Chapter 21: Mask Up
Honestly I don't even know how I got here. What do I mean exactly? Well remember that trip that Carver and I were tasked with? Well somehow I ended up behind the wheel and now here I am driving to Azure. Carver stopped by for gas and I idiotically decided to take my restroom break before we left town and when I got back he was in my seat patting the driver's seat and I swear to god he had the nerve to wink at me. I didn't make it easy for him though. I kicked and screamed about the whole situation but of course I stood no chance against him. He just kept patting that seat and so I just gave in and sighed. So yeah, I'm in hour two of this mini road trip that I've been looped into. Yay me.
I guess it's not too bad, although when one of the lanes merged into the middle turning the three lane highway into a two lane highway, it freaked me out by a lot because I almost got squished between the shoulder and the semi! I swear to god I saw the light. And no, I didn't get shocked. Surprised me too honestly. What made matters worse though was Carver was asleep through all of it! He knocked out cold almost immediately after I got on the highway. So yeah, I'm literally driving solo since someone is collecting a pool of drool in their mouth at this very second. Maybe I've rubbed off on him too much because now he's out like a light and is an even heavier sleeper than I am. He was even thrown forward slightly when I had to swerve out of the way, some of his drool even splattered against the windshield. It was sick and quite honestly kinda gross.
Besides that semi earlier, the drive has been mainly peaceful. The voices of Gerard Way, Ryan Key, Tom DeLonge, and Davey Havok have been blasting through the speakers and funny enough the roar of Carver's snore kinda fits; it's like an extra guitar, an unusual sounding one at that. I couldn't help but chuckle to myself every now and then when he would unconsciously rev up a new one. I'm pretty amazed that he was able to fall asleep. I mean he's completely clothed. In a way, I guess you could say I'm flattered. We all know he only sleeps in the nude so the fact that he's able to sleep fully clothed is comforting, especially since these seats aren't exactly the most comfortable to sit in, let alone sleep in.
"In one mile, merge right to take exit fifty-five towards Azure Heights," Siri said in an even worse British accent than Carver does.
Ever since he spoke to me in that ridiculous accent in gym class that first day of school, I may have changed the native speaking voice of my Siri. I guess I kinda forgot about all about that since I'm not one of those people who talks to tech on a regular basis. If it weren't for my friends and my mom, I'd be a voluntary mute. As we neared the exit, I glanced over at both of my mirrors but really I just wanted another excuse to bask in the ray of sunshine next to me. Somehow even through all the drool and snoring he's still as cute as ever. Once it was safe, I merged into the exit, drove down, and continued on to the destination. It was probably twenty minutes after I passed the worn out "Welcome to Azure Heights" sign, the blue paint chipping off all along the sides revealing the metallic base until I heard Siri issue another set of directions.
"You have reached your destination."
And what a destination it was because I was starstruck. And I thought Chloe and Carver were rich, shit. So what does that make me? Destitute? Anyway, driving through this neighborhood was pretty weird. I don't know, maybe that's not the right wording? Like I could tell that it was a pretty nice looking neighborhood with the whole white picket fences and the picture perfect landscaping that made me know I wasn't in Haven anymore, this place was real bougie and the people here, let me tell you, not my cup of tea. Back in Haven, people wave at their neighbors as a sign of politeness, even strangers no less but damn, here? It's like no was raised with manners. All I got while driving through here were scrunched up faces and suspicious glances, some lady even turned her nose up at me when I tried to ask her for directions, I got lost and my phone couldn't get any signal for a while so I'm sure you guys can imagine my demise when Siri kept saying "recalculating" on loop.
Thankfully after Siri had to recalculate her route for the millionth time, we finally did reach our destination, the house secluded within its own cul-de-sac, complete with its own ten foot wrought iron gate with a diamond insignia engraved into the center of the iron rods. Gone was the perfectly smooth asphalt street and in it was its own cobblestone pathway adorned with red and gray stones. Besides the gate, there was a wall just as large that surrounded the property. I'm guessing they don't take kindly to trespassers around here. Just beyond the gate was this gorgeous looking stone fountain and just beyond that was this gorgeous modern-looking modular glass house with sharp lines and different blocks. It kinda looks like the architect took Tetris quite literally with all the different blocks shoved up together but hey at least they looked like they worked well together even though I didn't know glass houses were a thing. I could just barely see groups of people standing and chit chatting within the house. They were all dressed in fancy suits and dresses. There was something a little weird about their faces too but I couldn't tell from back here, but I think everyone was wearing a mask of some kind.
As I sat in the car looking in, I hear what sounded like an irritated man whose voice sounded like they smoked multiple packs of cigarettes a day yell at me from somewhere up above.
"Who are you and what do you want?" the voice demanded.
"Um hello?" I asked sticking my head at the window. "Wh-Who said that?"
"Look up," the voice said dryly.
When I looked up and squinted, I could just barely make out a camera the size of an apple pointed back at me all the atop the brick wall holding the gate in place.
"U-Uh h-hi! I'm supposed to meet someone here. I-I think his name is Cody?"
"Cody who?"
"U-Uh I don't know his last name but I'm pretty sure his name is Co—"
"Name?" he interrupted.
"A-As I was trying to say, I don't know his last name. I-I only know his name is Cody."
"Your name."
"O-Oh! My bad. U-Um I'm Fang, Fang LeVang."
"Your name's not on the list. Leave before I call the cops."
"What? W-Wait!"
And of course the voice on the other side just stopped talking and when I tried to wave at the camera like an idiot, I was met with dead silence. Well shit, what am I supposed to do now? Disappointed, irritated, and annoyed, I dramatically slammed my head into the horn completely forgetting about the sleeping giant right next to me.
