Lust Front

"BIG GUY"

When I get home that night, I text Emilia for hours until I fall asleep. My alarm goes off and I make up an excuse for why I can't go to work. Then I eat breakfast and go to The Port.

The Port is a seaside diner where Juliet and Emilia's aunt works. She manages the place pretty well and the food isn't half bad, even when I don't like seafood that much.

When I get inside the diner, the place is completely full. I need to find Juliet.

Scanning the room, I see one blonde haired girl in particular, and it matches the picture exactly.

"Hey, are you Juliet?"

"Are you the kidnapper?"

Oh, shit. I need to explain myself.

"It was... a prank call. I'm not a criminal."

"Okay. Who are you?"

"Just a guy. Looking to meet someone."

"Well, sit down already. I ordered us food already."

I pull the chair out and sit down. There's a big glass of ice water on the table for each of us and I drink from it.

"Whattaya wanna do later?"

"Erm... I don't know. You're the sea expert."

"My whole family is about the sea, but my mom is a marine biologist, and my dad is... gone. Haven't seen him since I was 12."

"Emilia never told me much about you guys."

"Cause there's not much of a story to tell, dude. What about you?"

"My family? My mom and dad are fine, but they're on the other side of town. I'm happy about that, cause they never stop annoying me. But now they want me to get a girlfriend."

"How long have you been trying?"

"...A long time. I have went through a lot of relationships."

"Wow, dude. That's pretty serious, huh?"

"Well, I'm not very good at anything so I'm supposed to get a wife, have kids, and repopulate the earth. The goverment is arguing we should do that, anyway."

"You really trust those assholes? All they do is care about themselves."

"Everyone only cares about themselves. That's just survival."

"Of course, but... the goverment doesn't give a crap about us, rolling down in the deep."

"That's true."

Meanwhile, the waitress comes over with two orders.

"Thanks, Dakota."

"You're welcome. Who's this?"

I look up, the waitress is a stylish black woman with super curly hair.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Conner."

"Conner? Like the android?"

"No, he's a human... and it's Conner with an e, not an o."

"Ah, I get it. I'm kidding, I don't. Here's your salmon fillets, and shrimp kebabs. Anything to drink?"

"I'd like a Mocha. Conner, order what you want."

"Could I get an iced latte with brea- I mean, whipped cream. Thanks."

"Gotcha. Be right back."

I take my fork and scoop up some salmon fillet onto my plate.

"Erm, Juliet, where did you come from?"

"Australia. Of course, my sister was born when we moved to the US of A."

"Australia, huh... How is that nowadays?"

"The usual. Venomous spiders are bigger threats than drive-by shootings." Juliet swallows the salmon in her mouth.

"I see. I'm from Banff, so I can resist a lot of cold."

"What's it like in Canada? Bears beating you up and shit?"

"No, pretty peaceful most of the time. Low population density, so you won't see many people walking around your neighborhood."

"Sounds peaceful. In Illinois, we have it okay for the most part. But we still hear gunshots around 3 times a week."

"What's your opinion on guns? Are you a supporter?"

"Support? Not exactly. But I still got to know how to use guns when this apocalypse thing rolled around, and now I have a special rifle that has a place in my heart. The Italian Assault Rifle, ARX 160."

"I used that gun a few times before. Really has a good feel and it's a lesser known assault rifle compared to famous names like the M16, AK-47, G36, AUG..."

"Exactly. I'm different, dude."

We get our lattes from a different waiter now, and it's a weird guy around my age.

"Who is this, Juliet?"

"My date. Don't mess with him."

"Of course, princess."

"Fuck off. Give him his latte." Juliet shooes him off.

I take it from his tray and sip it while watching the waiter slip away.

"Who is that?"

"Ian, my best friend. Kind of."

"Well, Emilia is my best friend. Kind of."

"Hehehe..."

"What's funny?"

"Emilia doesn't really have friends, you know."

"Why is that?"

"She's a big loner. When we were really little, she was always the introvert kid. Always in her own bubble, doing her own thing. Very rarely did anything with our family."

"That sounds... sad."

"It was. Pretty laughable, too. You're lucky to know her pretty well."

"She does know me pretty well. We're pretty much friends for life."

"That's good. She needs that. Everyone needs someone like that."

Juliet and I finish our food and coffee, then go to the counter to pay.

"Wait, Conner. Do you want a beer?"

"I'm not a big drinker. And it's still 10 in the morning."

"We're not going to get wasted. But when you go jetskiing, you need to have a buzz on."

"What?"

"Jetskiing."

"Wait, I didn't-"

Before I can stop her, she takes me to the bar and sits me down.

"Ian. Get me a Corona. For my friend Conner, get him a Cack Daniel's."

"WHISKEY?! I can't do that!"

"You're a MAN. You were born for whiskey..."

"Oh, god."

One glass of a dark orange alcohol slides down the counter. I nervously pick it up. Juliet's Corona flies through the air like a grenade, but Juliet raises her hand in the air and catches it perfectly.

"Alright. Let's finish these and get out of here!"

Juliet hits the cap upon the table and it pops right off. She puts the bottle to her lips and drinks from the beer.

"Your turn, Conner."

I place the glass to my mouth and take a sip of the whiskey, and it tastes normal.

But boy does it burn in your throat.

I almost cough up the drink after I swallow it. but I hold it back as much as I can.

"That's it, big guy. You're good."