My Little Razorblade

“Matt where are we going?”

It had been two hours since their lunch, but Matt refused to take Alley home.

“We’re going to the beach,” he said decidedly.

“Uh…why?” Alley had remembered countless fights Matt had started when they were teenagers because he didn’t want to go to the beach with her.

“I want ice cream from one of the venders along the boardwalk.”

“We’re going to the beach so you can get fucking ice cream?” Alley raised an eyebrow as she turned her head slowly towards the driver’s seat.

“Yea…what’s wrong with me wanting ice cream? I like ice cream…kind of.”

He took his hand from the wheel and reached for his lip ring. He tugged at it for a moment, then he let go and moved his hand back to the steering wheel. He noticed that Alley had changed the song.

They were now listening to Zero by the Smashing Pumpkins. Matt tapped the steering wheel to the beat and Alley gazed out the window mouthing the words, pausing every once in a while to brush her hair out of her eyes.

They sat in silence for awhile once they had made it to their destination. Matt kept looking at his phone. Alley noticed what he was doing, but didn’t care enough to ask why.

“I thought she’d call,” Matt lied as he put his phone back in his pocket.

“What?”

“Val…I thought that Val, uh, would call when she…um when…she finished doing that thing… she had to do today…”

“Oh, well okay,” Alley replied. She was even more confused than she had been before. She pulled at bottom of her shirt in frustration.

“Yea, she told me she was…” Matt was interrupted by his phone ringing.

He pushed his shoulders against the seat which brought his hips towards the steering wheel. He reached in his back pocket and pulled out his phone. He flipped it open and glanced at Alley, who was looking out the window again.

“Hey,” he said as he sat back down in the seat.

Johnny’s voice was on the other end. “Hey, is Alley with you?”

“Yea,” Matt answered.

He moved the phone away from his mouth and quietly told Alley to wait outside of the car. She got out and slammed the car door behind her. Matt rolled his eyes and sighed.

“Cool. Zacky just left and he told me to call you and let you know that he would be there soon.”

“Okay awesome,” Mat replied.

“Dude, I really hope this works,” Johnny said.

“Yea me too,” Matt said smiling.

“So I’ll see you soon so we can follow through with the plan.”

Matt laughed at Johnny’s bizarre enthusiasm. “Okay. Cool. Later.”

Matt closed his phone and put it on the dashboard.

“What the fuck,” Matt whispered to himself when he turned and didn’t see Alley standing outside the car anymore.

He leaned forward more in his seat and looked out the window again. He saw Alley walking towards a small building located near the sand. Matt laughed to himself, got out of car to join her. Matt jogged to catch up with her.

“Alley!” he shouted.

Alley stopped and turned around. “Hurry your ass up! You’re the one who wanted fucking ice cream!” Alley chuckled as she watched Matt running towards her.

“Dude you walk fast,” Matt laughed when he reached her.

“Yea, well…your mom!”

“Uh Alley we have the same mom.”

“So?”

Alley planted her feet and crossed her arms like she always did when she wanted to be right. Matt didn’t say anything; instead he bent down and grabbed Alley by her knees. Alley began shouting, but was caught off guard when Matt began to pick her up off the ground and flinging her over his shoulder.

Alley burst into giggles as Matt proceeded to carry her towards the small building. Alley watched as the car and parking lot got farther away.

“Are we getting ice cream now?” Alley practically shouted so Matt could hear her.

‘Yep,” Matt answered plainly.

“Sweet,” Alley mumbled, “It’s about damn time.”

The two eventually made it to the window of the small building. Matt bent down and let Alley down. She stood up and straightened her shirt and once again brushed her hair out of her eyes.

“Well that was easy,” Alley said to herself.

Alley looked at the boy behind the counter. His name tag read ‘Ryan’. He was tall with dark brown hair with green eyes. He had a tattoo on his inner arm that was of a skull and rose. He was wiping the counter with a towel.

“Um…hello…” Alley asked quietly.

Ryan’s head shot up. “Oh, sorry, I didn’t notice you there,” Ryan said blushing.

“Don’t worry. Its fine,” Matt replied.

“Alley,” he glanced at her, “What kind of ice cream are you going to get?”

“Hmm…two scoops of chocolate in a waffle cone.”

Matt nodded, “I guess I’ll have the same.”