"Oh fuck! What happened? Where are we?" Carver screeched as he was so rudely awoken by yours truly.
"Heeeeeeeey Sunshine," I said cringing with an awkward overly stretched flat smile. "Sorry for waking you up. Um we're here!"
"Oh my god," he cried as he started choking on the leftover drool left in his mouth. "Was I drooling? Since when do I drool?"
"Since...actually I don't know. Why are you drooling? I'm actually surprised you fell asleep since you know, you put me in the driver's seat!"
"M-Me? Sleeping? I wasn't sleeping! I was wide awake! I was just testing you."
"Uh huh, right. So true or false, did I almost kill us by almost crashing into a semi?"
"You did what?! Why didn't you wake me up?!"
"That's what I thought," I said crossing my arms.
"Babe, why didn't you wake me up though?"
"After I screamed like one of those scream queens in horror movies and the semi was blowing his own horn I thought you would have woken up by yourself but you didn't so I figured you know, if that wasn't enough to bring you back then nothing I would have done would have woken you up. Also I was thinking of other things during that catastrophe. But hey we're alive and you slept through all of it."
"I'm sorry Babe, I guess I'm more tired than I thought I was," he said wiping his face of any more drool. "So what now?"
"Well we're here but I can't get in."
"What do you mean?"
"Well you see that gate over there?"
"Yeah."
"Well it's not gonna open for me. Trust me, I've talked to someone on the other end and since I'm not on the list, we can't get in."
"List? What the hell? What is with people and lists?"
"Tell me about it."
"Well, how about we hop the fence?"
"How the hell are we gonna hop the fence? I don't know if you noticed but it's a bit too tall for either of us."
"Just trust me will you?" he said as he stepped out of the car.
"Ugh great. Here we go again," I said turning the car off, stepping out of the car, and tossed the keys at Carver just as I walked up to meet him at the front of the gate. "Babe, it looks even more daunting standing in front of it. Are you sure this is a good idea? What about the car?"
"What about it?"
"We're just gonna leave it here? What if someone steals it?"
"You worry too much," he said pinching my cheek. "Something tells me these people are more into fancy convertibles. If anything, it'll get towed."
"Carver!" I yelled smacking him on his left arm. "Don't say stuff like that! How are we supposed to get home if it gets towed?"
"Ow! You really need to learn how to pull your punches," he said rubbing his arm. "You know I'm just kidding."
"I hate you," I groaned rolling my eyes.
"You love me and you know it," he said in an annoying yet endearing kind of way.
"Yeah, I do," I sighed. "So what's the plan again?"
"You're going to boost me up and once I get to the top, I'll pull you up. It's real easy."
"Why do I get a sense you've done this before?"
"Maybe I have, maybe I haven't. Come on, you can't tell me you've never snuck into someplace you weren't supposed to."
"You're right, you can thank Dante and Lulu for that," I said as I stooped down low and placed both palms atop each other in front of me. "Are you sure about this? What if we get in trouble?"
"There you go worrying again. If anything happens, just fall on me and I'll take all the blame," he said as he stepped onto my hands with his left foot. "Now on the count of three push me up okay?"
I nodded in agreement as I gritted my teeth, firmly planting my boots to the best of my ability into the stone path.
"One...two...three!" he yelled as I grunted as I put all my strength into my hands to thrust him up.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you. The fence is electrified," a chipper voice said.
Just as Carver was about to grab onto the gate, I grabbed on his ankle and pulled him back down and we both crashed hard.
"Thanks for the save Babe," Carver said pinching my cheek again.
"No...problem, but can you...please get off me? You're really heavy," I wheezed.
"Sorry about that," he said shooting back up. He turned back to me and helped me up. "By the way, did you hear that voice?"
"You heard it too? Unless I'm imagining it, I'm pretty sure it came from the sky but that doesn't make any sense at all unless God is taking this opportunity to open a conversation with me and that's just gonna bring up a whole lot of existential crisis for me that I'm not honestly willing to talk about right now."
"Me? A god? I'm flattered but no, I'm just a boy with a drone and an underappreciated mind to go with it," that same chipper voice said from up above.
Carver and I both looked up and saw just that, a drone that looked as big as a small dog. At each corner were these palm sized circular turbines pointing up. At the front were two miniature headlights the size of quarters and a pocket sized camera encased beneath it. It was haphazardly splattered in varying hues of blues, yellows, and whites almost resembling a Jackson Pollock painting.
"You two must be Carver and Fang, I've been expecting you two for a while now," the drone said as it flew down to us at eye level.
"I'm guessing you're Cody?" I asked unsure of myself. Never thought I'd be talking to a drone and yet here I am.
"Cody the drone, no. Cody the big brained boy, yes. The name's Cody Chambers and don't you forget it!" he proclaimed in a wide, toothy grin.
"Okay this is getting a little ridiculous," Carver yawned while rubbing his eyes. "Can you open the gate so we can get this over with?"
"I'm already ahead of you," Cody said as he popped out of nowhere on the other side of the gate.
Cody was a petite, little boy and his skin was shadowy reddish brown. He stood at exactly five feet tall with a short, tightly cropped fro. He had these thin wire framed circular eyeglasses that hung off of his wide, bulbous nose. He was dressed in this slim fit burgundy crushed velvet suit with matching pants complete with a black shirt and black bow tie.
"Oh my god!" I cried jumping back.
"Where the hell did you come from?" Carver asked surprised.
"I've always been here. Nah I'm just joking. I walked up here while you two were distracted by my drone. You'd be surprised how many times I freak people out on a daily basis though. Parents say I'm as quick and quiet as a mouse," he explained with pride.
