Status: Active
Two Kids Stupid and Fearless
Graffiti is Romantic
About a ten minute walk later, we arrived at a small park in what I thought was Bowery, but I could be wrong. Wherever it was, it was in a shabby, poor-looking area where there were hardly any people walking about.
Jack took my hand and guided me down a paved path into the center of the small clearing, to a run-down playground that was rusting and falling apart. Vines were growing on the swingset, and the slide was covered in obscene graffiti. It looked like no one had played there for years.
“Whoa,” I whispered.
“Cool, isn’t it?” He said, pulling me to the swings. We each sat down on one, swinging back and forth lazily and sipping at our hot chocolates.
After a couple minutes of silence, Jack stood up and tossed his empty cup in an overflowing garbage can. When he came back, I thought he was going to sit on his swing again, but instead he came to a stop in front of me, with his hands wrapping around mine on the chains of the swing on either side.
I looked up at him and smiled. “Why’d you bring me here?”
I saw his cheeks grow pink. “I’ve always came here alone, it’s always been my special place,” he said, looking me in the eye. “But I wanted to share it with you.” He looked down at his feet when he said the last part.
I smiled at his cuteness. “Awe, thanks,” I mumbled.
I was going to say something else but he interrupted me by connecting our lips, my head tilted up to meet his, and his down to meet mine. He tasted like cinnamon and chocolate, and felt like heaven. He smiled into the kiss once I started kissing him back, and his hands tightened around mine on the chains of the swing.
Despite my various protests, he pulled back and rested his forehead on mine. We were both grinning uncontrollably. “Come on,” he whispered breathlessly. “I have something to show you.” He back up from me so I could stand up, then he took my hand again and pulled me towards a bench across the sidewalk from the swing. It was covered in graffiti.
He pulled out a knife from inside his jacket and flicked it open.
“HOLY FUCK JACK OH MY GOD!!!!!!!!!!” I screamed, freaking out.
He shushed me and pulled me back down so we were squatting in front of the bench. Then he started to carve into the old wood of the seat with the knife, woodchips flying everywhere and the awful noise echoing through the park.
A few minutes passed of me watching him vandalize, and I saw that he was etching our names into the bench: JACK + M, it read. He was finishing up the I.
I giggled when I noticed what it was, causing his to look up at me and smile, before going back to his craftsmanship. When he finished, he stood up to admire his handywork.
JACK + MIA
“What a romantic way to break the law,” I commented, grinning at him as he snaked an arm around my waist.
“I sure know how to woo the ladies,” he said wistfully, folding the knife and putting it back in his pocket.
“Churros and vandalism,” I remarked. “Swoon.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It was nearing one in the afternoon when we reached the next place Jack had picked out, which was a Walgreens in Greenwich Village.
A Walgreens. Really Jack? Really?
He noticed my hesitation as we stopped in front of the doors. “Just trust me,” he said, pulling me through the doors and into the convenience store.
I followed him into the brightly lit store, where he made a quick right to the photo counter and picked up a disposable camera and placed in on the counter, along with a ten dollar bill.
The clerk, an angry-looking teenage guy, handed him the change. “Do you want a bag?” he asked lamely.
Jack shook his head and snatched the camera in one hand and my hand in the other and we ran out of the store and onto the street.
He ripped the camera out of the cardboard box before aiming it at me. “Say boner!!” He said, twisting the twisty thing.
“Boner!!” I said through my smile. He pressed the button and I heard the shutter click.
“Your turn!” I told him, taking the camera. “Say titties!”
“TITTIES!!!!!!!!!!!” He screamed, throwing his arms up as I took his picture. Every person within a hundred feet of us turned around and glared at him. Oh well, it made a good picture.
Jack took my hand and guided me down a paved path into the center of the small clearing, to a run-down playground that was rusting and falling apart. Vines were growing on the swingset, and the slide was covered in obscene graffiti. It looked like no one had played there for years.
“Whoa,” I whispered.
“Cool, isn’t it?” He said, pulling me to the swings. We each sat down on one, swinging back and forth lazily and sipping at our hot chocolates.
After a couple minutes of silence, Jack stood up and tossed his empty cup in an overflowing garbage can. When he came back, I thought he was going to sit on his swing again, but instead he came to a stop in front of me, with his hands wrapping around mine on the chains of the swing on either side.
I looked up at him and smiled. “Why’d you bring me here?”
I saw his cheeks grow pink. “I’ve always came here alone, it’s always been my special place,” he said, looking me in the eye. “But I wanted to share it with you.” He looked down at his feet when he said the last part.
I smiled at his cuteness. “Awe, thanks,” I mumbled.
I was going to say something else but he interrupted me by connecting our lips, my head tilted up to meet his, and his down to meet mine. He tasted like cinnamon and chocolate, and felt like heaven. He smiled into the kiss once I started kissing him back, and his hands tightened around mine on the chains of the swing.
Despite my various protests, he pulled back and rested his forehead on mine. We were both grinning uncontrollably. “Come on,” he whispered breathlessly. “I have something to show you.” He back up from me so I could stand up, then he took my hand again and pulled me towards a bench across the sidewalk from the swing. It was covered in graffiti.
He pulled out a knife from inside his jacket and flicked it open.
“HOLY FUCK JACK OH MY GOD!!!!!!!!!!” I screamed, freaking out.
He shushed me and pulled me back down so we were squatting in front of the bench. Then he started to carve into the old wood of the seat with the knife, woodchips flying everywhere and the awful noise echoing through the park.
A few minutes passed of me watching him vandalize, and I saw that he was etching our names into the bench: JACK + M, it read. He was finishing up the I.
I giggled when I noticed what it was, causing his to look up at me and smile, before going back to his craftsmanship. When he finished, he stood up to admire his handywork.
JACK + MIA
“What a romantic way to break the law,” I commented, grinning at him as he snaked an arm around my waist.
“I sure know how to woo the ladies,” he said wistfully, folding the knife and putting it back in his pocket.
“Churros and vandalism,” I remarked. “Swoon.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It was nearing one in the afternoon when we reached the next place Jack had picked out, which was a Walgreens in Greenwich Village.
A Walgreens. Really Jack? Really?
He noticed my hesitation as we stopped in front of the doors. “Just trust me,” he said, pulling me through the doors and into the convenience store.
I followed him into the brightly lit store, where he made a quick right to the photo counter and picked up a disposable camera and placed in on the counter, along with a ten dollar bill.
The clerk, an angry-looking teenage guy, handed him the change. “Do you want a bag?” he asked lamely.
Jack shook his head and snatched the camera in one hand and my hand in the other and we ran out of the store and onto the street.
He ripped the camera out of the cardboard box before aiming it at me. “Say boner!!” He said, twisting the twisty thing.
“Boner!!” I said through my smile. He pressed the button and I heard the shutter click.
“Your turn!” I told him, taking the camera. “Say titties!”
“TITTIES!!!!!!!!!!!” He screamed, throwing his arms up as I took his picture. Every person within a hundred feet of us turned around and glared at him. Oh well, it made a good picture.