They sat in silence for a little while as they drove down the gravel road. It seemed no other cars were even out; it was as if they had the whole day to themselves. Kevin had his window all the way down and felt the heat on his arm as he sat with elbow hanging in the open space. That was something else he loved to do, just drive. He could drive for hours all by himself with nowhere to go. In fact sometimes, especially in his high school days when there was nothing better to do with his time, he’d intentionally get himself lost and drive until he found something familiar. True with age came the lack of enjoying getting lost but not the longing to drive for hours at a time.
Was it the age or was it the business? He secretly wondered to himself. He wasn’t always such an uptight guy. He missed that side of himself sometimes and lately had been trying to channel the younger Kevin back into his soul. Being around Nick helped him to do that.
“I love being in a car.” Kevin suddenly looked over at his friend, temporarily forgetting he was even there.
When Nick saw Kevin’s eyes he continued, “I just love the road you know? There’s something so…I don’t know…like Zen about it.”
“Weird that I was thinking the same thing.”
“Wow that is weird.”
“You know when I was a kid I used to purposely get lost on roads like this.”
Nick smirked with disbelieving eyes, “No way you? Man I can’t see YOU wanting to get lost. Now I can see people around you wanting you to get lost.”
“Okay smart ass…well it’s true. I used to do that all the time.”
“I did too, but never intentionally, I just can barely find my way anywhere.”
“Yes I know this.” Kevin said rolling his eyes.
“So what do you think the other guys are up to today?”
Kevin shrugged, “I have no idea, most likely doing fun stuff.”
“Fun stuff? No way man…what bets that Brian is out grocery shopping or buying diapers right about now…and Howie is like on his phone to his mother or something…and AJ is…”
“Playing golf!” They both said at the same time.
“Jinx! You owe me a Coke.” Kevin said to a very confused Nick.
“huh?”
“You owe me a Coke.”
“Why?”
“Because we said that at the same time.”
“So I owe you a Coke?”
“Yeah.”
“That makes no sense who made that up?”
“You have never heard that before?”
Nick shook his head.
“Wow…okay then, never mind about the Coke thing I guess.”
“And why would I owe you a Coke? Why wouldn’t you owe ME a Coke?”
“That’s just the way it goes whoever says it first.”
“Says what first?”
“You are making this far more complicated than it is Nick…”
“I am just trying to understand this…so if I said it first then would you owe me a Coke?”
“I’m turning you off now.”
“What if I don’t like Coke?”
Kevin mentally shut Nick off and went back to his high school days. If he could pinpoint one time in his life he was truly happy every minute of every day it would be his early high school years. Everything seemed to be perfect back then, not a care in the world. Days spent hanging with his older brothers who he idolized and his group of best friends. The most serious discussions would be who would win the football game.
Once as he was sitting around with the guys he tried to envision what his relationship would be with them if he had met them in high school, would he have hung out with them or not?
He actually wasn’t ever really close to Brian but more to his brother Harold, if he had went to the same high school as Brian chances are they wouldn’t have even said one word to each other, especially if they weren’t related. He also couldn’t see himself hanging out with Howie either as teens. Kevin was a jock and Howie was a tech geek, the two would have probably made fun of each other as their clicks passed in the hallway.
AJ? Doubtful they would have ever hung out in school, even if they were the same age. Their personalities were polar opposite. AJ would have hung out with the burnouts. Or as Kevin’s click liked to call then, the loser crowd.
He felt the worst about Nick though, because he could easily see himself picking on the kid in school. He probably would have had to compete with Nick for all the chicks but his personality would have rubbed Kevin the wrong way.
“Are you sad you never got to go to high school?”
Nick was putting his head back and ‘glucking’ to keep himself occupied when he suddenly looked over confused.
“Oh did I get turned back on?”
“Yeah, I took you off mute.”
“Wow lucky me.”
“So?”
“What?”
“The high school question…do you regret never going to a real high school.”
“Are you a secret interviewer from J-14?”
“Why do you always have to be such a smart ass?”
“Eh? It’s what I do.”