"He talks a lot," Carver whispered through a forced smile.
"Hey, be nice," I whispered back. I looked back and watched Cody pilot his drone back over the gate onto his side. Then I saw him jump up a couple of feet into the air, snatch his drone, and then cuddle and pet it like it was his own...living animal.
"Weird," we both said unison which caused us to look at each other and smile.
"Did you guys say something?" Cody asked still stroking the drone.
"Nope, nothing," I said.
"Okay cool, let me get this gate open for you," he said as he reached out towards the gate.
"Wait didn't you say it was electrified?" I asked worried.
"What? Oh yeah, another one of my jokes. No one has ever fallen for it though. Henny's always telling me to retire this joke but jokes on him because I finally got someone with it. Kudos," he said as he started to pull the gate open but looked like he really struggling to get it to budge. "I hate to sound like a bother but um a little help?"
"Oh crap, sorry," I said as I nudged Carver to pull out the big guns. Carver smirked and took the right side of the gate while Cody and I took the left side.
"Henny?" Carver asked as he pushed his side of the gate.
"It's a childhood...nickname," Cody huffed as he still struggled to push the gate with me.
"Fuck!" I whined. "Why is this so heavy?"
"You see...I couldn't say my R's when I was little so I always called him...Henny and well I guess you could say it stuck."
"And he doesn't mind? I'm sorry but your friend seems like an asshole," Carver said as he pushed the gate open with ease.
"Oh you got that...too? Well it's not all his fault, we're in a real bind right now with one of our assignments and—I'm sorry but can you just push this side too?" he asked as he wiped his brow clear of sweat.
"No problem," Carver said as he pushed the sleeves up on his red and black plaid long sleeve shirt. Cody and I walked out of the way as we both watch him push the gate. "You were saying?"
"Oh, nothing. It's just we have a lot on our plate right now and he's supposed to be here right now to help with the assignment but nope, he's hours away smooching up to a guy who doesn't deserve him."
"Assignment? Like for class?" I asked. "And you don't like Dante?"
"Yeah, let's say it's for class."
Weird. If it's not for class then what is this mysterious assignment? Who calls something an assignment if it's not for class? This is a little sus, not gonna lie.
"And I don't hate your friend, I've never met the guy, but I don't like how he treated my best friend in the past and now he's out of nowhere crawling back? If you ask me, he should have let him crawl longer, like forever and over a ditch full of spikes or hypodermic needles. You two seem cool though," he said starting to eye Carver. "I'm sorry if this is a little too personal but I have to ask. Are you gay or straight? Who am I kidding, of course you're straight with my luck. But if you're curious, I'm willing to quench that curiosity, if you catch my drift."
"I'm neither, I'm bi. And while I'm flattered, I'm already spoken for," he said as he walked over to me and wrapped his arms around my waist. "Cody, meet my boyfriend, Fang, well he's more like my one true love."
"Wait you two are...wow okay, did not see that coming."
"Thank you?" I said awkwardly.
"I know right? How lucky am I to end up with someone like him, am I right?" Carver said proudly.
"Carver, you know he meant—"
"I know what he meant, right Cody?" he asked sternly.
"Huh? Oh right, yeah, one hundred percent," Cody laughed nervously. "I'm sorry guys. I didn't mean anything by it. My sister tells me all the time that I need to watch my tongue sometimes...or did she say I needed to shut up more? Maybe both? Wait maybe it wasn't her that said that. Was it mom or was it my dad? Oh crap, maybe it was Henny. Sounds like something he'd say, especially now. Huh, I'm going to need to reevaluate my life choices now," Cody rambled.
"Okay he does talk a lot," I whispered back looking up at Carver.
"Told you so," he replied unmoving. We watched him continue to ramble onto himself. A couple of minutes passed and he was still rambling to himself. It was like he was in another world, his world. "Should we uh say something to him?"
"I don't know. Maybe? We do have to drive back and when I say we, I mean you, I'm not driving back. I'm passing the torch."
"I don't know about that. I think you could use a few more hours," he teased. "I promise I won't fall asleep this time, I swear."
"Ugh but I don't want to drive anymore," I whined turning to him.
"Well how else are you going to get your license this summer unless you drive?"
"Would you be mad if I said that I was thinking of dragging it out till winter or even possibly next summer?"
"Ha ha, no deal."
"Wh-What? B-B-But why? It's my license, I should be able to decide when I get it."
"Look I made a deal with your mom that I'd get you your license by this summer so I'm sorry but you're driving whether you like it or not."
"Wait, you made a deal with my mom? When the hell did that happen? And why is there a time limit on when I get my license?" I argued.
"Babe just trust me, you're going to want to get your license as soon as possible. Or else you might be ruin someone's plan that's already been put in place by the powers that may be."
"What plan? You know something that I don't, don't you? Spill it," I demanded as I pushed myself out of his embrace and crossed my arms.
"No way! I'm not ruining the surprise for you. Just trust me. You'll like it. Have I ever steered you wrong?"
"No, but what if I told you that I don't like surprises?"
"That's another lie. You should know better than to lie to me," he countered now crossing his own arms and staring straight into my soul.
"Okay fine, you got me. But if it happens to be something I don't like, I'm withholding blowjobs forever."
"Deal," he said leaning down to me. "But I doubt you can withhold something like that from me too long. You like it too much."
"W-W-Well I-I mean," I stammered as my face got all red. "I'll take myself out of the picture then. Ha! How about that, huh? Whatcha gonna do now?"
"This," he said as he grabbed my face and pulled me into a longing kiss. Commence melting now. When he finally let go, he pulled back and smirked.
