Jesse takes more hits from the marijuana joint and passes it to Russell. Kevin then while looking at Russell, continues on with his rambling.
“Well, if you guys are serious about this, you can count me in. You’re gonna need a guy that knows how to make diversions and shit. I can hack into bank alarms. It’s not 100 percent fool proof no, but I’ll be a good asset. I know I’m just spouting shit but, I’m here if you guys need me. I’ll be a good member to the team.”
Russell after taking hits of the joint, hands the joint back to Kevin. Russell starts to put his head towards the ground, and responds to Kevin nonchalantly.
“Sure Kev, if you want to help out you can. We’re only gonna rob one bank though, and that’s it. If we get caught, we get caught. But after yesterday, we’ve given up on society”
All three men continue to sit on the balcony, feeling relaxed and chatting to each other. Kevin takes more hits of the joint and passes it to Jesse, asking Russell a question.
“So Russ, this pot is making me hungry. Let’s get something to eat yeah? We can talk about this bank robbing crap later. I want to get something to eat right now.”
Russell continues to look down towards the floor, and Jesse then hands the marijuana joint towards Russell who starts to smoke it once more. Jesse then converses with Kevin.
“Russell is such a nice guy, and it’s sad it took what happened yesterday for me to really get to know him. I used to always be scared of him, and now I love his personality. He’s not like anybody else, and I can see why the both of you are so close.”
With Russell still smoking the marijuana joint, Kevin raises his eyebrows at Jesse and curiously asks him a question that is on his mind.
“I’m not really a politically correct guy, I’m kinda a jerk. I say what’s on my mind. But are you and Russell dating? I just have a feeling that you guys are. I don’t care, I don’t judge. I’m Bisexual, but I don’t really date guys. I would never date a guy like Russ, he’ll always be a friend to me, but again I’m just a jerk and inquiring minds like myself want to know.”
Jesse starts to respond to Kevin, but Russell interrupts him, and hands Kevin the joint.
“It’s complicated Kev, I don’t know about him. I think he has me on some voodoo or magic curse or spell or something. He’s head over heels about me. Really though, he’s crazy like us so that’s the only reason why he’s here. He’s like a damn woman sometimes though. Attitude problem too.”
Jesse turns and looks at Russell in disgust. He quickly attacks him.
“What the hell? Wait a minute. Because I’m black, I do voodoo? Wow, really? Fuck you Russell.”
Russell while looking at the floor, under his breath talks to Kevin.
“You see Kev, what I tell you?”
Kevin smiles and laughs and turns his head towards Jesse. He speaks to him softly.
“You’re lucky to have a guy like Russ, he’s an amazing man. I’ve known him for years, and sadly we’ve been estranged for that same amount of time, but he’s a good guy.”
Kevin while smoking the marijuana joint in one hand, runs his other hand through Jesse’s hair laughing at him. He then hands Jesse the marijuana joint. Russell who’s continuing to look down, then continues to express himself towards Kevin.
“Kev, nothing is making sense man. First, the shit that happened yesterday happened. Now, my best friend who I’ve haven’t seen in I don’t know how long pops up. If that isn’t trippy or weird, I don’t know what is. None of this is making any sense to me man.”
Jesse hands Russell the joint, and Russell takes a hit from it. Kevin then responds to Russell.
“That’s life man, none of it makes sense sometimes. You should be thankful that I’m here, because I could have easily said, ‘Fuck Russell, I don’t care about him. He can fuck off’. But I didn’t, I came to see you anyways. You’re still here, Jesse is still here. We’re all here to serve some type of purpose man, what that is I don’t know, ha-ha, but think about it.”
Russell gives Kevin the marijuana joint once more, and Russell raises his head up, looking out of the balcony in a very relaxed and comfortable way. Kevin takes a couple more hits of the joint, and starts to hand it to Jesse, who shakes his head and refuses it.
“Oh no thank you, I’ve had enough. That was some good shit, thanks Kevin.”
Kevin smiles and laughs at Jesse, taking more hits of the joint.
