“Man that guy is fucked! There is something seriously wrong with him. "Fuck!” Ronaldo yelled frantically as I grabbed my burger in surprise. I raised my eyebrows and commenced decorating my dinner with the cafeteria hot sauce. Though some would say that the hot sauce possessed a mild sting, that sting was maybe one billionth of what I was about to hear. “Trust me when I say this!” his seriousness doubled. I pulled out my debit card and handed it over to the eavesdropping cashier. “Why what’s wrong?” I questioned while completing the $4.58 transaction. He took a few steps ahead and pointed at an empty booth where he slowly led me to. At first, there was a pause. I could see him thinking, looking at me and quickly grabbing a nippy glance of the entire cafeteria. Few minutes went by in silence. I however didn’t mind at all - I was, in joy, devouring the surprisingly tasty Grade Eh! Veggie burger. The name well suited the meal. Finally he spoke. It was then that I realized: Ronaldo was lifting a huge rock off his chest; a rock that someone else had placed, and hoped to be immovable.
I met Darnelle 9 years ago. He was a tall, skinny fellow with nerdy glasses. His clothing was however quite baggy and flashy –not nerdy at all. Past introduction, I was surprised to the synthetic maturity he possessed. Though he was two years older, he studied in the same grade as me and tried to act like twice that. I was further exposed to his character after I moved into the same street as him, joining the same school. He tried to be social, and he was good at that. “People” was his thing- he could talk. He tried to blend in with the older crew and was flawless with the girls. I’ve heard the saying “first impression last”, however I really didn’t believe that, until now.
I was expecting some enlightenment on Ronaldo’s outburst so I listened. “I think it’s him, man.”
Ronaldo moved here from some strange country few years back. We used to reside in the same apartment building until I moved. A year later, Ronaldo did the same, joining me and Darnelle. That was when Ronaldo and Darnelle properly met. They did not start out as the best of friends; they did not start many conversations either. It was clear to me that Darnelle had his own world with his own friends, doing fine without Ronaldo.
“You have no idea man. This shit is so fucked up!” He added some more words. Words which, when said repeatedly, built up a great deal of suspense.
I was quite surprised when I saw Darnelle and Ronaldo arguing at the university orientation. It was actually quite fierce. We had gathered eyes as they continued the loud exchange of words. At this time, they had come a long way from their initial meet – they were best of friends. However, that did not change the fact Darnelle was devastated Ronaldo hadn’t replied or waited for him. “You could’ve at least texted me” Darnelle’s voice was breaking. “It’s not even a big deal, and I told you we were gonna’ meet here anyways!” Ronaldo defended himself. I tried cooling them down by offering watermelon and making “a couple” jokes.
“I’m pretty sure it’s him but I need your help to find out” He still had not told me what it was. However, that did not stop him from pleading for help. I, on the other hand, was still in great suspense.”Tell me the damn story already!”