"That's cheating," I mumbled.
"What was that? Did I win?" he teased.
"Hmph," I grunted.
"Oh you guys are still here?" Cody said snapping back to reality after realizing our little argument. "I'm sorry, I completely spaced. What were we talking about again? Oh right, you guys are here for the fireworks! Why don't you pull up to that fountain up ahead, big guy? Me and the other one, Fang is it? We'll follow behind."
"Follow behind?" I asked confused. "Why don't we all just take the car?"
"Uh I haven't a clue. Let's just do it my way, okay? Go ahead big guy, we won't be too far behind," Cody said wrapping his arm around me.
Carver gave him a once over, then back to me. He chuckled a little before he shrugged and got into the car leaving me alone with Cody. Oh great, talking with a complete stranger. I'm definitely an expert in this and this is definitely not one of my fears that causes me anxiety. Cody and I chilled behind the car expecting him to pull up but after a waiting a while and the car not budging but instead we could both hear him trying to start it over and over again.
"Maybe you should, I don't know, check on him?" Cody suggested with his lips pursed forward.
"Oh right, I'll do that heh heh," I said awkwardly. As I walked up to the window, I could hear Carver's frustrations especially since he kept repeating the same phrase over and over again.
"Come on, come on start already! Don't do this to me again!" he cried.
"Heeeeeeeeey, is everything okay?" I asked leaning into the driver's side window.
Carver was red in the face and I could tell that he was pretty irritated.
"Everything's fine!" he said in a biting tone.
"O-Oh um okay, I just thought I'd ask."
"Wait, I'm sorry," he said grabbing my forearm. "I didn't mean to say that in that tone. I'm sorry."
"It's fine."
"No it's not. I promised myself I would never talk to you the same way my dad—I mean how someone I knew would talk to someone I loved. I hate it. I promised myself that I'd be better," he said dejected.
Did he just say his dad? Out of all the times he's talked about his parents, I don't think he's ever mentioned his dad before. As much as I would like to continue this conversation, I don't think now's the time to do so, not with that guy staring at us from afar. It's a little uncomfortable.
"Carver, it's fine really. I know you didn't mean anything by," I reassured him.
"I know I just—I'm sorry. Anyway, the car's been giving me a lot of trouble today. It took a couple tries to start it when we stopped for gas but since it started I thought it was fluke and now, I'm just a little irritated is all."
"Let me try," I said as I reached for the key in the ignition from the window.
"Babe, you're going to flood—"
And just like that the car started right as I turned the key.
"Are you kidding me?!" Carver said exasperated.
"What can I say? I've got the magic touch," I smiled and winked.
"Ha, I guess you do," he smiled. "I love you."
"I know and I love you too. Now pull up, something tells me this guy wants to have a private conversation with me and I don't think I can get out of it either."
"Heh good luck," he said as he drove towards the glass house.
"So should we walk and talk?" I suggested pointing in the same direction as the house.
"Oh yeah, yeah, yeah, I was actually going to suggest the same thing," he said as we both walked ahead. We got maybe three steps in before I stopped him.
"Wait the gate. Do I need to call Carver back?"
"Hm? Oh don't worry about it, I got it. Hey Marge, you can go right ahead," he said as he placed two fingers on his ear.
Just as he did that the gate began to close by itself.
"Are you kidding me?" I said annoyed. "If you had means to that then why did we spend all that time pushing it in the first place?"
"What? I thought it was fun. So anyway, what did you want to talk about?"
"What are you talking about?" I asked still annoyed about the gate. "I thought you wanted to talk to me, alone. Isn't that why you wanted Carver to drive up solo?"
"Oh right, right, I sometimes forget my own intentions. It's a key trait of mine."
"Being forgetful...is a key trait of yours...and you're proud of it? I don't know about you, but I wouldn't be proud of it."
"What? Why not? It's cute."
"I think we have different definitions of cute."
"If you say so," he said as he continued to walk without bringing up whatever it was that he wanted to talk about.
"So...are you gonna say anything?"
"Oh right! I forgot again, sorry."
"Oh god, someone kill me now," I mumbled under my breath.
"So uh, how do I start? Uh well first off, you know I meant nothing about you two being a complete mismatch right?"
"Mismatch? I don't remember you calling us that. What do you mean a mismatch?"
"Oh right, I said that to myself. Disregard that last thing I said. But uh, how did you two...lovebirds get together in the first place? Don't spare any details, I want to know it all so I can jot it down in my notes, my mental notes that is."
"You want to know how Carver and I got together? Why?"
"I don't know if you've noticed but I am single, desperately so. You see, I'm always jealous of how easy Henny can get a guy while I'm over here struggling to get a guy to even look at me. I always took it as no one wants a guy who's shorter than the average male species but with a much larger brain to compensate. The only guy who's not insecure about my supreme intellect is Henny but now he's gallivanting with your asshole of a friend instead of spending time with me, his best and only friend. Well I guess there's Honeybee but she's been AFK for a while. I'm starting to think she hates us or is avoiding us. I don't know why though. We were making great strides with her on our team and now she's just up and vanished. What makes matters worse is that she's all the way on the other side of town because the city decided it was the right thing to do to separate the boys from the girls and vice versa."
"I don't think it's the lack of height or the extraordinary brain power that's the problem," I mumbled again.
"What was that?"
"Oh nothing, I just—it's nothing. It sounds to me like you like Henry," I said with an emphasis on the R. "I mean the way you talk about hating my friend sounds like a clear sign of jealousy, it just seems like you want him all to yourself."
