Barcode Boy

After Hours II: Clear Blue Sky

It was the summer before junior year, and Carter's family had allowed me to join them on their vacation to Colorado. At first, I was reluctant to leave Lloyd and my mother behind, but the thought of sleeping in a hotel with Carter made me smile.

I knew nothing was bound to happen, but I needed a brain break, and the best person I could be with for that was that curly-haired blond. Apparently, it was some sweepstakes they'd won for a family of four, therefore leaving them with an extra.

Truth is, I had never been on vacation before. I'd never climbed a mountain, swam in the ocean, or even enjoyed myself at a waterpark. My family never had the money for it, but I was used to it, so it wasn't much of a bother. Sure, I had never left the country, but I was still out and about in my own community.

That's why when Carter told me about the extra ticket, I didn't beg to be brought along. Instead, it was him who begged me. He came to my house with notebooks and magazines of hiking trails we could take and foods we could try. And that was before he had even asked his parents about inviting me.

Mr. Hughes wanted to bring his best friend from work, but when Carter asked his mom about inviting me, she said it was a great idea. The trip was in the middle of July, and once the time neared, my mom helped me pack, and before I knew it, I was at an altitude of thirty-two thousand feet, on my way to an unknown state.

Carter sat beside me on the plane, leaning on my shoulder, asleep. We were about to go into our third year, and I had been doing pretty well with suppressing my feelings. Yes, I felt bad about leaving my family behind, but I needed this. I practically had the workload of a parent, and more than anything, I wanted to hang out with my best friend.

I had felt my stress overloading more than usual, and even though I had no plans on opening up, I refused to throw away this new experience. The downside was with the free time I had to zone out, my mind started drifting back to all the feelings I was trying to ignore.

And sure, those girls I talked to as we waited for the plane were beautiful and had a great sense of humor, but I couldn't believe my mind got hooked on Carter again. For three years, I was on the right track, only to get distracted again.

With the way Carter was leaning on me, I could easily grab his hand. Even though the jet engines were deafening, I could hear him snoring, so I knew he wasn't waking up anytime soon.

I slowly interlaced my fingers with his, smiling as I gazed out the window to see the orange sky as the sun slipped behind the clouds. To be perfectly honest, it felt like a dream. Some people were terrified of planes, but I felt so at peace even though it was my first flight.

I was only bothered by the realization that I'd be stuck in this seat for another five hours. Before we got on, Carter recommended that I sleep in order to ward off hunger and altitude sickness, but I didn't want to sleep through my first plane trip. Not to mention, Carter could fall asleep anywhere.

I poked at the small TV screen attached to the seat in front of me. We had three and a half hours left. I glanced over at the Hughes who sat across the aisle from me and the blond.

I made eye contact with Carter's mom who smiled and waved at me, but then noticed I was holding hands with her son.

"You doing alright?" She asked with a chuckle.

I nodded. "Yeah. Just kind of bored..."

I supposed I could watch something on the small plane TV or explore the dumb apps I downloaded on my phone a while back, but I just wanted the plane to land. I felt like an excited little kid, but I was trying to stay calm so I wouldn't completely weird out Carter's parents.