by Nia Arthurs
I opened the carton of chips before it got soggy and pleasantly noted that it was made from real Happy Cow Cheese.
Thank God.
He nudged my shoulder and I looked up with a chip half-way to my mouth.
“I expected a little more excitement.” Drew muttered.
I put the gloriously filled chip down and stood. Bending my hands at my hips, I did a little hop.
“Drew, Drew, he’s our man! If he can’t make videogames, no one can!”
Twisting my wrists like my hands held pom-poms, I gave a half-hearted kick, lifting my foot like an inch off the floor.
“Wow.” Drew shook his head, “I feel so … violated.”
I threw a pillow at him and he caught it solidly with his fingers. Returning to my nachos, I quipped.
“That was a Lexi original, mister. You can’t find talent like that anywhere else.”
“Talent? What talent?”
I glared at him.
He grinned.
Drew moved toward my television set with his backpack in his arms.
“May I?” He asked me politely.
I scooted deeper into the couch and waved my arm, giving him free range. While Drew hooked up a game console, I enjoyed my nachos.
“Don’t you want any?” I questioned him.
Drew came over to the couch and watched the carton that I tipped in his direction. He pulled out a chip. It fell limply like a flower in need of rain.
“They’re all soggy.”
“Yeah,” I said obviously, “I don’t want them anymore. That’s why I offered.”
He smirked, but accepted my humble offering anyway. Drew licked out the plate like a little kid.
“Well, someone enjoyed it.” I quipped beneath my breath.
“Hey, don’t judge me. I’ve never tasted dip like this.”
I let his licking slide since he was showing proper appreciation for the snack.
“Want some water?”
“Yes please!” He called as I stood and grabbed two glasses from the kitchen. When I returned with the water, Drew had put the carton to the side and held a black game controller in his hand.
I glanced at the handheld device, “I thought those things went out of style a long time ago. Don’t kids use the ones that look like remotes now?”
Drew smiled. “Nah. These are the good stuff.”
He winked at me and patted the spot next to him so that I could sit down.
“Now, what do you know about video games?” He questioned.
I thought back to my shallow experience. As I’ve mentioned more than once, books and music were the methods of torture during my growing up years and anime was more my thing.
“Um,” I bit my bottom lip, “I know that when someone gets knocked out in the Kung Fu fighter game, this deep voice goes “K.O.!” which is hilarious.” I spread my arms wide. “Ta-da!”
“Nothing else?”
“Oh, I played Cooking Papa once.”
He arched an eyebrow. “That’s it?”
I racked my brain for something else but came empty.
“That’s pretty much it.”
Drew shook his head. “You’re hopeless.”
“I take offense to that!” I called as he handed me a game controller.
He pointed to the top button on the controller and slowed his words down as if he were talking to a preschooler, “That’s a triangle. It has three sides and three angles-”
I punched him in the arm. “Don’t insult my intelligence.”
He laughed but stopped with the jokes and actually taught me the basics of gaming.
“So all I have to do is press a bunch of these all at once and stuff happens?” I asked after my tutorial.
“That’s one way to look at it.” Drew grinned.
He turned on the console and picked a game.
“Is this one yours?” I asked.
“Yeah.” He said, his gaze focused on the television screen. “This is one of the easier ones. It focuses on the interactive experience rather than on the story.”
“Ah,” I pretended to be amazed by this fact. “Let’s play.”
“Do you think you’re ready?” Drew glanced at me with a big grin.
“Come on. Let me kick your butt.” I talked smack.
“Alright.”
Drew pressed all the options and a bunch of characters came on screen. The graphics of the game were well detailed and as an animator, I respected the person that orchestrated the visuals. I pressed the arrow and chose the prettiest girl in the bunch.
Drew turned to me and advised, “I don’t think you should choose her. She’s got a terrible defense.”
“Of course you give the girl a terrible defense! It’s because she’s a woman, isn’t it?”
Drew chuckled, “What?”
I shook my head and pursed my lips.
He reached for my controller, “Come on, let me choose someone that’s better.”
I yanked my game remote thing out of his reach, “No. I’ma stick with my girl…” I peered at the name beneath the woman with the heaving bosom, pink ribbons, and strange princess Jasmine inspired costume. She looked like a Disney princess with a sword. “Amber Rose.” I glanced at Drew with disbelief, “That guy gets The Hammer and you give the girl the stripper name?”
Drew flopped back into the couch with laughter. I folded my arms and judged him until he let up.
“Let’s just play, Lexi.” He urged me.
I let the feminist rant go and kept my attention on the television screen.
The scene opened up with the two characters bouncing on their feet atop a very realistic looking battlefield in the sky. Amber Rose and the Hammer rounded each other cautiously.
“Go on, press stuff.” Drew poked fun at me.
And so I did.
“Hyah!” My girl Amber Rose did a little kick and flip. I had no idea what I was doing with the game controller but she seemed to be confident enough. Of course two seconds later, Drew delivered a fatal blast that knocked Amber Rose off the flying battlefield and propelled her into the clouds below.
Drew regarded my expression after he shoved my character and chuckled.
“I’m sorry, Lexi.”
