The Riveting Lives of Russell and Sal

Chapter 18

Russell had only spent about ten minutes helping Sal with his homework. He had turned it into a game where, every time Sal would get a question right, he'd get a kiss. And after the third kiss, Russell decided he would rather make-out with Sal, despite his parents being a room away. Something about the risk of getting caught made it more exciting than usual. Sal must've had similar feelings, because he slid his hand up his shirt for the first time. And let Russell do the same to him. His body quivered at the memory as the two walked along a dirt trail.

"That sign said the park closes at sunset," Sal said. "And it's practically sunset."

"I used to come here after sunset when I was younger. No one cares."

They strolled past a variety of trees and plant-life, and turned onto another trail that ran alongside a lake. An empty bench faced it, and Russell led Sal towards it. The two sat down on it, arms linked.

"So, why are we here when the park is supposed to be closed?" Sal asked.

"It's not closed yet. Look." Russell pointed across the lake, where several does appeared, drinking the water.

"Deer!" Sal shouted excitedly, causing the deer to stare at him. A couple of them bolted.

"Nice going. You scared them away."

"Not all of them. One of them stayed."

The deer that had stayed walked back into the trees.

"That was exciting while it lasted," Russell said. And it was the second reason why he brought Sal here at this specific time. The first reason was for the sunset. The sky was now orange, as the sun began to set behind the golden mountains. Russell wrapped his arm around Sal, and Sal laid his head against his chest.

Russell ran his hand over Sal's arm, enjoying the time spent with him. Being with Sal, watching the sunset. It was all cliché, yet everything felt right. For now, anyway. It was only a matter of time before Sal would ruin the moment by saying or doing something idiotic.

And of course, the thought jinxed it. "Is this your first relationship?" Sal asked out of nowhere.

Russell tore his eyes away from the sunset, away from Sal, down at his knees. "No. It's... my second."

Sal pulled his head away from Russell's chest, and silence filled the air again. Good, Russell thought. Hopefully he would leave it at that.

"Was your ex a boy or a girl?"

A long, thick stick trapped under strands of grass caught Russell's attention, and he leaned forward to yank it free. What to tell Sal? If he knew about that relationship, he'd never hear the end of it. Russell was tempted to lie, but that would end in disaster if Sal ever found out the truth. He poked at the dirt with the stick. "This would make the perfect walking stick, if we decided to hike a bit more."

"That doesn't answer my question. Was your ex a boy or a girl?"

Russell dropped the stick, and it rolled several feet down the slope towards the lake. "Neither."

"Neither? So someone like..." Sal's hand flew to his mouth. "Oh God."

Russell closed his eyes.

"You didn't date Terry, did you? Please tell me you didn't date Terry."

Russell didn't answer. He didn't want to hear Sal bad-mouthing them yet again. There were many fond memories he had of Terry. Ones he wouldn't trade for the world.

"You did, didn't you?"

"Yes, I did. I dated Terry. Now you know."

Sal covered his face with his hands. "How could you do such a thing? Why would you do such a thing?" His hands fell back to his lap, and his eyes widened as a thought occurred to him. "Oh God. I've... I've been second-hand kissed by Terry!"