Why am I friends with you?

Strange encounter

"Sam please come downstairs to eat," begs my mum. I am not giving in though. There is no way I am consuming one off her unusually large home-cooked meals. I sigh, pop a piece of sugar free gum into my mouth and shove my wallet into my pocket. The stairs creak and groan under my feet as I jog down but I am not heading towards the kitchen. I get out the front door and run before my mum can come after me. She knows that I am just skipping dinner and will be home before it is too late. I slow to a walk after I turn the corner, I could be on the same street though, the houses are so similar it is like someone went copy and paste over and over again.

The shop is a km and a half from my house so it takes only 12 minutes to get there at my fast walking speed. It is a poor excuse for a shop though. Only Maccas, subway, a newsagency, Aldi, bakery, post office and a Chinese restaurant. The restaurant has an intoxicating scent that would lure most in but only disgusts me.

In my eyes, the newsagency is the only shop with potential. Mark's Newsagency has shelves lined with magazines and random nick-nacks with one section dedicated to crafts. I go to the crafts but skip past the coloured card and notebooks and go straight to the knives and blades. I choose the usual and walk back to the counter. Lukas is the only person who I have ever seen serving despite Mark's name being on the front of the store. I have even asked Lukas and he claims he is employed by a Damian. Oh well, this shop is just another great mystery of my life. Lukas shakes his head at me. He knows why I by the blades but there is nothing he can do except tell me to stop. Which he has, but it didn't work.

I take my purchase and head to the park, my plan is to make the most of my money before I get home because mum will probably search me. She can't do anything about already there cuts but she will take anything away from me as she can.

The summer sun has set but there is still a hint of twilight. The park is almost vacant except for a single person and there dog playing in the off-leash area. I choose a bench surrounded by trees and take a seat. I fall into the rhythm of slicing easily and don't notice when he approaches. The dog comes first, a mighty German shepherd jumps onto the seat next to me, scaring me enough to drop the blade and roughly tough my sleeve down. He follows. "Sorry buddy," he apologizes to me on the dog's behalf and the big thing licks my face. "It's fine," I reply as friendly as possible, "What's its name?"

"He's Asher and I'm Drew."

"I'm Sam," I reply. He is too friendly and good looking for my liking. His jaw is defined and his hair is a perfect match to his skin tone noticeable even in the dim light. The dog sloppily licks my face again bringing me out of my daze. "Asher no. Come here now." Shouts Drew, at the dog. "Anyway I better be going, bye" he says ending the weird encounter.

I trudge home under the crescent moon. The stars aren't visible hear thanks to the unrelenting light pollution from the city. The journey takes an extra couple of minutes thanks to the park being further away than the shops.

My mum greets me at the door, fussing over me and telling me how much she worried but it is not unusual since she does this every time I go. It is like her speech is scripted because there is nothing different to last time.

My stomach is rumbling but I still skip a trip to the kitchen and head directly to my bedroom, slamming the door a little harder than necessary just to annoy my mum.