Kevin laughed and shook his head, “I only ask because I know my high school years were the best of my life.”
“Sometimes I wonder what it would have been like you know? But you guys have heard me say that a million times.”
“Yeah I know…but this isn’t a stupid interview this is just me asking an honest question.”
“Fine, then my honest answer is yes. I used to get so jealous of you guys when you’d talk about high school and the things you used to do and then when AJ walked with his graduating class. I felt like I got gypped.”
Kevin turned to face Nick, “You did buddy…you did.”
“But then on the other end of it, I probably would have been killed in school. The kids used to pick on me all the time. With my temper I would have surely gotten stabbed.”
“Don’t kid like that Nick.”
“Who’s kidding? Kevin I don’t exactly have the best personality in the world. People love to hate me; you of all people should know that.”
“Why me of all people?”
“Uh…because you used to hate me. Duh!”
“Nick I never hated you.”
“Right of course you didn’t and neither did the kids I went to school with.”
“Come on…you honestly thought I hated you?”
Nick smirked and laughed under his breath, “You know what never mind…no I am only kidding.”
Kevin’s eyes grew wide in disbelief, “Oh my God you DID think I hated you! Nick I never hated you ever! You used to drive me crazy but I never hated you.”
“It’s over now anyways Kev…no biggie. Like I said I know I was hard to get along with.”
Why it bothered Kevin so much he had no idea, but it did. It was true that Nick got on his nerves as a child and really had his moments but for some reason to hear the kid actual say those words hurt him.
“You were just a child Nick; I could never hate you for being a child.”
“Yeah but you were a child too Kevin and yeah you did. I even heard you tell Howie that one night. You said I swear I hate that kid.”
“I could have been talking about anybody.”
“You were talking about me, I had just left the room after doing nothing annoying at all and I heard you say that.”
“I was just talking out of my ass Nick.”
“It’s okay Kevin seriously.”
“No it’s not…I don’t want you thinking that I hated you back then. I loved you Nick, and worried about you just like now.”
“It’s in the past and I loved you too even though I put ketchup in your shampoo bottle.” He turned his head away from Kevin as he said that so it sounded like a murmur.
“That was you?”
“Uh huh.”
“All these years! You told me Brian did it and he even confessed…Oh my God Nick he got in so much trouble for that.”
“I know… that’s why I gave him my Nintendo 64. He said that’s what he wanted in exchange for his confession.”
“Wow you two had those pranks down to a science.”
“Yup and you know when I did that?”
“When?”
“After I heard you say you hated me. I wanted to give you a reason, but of course when I saw how mad you were I chickened out and went crying to Brian who took the blame for me”
“Ketchup, do you have any idea how long it took me to get that out of my hair?”
“Approximately five washings…I counted.”
Kevin shook his head but couldn’t help but smile, “You’re lucky I didn’t find out it was you.”
“I know.”
“One day charma’s going to get you for all of those things you did as a kid.”
“It already has bro…it already has.”
“And how has it?” Kevin asked but then like an afterthought he said at the same time as Nick,
“Paris!”
“Jinx! This time you owe me a Coke!” Nick said giggling.
“Huh?” Kevin tried sounding as confused as Nick was before even scratching his head in the same way and doing his best Nick voice. “I like don’t get it dude…explain it to me again?”
“Shut up Kevin I’m putting you on mute man.” He hit the top of Kevin’s head as if he was hitting a remote.
“Ouch let’s not try to rattle my brains okay buddy?”
“Sorry, but hey is that food I see up yonder?” Nick said pointing to the sign that said Chris’ Diner, “Weird place to have a diner are you sure we haven’t entered like some kind of freaky weird Twilight Zone?”
Kevin pulled into the parking lot that had two other cars occupying it, “Well let’s go see for ourselves shall we?”
“And then I expect my free Coke Kevin…oh and my ice cream.”
“Muted!” Kevin said as he opened the door and both men walked inside.
Happy anniversary to BSB! lol sorry about the missed update on Sunday but if any of you are reading Protect and Serve yes I got it backwards on Chaos' site lol i'll be back on Saturday with a new chapter for that one. :)