"What? I'm not jealous. He can be with whomever he wants, just not that asshole. It wouldn't hurt if he just stopped fawning over assholes and instead kept the people closest to him a little closer, that's all," he said defensively.
"Right...this is the weirdest way to prove someone's not jealous but sure we'll roll with that I guess."
"That's right! I'm not jealous. So go on, you still haven't told me your origin story."
"Riiiiiiiight our origin story. Um well there's not much to tell. I was recovering from a brutal first year of high school and I honestly didn't think I was gonna go into this year with anything mind blowing, I just wanted to...survive. And then literally first period starts and in comes this new kid and you know how in movies when the main character sees someone hot and time seems to go into slow motion?" I explained.
"Yeah, love those scenes."
"Well time was moving really slow when the new kid, aka Carver, walked in. And I kid you not, I could not keep my eyes off of him. It was love at first sight."
"Aw, that's so cute!"
"Yeah and then he sat next to me and we ended up being lab partners. We also bared our heart and soul to each other, which is really weird to do especially since we've just met."
"What do you mean by that?"
"He said his parents died and I told him that my parents disowned me. I'm pretty sure I cried like a loser too."
"Wow, that's a little much. Wait who do you two live with if you both don't have parents? Is that too personal?"
"Oh well he lives with his grandparents and I live with my aunt who I now call my mom. I guess that could be a little confusing."
"Nah, you're cool but continue. I'm hooked. This is better than anything I'm watching right now."
"Oh well okay then, well somehow we didn't scare each other away with that. Also it turned out we had all the same classes. Which meant we spent the whole day together and only getting to know each other more."
"And then you guys got together right?"
"On day one? Hell no! It took a long time, like not until Homecoming because I'm such an idiot. We went to a party one time at a former friend's house and I got super drunk and blacked out only to wake up the next morning in his bed. I'm fully clothed and he's in bed in his damn boxers. I freak out thinking we just had sex but he said that he sleeps naked but since we were in bed together he wanted to be respectful and did that instead."
"So what did your aunt mom think of that?"
"She's really cool so she was fine with it. She even asked me if we were going to start dating but like I said earlier, I'm dumb, so I said no we're just friends."
"Okay I'm jealous now, for real. I wish my parents were cool."
"Yeah I guess there's some benefits to that. But anyway, as the year continued, he literally would take me out on dates. He even made the stars come to me by turning his whole third level balcony into a star field."
"You had to have known by then. Please tell me you connected the dots."
"Nope, still thought we were just friends. Anyway he fell asleep, well he faked slept, I didn't know at the time but I took that opportunity to safely confess to him that I was madly in love with him. Also not the first time I confessed but I'll save that for later. And then cue the Homecoming dance and we all meet up at my house beforehand because you know how moms are. We take pictures and then on the drive there he holds my hand and before you say anything, still think we're friends. I know, I know, I'm an idiot. Anyway it's towards the end of the night he asks me to dance with him. I was a little apprehensive since well you know, thought he was joking but he was pretty adamant about it so we started dancing and it was so fun and then this slow song came on and I tried to get out of it but again, he wouldn't let me. So I took that chance to finally confess to his face that I liked him and then he kissed me."
"What? Oh my god! I'm. So. Jealous!" he squealed.
"Yeah I guess it is. Um where was I? Oh right, he then told me that he's been waiting for this moment and that he wanted to say something earlier but he didn't want to scare me away. Also remember when I said that that one time wasn't the first time I confessed my love for him? Well he told me that when I was drunk I confessed it to him. I don't remember ever doing that but that's what he says. He waited the whole time since that day. So yeah, we liked each other from the get go, love at first sight, but it took a while cause I'm deadass dumb."
"Wow, so I will not replicate that because I know when a guy likes me, it's never happened before, but I won't be that dense. No offense of course."
"Yeah, let's hope you don't follow in my footsteps. But you never know, maybe someone in your life already likes you. I mean I just told you my experience, so maybe you just don't know it yet."
"You think a guy I know likes me already? I highly doubt that. You don't go to my school so you would have no idea just how wrong you are," he said but I could see that the gears in his mind were already turning. He kept shaking his head as he started to cross names off of his mental list.
"Why? What's so special about your school?" I asked as we neared the fountain and Carver waving at me from the trunk of the car to which I waved back as I rolled my eyes due to the horrifying situation he left me in.
"Well," he paused as he took a deep breath and sighed. "I go to an all boys school and I'm pretty sure everyone there's straight, besides me and Henny of course. I mean there's this guy, Chris, who picks on me but everyone does. I'm like everyone's punching bag."
"Well if everyone picks on you then why'd you single him out specifically?"
"Well we have this weird banter. He would always, like you said, single me out which causes everyone else to start railing in on me but sometimes he'll do it when we're alone and I'll come up with something freaky to scare him off and usually he gets grossed out when it's just us but there was one time where he pushed me up against the lockers after gym class and I gave into him and called him daddy. He paused and looked around and I thought he was going to kiss me for a split second but then Coach walked in. He looked embarrassed, released his grip on me, and punched the locker, indenting it even. It was scary and...kind of hot," he confessed. "He's not bad looking either. I mean he's a little basic looking but I could do worse. Straight guys are my Kryptonite."
"Um...I think getting with your bully is literally the worst thing you could do. Henry and I aren't exactly friendly but I could do without him showing up on my doorstep and smashing my face in. Also do you really want to get with a straight guy? Hypothetically speaking, if this Chris guy is straight and curious, would getting with someone like that really be a good idea? I don't think being with someone who will never love you back is such a good idea."
"Why not? If it's just for experience, a DL guy couldn't hurt. Have you ever...?"
