Call Me Crazy

Alexis and I sat down at a table after ordering our food. I took out my fries and began to dip them in my shake when Alexis spoke up.

“So where are you from?” she asked, biting into her cheeseburger.

“Originally, I’m from here, but the past few years I’ve lived in Green Bay.” I replied.

“My cousin lives there!” she shrieked.

“Who is it?” I asked, but before she could reply I felt a pair of cold hands on my neck, making me jump. I screamed, receiving many glares from other people.

“Damn, chill out,” I heard Kevin say from behind me, a grin on his face. Behind him were John and Ben, who were both smiling. Alexis on the other hand, was about to die of laughter.

“You… should… have… seen…your…face!” She got out while gasping for breath. I noticed John rolling his eyes and Kevin went over to tease Alexis. I heard him say something about a pixie stick. Ben was standing there smugly, a small smirk on his face. Surprisingly, he walked over and sat down next to me, tossing his small Hot Topic bag on the table. It made a thunking noise, and I shot him a questioning look.

“The new Avenged Sevenfold CD,” he replied and I gasped.

“No way! I love them!” I exclaimed, “They’re amazing in concert,” I added and began to explain the experience in full detail. He seemed genuinely impressed and became more relaxed around me. His hard shell disappeared and started to loosen up. We started to talk about other concerts and about my friends in Green Bay.

“Heads!” I heard John say, breaking Ben and I from our conversation in time to see half of Alexis’s cheeseburger flying through the air towards up. Instinctively I duck into Ben’s chest and he ducks as well, so his head is resting on mine. He smells of Hot Topic, pizza, and smoke. It’s an unusual combination, but I find comfort in it.

I feel Ben stiffen above me and he sits up, pulling himself away from me, his face becoming hard. The cheeseburger had missed us, but just like that, his wall was back up.