Dylan has recently come out of the closet in his second year at college. With little experience and luck with guys, his best friend decides to set him up on a blind date. But when he arrives at the theme park, the last person he expected to see was...
"What are you doing here?" Simon replies, his face twisting uncomfortably. This is so fucking awkward, I can't believe that out of all the guys in our hometown, Aimee set me up with him.
"I er- I think..." I stammer; my words were lost in the breeze that blows between us. Swallowing the lump in my throat, I narrow my eyes in an attempt to shake away the nerves. "I think you're my date.
Are you friends with Aimee?"
"She's my cousin," he says coldly.
"Ah... I see."
The silence between us manifested as the grey skies above darkened. I knew they were an omen the moment I saw them this morning- bad weather and first dates never work out well.
"I'd say it's nice to see you, but that'd be a lie," Simon says, his words like a fist in my gut, and his eyes avoiding my gaze looking practically anywhere else. "I think it's best if I go," he turns and starts to make his way back to the main entrance.
I stand frozen in disbelief. He can't be the same Simon from St. Peter's Highschool, he's totally different. The Simon I remember was this little weedy kid, a total nerd with no confidence at all. But the Simon that I've just met, he's kind of buff and definitely has more presence.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
It's not just him though, we're both different. I'm not the same person I was two years ago, I've put that behind me and I'm trying to do better. Maybe that's why we're here together, the universe is trying to tell me that I've still got a ways to go before my slate's clean. If I can prove to Simon that I've changed, that I'm a good person... Maybe I can shake all this bad karma.
"Simon, wait!" I call out, running after him before he could leave. He turns to me with a raised brow, folding his arms dismissively.
"What is it, Dylan?" he asks. I can sense the uneasiness in his voice, shit this better not be a bad idea.
"You don't need to leave. We've travelled all this way, might as well stay and enjoy ourselves. Go on some rides, catch up..."
"Is that a joke?" he scoffs, rolling his eyes in disbelief. "You want to spend a whole day with me... and catch up about what? The only things you said to me in high school were insults, so forgive me for not wanting to spend more time with you than I already have."
"Look, I'm trying to put that behind me," I sigh, unsure if it's even worth trying to convince him at this point. "I know I did and said some shit, but I'm not that person anymore."
"Yeah... ok, sure." he scoffs, rolling his eyes and fixing his glasses. It's kind of funny how everything about him seems to have changed, except for those stupid indestructible frames on his face.
"Come on, Simon. Just stay, go on some rides, and let me show you that I've changed," I ask one more time, hoping it was enough to convince him.
"It was an hour's journey to get here..." he hums to himself, weighing up his options. "Ugh, I knew I shouldn't have trusted Aimee. She has terrible taste in men."