"Have I ever been with a DL guy? No, but I know of one. He's my bully too or was. He doesn't really bother me much anymore but it's a long story. He came close to um...let's just say he tried to take advantage of a situation and I was saved by a miracle."
"Carver?"
"Nope, something else, something not of this world," I said. I could see that I was losing him though. "But like I said, maybe try not to get with your bully. Maybe Henry?"
"He only has eyes for Dickbag or did you forget?"
"I didn't," I sighed. "Dante's not so bad once you get to know him but...I'm only telling you this because of what I saw and you seem like a pretty cool person but I don't think you have to worry about Dickb—Dante for much longer. It doesn't seem like he wants Henry after all."
"What does that mean?"
"Well he called Henry a friend today when he was introducing him to my mom. I don't really know what's going through Dante's mind right now but I would imagine that if he still really wanted him, he would have claimed him for his own already. But don't tell anyone I said that, especially your friend. I don't really handle drama all too well."
"Oh my lips are sealed! You've got nothing to worry about!" he reassured me while patting my back rather heavily for a man of his size and somehow I feel like I've got a lot to worry about now. As we were almost in arms reach of the car, he stopped and said, "I really appreciate you talking to me about this stuff. I really needed to get this off of my chest. Plus I can't really do this with Henny. I think this could be the start of a beautiful friendship. You can't be my best friend, but I don't know, maybe second in line?"
"Um...thanks I think?"
"I guess I could always share this with my sister but I don't want to be a bother since she's drowning in her own stuff like her own fashion line. I also have my parents but we already share almost anything and everything but maybe this is something I should keep my family out of for my own sanity," Cody said as he started to trail off again.
"Hey guys, what took you so long?" Carver asked.
I looked at Cody to see if he was going to respond but of course he was still in a conversation with himself.
"It went...well it went as well as it could considering he's a bumbling mess and I don't know how to talk to people," I answered.
"What did you guys even talk about? It looked like you guys were talking a lot for people who just met."
"He wanted to know our origin story. God even saying that out loud again makes it seem like we're in one of those superhero movies."
"Our origin story?" Carver asked confused.
"Yeah like how we met and how we ended up together and what not. And then I had to relive the annoying fact that I can't tell when a guy likes me. So yeah, thanks for leaving me alone with him. Also he has a crush on his best friend, Henry."
"I know. It's very obvious."
"Is it? I only found out by talking to him."
"It's okay if you can't see the signs," he said pinching my cheek. "You're still cute to me."
"Oh ha ha, real funny," I said dryly. "So...do you wanna snap him out of it or should I?"
"I'll do it. I actually have to pee really bad. I've been staring at the cascading water from the fountain and it just reminded me that I've been holding it in since we stopped for gas," he said hopping off the trunk and then he started to tap his right foot rapidly.
"Who told you to hold it in the first place? Why didn't you just go when I did?"
"Um I had to deal with the car. Remember how I said it was acting up earlier?"
"Oh yeah. Oops," I shrugged.
"H-Hey Cody?" Carver asked waving his right hand towards Cody's direction.
"Oh hey what's up?" he asked snapping back to reality.
"Could you tell me where the bathroom is? I really have to go," Carver said now hopping in place with his hands placed in front of his crotch.
"Oh it's actually really easy. It's through the that door, then you have to make a left, a right, another right, then it's down this hall with all of these weird abstract paintings that don't really make any sense and then—you know what, how about I just show you?" he said after realizing that the directions were actually complicated. He then handed me his drone. "Could you watch ol' Glitch for me? I'm not allowed to have it inside. You use it one time inside and the housekeeper freaks and has a heart attack. People are really dramatic nowadays. Like they've never had to deal with a drone in the prehistoric age of tech."
"Could I not be the one entrusted with something really expensive? Not that I don't trust myself but um, yeah I don't trust myself."
"Oh don't worry, Glitch is just a name. It hardly ever glitches but if it does and it encounters a hiccup while it's in sleep mode, for example, if it decides to wake up and take flight on its own just," and then he paused as he tried to come with a quick solution to his own hypothetical question. "You know what, don't worry about it. That would never happen. Anyway, Carver follow me!"
"Um, I'm slightly more worried now, if anyone cares," I hollered at them as they hurriedly walked towards the pristine glass house.
"Oh wait before I forget," Cody said just as they got to the door. He then walked off to the side of the house and grabbed a scarlet red duffle bag out of the bushes. He unzipped it open and pulled out two intricately designed animal masks, one of a rabbit with black fur and another of a goat with white fur and two six inch bronzed spiral horns pointing straight up. "You're going to need this to get in."
"Okay they're cool and all but why?" Carver asked while giving me a creeped out look.
"Oh the Diamonds, the hosts of this elaborate party, have decided on an animal theme this year. They call it Welcome to the Jungle. So while the party is still pretty formal, we still have to wear these masks. The goat one was Henny's before he decided to bail last second. You can use his."
"Aren't I a little...underdressed though even with the mask?" Carver asked as eyed his red and black plaid jacket, light blue jeans, and the all black running shoes I got him for Christmas.
"Hm, you've got a point," Cody said as his face scrunched up. "I'll just body block you. No problem."
"Body block? But you're—"
"Mask up cadet!" Cody yelled as he put on his mask. He actually looked pretty cool with the mask and the suit whereas Carver looked so out of place with his clothes and the insanely detailed goat mask. They walked through the glass door that unsurprisingly slid open. Sighing, I turned to lean against the driver's side of the car only to have Cody pop back out and yell, "Whatever you do, don't get it wet!"
"What happens if it gets wet?" I asked looking down at what could have been a mechanical gremlin.