I narrowed my eyes at him in reply.
“Hey,” Drew said after a few minutes of my judgmental beam, “you have to admit that you’re having a little bit of fun.”
“Diving to my death is far from my definition of fun.” I said grumpily.
“I’m sorry, Lexi,” He apologized again with the biggest grin known to man on his face.
Like I was buying that.
I nodded toward the television instead, my competitive streak ignited, “Let’s play again.”
For someone who claimed to care about me, Drew did very little to soothe my ego and allowed me to lose every single game that we played.
“Okay,” I slammed the console on the sofa, “I give up. My self-esteem can’t take anymore. I need a compliment to rejuvenate.”
He grinned, “You suck.”
I flicked his arm, “That was the most insincere compliment I have ever heard.”
Drew shrugged and leaned back in the sofa.
“My turn!” I enthused and brought my laptop from my bedroom. Drew sat up.
“We’re watching anime?”
“You know it.”
He seemed kind of disappointed.
“Hey,” I pointed out, “I wasn’t gung-ho about video games but I suffered through two hours of it.”
“Don’t pin that on me.” Drew hooked a thumb into his T-shirt, “You were the one crying, ‘one more game; one more game!’”
I rolled my eyes. “That’s beside the point.”
Setting the laptop on the coffee table, I cued up the anime that I was currently watching. The videos were dubbed in English. Though some anime lovers preferred the authentic Japanese renditions with the English subtitles, I enjoyed hearing and understanding what my favorite characters were saying in
real time.
While the show played, I tried to get comfortable on the couch. The pillows were way too soft and the chair back was too hard. My usual spot on the couch was leaning against the arm rest. But I didn’t want to be far from Drew. Finally, tired of my wiggling, Drew offered his side by lifting his arm across the back of the couch and tilting his head adorably at me. I eagerly burrowed into the comfy spot that he allowed.
Okay, “comfy” wasn’t the word for it.
There was no softness to Drew’s side. But it felt good to be close to him. As stupid and totally un-realistic as it may sound, I felt… safe there, like I kind of belonged. Snuggling with Drew was my favorite part of the night. After the nachos of course.
But Drew was a close second.
The next afternoon, I sat with Lindsey in the library. She’d been having some trouble with Math and since I considered myself somewhat of a math geek, I happily offered to help her out. The library was busy with students relaxing in the sleek wingback chairs or gathered around the tables, quietly rehashing their day. Since this grand building was in the neighborhood of over five schools, I imagined that it was this busy every day.
Lindsey and I were tucked into a corner near the research books. The only kids that traveled back here were the nerds who believed in actually borrowing books from the library for school, the disadvantaged hardworking students without internet who had to visit these shelves to pass their classes, and the teens who wanted to make out. Since the rest of the library was full, I laid claim to the place so no adolescent “mistakes” could be made.
Lindsey rubbed at her forehead, “I’m not getting it. I’m just not.”
I exhaled. After ten minutes of being stuck on the same equation, I was close to tearing my hair out.
“Lindsey, it’s a very simple equation. All you have to do is find y. That’s all you have to do.”
She gripped her pencil in her tan hands, “I don’t even know how you did the rest of it!”
I gritted my teeth and contemplated shoving the entire paper into my mouth to release my frustration. Thankfully, my phone buzzed before I could do anything that insane.
It was Drew.
“Hey.” I said gruffly.
“Whoa,” Drew replied with caution, “what’s got you in a twist?”
“I’m sorry,” I sighed. “I’m at the library with Lindsey. We’re going over Math homework and I’m having a little trouble getting a point across.”
The teenager stuck her tongue out at me for ratting on her. I scrunched my nose in reply.
“Well,” Drew commented, “I can help.”
I heard a car honk in the distance.
“Really? You sound kind of busy.”
“I was just driving back from the station and wanted to see what you were doing. What part of the city is the library?”
I gave him directions and we hung up.
“Ooh,” Lindsey stuck the eraser end of her pencil into her mouth, “you and Drew huh?” The young girl wiggled her eyebrows.
“It’s not like that.” I defended, but the smile blooming on my face belied the words.
“Yeah, right.” Lindsey rolled her eyes, “I may be fifteen, but I’m not blind. I bet I’ve been around the block more than you have, Lexi.”
“Hey,” I pointed my finger in her face, “I will have you know that I am very experienced in hypothetical relationships. But Drew and I are just friends.”
“That’s what you think.” She muttered.
“Okay, enough.” I scolded her lightly, “Let’s give the same love you have for prying into my personal life to this math problem.”
I banged my head against the brick wall of Lindsey’s stubborn head until Drew came. His keys jangling in his hand, he sat beside me and squeezed my arm.
“Hey,” He greeted with a charming smile.
Lindsey’s gaze traced his hand on mine to my face as if to say, “I told you so”. I shook my head and Drew let me go.
“Hi Lindsey.” Drew smiled at her.
“Hi.” Lindsey grinned dreamily at the newcomer.
I couldn’t blame her. Drew was drool-worthy and the best part was, he seemed completely oblivious to it.
“I hear you’re having some trouble with math.”
“I don’t know,” Lindsey tapped her pencil against the tabletop, “it could just be the teacher.”
