Tyler
Nino rang the bell, and I opened the door to let him in. My mind was still spiraling.
He glanced at me, then at the fallen chairs.
He looked at the crumpled letter in my hand, and he said, "Tell me everything that happened."
I went to grab the fallen chairs for him and me so we could take a seat and go over everything that I learned.
Nino is someone I've been friends with since I was a kid. I trust him with my life.
He furrowed his brow when he was reading the paper. When he was finished, the only word he said was, "Damn."
I'm not sure what to say. For some reason, I let out a laugh. His shock exactly mirrored mine.
Nino looked at me with a steely look. I was grateful to see that he had pulled himself together because right now, I needed a friend. He asked. "What are you doing now?"
I shrugged my shoulders. "Not sure. There's not much really to do. She's gone. And my real father is still alive. And I don't know how he feels about me."
Nino sighed and rubbed his messy hair, which showed that he must have woken up. Nino was always like that. Being there for me. A slight furrow appeared in his brow.
"Are you going to stay with Elijah?"
I sighed and explained my reasons: "Yeah, I'm still seventeen; I have no place to go. When I go to live with him, I will get a job, and I'll be able to get on my feet soon."
Nino nodded, "Alright. But you're always welcome to stay at my place anytime."
I grinned. "Thanks."
Nino looked at the suitcase by the bed. "When are you moving?"
I replied lazily, "Within two days."
Nino nodded and replied, "Let's go; we will go somewhere and have some fun. You need to get a drink and take your mind off this."
I was hesitating; I just wanted to stay home and mope alone in my room. Nino must have seen the look on my face.
Nino grinned, and he gave me a coquettish look. "Hey, I'll make sure you have a good time."
I narrowed my eyes at him. "Alright."
***
I got into Nino's car. The ride took about an hour. Nino had me get dressed in a nice outfit. I nearly fell asleep, then Nino turned on the music so loud it almost burst my eardrums.
I glared at him. Nino laughed. He shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly, "Stay awake, baby. We're about to have a good time!"
I barely half-grinned. I looked up when we arrived at the place. The place was packed—cars lined every inch of the lot.
It was nearly impossible to find a parking place, but we found one when one of the cars left its place.
We entered the building where music played loudly, and beauty and drinking were everywhere.
Girls wore tight, revealing dresses, while men wore casual clothes, but they made them look half-decent.
Nino wrapped his arms around my shoulders, his voice nearly hushed by the loud rapping music. People twisting their bodies around in a slow, sensual twist.
Nino and I went to the bar, and a bartender appeared with a smirk. "What drink do you want?"
Nino and I ask for something strong. We drank for fifteen minutes, and then Nino started talking about stuff I didn't want to listen to.
Something about his ex-girlfriend. The long story short is that he misses her, but she is with another guy. I looked at Nino and felt sorry for the guy.
He looked lonely and miserable when telling these tales. He needs a new girlfriend. I thought. I looked around the dance floor and tried to find a girl who would suit Nino's preference.
There. She's perfect. I pulled Nino's shoulder and whispered into his ear, "Hey, do you see that girl on that dance floor? Isn't that your type?"
Nino had a tiny spark in his eyes and lifted his head, and saw a girl with light blonde hair cascading over her shoulder.
She had light makeup and a silky black dress. Nino grinned almost savagely. "Wish me luck, mate."
I patted his back and wished him, like he asked, "Good luck."
I watched Nino walk to the woman with confidence in his steps, then he appeared by her side, started dancing behind her, and slowly began seducing her with his hands trailing slowly over her waist, like how girls like it.
I grinned and took another sip from the glass. Then a confident voice spoke beside me that startled me, "Hey, I remember you. You're that guy who almost hit me."
I turned around and saw the man with green eyes. The green was pale, like a deep forest, and the man narrowed his eyes at me suspiciously. "Don't tell me you're here to get drunk and hit someone else."
I sarcastically smiled, "Hey, I am sorry for almost hitting you, but it's not my fault."
The man looked me up and down, then he crossed his arms as he leaned his hips against the table. "Really? Then let's hear it."
I arched my brow. "Well, a guy behind me was pissed at me and tried to hit me with his car."
The guy nodded his head like he believed me, but there was still a hint of suspicion. "What are you doing here?"
I grinned sarcastically, "Here to enjoy my time like everyone else here."
The man went to pull back the chair, which made a screeching sound across the floor, and he sat down in it.
He waved his hand at the bartender, who raised his brow at the young man, but the young man didn't flinch. "I want a strong mojito."
The bartender nodded. "Be right back."
He went to the machine to start making the drink while I looked at the young man who was watching the bartender, and then he turned to me.
His green eyes, invasive. "You can call me Angel."
My eyes nearly turned wide, and my heart went racing into a high skyrocket.
Angel. That name—It couldn't be.
It had been six years since I last saw him. He was nine years old. He looked different from my memories.
I asked, "How old are you?"
I knew I asked the question too bluntly, but I wanted the answer to the question.
Angel leaned his head on his hand and replied lazily, "Twenty."
I narrowed my eyes suspiciously. "I don't believe you. You don't look twenty. You still look like you're in high school."
The young man laughed and said, "True, many people said that I look young, but it's true. Here, I can prove it."
He took out a card from his jeans pocket, and I took the card from his hands.
[Angel Cooper, 20 years old]
The bartender came back with the drink in his hand and passed it toward Angel. Angel didn't show gratitude to the man, which made the bartender roll his eyes at the guy.
The bartender walked away, then Angel spoke. "You believe me?"
I gave him back the card.
"No, anyone can create a fake ID. You can go on the internet and take a picture of your picture and create fake pictures and stuff."
Angel laughed and took a sip from his glass. "That's true, but you can't prove it."
I looked at him more closely. Angel was silent for a moment until he looked back at me with a strange look on his face.
He smiled, but there was a tinge of darkness in his eyes. "You know, I used to have a big brother when I was little."
I froze.
My heart thudded once—then again.
When I heard that, my heart picked up a little. He leaned closer, his hands touching the end of my knees, surprising me.
I narrowed my eyes. "What are you doing?"
He didn't answer.
He just smiled—like he knew something I didn't.