"It's tech, you could get shocked or worst case, it could explode. I haven't exactly looked into it. It's best if you just don't get it wet so...good luck!" and just like that he was gone again into the mysterious glass house full of people dressed up like zoo animals, if zoo animals wore fancy suits and dresses.
"Great just me and this ticking time bomb," I said looking down at it. "I wonder if its shock is worse than my own robo heart."
As I clutched this precious cargo tightly in my arms, I stood in front of the fountain that didn't quite match the style of the house. I mean it was pretty don't get me wrong but I don't know, the stone fountain that was pretty reminiscent of those fixtures you'd fine in a cemetery just doesn't appear to go with the sophistication of this house. As I continued to observe the shape and texture of it, mesmerized by the same cascading water as what Carver had mentioned earlier, I began to reach out to touch the water, to feel the coolness against my barely tanned yellow skin, but then I remembered Cody talking about not getting his precious gadget wet so I stepped back and instead leaned against the station wagon. Curiously, I looked up into the sky, only to have to block my eyes from the sun's intense rays. Not a cloud in the sky, only a cool, gentle breeze, and yet the hairs on the nape of my neck shot up and as intense as the sun's rays was, you wouldn't know it by the bitter cold I suddenly felt. I could even see my breath. Trembling, I could now hear what sounded like the crunching of leaves, no, not leaves, the cracking of...glass.
"Faaaaaaaaaaaaang," a voice whispered.
"Wh-Who's there?" I asked snapping around.
Surveying the area around me, I couldn't see anyone close to me, but I could still hear the cracking. It was unnerving. Scared, I turned to the house and that's when I realized everyone was eerily just staring at me with their creepy animal masks. The cracking got more intense and I could honestly feel my heart beat through my chest. Strange, I could actually pinpoint where the sound was coming from. Shakily, I turned my attention to the driver's side window, there were little cracks appearing out of nowhere and in the center of the window was a shadowy reflection that wasn't my own. Terrified, I turned to run away, but instead I tripped myself backwards stepping on my own shoelace. And this is how I die, what a stupid way to go.
As I shut my eyes accepting my fate, I was surprisingly saved, someone actually came out of nowhere and saved me from a pretty embarrassing bad accident. When I looked up, I was met with another person with an animal mask but this time it was less realistic and more geometric. It was obviously a lion just based on the colors of bright yellow and brown, but this mask looked more crafty in the sense that you could tell the mask was made from card stock or cardboard. It had a little more friendly or appealing to look upon.
"I got you! You should really watch your step," the lion said as he held me in his arms. The jaw would move as it spoke and I could somewhat see the man behind the mask. He had a strong square jaw with a lustrous golden brown complexion with striking pale gray eyes. "You should be more careful. You almost hit your pretty little head there. When my dad said he wanted to end the year in bang, I'm pretty sure he didn't mean this."
"Sorry, I thought I saw something but my head is probably just playing tricks on me. I should be used to it by now honestly," I said as I walked out of his clutches. I walked over to the car and set Cody's drone on the hood of the car. It's way safe there than in my hands. "Thanks for saving me from that embarrassing little fall though. I really appreciate it."
Now that I was standing, I could tell this guy worked out or maybe he played sports. Based on his voice, he sounds like he'd be somewhere around my age. He was almost as tall as Carver, just off by an inch or so, but I could see his similarly strong physique through his classic black tuxedo. Just as he turned to head in, he stopped, and turned back to me.
"Hey do you go to the academy? I've never seen you before and I never forget a pretty face."
Is this guy seriously hitting on me right now? What the fuck? Why couldn't he just save me and go one with his life?
"Um no and no and I, believe it or not, have a boyfriend."
"Well that sucks," he said looking down for a second then held his head up by asking, "But it's not serious right? How about it? You'd prefer a Diamond, wouldn't you?"
"Excuse me? Are you proposing to me right now? W-We just met and I'm not lying, I have a boyfriend."
"I don't believe you. I think you're just playing hard to get and something tells me you love a good chase," he suggested. I bet he's smirking under that mask.
"Okay? Well you don't know me so whatever, I don't care. Believe what you want."
"Relax, I'm just kidding," he snickered.
"Ugh, is everyone from Azure like this?"
"From...Azure? You really don't go to the academy, do you?"
"I told you I didn't. I'm from Haven. You know that little blip on the map? Sure it's not as big and grand as this place but if you squint real hard, it's not too bad of a place. You just need to know the right people."
"Something tells me, you're just that. The right person that is," he said stepping closer to me.
"Sorry, looks like your application's been declined and I'm not taking any other requests. Try again later, maybe in another life or better yet, someone else entirely," I said stepping back, keeping my distance. Why'd I have to get saved by this jerk.
"Ouch, so spicy!" he said clutching his chest where his heart would be. "I like it."
"Oh my god, what's taking them so long? Where the hell is Carver and Cody?" I whined rolling my eyes.
"Wait...Cody who?"
"Cody Chambers. What? Do you know him or something?"
"Yeah I know him, he's pretty cool, he doesn't know when to shut up sometimes, but he's cool," he said with his arms crossed. I feel like he was flexing while doing so cause they were practically bulging out of his suit. "What do you want with him?"
"What's with all the questions? Don't you have some party to get to?"
"I do, but you see, there's this really cute boy that has all my attention right now. So just humor me will you?"
"Fine! If it'll get you out of my face faster," I said through gritted teeth. "One of Cody's friends asked us to pick him up in exchange for some fireworks. My friends back home are also hosting a New Year's Eve party."
"You know Henry too, eh?"
"Barely. Let me guess, you know him too?"
