To the Beat of My Heart

A Taste For Oblivion

Everything is slopes. Slopes and rises, a proper workout for the legs, calves, everything. It's not enough that this bloody city is hilly, there's a literal sandstone cliff that dwarfs everything else, reminding you there's more climbing to go. But hey, Ansel looks alive at least.

He leads the pack, and, get this, Kai is glueeeed to his side. I can't make out most of what they're saying, but Ansel snickers a few times. Those snickers become chortles. Then full out bellowing and I feel like my eyes can't open any wider. I squeeze Clay's hand, nodding their way.

"Can you believe this?" I whisper. Clay grins.

"At least they're not yelling or shutting down around each other. This is a win."

"Yeah. Maybe."

After another minute of silent walking, still enrapt in watching the happy couple, Clay leans over, whispering in my ear.

"Fifty quid they hook up tonight."

"Don't need to bet. I agree."

Ansel stops occasionally to point out some museum or shop and I can see Chelsea is itching to visit them all. I want to tell her to run off, but I know she'll protest. With the group, or not at all.

As we venture into the market square, Ansel gestures at the old town hall, a stone manor, sticking out like a sore thumb against all these wooden buildings. Gothic, a saddle roof, sporting a face painted in clusters of ivy. He tells us about how he climbed the ivy as a dare from his friends, a grumpy old security guard screaming for him to get down. When the guy started to climb after him, Ansel laughed so hard he lost his grip and fell on top of the poor man. Bones were broken. The police were involved. He was eleven. He got off with a scolding and his parents stopped giving him shit a month later.

"Actually," he giggles, "ma and pa like to tell guests when they are over. They're proud!"

"I knew you were a bit of a wild one," Kai exclaims, roping an arm around Ansel's neck, nuzzling his head with his knuckles. He starts to pull off the beanie when Ansel grips both ends sharply, yanking down. That just spurs Kai on further and he starts throwing himself at Ansel. Ansel squirms and whips his head down and away. Kai is spry and leaps after him. He gets one fist on the hat when Ansel screams enough. Kai backs off, palms raised.

"Shit, sorry, mate."

Ansel's cheeks are flushed, eyes tiny and glistening with tears. "Please don't. I don't like it."

"Got it. Fuck, man. I swear, I'll respect your space."

Ansel watches him with that same cold glare I've come to know well. Usually, it gets my heart panging but now it almost feels right. Finally, a bit of normality in this batshit insane reality we live in now!

Things die down a little after that. It's not long until Kai says something which has Ansel thoughtful. So, tensions are down. Great. This is a rollercoaster, seriously. I try and put them from my mind, and I call out to Chelsea. I ask what she wants to do, talking over her when she starts saying this is our trip, not hers. She mentions, almost shyly, the Seilbahn Thale Ski lift and the railway line. Ansel overhears us.

"Ja, we can do the ski lift. Um... railway is closer. If you really want to see my home."

"We do," Chelsea and I say in unison.

"It's kind of far away... and a day thing. How long are you guys staying?"

"There's no set limit yet," Chelsea says.

Clay chimes in, "We were thinking at least a week."

"You don't need much more than that," Ansel says. "There isn't that much to do here. That's why we usually go out of town."