I looked up to find Danny watching me out the window, hands in his pockets. Great. I drove off, tires squealing out of the parking lot, drawing even more attention to myself.
I sat in my car when I got home, not wanting to face my parents.
When I finally dragged myself inside no one stopped what they were doing. No one looked at me. Not even Ellie. They kept cutting out cookies like a bunch of psychopaths. I set my keys on the counter and sat at the island waiting. Still nothing.
They were making me sweat it out. I’d play their game.
“How was your trip, dear?” my father asked.
“It was fine. I went down to the body shop to see an old friend, okay? It’s not news. I’m sure everyone is talking about it, but it wasn’t a big deal.”
Both my parents stopped what they were doing and stared at me.
“Why would everyone be talking about you seeing an old friend?” my mother asked.
“Seems to be someone is guilty,” my father added, returning to helping Ellie cut shapes out of dough.
“Why is daddy guilty?” Ellie asked my father.
“Well, that’s a very good question now isn’t it,” my father replied.
Everyone in the room looked at me.
“Why is this an interrogation?” I threw my hands up.
“You are the one who’s being shady,” my mother turned to my father. “That’s the word, right? Shady?”
He nodded. “You’d be correct, dearest, our son is being shady.”
I sighed and stole a cookie off the tray. “I’m going for a walk.”
“Leaving again so soon?” my mother asked in that interrogation voice, only parents use.
“Yes, so I stop getting the fifth degree.” I didn’t bother with the keys. If I got in the car I’d be right back at the garage, in the very place I didn’t want to be.
After the walk I decided to pick up pizza for dinner. I’d been craving some of The Woods pizza since leaving. It was one of those places that couldn’t be replicated anywhere. Their pizza tasted like the magic of my childhood and I hoped it still lived up to the memory.
“This better be edible.” Ellie pulled on my hand as I ordered.
“It’s better than the burgers Uncle Aiden bought, I promise.”
She scoffed and looked around the small place. It was stuck in the eighties, but I loved the nostalgia of it. Ellie shoved her hand into my pocket.
“Daddy! Daddy! I need money. I want to play the games.”
A smile spread over my face as I fished out the quarters I’d grabbed knowing what her reaction to the little arcade area would be. “See, not so bad is it.”
“I love it here!” She grabbed the money out of my hand and ran over to play Pac Man.
“That your kid?” Mrs. Stevens asked as she leaned against the counter. She’d been old when I was just a boy, and now she was ancient. Shocking she hadn’t let one of her own children take over.
I nodded. “Yes, she’s mine.”
“It’s good to see you back here.” She wanted to ask more but was still too polite.
I turned to check on Ellie and The Woods relic wandered off to help in the kitchen.
Ellie sprinted back to me, took more money, then ran back to the arcade. It was good to see her smiling again. She’d been so mopey for months. I tried to keep my feelings from her, but I knew she felt the weight of everything going on. I hated it for her. It made me feel like a failure as a parent.
The bell chimed on the door, I glanced over, finding myself face to face with Danny again.
Great.
Crossing arms over my chest, I turned back towards Ellie. We could ignore each other. I wouldn’t be here that long. But… my lips still burned where he’d kissed them. Ellie ran back and I was glad to have her to focus on. She grabbed my hand dragging me over to show off a ‘retro’ game. No idea where she’d even learned that word.
The safety of the arcade wrapped around me. Absentmindedly watching her play, pretending not to side-eye Danny who was ordering at the counter. I forced myself to look away, focusing on Ellie. I couldn’t let myself look again.
“Evening,” Danny said, making all the hair on the back of my neck stand up.
Shit. “Hey.”
“Good night for pizza.”
Were we going to do this? I could think of a million better things to do than talk about pizza. “Yep.”
“This your kid?” he asked.
“You know it is,” I said softly, glad Ellie had moved further back and out of earshot.
“It’s good to see you again, Avery.” A shiver ran down my spine at the way he said my name. He drew it out like he did in bed.
The rest of the time it was Av. Why had he decided to use it that particular way now?
“Sure, good to see you too, Danny.” What was he playing at? I hated not knowing. I hated feeling like a stranger with the person who used to know all my darkest secrets.
His fingers brushed the back of my arm, and my eyes snapped to his. He smiled, all teeth and hulking body, like he tossed cars for a living not fixed them. No words came but he lingered there with his fingers on my skin, like we were stealing moments.
“Is there something else?” I glanced around trying not to be weird.
“Do you remember when we used to come here after practice?” he asked.
“Yes—” my answer was breathy. I remembered the year of eye-fucking each other in the showers and rubbing one off as soon as I was behind a locked door. I remember the pressure building until we couldn’t take it anymore and we ended up all over each other, fucking every which way for two years.
I swallowed back the rest of my answer.
“You remember how we used to sit in the photo booth…?” he asked.
“And make out,” I finished for him.
“Yes,” he pressed his tongue into his cheek. “Then I jacked you off for the first time right there.”
I pressed my eyes closed with a groan. “What’s the point of all of this?”
He lifted one shoulder. “Weird seeing you here is all.”
“Avery, I got your pizza,” Mrs. Stevens called, saving me or breaking me. I wasn’t sure yet.
“See you around,” I said before calling Ellie.
“Maybe,” he said, drinking me in.
I turned, breaking the eye contact, needing to get out of here. The entire town suddenly felt like a monument to the man I’d always love.
Four
AVERY
How was it possible to not get coffee without running into Danny? Everywhere I went, I ran into him. Like I was manifesting him places because I couldn’t get him out of my brain. I wavered by the entryway to the coffee shop. I didn’t want to go home and face Aiden and my parents without the coffee I’d promised. What was I going to say? They already thought I was sneaking out for shady stuff, coming home without coffee would be even worse.
I shuffled toward Danny’s back, praying God smiled upon me and he wouldn’t notice I was standing behind him. I didn’t think he was stalking me, but in the last two days I’d run into him over and over. He probably thought I was stalking him.
“Fancy seeing you here,” he said without even looking back at me.