The days passed by quickly for the three and before Nia knew it the day of the pool party had come about. Her grandfather had sent some money to Killer to help him feed and clothe Nia. Killer had asked about using some of the money to get Kid a new swimsuit for the pool party, Mr. Corbin had readily agreed, since according to what Killer had said Kid used some of his money to get antihistamines for Nia, which he confessed he'd forgotten to pack.
Killer had then taken both of the teens shopping as Nia had found that she had out grown her swimsuit as well. After the three of them spent some time in the women's swimwear with both Kid and Killer looking like they'd feel more at ease robbing a bank than waiting around while she tried on one piece suits, she finally admitted that she'd wanted to wear a two piece for a while—but her grandfather would never allow it.
Kid reminded her that he'd be there at the party too, and if a guy tried something they'd get a five finger special. That comment caused Killer to shoot him a disapproving glare and add that she could also alert an adult to the situation. Nia had lowered her head and shook her head 'no', stating that last year there boys in her class who would snap her bra through her shirt, and the teacher didn't do anything when she told him.
Kid scowled at that news while Killer sighed and shook his head, grumbling something about dinosaus, misogyny and biting butts that she couldn't quite decipher. Kid had suggested that she stay away from string bikinis but unfortunately this one did have a string bikini top. He was about to put it back when she grabbed it from him and looked it over. That was the swimsuit she ended up buying. He'd gotten a black pair of swim trunks decorated with bolts and gears. This was either going to be fun or go sideways real quick.
That had been a few days ago, he was sitting on the couch waiting for her. He was wearing his new swim trunks, black sandals and a grey muscle shirt.
His usual makeup and hair gel was absent, not wanting either to contaminate the pool with either, he was only bringing a towel and change of clothes for after which were in the black backpack sitting on the floor in front of him. Nia came out of his room wearing a black dress with thick shoulder straps to hide her bathing suit underneath. Kid stood up from his spot. He looked to her as he asked, "want me to carry anything?"
"Maybe my ventolin," Nia suggested as she held the inhaler out to him. He took it and put it in a smaller zipper compartment of his backpack. They bid goodbye to Killer who was planning to clean the apartment up a bit before going into work. It would be up to Kid and Nia to make dinner for themselves when they got back.
The two of them headed off to Ava's house, with Kid following Nia's lead, until she admitted that she admitted she didn't know where she was. Kid had chuckled a bit and looked at the address, he then was able to get them redirected so they were heading in the correct direction.
"Sorry," Nia mumbled.
Kid gently ruffled her hair while reminding her, "don't apologize, Pipsqueak. You didn't do anything wrong. Not like you've lived in this area your whole life."
"True," Nia conceded. Her eyes began to sparkle and her mouth opened into an 'oh' shape as she excitedly exclaimed, "doggy!"
Kid blinked as he watched her charge off to a fenced off yard where a grey Staffordshire terrier stood on its hind legs waiting for her. He smiled as he saw her let the dog sniff her hand before scratching the dog's head.
He quietly joined her, mimicking her actions while greeting the dog with, "hey boy."
The dog gently turned his head, licking Kid's hand and then Nia's, its tail moving like a propeller.
Nia smiled as she commented, "you're a friendly dog, huh? We gotta get going though. Maybe we'll see you on our way back home?"
The dog seemed to smile at the idea before moving away and removing his front paws from the fence. Kid smiled as he waved to the dog and kept walking with Nia.
"Well miss Cat-owner, didn't take you for a dog fan," he remarked.
"Ew. Don't use that word. You can't own something with its own mind—I'm a cat companion," Nia retorted.
"I stand corrected," Kid acknowledged as they continued down the street, eventually coming to one of the larger houses on the block. Kid surveyed the house and felt a sense of dread. Most people he'd known who were rich enough to afford a place like this were either highly educated snobs or the type of people you didn't want to get on the wrong side of.
He unfortunately had mostly encountered the later, and succeeded in doing the very thing you didn't want to do. He ran a hand over his face trying to will away the thoughts that were now invading his mind.
"You alright, Kid?"
He glanced down at the steel grey eyes staring up at him. He gave a slight smirk and nodded affirmatively. The two approached the front door and Nia knocked. Not even a minute later the door swung open and a girl with hip length raven hair, brown eyes and a slightly tan complexion stood in the doorway.
"Hey Ava," Nia greeted her.
"Hey," Ava returned, then looked to Kid and almost immediately paled as she took in the sight of him.
"Uhh—I thought you were bringing someone close to our age? Not an 18-year-old," Ava whispered.
"I'm fifteen," Kid stated, hearing every word.
He looked to her as he explained, "My older brother's my height, and our Dad was 6'7. I might be closer to my Dad's height by the time I stop growin'. I was born at the start of 2009. Missed being a new years day baby by about a week and a half."
"Oh—uhh—sorry I just—well I mean—you're so tall," Ava swooned.
Kid arched an eyebrow at her, and replied, "Yeah I get that pretty much everywhere. At a grocery store, old ladies ask me to get an item off the top shelf for 'em. Teachers when I'm gonna try out for basketball—I hate that game. Truth is I wouldn't mind being shorter—but we don't choose our genes."
"Speak for yourself. Being short sucks," Nia objected.
Ava nodded in agreement and Kid realized the two girls were nearly the same height. Ava elaborated with, "cooking at home becomes a workout because you're climbing on counters to get something on the top shelf of a cupboard. Nobody ever takes you serious they just see you as this cute talking puppet or something."
"And apparently it's 'adorable' when you're short and get angry so people rile you up intentionally just to see you explode," Nia added.
'Damn. The grass isn't greener on the other side,' Kid realized. "Challenges for both extremes," he offered. The girls nodded in agreement while Ava moved away from the doorway so the two could come in.
Kid and Nia entered Ava's home and quickly became aware of the décor. 'I didn't realize Ava was rich,' Nia thought to herself as she looked around.
'Holy crap—if the Pirates knew they'd be listing this residence as a target,' Kid thought to himself.
