The sun was just setting as we made our way off the school campus. The bright ball of fire peeked only just above the horizon. The sky was painted with neon pinks and lavender purples that seemed to stretch across the sky among the clouds. Alvin stood by me as we strolled along the sidewalk.
“Hey Alvin, where are your glasses?” I watched his tawny eyes hop from the ground to me.
“Oh, them? I thought that tonight would be appropriate for contacts instead. Do I look bad?”
“Oh no, of course not. You should actually wear contacts more often. It shows everyone a little more of the real Alvin.”
He started chuckling. The sound seemed to bounce off the pavement and rang in my ears. “That was pretty funny.”
“How was that funny?” I spoke in a half laugh.
“No reason. I guess everything you say comes by me smoothly.” We stopped as his eyes locked with mine. Only seconds passed, but it seemed like time was being stretched out for what felt like infinity. I let on a tiny grin and forced my gaze away so we could continue. We had made it down to the edge of the street and started walking down the adjacent sidewalk.
“So where exactly are you taking me?”
“Somewhere special.”
“Uh huh…” I tried to think. Where would someone like Alvin take a girl? To the movies? The mall? A video game store? I racked my brain trying to figure all of the possibilities. I never had a chance to really get to know Riverdale when I first moved here. The best I could get was watching all of the buildings pass by as my father drove to drop me off at Lockwood. I couldn’t really classify last night’s mission as a sight seer considering I had my eyes shut most of the time. Riverdale was a richer neighborhood – I can give it that. Many of the houses placed down the street were nearly twice the size of a middle class house. The clean cement sidewalk was lined with rows of fence to enclose the different sets of property. Alvin suddenly stopped and I almost ran in to him.
“Are we here?” I asked trying to peer over the top of Alvin’s head. He was taller than I had expected.
“No, we’re not there yet, just stopping for a quick snack.” He winked at me and turned. It was then that I noticed we were standing at an ice cream stand.
“Alvin you don’t have to–”
“I insist.” Alvin handed over a couple of dollar bills to the tall man in the apron. He spun a cone around as creamy white vanilla twisted onto it. He handed one to Alvin, which Alvin handed to me. I bit my lip with a smile. As soon as Alvin got his, he continued down the sidewalk and I quickly followed.
“How’s yours?” I asked with a slight lift of my head.
Alvin seemed to sniff it before taking a large bite off the top twist of his cone. “Delicious as always. Marlow’s always has the best ice cream in Riverdale.” When he lifted his cone away from him, I could see a faded ice cream mustache over his upper lip and I giggled.
“You’ve got a little something there.” I pointed to his face. His tongue flicked out of his mouth and swiped over the mustache. It disappeared almost instantly.
“Is it gone?”
“Yup.” I took the first bite of my ice cream. The smooth, rich vanilla melted in my mouth upon contact. Its soft cooling sensation felt comforting in the humid evening and I closed my eyes to savor the flavor.
“Told you.” Alvin mused.
I opened my eyes to look at him. “Told me what?”
“That Marlow’s has the best ice cream.” He flashed me a smile and I shook my head.
YOU ARE READING
Destiny
Teen Fiction"Another new school. Another new life to get used to." This is hardly a change in routine for fifteen year-old Lexi Martin. For as long as she can remember, her and her father have always moved non-stop due to his job, and it's no surprise that it...
