But she didn't mind the sensation. In the front, Skip and Malarkey both heard a scream. Malarkey looked over his shoulder and found the screaming belonged to Alex – the man's eyes were closed tightly. Huffing out a tiny laugh, Malarkey faced the front. At full speed, the car reached the end of the hill and titled to the right, where it followed the track in a half-circle. Then, it straightened itself out and went up a smaller hill and then dropped back down again.
The ride only lasted two minutes. Nelly loved every second of it.
Alex, on the other hand, almost fell over when they left the car. But he got over it fairly quickly and they moved on to the next ride. Their next ride was on a pirate ship, that swayed its passengers from side to side – it was like a giant swing. Alex enjoyed that ride much better than the wooden rollercoaster. However, Nelly discovered she didn't like the swinging sensation after a minute went by. Her eyes closed.
"Aw, no!" Skip sent Nelly a tiny grin. "You don't like it?!"
"I don't like it anymore!" She replied.
For Nelly, the two-minute ride felt like it stretched to two hours. And when she stumbled off, she felt dizzy and uneasy. The four of them moved toward the railings at the pier, where Nelly took a few moments to rest until the dizzy spell passed. Skip lit a cigarette and then gave it to Malarkey.
"Thanks, Skipper".
"No problem". Skip then lit a cigarette for himself. "You want one, Alex?"
"Yeah...thanks, man".
"'Wanna play a game next?" Skip suggested. He figured a break from the rides would do Nelly's stomach a world of good. "We're pretty handy with a gun".
"Ain't they all rigged?" Malarkey asked.
Skip grinned. "Yeah...for amateurs".
Malarkey chucked. "You cocky sonofabitch".
However, Alex said, "I'm hungry".
And Nelly added, "Where are the toilets?"
Malarkey and Skip both shrugged at each other.
"I'll go with Nelly". Skip said, "We'll meet you at the bar?"
"Sounds good". Malarkey nodded.
The bar/restaurant sat in the centre of the pier. Skip figured they could all grab some supper there before un-rigging those shooting games. And on their search for the toilets, Skip informed Nelly of how easy it was to beat those said games. He also mentioned all the potential prizes they could win. But upon passing a game, Skip was surprised to find goldfish swimming inside a bag of water.
"We can't take that home...". He said under his breath. "I'm pretty sure we're not allowed pets in the Airborne".
Nelly stared at the fish. "Should they...be in there?"
"I mean...it's not like they need oxygen". Skip said, "But it feels wrong".
Nelly suggested, "Maybe...we win all fish and...put them in the sea".
Skip smiled. "Ah – no, we can't do that". He said kindly. "They won't survive in saltwater". He went on to tell her, "See, certain kinds of fish belong in certain types of water. Like those fish in the river at Aldbourne...they wouldn't live in saltwater. However, fish like – "
"where are the toilets?" Nelly cut him off.
"Right". Skip gave himself a nod. "That's why we're here – sorry, buddy".
Smiling small, Nelly shook her head. "It's okay, Skip...".
Turning away from the goldfish, they continued their search. And during their walk, Nelly felt a slight tremor in her hand. She did feel a little anxious. But that was normal for Nelly. It explained her frequent trips to the bathroom. Nelly didn't want to worry her friends over her issues. But she did feel a little guilty. Staring up at Skip, a soft frown met her face.
"Skip?"
"Yeah – oh, hey...what's wrong?" Skip frowned when noticing her frown.
"I'm sorry, I'm...like this sometimes". She said to him quietly.
Skip shook his head. "Nelly, don't be sorry – not ever". He said gently. "You're my best friend – my sister. This shit...". Skip gestured around him. "If this makes you...jittery or whatever, it'll never bother me...you can count on that". He added, "And you can count on me. For whatever you need, I'll be there. I promise".
Smiling small, Nelly nodded and leaned against Skip's side.
His arm went around her shoulders. Their search ended outside the bathroom, Skip waited, and Nelly rushed inside. After a few minutes, Nelly came out and they headed to the bar to meet Alex and Malarkey. They had a booth, a table and a menu. Alex was having a hard time choosing, as was Nelly but for different reasons. It was her first time inside a restaurant.
"Everything has fish in it...". Malarkey pointed out.
"You're on the fish-only part of the menu". Skip told him.
Frowning, Malarkey turned the menu over and smiled. "Oh, yeah".
"Alright – I'll do it". Alex decided firmly. "I'll get the steak".
"Really?" Skip faked astonishment.
"Fuck it – you only live once".