“Ha ha.” I shoved her.
Drew pushed up the sleeves of his white T-shirt with The Flash’s emblem on the pocket. “Show me what’s stumping you.”
Lindsey and I walked over the problem and then she pointed out the area that stumped her.
“I just don’t get it.” She raged.
Drew put his palm up, “Calm down. You just don’t get it yet.”
He walked her through the solution with, I admit, a lot more patience than I did.
“Ooooh.” Lindsey said with a new light in her eyes. “That was so easy.”
I threw my hands in the air. “I said that! I gave you those exact directions.”
“Yeah,” Lindsey smirked, “But Drew did it better.”
Drew grinned and ducked his head, “What can I say?”
I rolled my eyes.
“You both suck.”
“Ouch.” Drew placed a hand to his heart. I felt no remorse.
After our tutoring session, Drew offered to take us out for a ‘cholis’. In Belize, a famous coffee house near my old high school sold amazing frozen coffees topped with cinnamon and whipped cream. Since I never said ‘no’ to sugar and Lindsey hadn’t been there in a while, we happily got into Drew’s vehicle and cruised to the shop.
It didn’t take long to place or receive our orders. Since it was a weekday, our group hustled back to Drew’s rental to get Lindsey back home before the sun set. I didn’t want her parents to have any reasons not to trust me with their daughter.
“Thanks for the coffee and the help, Drew.” Lindsey waved at us when we dropped her home.
“No problem, Lindsey.” Drew replied with a grin and then drove off.
“Wow,” He said to me in the privacy of the car, “I can’t believe how much calmer she is.”
“She’s a good kid.” I nodded, “She just needs some direction.”
Drew glanced at me out of the corner of his eyes and then reached for my hand. He held it in his palm and squeezed.
“You’re a good person, Lexi Reyes.”
I admired the feel of his calluses against my smooth palm.
“You’re not so bad yourself.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
Baby fever did terrible things to our Saturday night gatherings. Terrible things I say! The pregnant lady received all the attention and sympathy in the games. If they randomly burst into tears, the way Melody did during her pregnancy, it put a damper on the entire night and we’d spend the rest of the evening sitting awkwardly as the said husband tried to console his wife.
Either because she was far less dramatic than Mel or because she was still in the early terms of her pregnancy, Mia let us know that there would be no preferential treatment while she was knocked up.
“Archie!” The beautiful dark-skinned woman in a T-shirt and skinny jeans scolded, “That was a perfectly good opportunity to play a wild card. Why didn’t you?”
Archie shrugged. “I didn’t want to.”
Mia glanced at our half wigged out, half frightened faces.
She groaned, “No. I will not stand for this kind of treatment.”
“What kind of treatment?” Melody slurped on her juice box. I think the best part of being a mom is being able to drink out of juice boxes in the name of testing baby food items for your kids.
“This!” Mia gestured to the scattered Uno cards on the tiled floor before us.
Persia arched an eyebrow and Tyrone chuckled.
Since the Blue Jaguar trip, Persia had kept us updated on Joshua’s attitude and behavior toward Tyrone. Like the smart little boy that he was, Josh wanted to test Tyrone’s heart
and ask him questions about his intentions before letting him fully into his life. By some miracle, Tyrone passed inspection and Persia was beside herself with joy.
The pair chose to sit the game out since they’d arrived while the competition was already in motion. Archie reclined beside Mia and his expression was surprised when he asked,
“This what?”
Drew nudged me in the side to hide a smirk.
I’d explained “the pregnant lady instructions” to him before we came here tonight. The pregnant lady always wins. It was a rule.
“You guys are tiptoeing around me like I’m going to explode all over the sofa. Losing a game won’t stress me or the baby out.”
“We’re just not taking any chances.” Peyton grasped his wife’s hand and turned his sincere blue eyes on her.
Mia softened. “I’m not Melody,” She said gently and though she spoke while staring at her husband, the admission was meant for everybody.
At her words, I sobered.
During Melody’s last trimester of pregnancy, she began to bleed very intensely. I couldn’t be there at the hospital with her that night because I was watching Eryn, but I remember the fear that coursed through me when Mom and Dad called to say that Melody and the baby were in danger. Everyone was shaken by the experience.
“We know you’re not.” Melody addressed her best friend, “but we want you to be comfortable and happy. Especially now that you’re eating and drinking and living for two.”
Mia placed a hand to her still flat stomach, “Winning a card game fairly would make me happy. So cut it out. Please.”
Spencer’s dark eyes appraised Mia’s sincere request.
He nodded, “We can compromise on the games.” He spoke for all of us, “But not with the rest. I know how scared I was when Melody was in the hospital. We just have your best interests at heart, Mia.”
“I understand that.” She caught each of us by the eye, “Thank you. Now can we please play a proper round?”
Her insistence on playing a fair game of Uno returned our boisterous group to their former competitive smack talking and cheating maneuvers. Thanks to Tyrone joining our bunch, we no longer had a free pass with Persia.
“No babe,” he whispered in her ear, “you play that one. See, and that way you can reverse the game and get Lexi back for playing a Draw 2 card on you.”