"You could say that. Good to know he's finally branching out of Azure though. He could use more friends. No offense to Cody but well, they're both little hermit crabs who need to get out of their tiny shells."
"And I know a lion who needs to get back to his pride. So how about it? Get."
"You're so mean," he said with a baby's voice.
"Well you're aggressive so..."
"I'm sorry, I can't help myself sometimes. Especially if I'm talking to someone I like."
"Like I said earlier, I have a boyfriend and if you don't get out of my face I'll sick him on you. Trust me, you don't want that. He gets a little feral when other guys are near."
"I still don't believe you on that part," he said with his hands up. "But I know when to give up when I have to."
"Finally," I mumbled.
We stood there for a few moments. I turned my attention to the fountain but I could still see him staring at me in the corner of my eye. So annoying, why won't he just leave me alone?
"What do I have to do to get you to leave me alone?" I blurted out eyeing him again.
He snickered again and then said, "How about you tell me your name? I promise I'll leave once you do."
"You promise?"
"Scout's honor."
Something tells me this guy has never been boy scout.
"Fang."
"Come again?"
"My name. My name is Fang, Fang LeVang."
"Hm Fang. That's a pretty unique name. I like it. Nice to meet you Fang," he said with his right hand outstretched towards me.
"I wish I could say the feelings mutual," I said shaking his hand for a quick second. He had a nice strong, firm grip. I remember my dad telling me that you can tell a lot about a man by the way they shake your hand. He never said what though, just that a man should have a strong, firm grip. "So...aren't you gonna tell me yours?"
"You want to know my name? I thought you just wanted me to go a second ago?"
"I want to know your name so I can block you from existence."
"Well I can't give you my name."
"Why the hell not?!"
"The mask is supposed to keep you anonymous," he said tapping on the very same one. "But for you, I'll give you my alias. You can call me Leo."
"You cheated."
"Fine, since I like you so much I guess I could give you my real name. It's Diamond."
"Your parents named you Diamond?"
"Nah, but it's my last name. I'll keep the other half for when we meet again."
"Don't hold your breath."
"You never know, life could bring us back together. And when it does, I'll be here."
"And I won't."
"So I guess I really won't see you in there?"
"Nope, not my crowd anyway. Too stuffy."
"I don't know, I think you'd look nice in a suit but something tells me a dress is more your forte," he said as he walked towards the door and then turned back to me. "It's been fun. I won't forget you, Fang, not with such a cute face like yours."
And then he disappeared into the house. God even his walk had some swagger to it. Here's to hoping I never see him again. I mean I'm grateful that he saved me but he's a little aggressive in the flirting department. And what's with this "You can call me Leo" bullshit? Dammit I should have used an alias too, not like it'd help much since he knows my face, but still. Now this asshole knows my name and my face. Well if a Leo Diamond shows up on my social media, I know who to block at least.
"Hey babe, sorry for the wait. There was a line and everything," Carver said as he and Cody walked out the same sliding glass door.
"Yeah and we stopped for snacks," Cody added. "Spinach puff?"
"I'm okay, thanks though."
"What's wrong?" Carver asked as he stepped closer to me. Yup I definitely have not calmed down since that interaction.
"Nothing, just irritated. Some guy in a stupid lion mask kept flirting with me and wouldn't leave me alone," I said with my arms crossed.
"Who's ass do I have to beat?" Carver asked cracking his knuckles.
"Babe stop, can we just go home? I've had enough of this place."
"Okay yeah, you're probably right, we should go."
"Don't forget this!" Cody said throwing the same duffle from earlier at Carver. "You wouldn't want to drive all the way back only to forget the one thing you came for."
"Man this thing's heavy. What's in here?" Carver said tossing the bag in the back.
"A couple cakes, multi-shot cakes, and artillery shells. Trust me, everyone's going to love them."
"Well thanks man. You're the best! So you coming?" Carver asked pointing to the back seat.
"Sorry I can't leave actually, but it was nice to meet you guys."
"But I thought you wanted us to come pick you up though?"
"I did and then I thought it over and it really wouldn't be a good idea for me to leave my dad high and dry at such an important event so I'll be staying. But take Glitch and I'll be able to watch through his eyes."
"Wait what?" I asked confused grabbing the drone. "But how does that work? Don't you have to be in range for this thing to work?"
"Henny's there so it'll work. Don't worry about it, I've worked out all the variables. Trust me, Glitch can do a lot more than you think he can, just not in water."
"You sure you don't want to come with us?" Carver asked again.
"Yup, you two just head on home. It's all good. Just activate Glitch when you start, it'll all make sense in the end."
"You sure you want to entrust us with this?" I asked getting in the car. I didn't even tell him that we almost died a minute ago. "Isn't it expensive?"
"Yeah but he needs the field training and well Haven seems like a good place to train."
"What does he mean by train?" I asked Carver as he climbed into the front seat.
"I don't know but he's a little eccentric. You should hear what he was telling me while we were in line. He seems to believe that he and Henry are super heroes or this town's vigilantes."
"That's...weird."
"Tell me about it," Carver said and then poked his head out the window. "Well thanks again!"
"Drive safe you two," Cody said waving us goodbye and then he headed back into the party.
"Promise me we'll never come here again," I said.
"I promise, but let's see if we can even get the car to start," he said as turned the key in the ignition. Of course it didn't work on the first try, or the second...or the third. "Care to spare any more of those magic touches?"
"You've got it! Let's make this kitty purr," I laughed reaching over to turn the key. Sadly it didn't work this time. "Uh, take two?"
I turned the key one more time and this time it started. Thank god, now we can finally leave this place.
"Thanks babe. Now let's get out of here," Carver said as he turned the car around and drove out the gate.