Chapter 4 The Fun of It All
The Fun of It All
Carly
Crew nearly trips but manages to steady himself. Unfortunately, he loses his grasp and the bowling ball flies onto the alley, missing the two pins entirely.
Wow, I didn’t think that would elicit a reaction out of him.
“Could you be a little quieter?” He hisses at me.
I frown, pointing my thumb over my left shoulder.
“They’re too loved up to hear. We’re also in a bowling alley.
” One that is currently blasting Come on Eileen by Dexy’s Midnight Runners at nearly full volume.
I feel like I’m in a club with how loud the music is, except this club is extremely spacious and has balls.
Bowling balls, to be exact.
“But what if they heard?”
I shake my head. “Hate to be a downer, Chicken Little, but they didn’t. The sky’s not falling.”
The confusion that twists his face could make me laugh right now, especially because I didn’t perceive him as particularly emotive. Yet, I never thought actors were great at hiding their emotions, current or former. It’s in their job descriptions to be expressive.
“How did you know?” He asks as we wait for the ball to be retrieved from the conveyor. Panic laces his dark eyes. “Ali didn’t figure it out, did she?”
I shake my head. “Last I checked, she was clueless. Though I’m a little surprised—you really suck at hiding it.”
He sputters, probably not expecting me to say that. “Do you just say what’s on your mind, all the time?”
“Who else will?” In reality, I’m not as unfiltered as he believes. “Truth hurts, Movie Star. You should know.”
He groans. “Could you not call me that?”
“Give me a better nickname to use and I’ll consider it,” I counter.
“No way. My actual name should suffice.” The ball rolls back on the rack, and Crew grabs it. A signal for me to leave him the heck alone.
“Aw.” I pout dramatically before turning around and heading straight to the couch. “Where’s the fun in that?”
I re-tie my shoelaces and watch Crew knock down three more pins. I don’t even care about winning—my goal for tonight is to earn five strikes in a row, and I’ve never been able to do that.
Not even during my time in a bowling league. Yes, high schoolers have leagues, too. Though mine was more of a club than a bowling league.
Vinny and Ali are a little caught up in conversation, not far from me, and neither has noticed that Crew’s turn is over.
“Hey, cousin Vinny!” I exclaim. “It’s your turn!”
Vinny looks over Ali’s shoulder and groans. “Just as the nickname couldn’t get any worse.”
Nicknames are my love language—well, that and quality time. They’re how I welcome people into my social circle, and I’m not very picky about who I’m friendly with. Vinny hates his nickname, however, because he associates it with the mafia—a group of people he doesn’t fuck with, whatsoever.
I still use it anyway, even if it’s not entirely original, and Vinny knows I mean well by it.
The four of us continue with the game, and by the time we’ve reached our tenth frame, I’m in the lead, though I don’t have that fifth strike like I hoped for at the beginning. Crew is right below me, but only because the remaining two are not as competitive as I am.
“I forgot this was supposed to be a group date,” I mutter as my eyes steer away from the happy couple, who started making out after Ali hit her first strike of the night.
This is more of a group hangout, and two of the members of the friend group happen to be dating, while the third can’t stand my guts. Feels like hell with bowling alleys.
Thankfully, it’s my turn, and I grab my bowling ball from the rack with my left hand. I place my three fingers in the holes of the ball and with my other hand, I touch the surface and stare at the reflection of myself.
I look stressed out. Then again, I’m in my final winter quarter of university. I could easily be sitting at my computer on campus right now, figuring out the bug in my Capstone project, or even at the beach, but I chose to be a menace to society.
Normally, I’m not a fan of group hangouts because if I’m around big groups long enough, I can get severely overstimulated—and an overstimulated Carly is not something I’d wish on my worst enemy—but maybe it’s a good thing I agreed to this. Nothing relieves stress like knocking shit down.
After lining myself up at the alley, I take my turn and earn myself another strike. I try to go bowling every once in a while, but with school, time just hasn’t been on my side. Luckily, I never lost that spark.
“Couldn’t you at least try to be terrible at this?” Vinny groans playfully. “You’re making us normal people look bad.”
I practically howl in laughter because Vinny currently sits at the bottom, having not earned himself a strike. “Maybe you should try hitting the pins instead of the gutter,” I retort.
“Face it, y’all. Carly’s never lost a game since we moved here,” Ali informs the boys. “Accept defeat while you’re at it.”
“Never,” Vinny declares, earning a round of laughs from all of us—even the ever-stoic Crew lets out a chuckle. I never once thought I would see this guy smile, but now that I have, I can clearly say that his smile is not one meant to be hidden. Yet, it is.
Some things can’t be captured by a camera, and this moment is one of them.
When our eyes meet, I notice the brightness around them for a split second before the darkness masks it. What is this guy’s problem with me? Maybe I shouldn’t have called him out on his crush on Ali, but I feel that if my best friend is involved, I should know about it.
There’s no way I’m ruining Ali’s relationship with Vinny because those two are written in the stars. They have the kind of love you would read about in books or see in movies. Anyone who has seen the way Vinny looks at Ali—like she’s captured the entire galaxy in her hands—could figure that out.
Nothing could stand in their way, and they can overcome every obstacle with ease.
It’s the kind of love that I want for myself when I’ve got all my shit together.
The question is: what does Crew want? Does he see that for himself, or is he drowning in his emotions to the point of no rescue? I guess time will tell.
The best part of watching is the moment when everything begins to unfold, and all the answers are revealed in front of us.
As the game continues, I spare an occasional glance at Crew. Sure enough, all the signs are obvious. Did he really think I wasn’t going to see it?
I’m not blind. Medically and figuratively speaking, my vision is perfect.
This is one of these things I shouldn’t be thinking about right now, how another guy likes his best friend’s girlfriend. I’m trying my utmost best to take my brother’s advice, and I’m kind of failing.
Which is silly. Carson is the same guy who threw a pie at his girlfriend’s face when they first met (true story). Advice from him is not one that I should be following, but his love life is working out for him.
“Carl?”
I blink to find Ali staring at me. “What’s up?”
She looks at me funny. “Are you overthinking again?”
Shaking my head, I stand up from the bench. “What could I be overthinking about? Winning the game and having Vinny pay for all my mocktails? Possibly.”
She playfully rolls her eyes. “Wow, I can’t even fight back because you’re right.”
We’re at the last two frames, and so far, Ali’s sitting at third because Vinny is that bad at bowling. This last portion of the game can’t save him, even if he were to get a strike.
I lift my chin in victory. “Now, let me get that last strike so Crew doesn’t take my title as the bowling queen.”
And that we can skip to the end of the night, is what I’m thinking but I don’t say out loud.