Page 8 of Hunt for the Roses
Kyle slips his other glove off as well. “Let’s go.”
Both of us throw our gloves in the corner and start to circle around each other. Kyle goes to wrap his arms around my legs, but I fall forward on his back and hug my arms under his stomach, and we hit the ground. I have Kyle in a hold and we’re laughing through breaths, but then he surprises me by flipping us over so he’s now on top. We’re wrestling back and forth like this for another five minutes before we realize we should probably pack it up before other people start coming in.
When Kyle and I are in the locker room, both of us are dripping with sweat from our workout and wrestling antics. I take a sip of my water before turning to Kyle, and offer a fist out to him. Kyle returns the pound with a smile, and after we change into dry t-shirts, we make our way out of the gym to head home.
On the ride back, I think about Kyle getting married and how insanely elated I am for him. I know how much he loves Aria and how happy she makes him. They’re perfect together in every way, and when the time comes, I look forward to standing beside my best friend at the altar. Many people don’t get to experience friendships like ours, and to have a friend like Kyle is a gift. There’s no denying how incredibly fortunate I feel to have him in my life.
Maybe I should have counted my blessings sooner.
Saturday, June 19, 2021
As per usual, the gang's all together to kick back on a Saturday night, and since summer is officially right around the corner, we decide to have a bonfire out on the beach. By gang, I mean the typical five of us, with two additions–my brother Ronnie and his wife Cheryl.
Ronnie is the staple of an overprotective big brother. He’s five years older than me and lives almost an hour away to be closer to the city area where he works as an electrician. While we both still lived at home, Ronnie would interrogate any guy who came to the house to pick me up for a first date. Asking questions like “Where are you going tonight and what time will you be back?” and “Do you think I care what happens to you if you break my little sister’s heart?” You know, the typical “big brother” complex. So I guess it bodes well for me that Ronnie doesn’t live as close, but even so, the fact that he wholeheartedly approves of my relationship with Kyle is just the icing on the cake.
As we’re all sitting in our camping chairs around the fire, I see my brother and his wife approach us. “Hey, you made it!” I scream as I get up from my chair to hug the both of them. Kyle follows suit, shaking Ronnie’s hand and hugging Cheryl after me.
Ronnie and Cheryl already know Kate, Trent, and Dane, so there are no need for introductions. They all just say their hellos as my brother and his wife set up their own chairs around the fire.
“How was the drive out?” I ask as I sit back down and take a sip of my hard seltzer.
Cheryl responds first. “Not bad, actually. We purposely left later in the day, so that definitely helped.”
Ronnie is cracking a beer open from the cooler, and chimes in after he takes a sip. “I also have impeccable driving skills.”
Cheryl makes a deadpan expression. “Knew that was coming.”
Ronnie smirks and then directs his attention to Kyle. “So how’s the house? Everything up and running there, or do you need my help with anything?”
“Knock on wood, everything is running smoothly,” Kyle says.
“Glad to hear,” Ronnie responds, and then he taps Dane on the arm since he’s sitting next to him. “So I haven’t seen you in a minute. What’s new?”
Dane shrugs. “Not much. Grinding at the architecture office during the week and letting loose on weekends.”
“I hear you were promoted to Project Manager, so congrats,” Ronnie says as he clinks his beer bottle with Dane’s.
“Thank you, sir. Going to start taking my exams to get licensed, so we’ll see what happens from there. There are a lot of opportunities to consider afterwards,” Dane answers.
“Good for you, that’s awesome.”
“How many exams are there again?” Trent cuts in and asks.
“Six,” Dane replies.
“Geeze, I thought three exams was a lot for teaching,” I chime in as I hike my bare feet up on the seat of my chair.
“Yeah, it’s pretty brutal,” Dane responds with a tight-lipped smile.
“So how long are you both in town for?” Kate asks Ronnie and Cheryl.
“We’re staying with my parents and leaving tomorrow night. I figured I’d go over what work needs to be done for my dad’s restaurant so I can give him reputable contacts and help him plan accordingly,” Ronnie responds.
“Aww, Mom’s going to be so happy to see you. Her only son–the golden child,” I tease with a smile.
For the next hour, more conversation and laughs occur over the Bluetooth speaker that’s bumping eighties classics from the playlist I chose. The wind is starting to pick up as the night goes on, and I cover my head with my sweatshirt hood to rest it on Kyle’s shoulder next to me. As I angle my head in this position, I see two girls walking along the beach that I hadn’t noticed before. One is a brunette with a cute navy romper, and the other is a blonde with a flowy pink sundress.
Dane places his beer in the cup holder of his chair and then gets up to walk in their direction. “You two interested in a drink?”