Malarkey snorted with a shake of his head. "Yeah...it's not a life or death situation here, Penky but I see where you're coming from".
"I'm surprised steak is on the menu". Skip said, "There's a few American dishes on here".
"I'm getting the burger". Malarkey said, "With all the damn trimmings".
"I see...oh, no – no...that's sad". Skip shook his head. "A sausage in a bun? Bless those British hearts thinking that's a hotdog". He then shrugged, "But I'll give it a try".
"We drinking?" Malarkey asked, "What about a beer bucket? Four glasses?"
"Sure". Skip agreed. "But get a pitcher of water too".
Sat next to Nelly, Malarkey looked down at the girl. "You okay, pal?"
With a faint nod, Nelly closed the menu. "Pasta". She said simply.
Her three friends smiled.
Alex nodded with approval. "Excellent choice".
"They do Italian here? We've 'gotta tell Guarnere". Skip mentioned.
Two or so hours later, their plates were cleared, and they left the bar. Well, almost all of their plates were cleared – Nelly didn't manage all of her pasta. Walking along the pier, they headed toward the games. Paying the man, Skip picked up a shotgun and aimed toward the moving ducks made out of glass. Between them, they had drunk five or six beers. Nelly was feeling warm and merry. And she cheered Skip on with her friends.
"Yay, Skippy!" Nelly cheered softly.
Malarkey appeared amused. "Skippy?" He snorted out a laugh. "I like that one...".
After a couple of games, Nelly tried cotton candy for the first time.
"Oh my God!" She loudly exclaimed.
Her friends sharply looked at her, wearing a worried frown.
But Nelly smiled. "The pink shit...it...it just dissolved in my mouth!"
Relaxing, the three young men smiled.
"It's nice, huh?" Alex said.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah...". Nelly eagerly confirmed. Grabbing a large handful of cotton candy, she shoved it into her mouth. And her eyes continued to look surprised and memorised by the candy dissolving in her mouth. "It's...magic". She said with a tiny laugh. "Magic".
Alex grinned and nodded, agreeing with her – he had his own stick of cotton candy. The two youngest friends were walking behind Malarkey and Skip. "If you...if you stick it all the way in your mouth – like all of it...what will happen?" Alex was as drunk as Nelly.
And she pulled a thoughtful frown. "Maybe...the pink shit...".
Alex nodded along with her.
"The pink shit just...tickles your throat". Nelly concluded. "I'll try it".
"Okay".
"No!" Malarkey told Nelly. "Don't do that. You'll choke".
"Can we go on the rollercoaster again?" Nelly asked.
Skip shrugged. "Sure".
But Alex refused. "Oh, I didn't like that...did it?"
Skip smiled at him. "Don't worry, bud. Donnie will keep you company".
It was getting dark, and the pier would shortly close. But Skip and Nelly made it just in time for one last ride before they closed the wooden rollercoaster. And as they stood in line, Alex was next to Malarkey, staring at the side of Nelly's face with a soft smile.
"I love her so much, Donnie...".
Malarkey nodded with a smile. "I know you do".
"She's...God...". Alex felt tears reach his eyes. "Not God – sorry...".
Staring at his friend, Malarkey frowned and clapped his shoulder. "I know, pal".
"Do you think...she wants to be with me, Don?"
"I think she loves you a whole lot, Penky". Malarkey said to him softly. And asked, "You need some water or something?"
Alex grimaced and rubbed his stomach. "I think I need to throw up, Donnie".
"Right". Malarkey said with a small sigh. "Uh – yeah, let's get you someplace else".
Looking over her shoulder, Nelly spotted Alex leaning over the rails while Malarkey rubbed his back. Staring up at Skip, she told him in a very serious voice, "Alex is being very sick".
Skip cringed with sympathy. "Too much beer, too much to eat". And he asked, "You don't feel sick, do you?"
Nelly shook her head. And smiled. "I feel great".
"Good. That's – "
"but...". Nelly lowered her voice.
Skip leaned down to hear her. "But what?"
"I don't...I don't want to...live until I reach an old lady dying in bed...".
A worried frown met Skip's face. "What do you mean, buddy?"
Nelly smiled. And whispered, "When the war is over...I'll be dead...".
"You...". Skip was lost for words. "You're joking?"
She shook her head and said to him lightly, "No...".
Skip frowned deeply, "Oh, buddy...".
Nelly suddenly rubbed her eyes. "I'm tired".
Skip nodded – he was no longer in the mood to ride the rollercoaster. "Let's head back".