“Pleasure is all mine, it’s okay. A friend of Russ’ is a friend of mine, you know it.”
Kevin then gives the joint to Russell who takes more hits of the marijuana joint. He then puts his head down, and starts to whisper to Kevin.
“Thank you Kev, I really needed this. I did. Thanks.”
Russell gives the joint back to Kevin who takes a couple hits from it. The joint becomes too small to smoke at this point, and Kevin puts it in the plastic bag with the rest of the raw marijuana. All three men sit on the balcony in silence for about ten minutes, keeping their thoughts and feelings quiet. They continue to listen to the reggae music playing from Russell’s phone, with Jesse moving his head to music. The sun continues to shine on all of them sitting on the balcony, as the afternoon continues to pass. The climate is ideal, with the weather being very immaculate and perfect today. Russell has many thoughts on his mind, and being reunited with Kevin wants him to bring them all out, however he can’t. He’s relaxing himself on the patio, as the music is playing with two of his friends. Kevin however is starting to feel hungry, and is craving something to eat. Jesse feels very happy listening to the music on the balcony, and unwinding himself, being involved with Russell and Kevin’s circuit. Another ten minutes pass in total silence, then Russell looks up at Kevin and asks him a question.
“Kev, you said you were hungry bro, what did you want to eat man?”
Kevin then rubs his hand under his chin, and begins to ponder on what to eat. He has many choices that he is currently thinking of, and can’t decide as to which one he wants. Kevin enjoys all different types of food and isn’t a picky eater. After a couple minutes pass, Kevin looks towards Russell, and finally is able to make his choice.
“How about “In-N-Out” Burger? I’m really craving some of that right now. Yeah Russ, that’s what I want. I want to get some of that. Yeah.”
Russell turns his head towards Kevin and shakes his head and laughs. Immediately after that, Russell stands up from his chair and sticks his hand out towards Kevin.
“Give me the bag of pot Kev. You’re not taking all of that out with us.”
Kevin grunts and grumbles at Russell as he’s going through his pocket to get the bag.
“Damn, why Russ? I’m not going to smoke it. Man, come on.”
Russell continues to stick his hand out towards Kevin, while staring at him with a sharp and strict look on his face. Jesse looks at the both of them in silence.
“Kev, you’re not taking that shit in my car, so give it to me. I’m gonna put it on top of my refrigerator and you can get it when we come back. But you’re not taking all of that in my car.”
Kevin shakes his head and mumbles under his breath, before reluctantly giving Russell the bag of marijuana. All three men then proceed off the balcony into Russell’s kitchen. Once in the kitchen, Russell takes the bag of marijuana and sets it on the surface of the refrigerator. Kevin watches him do this, and shakes his head.
“Russ, you just want to take my shit and smoke it later, that’s all.”
Russell then walks over to Kevin, and proceeds to frisk his pants.
“I just want to make sure you don’t have anything on you, because you’re sneaky and sly like that. I can’t trust you as far as I through you Kev, so I have to do this.”
Kevin laughs and shakes his head at Russell. He then responds to him angrily.
“Russ, I don’t have shit on me, I don’t have anything, you took my stash. I’m hungry, I just want to eat. Can we eat? God, this is unnecessary Russ, let’s go.”
Russell stares at
Kevin with a doubtful look on his face, and responds.
“Okay Kev, we can go now. I’ll just have to take your word for it.”
All three of them head out the apartment towards Russell’s car, and they each take a seat. Kevin sits in the passenger seat, with Jesse sitting in the rear seat. Kevin begins to talk to Russell.
“Russ I parked my car at my place, and walked over here. So you don’t have to worry, I’m not gonna get towed or anything, so don’t even worry about that.”
Russell scrunches his face at Kevin and snaps back at him.
“Kev, I don’t care where you parked your car, I wasn’t even thinking about that.”
Russell, Jesse, and Kevin all put on their sunglasses. Kevin then begins to look around Russell’s car offering his opinions on it.
“This is a nice ride Russ, I really like the upgrade. I remember the last time I was with you, you had a plain old Honda Civic. Really digging the Suburban man, gotta love it.”
