“I have to shower. So give me ten minutes,” I told him as he carried on.
“Let’s say fifteen,” he said, grabbing my wrist. He backed me into the bathroom, kissing me.
“Mason…” I said nothing further.
He pulled away and studied my face, waiting for my protest.
I sighed in compliance as I pulled his shirt over his curly mop of disheveled hair.
“You really need a haircut.”
“Well, you see, I haven’t had time to do that with all the robberies and all.” He smiled, coming in for another kiss.
I ran my hands through his hair, pulling it away from his beautiful eyes. I tried to imagine what he’d look like with short hair.
“I guess I couldn’t see you any other way,” I said softly.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means I accept you with your wild Mexican fro,” I said, laughing.
“My father was Puerto Rican. And I get most of my looks from my mother.” He pushed at me playfully.
I wriggled out of my clothes. Reality came rushing back in place of our moment or two of frivolity. Mason sensed it and opened the shower door for me.
“I’ll always be here for you,” he said, touching my shoulder.
“I know.”
“You’re the one good thing in the midst of this chaos,” he said, running his fingers through my hair. The water crashed down on my head. He shut the shower door, enclosing us in the steam.
“You keep telling me that,” I said, closing my eyes.
“Why can’t you just believe it?” he asked. I opened my eyes, water trailing down my face. Mason wiped it away. I could see how much it pained him to see me unhappy.
“I don’t know what to believe,” I sighed. “I just don’t know how.”
After our shower we hurried downtown to see the fireworks. Luckily, we weren’t far from them. I tugged my hat lower on my head, my ponytail hitting the back of my neck.
Mason pulled me through the thick crowd of people. He was right, there were a ton of people. I held tight to his hand, my feet hesitant.
The crowd was so loud I couldn’t have said anything to him and be heard if I’d wanted to. The aroma of different foods and beer filled my senses. Hoots and hollers of random people enjoying the celebration filled my ears.
We settled in the middle of a large park where the fireworks display would be. Groups of people, both large and small, were everywhere. When we stopped walking, Mason threw an arm around me. I could tell it meant a lot to him that I’d agreed to come out with him.
He smiled at me. “Happy Fourth of July,” he said. I just grinned back at him. It didn’t really feel like a holiday to me.
He stroked the back of my hand as we stared at the sky, waiting for the magic to begin. Both young and old alike were gathered and waiting in anticipation of the magic the fireworks would bring. If only magic were real…
I leaned closer to Mason as more people gathered all around us. It was almost show time and the sky was dark except for the streetlights lining the edge of the park.
“Hey, look over there,” Mason said.
He’d spotted a small hill off in the distance with hardly any people there. The crackling sound of the fireworks was closer than I’d expected. We hurried over just in time to see the fireworks. Mason sat on the ground and I followed, sitting next to him. The lights bounced off my skin and the boom of the display filled my ears.
“Hey, don’t I know you?” someone asked from behind us. We turned around at the same time to see the sweet, red-haired waitress we’d met at the diner, along with a couple of her friends. Her face transformed into a pleasant smile as they got closer. I waved, trying to be friendly. Mason sat up, looking the three of them over. The guy in the group extended his hand to Mason.
The guy was covered in tattoos from his neck to his wrist. His lip was pierced and he sported a mohawk.
“This is Trent and Star.” She introduced the two of them.
Star smiled and gave a wave. Her hair was long and black, her skin honey brown. She had chocolate brown eyes and wore long dreadlocks that draped down her back, held in place with a simple red band.
“Hi,” I said.
“Hey, how’s it going?” Mason asked, offering them a spot next to us.
“I’m Renee,” Renee said jokingly. She took a seat next to Mason, along with Trent and Star. “I love the Fourth. It’s great to be out for all the festivities.”
Mason and I listened as she went on and on about the day, how much it meant to her, and why it was just so amazing. Knowing she meant no harm, I held back the urge to roll my eyes.
“I try to convince Kendall to think of it the same way, but she isn’t one for the holidays,” Mason told them.
Star giggled and Trent pulled out a pack of cigarettes. He packed them with his palm as he listened to the conversation.
“I see you got away from your aunt for the night. That’s got to be freeing,” Renee said, nudging me in the side. There was a secret smile that only I understood.
“Yeah, my aunt doesn’t care for the holidays either,” I told her.
We laid in the grass smoking cigarettes and talking like kids our age do--about music, sports, or celebrity crushes. I’d never hung out with people my age other than Mason. I didn’t know I had an opinion on things like pop culture. I felt accepted and normal. Gloom and doom had taken a backseat at the moment to the lighthearted talk, back-and-forth banter, and feeling of kinship. I was lost in my thoughts when Mason pulled me from the ground to inform me everyone wanted to go back to Renee’s apartment downtown.
We walked the street at a snail’s pace stuck behind a massive crowd of people eager to get home. Mason kept a hand securely around my waist.
We listened to Renee go on and on about life. She was a girl with a lot on her mind—maybe too much. She thought way too much about the simplest things. Things that were black-and-white to me were multi-dimensional and nearly every color of the rainbow to her.
I tugged on Mason’s sleeve.
“What’s up?” he asked. We had stopped outside Renee’s apartment. I was having second thoughts about going inside.
“I have to admit, I really don’t know if I want to hang out with everyone,” I said quietly. I shrugged and looked down at my shoes. Maybe it was nothing more than me feeling out of place—I never felt like I fit in anywhere.
“Kendall, come on.” Mason lifted my chin, his eyes searching mine, concerned with my apprehension. He was always so confident. “Let’s have some fun. How often do we get to do that?” He kissed my cheek.
I crossed my arms and agreed to go along with him. I didn’t want to be the party pooper. I followed everyone inside.
The apartment was large and too extravagant for a waitress’s salary.
Renee tossed her purse on the island countertop in the kitchen. She grabbed several cans of beer from the refrigerator, setting them down one by one on the counter with a loud bang.
She drew the blinds, revealing a huge window overlooking the streets of the little Virginia town. She opened the beer in her hand and in one swift movement kicked off her black heels.
I stared out the window at the nightlife. I loved how the lights glistened like tiny diamonds against the black sky.
“Here, this one is for you,” Renee said, handing me a beer. She forced it into my hand before I could object and skipped off to the kitchen.
Mason shot me a sympathetic look. He was already caught up in drinking with Trent, Renee’s sidekick.
Star plucked away at the strings of an old guitar covered in stickers—peeling away with age—of old seventies rock bands.
“Come on, Kendall, my beautiful flower. Come sit with us,” Renee coaxed from the large red sectional.
I took a seat and concentrated to settle my nerves. Mason sat down beside me and rested his hand in my lap for comfort. He knew this was hard for me.