Dark Desire

Chapter: 29

"What's the best cheese for a birthday party?" asked Hunter as I braced myself for the fifty ith pun like jokes from these two minions. We had ordered food and were now munching and doing these sort of shits.

Trying to keep a straight face, I said, "I don't know, Hunter. I'm not sure there's a 'best' cheese for a birthday party."

Ricky, who was lounging on the couch with a slice of pizza in hand, jumped in. "Wrong answer, buddy! The correct answer is: nacho cheese."

I groaned. "Oh no, here it comes."

"Because it's nacho cheese!" Ricky said, bursting into laughter at his own joke. His dark curls bounced as he laughed, and he nearly dropped his pizza. "I will kill you if you drop that thing on the floor and it messes my floor up" I warn as he rolled his eyes. Yes, I'm aware that I'm way too clean and hygienic for my own good.

Hunter doubled over, clutching his stomach. "God, Eran and his fixations for cleanliness, also, that's so bad, Ricky. Even for you."

I shook my head, unable to suppress a chuckle. "You two are the worst."

Ricky then looked at me and said. "Happy birthday, Eran. Seriously, man, we love you."

"Yeah," Hunter added, clapping me on the shoulder. "We wouldn't miss this for the world. Even if it means suffering through Ricky's terrible jokes."

"Hey, my jokes are top-notch," Ricky protested, grinning. "Want to hear another one?"

"Do I get to have a choice?" I asked, raising an eyebrow, knowing the obvious answer.

"Nope!" Ricky declared, clearly enjoying himself. "Why do you think the couples don't go to the gym for?"

I rolled my eyes and Hunter groaned. "Please don't."

"Because as sad as it sounds, but some relationships just don't work out" Ricky said triumphantly, earning another round of laughter from no one but himself.

I rolled my eyes and sighed "You've been saving these up, haven't you?"

"Maybe," Ricky admitted, taking another bite of his pizza. "But hey, it's your birthday. You deserve the best jokes."

Hunter shook his head, still chuckling. "At least the food is good. Where did you order from, Eran?"

"Little Napoli's," I said, gesturing to the array of pizzas on the table. "Figured I'd go all out."

"You did good," Hunter said, grabbing a slice. "This is the best pizza I've had in ages."

We all dug in, the conversation flowing easily between bites. Every now and then, Ricky would throw in another cheesy joke, much to Hunter's and my dismay. But that was Ricky—always the life of the party, always ready with a laugh.

As the evening wore on we sat in a comfortable silence for a while, the only sound the gentle hum of the fridge and the occasional car passing by outside.

"So, what's the plan for the rest of the night?" Hunter asked, stretching out on the couch.

I shrugged. "I was thinking we could just hang out. Maybe watch a movie or something."

"Works for me," Ricky said, leaning back and putting his feet up on the coffee table. "Any preferences?"

"How about something classic?" I suggested. "Like an action movie from the 80s?" "That could do, but before that.." said Ricky as me and Hunter exchanged looks of horror. "No more jokes please" we said in unison but we failed miserably.

The banter continued, each joke more ridiculous than the last. At some point, Ricky decided to pull out his guitar, which he barely knew how to play, and started strumming random chords while making up equally random—and terrible—songs about cheese, birthdays, and friendships.

"But what happened to that letter then?" I asked and as soon Ricky was about to answer there was a loud bang on my door followed with numerous ringing of my doorbell. Three of us rushed to the door and as soon as I got the door, there stood Rose.