Russell laughs at Kevin, and starts the car ignition. As Russell proceeds down the street, Kevin reaches for the car stereo and turns it on. Kevin then starts to recollect on their conversation on the balcony. He turns his head and talks to Russell.
“Russ, are you absolutely serious about the bank robbing thing? Because I’m going to be honest with you Russ, if you need my help I’m here. I mean that man.”
While he’s driving, Russell has a wide grin on his face, and thinks of a clever response to give to Kevin. A few moments later he then responds to him.
“Well, yes…Kev. I’m very serious. At this point, it’s just a matter of when and how. You know what I mean Kev? But yes I’m serious, and I could use all the help I could get.”
Kevin shakes his head at Russell and looks out the window. He then begins to finally perceive that Russell is persistent towards his agendas and thoughts. He softly responds to him.
“Russ, you are so crazy. I understand you’re going through a lot of shit right now, but you are one crazy guy. You’re so lucky I’m the same level of crazy you are to accept all of this mess. You tell that crap to anybody other than me, you would have been shit out of luck Russ.”
Russell stays silent, although taking in what Kevin said. Jesse remains in the back seat eavesdropping on their conversation, but remaining silent. As Russell proceeds down the street, Kevin starts to feel more comfortable with Russell, and refreshes their past unrequited friendship. He instantly remembers all of the positive and happy times they both witnessed and been through. Kevin only came to Russell’s residence, as he had a gut feeling that something wasn’t right. A part of him didn’t want to act on it, and Kevin at first did ignore it. Kevin also felt that he had nothing to lose. The worst scenarios that could possibly perhaps happen, is that Russell would either not live where Kevin thought he lived anymore, or Russell would simply reject and not forgive Kevin for their past quarrel that caused them to distance themselves from each other. It seemed as though everything did pan out accordingly towards Kevin. Russell continues to drive, also finding it odd that during this specific time, he was able to meet with Kevin at long last. Having such a wide gap and time from when they last saw each other, only coming together during these intense bouts of turmoil Russell is experiencing. How could this merely be fate, it can’t be at all. Russell in addition starts to see this as a sign, towards his agenda of actually wanting to rob a bank. The fact Kevin now sprung back into his life, he can now use him as a tool in order to support his rebellion. Knowing full well that Kevin just like himself is a major outcast towards society, and struggles through daily life. He’s glad he now rehashed their friendship, and is now able to start over with Kevin. Russell would need to have a good system of support in order to move forward with whatever plans that hatch into his mind.
The men sit quietly in the car, as Russell proceeds to the hamburger stand. Jesse remains quiet as a mouse in the backseat. Kevin however still has much to say to Russell, yet is far too anxious to speak to him. To remedy this, he starts to bite his nails. Russell notices him do this and quickly peeks at Kevin, but ignores and shuns it off. Kevin continues to be tense, wanting to talk to Russell. Kevin starts acting very anxious and proceeds to remove his sunglasses, cleaning them with his shirt, even though the lenses weren’t dirty. While he’s doing this, he starts to ask Russell a question he was thinking about.
“Russ, you should know…ah…fuck it. Russ…forget it.”
Russell reaches a stoplight and turns to look at Kevin with much concern. He realizes that Kevin is feeling very scared and terrified with himself.
“Kev it’s okay, if there’s something on your mind say it. Use your words man.”
Kevin lifts his hand up to his mouth and continues to bite his nails, trying to overcome his nervousness and anxiety. Moments later he is able to calm himself, and talks to Russell.
“Russ, I was just going to say that doing something like that is kinda dangerous. We could get hurt and stuff you know. I’m all for the rebelling part of robbing a bank, and sticking it to the man and fucking over the government and stuff. But I don’t know about the other stuff. Russ I’m scared, I don’t know if I’m down for something like this.”
With the car still stopped at the light, Russell rubs Kevin’s shoulder.
“Kev, it’s going to be fine alright. If we act clever enough, nobody is going to get hurt. I’m your friend Kev, and I’ll always be here man.”
Kevin taking Russell’s kind words into heart, is more comfortable with himself.
