Local Boy and Tourist by Pineapple Sam

Local Boy and Tourist

 Rinse-O-Blue

The place was quiet except for the water splashing and gurgling through the rock formations.

“Hey, hurry up before somebody shows,” I whispered to my buddies, Mando and Randy, as we splashed into the shallow, blue-bottomed pool.

We hunched over to shorten our silhouettes and slowly slipped through the water. Our worn-out, baggy shorts were quickly soaked in the knee-deep water and from the spray of the fountain. The star-studded sky and crescent moon made it a perfect night for our mischievous project. The cold water was a refreshing, albeit temporary retreat from the humid, tropical air.

In the middle of the elongated pool, water cascaded down from the crevices of the six-foot rock formation. Out of the top jetted a spray of water, shaped like the tail of a peacock. Surrounding the center fountain were four smaller rock fountains; from each gurgled a beautiful, lily-shaped spray of water. Underwater lamps slowly alternated colors, illuminating the fountains in green, red, blue, and yellow.

Even the coconut palm trees scattered throughout the parking lot were illuminated in a rainbow of colors and white spotlights at their bases. Except for a few employee vehicles, the dimly lit front parking lot was nearly empty. On Fridays, most hospital visitors left before the patients’ nine p.m. curfew.

“Let’s do it,” I whispered, loud enough to be heard by Mando and Randy over the sounds of the water.

“Yeah, c’mon,” Mando whispered back, holding his box of detergent tightly.

Randy snickered, paused, and whispered back to Mando, “You shoulda brought yer dirty laundry.”

“Right…and you can take your weekly bath while we’re here too,” Mando snapped back at Randy.

The event was the result of several weeks of wondering what would happen. Running a pair of panties and a bra up the high school flagpole was no longer impressive. It was beginning to lose its shock value and had become gradually less amusing to everyone involved, so we had to think of something more entertaining and unique.

Wilcox hospital where I was born on Kauai had recently constructed the fountain in front of their main entrance. Every day, patients and visitors sat in various spots around the structure on the surrounding lawns and benches, seeking solace from their troubles. The display was the newest attraction in town, so of course it drew our attention too.

One day, the brilliant idea hit me: “Mando, what would happen if we put laundry soap into the fountain pool?” I actually had a pretty good idea of what would happen, but I wanted a second opinion. I often ran things by Mando, my haole friend, because he always thought things over longer than I did. Whether he agreed with me or not, I always trusted him to give me an honest opinion.

“You not serious, S’mael,” Mando said after a minute, then sucker-punched me on the shoulder. “You must be nuts. Why you wanna do that fo’?”

Unsure how exactly to explain, I said, “I dunno. Just thinkin’ it’d be cool to see what happens. I bet it’d look kinda cool.”

Mando was quiet for a moment longer, and then he looked at me with an impish grin. Mando always thought things through before he did them, but even when he had doubts, his eagerness to try new things with his friends usually won out.

“What would look kinda cool?” Randy asked, walking up.

Just then, the lunch bell sounded, and I grabbed my bag and hurried to automotive shop class on the far side of campus. “Mando, you tell ‘um!” I yelled over my shoulder. “I’ll talk to you guys lata, afta school.”