CHAPTER!
DISCLAIMER: Don't own the characters, just the story
...
"I'm so tired," Leo yawned, stretching his arms above his head, cracking his neck by stretching it side to side.
"I know what you mean," I replied, walking only a few steps behind him, hands in pocket.
Our teacher had given us some time to walk around locally before the show started in two hours. As soon as Leo had finished his burger, I dragged him out as soon as possible. Jason had waved us out, but by the time he finished, we were already long gone.
We passed shops that lined the street, people rushing past in a hurry. The noise of the inner city creating a blanket of isolation, separating us from everyone else.
"So," Leo said as he stopped abruptly, causing me to walk into him, "how is it to sit between the Brady bunch?"
"Huh?"
"You know, on the bus," he clarified, starting up again, this time beside me.
"Oh God, don't even get me started," I mumbled in pain. Leo only laughed at my suffering. "Like really, I don't care if you're fucking Alexis or Malory-"
"Danielle," Leo corrected.
"Whatever. My point is, I'm stuck in the middle of the weirdest threesome-bromance and I can't get away. And its not just here, but everywhere since I started going to this fucked up school. Its like the whole fucking world has it out for me."
"Some people would kill to be in the position you're in right now," Leo pointed out.
"And I would happily give it up if I could. And for your information, I do not have a thing for blondes."
"And I totally believe that," Leo replied sarcastically.
"Fuck off," I yell at him, shoving him so he would run into a trash can.
But Leo only laughed as he brushed his knee with his hand and weaved through the crowd to keep up with me.
...
"Leo, stop fucking running!" I called to him as he raced from store to store, barely missing an elderly couple as he swung a video game store door open.
"Hurry up then!"
With a grumbled, I picked up my pace to meet up with him in the store. When I opened the door, an aroma of dust and metal hit my nose. It was intoxicating.
The walls were lined with posters and flyers for different events, some even dating back twenty years. The further I went down, more shelves appeared, creating narrow walkways through the already tiny space. By the front, there was a glass case that held ancient video game consoles, divers generations of different and same brands. Even original and Japanese models found themselves hidden in the cluster of age.
Even non-video game related merchandise lined the shelves and any form of empty space present. Replica swords and board games stood lone of their own area, some semi-set up to show how it looked. For a geek, this would be paradise; no wonder Leo found himself gravitated towards it.
"Holy shit," I muttered, more to express my thoughts out loud than anything.
I looked around for Leo, weaving in and out of shelves roof-high to try and find him. When I reached the back of the store, an area that had a stronger dust smell than anywhere else in the store, I tapped on his shoulder and he turned around, face glowing.
"Look what I found," he exclaimed in a hushed whisper, as if someone was watching us.
"What is it?"
"Harvest Moon, the original Japanese box, cartridge, and manual, originally released in Japan in 1996 for the Super Nintendo!"
"Oh my God, guess what!" I exclaimed in return.
"What?!" he asked, still in a hushed tone but voice full of enthusiasm.
"You're a fucking nerd and I don't give a shit."
"Hey!" he called out as I walked away, examining the other shelves.
"Harvest Moon? What are you, a twelve-year-old Japanese school girl?"
"Fuck you, Harvest Moon is the shit! I've been trying to find this exact version in this condition for, like, five years."
"And that is where your problem lies," I pointed out, pulling a game off of the shelf.
"It is not! And do you realise how rare this is? No, you don't. In such mint condition and only eighty bucks, I might as well just won the lottery."
"You can waste your money and time on it, but you wont catch me dead with anything like that. Ever."
"And just because you said that," Leo said snidely as he took my arm and dragged be around until we reached the portable devise section, "Daddy Leo-"
"Don't ever say that again."
"-is going to get you a present." Leo skimmed the shelf for a solid thirty seconds before pulling out a case and handing it to me.
"The fuck is this?" I asked, turning it over in my hand, examining it.
Rune Factory: A Fantasy Harvest Moon
"'Rune Factory: A Fantasy Harvest Moon' - the hell is this?" I asked, confused, after reading the title.
"Well, you send you would never play a Harvest Moon game, so I'm buying it for you, and if you don't like it, I will admit that Harvest Moon isn't the best damn thing to ever hit this earth," he explained as we made our way to the front counter.
"So," I started, "you're going to buy me a game without knowing if I'll like it or not only to prove your theory, which is crazy, by the way, that no one can dislike it?"
"Oh yeah," Leo said as he put the two games down on the counter and leaned over to the man on the other side. "Hey, Fabio-"
"Leo, his name isn't Fabio."
"You have any used versions of R.F. four?"
The balding man with a thick beard and tattoos lining his overly toned biceps stood there with a stern face and arms crossed. He raced his brow before giving Leo a once over.
"Leo, you're going to get us shanked," I whisper harshly to him as the man behind the counter - Fabio, according to Leo - walked away to grab something.