“Thanks Russ. You’re absolutely right man. We can totally do this. This is a crazy idea, but sometimes crazy ideas might work out, and it’s okay to do crazy things.”
Russell smiles back at Kevin, and he continues down the road towards their destination. A few minutes later, Russell arrives at another stoplight. While the car is stopped, Kevin sees a promiscuously dressed woman walking down the sidewalk and starts to profile her very accurately and precisely. Kevin then starts to gossip about her to Russell.
“Russ, you think she’s a prostitute or hooker? Why else would she be dressed like that and walking like that. Something doesn’t seem right. She looks hot, but I don’t know.”
Russell while looking at the woman also very closely, starts to rub his chin. He starts to analyze her carefully, before giving his opinion about it to Kevin.
“I mean; she could also be a cop as well. You have to think about that too. But I agree with you Kev, something about that picture just doesn’t look right at all.”
Kevin turns his head to the back seat to look at Jesse.
“What do you think man?”
Jesse who was also watching the woman offers his opinion.
“Yeah, I agree with Russell. I think she’s a cop, and that’s some type of trick or game they are playing. They do that a lot and I don’t get it. But yeah, I’m sure she’s a cop.”
The signal then turns green, and Russell continues down the road. Another few minutes pass and they eventually make it to “In-N-Out Burger”. Being that this is a Saturday, it is extremely crowded. There is a long line of cars queuing outside of the drive thru. This frustrates Russell somewhat, as he at times can be an impatient man. He turns the stereo in the car up and rests his hand on his forehead. The drive thru line very slowly dissipates. Russell turns his head towards Kevin who is playing a game on his phone. He then talks to him.
“Kev, what game you playing man?
Kevin with his head down towards his phone answers Russell’s question.
“Oh, this game is called ‘See You Later Alligator.’ Basically it’s a memory and strategy game where you take this alligator and he can only eat similar objects. For example, in this particular level, the alligator can only eat things that are round. It’s a fun game. I like it.”
Russell with his hand still over his forehead, acknowledges Kevin and faces forward. Jesse continues to sit in the back seat, staying very quiet. The line is moving so slow that Russell turns the ignition in his car
off. He sits back in the seat very frustrated. Russell becoming more tense waiting in this drive thru line which is moving terribly slow, starts to ask Kevin something.
“Kev, what do you want to order? Tell me now, so when it’s finally our turn I can just give it to the people. I feel like we’ve been in this line for fucking ever man.”
Kevin while still looking down on the phone playing his game, responds to Russell.
“Oh, uh, Russ, I’ll take two double double cheeseburgers, animal style man.”
Russell shakes his head at Kevin, and turns his head towards the back seat.
“Jesse, what did you want to order?”
Jesse immediately responds to Russell.
“Oh Russell, I’ll take two double double’s but with pickles please. Thanks.”
Russell then starts to think about what he wants to order. Unlike Kevin and Jesse, he’s not sure what to get, and has not yet made his mind up. He continues to wait in the drive thru line watching Kevin play a game on his phone. Russell turns the car stereo up to listen to music. He turns his head over to Kevin, who is still focused on his game and vents his frustration.
“You just had to come here Kev, we could have just gone to McDonalds and been done with it. We’ve been in this line for a least forty-five minutes. This burger better fucking taste like gold as long as we’ve been waiting in this line. Damn it Kev.”
Kevin looks up from his phone and notices the extremely long line sticking out of the drive thru. He turns his head to Russell who’s looking very aggravated.
“Russ, calm down man, it’s okay. Take it easy man. The food here is good. You’ve been to ‘In-N-Out’ before man. The line is always long like this. I don’t know why, it just is.”
Russell rolls his eyes at Kevin, and changes the music on the car stereo. The line finally starts to proceed to move forward. When they reach the drive thru menu speaker, Russell then figures out what he wants, and gives the order through the speaker.
“Yeah, can I have six double double burgers. Two I want animal style, another two with pickles, and another two with extra onions. I also want three fries and three cokes. That’s it.”
Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gained Page 17