When he returned, he slammed a game case on the glass counter top, rattling the anime girl figurines that was in the display case.
"No one calls me Fabio," came the husky voice of the balding man. By this point I had planned out several exit strategies of getting out of the shop before he killed us in this little unknown shop. "Except-"
"Beckendorf. Yeah, he's my cousin. He told me about this place so I thought I would swing by and see if it really was as amazing as he claimed, and by golly it is!"
"I reckon that makes you Valdez," the man behind the counter said, his face softening as he smiled and laughed. I could feel my breath leave my lungs, almost of relief but mainly of the fact that I didn't just die.
"It does," Leo said with a grin, raising his eye brows in a knowing manor at me with a sickening grin before shaking "Fabio"'s hand.
"My boy, Beckendorf, speaks highly of you. I was wondering when you were going to come around here."
"Class trip. Was in the area so I dragged my friend over here."
"Ah," he nodded, finishing up ringing the total up.
"That'll be one-twenty-eight, Valdez, but because you know my man Beckendorf, a solid hundred will work."
"Done," Leo said as he slapped two fifties on the counter and took the bag as the man passed it over to him. Leo took it as he made his way over to the door. "Thanks, Fabio. Let's go, Nico."
"Huh? Oh yeah." I ran out with Leo, catching up to him on the street. "Hey, this time we go where I want, okay?"
He waved me off. "Yeah, whatever."
Leo handed me the bag and I looked inside. Rummaging through it, I realised he picked up another one of those games.
"Dude, you really picked up another one?"
"I think you'll like the other one much more," he said, a smirk playing at his lips.
"So, you just bought me two games thinking I'll like them on the account of... what?"
"You'll see," was all Leo said as he started up ahead. I rolled my eyes and caught up.
...
"Why a book store?" Leo complained as we walked in. He scraped his feet on the floor in protest.
"I said we were going to where I wanted to go next and you agreed so suck it up and deal."
"Fine," he grumbled, hands going to his pockets. I threw the bag of games back at him, telling him to hold on to them while I look around. He agreed, reluctantly though, and mulled around the store aimlessly.
I took my own leave and headed off, in search for something. I skimmed the walls, fingers trailing along the spines of the books, head turned to better read the titles. I looked through different sections until I found myself at the back of the store. The bookcases reached the ceiling, dust faintly covering the shelves due to lack of care or interest.
I wasn't sure on how long I had looked for, but after all my searching, I had found the only copy of The Odyssey on the shelves. I went to pull it out, but when I did, I ended up pushing the book on the other side off of the ledge. I heard someone on the other side wince in pain.
"Ow!" came a quiet voice on the other side.
"Sorry!" I called, voice hushed and low.
"It's fine," the voice said, deep. It was male.
And sort of familiar.
"No, seriously, I didn't mean to."
"Really, its fine. I've done it before," the male reassured me.
"Why don't they have proper shelves here, though?"
The voice laughed, low and calming. Familiar.
I tried to look through the hole where the two books had been, but I could barely see his right arm. It was nagging at me, but I felt like I knew the person on the other side which was even weirder given the fact that I didn't even live in the city.
"Who knows?"
Just as I was about to say something, Leo came running up.
"You'll never guess who I just ran into and..." his voice left him, leaving him wide eyed.
"What..." Just before I could finish my sentence, Jason came up from behind Leo with Percy falling in suit.
"Yo, Will, you ready? Its about time to head back."
It was Will. Will was on the other side of the damn book shelf, and I wanted to leave. Now.
I quickly put the book back and rushed past Leo, taking him by the wrist as I walked out. Even though I tried hard not to look back, I did. I could see a confused look cross the blonde's face, almost hurt as his figure started to recede.
"Dude, what's up with you today?" Leo asked, shaking his wrist loose as we walked out of the store and down the street, heading back to the bus to meet up with everyone.
"Nothing," I muttered, trying to shake the saddened image of Will out of my mind, his low and smooth voice ringing in the back of my mind like a constant echo. The harder I tried, the worse it got.
...
I missed our one year anniversary. Shit fam! So when i realised that, I rushed and wrote this. I've been procrastinating way too much. I wish i could give you a reason, but i can't, at least not right now.
I wish Pokemon Go was out in Canada. I'll give it a few more weeks then I'll make an American Itunes account. I'm dying inside waiting.
I'm nervous that my cosplay things wont get in on time. throwing together a quick Rachel E. Dare cosplay for a convention coming up and none of my things have come in yet. fingers crossed.
Hope you all are having a wonderful summer, I've already gotten a sunburn. I hate being half ginger.
i don't have much to say right now other than you all are wonderful for sticking around for all this time, and some of you its been a full year. you've all been the most supportive people in the world and I love you all. I love all of the reviews with all of my heart an bless those of you that write paragraphs because they make my day much more than you realise!
If you like this, check out my other work X and Side Friend. (some shameless self promotion)
Please review, follow, and favourite!
Kitty out!
