uncool, stanley barber

fs: 3

third of the filler series:
the date that will go down in history

"how about a date?" stanley asks me, leaning against the lockers. the warning bell had just rung, students not in any rush to get to their first lesson.

"a date?" i ask, switching my books around. "that's what normal people do."

"well, then. how about being normal for a night?" he asks, looking smooth in his sunglasses, indoors. may i emphasise, normal.

"it sounds intriguing" i smile, closing my locker and leaning against it. "where would we go? what would we do?"

"leave that to me" he says, planting a kiss to my nose and skipping down the hallway to his class. i shake my head at him, my heart radiating with warmth.

the whole day, my mind was occupied with date night. what could you do in brownsville? there's a diner, but everyone's eaten there enough times to know the menu by heart. nevertheless, i don't doubt his idea. stan the man with a plan.

my shift at the bowling alley isn't until 8, so i was curious why stan didn't ask me to arrange the date earlier. we know each other's schedules, but i guess he'll want to do a date in the early morning, like 3am. that's his version of normal.

as i trudge into the bowling alley, i realise the lights are off with the door was shut. i know the alley closes at 10:30 on weeknights and so it was peculiar that it's already dead.

walking inside, i stop in amazement. the whole bowling alley was lit up with tangled fairy lights, streaming across the ceiling and around the booths. the shoe collection desk had a couple of plates with food, like sausage rolls and pringles. one bowling booth had a table cloth and a game set up with 'els' and 'stan.'

and there he is. stan pops his head up from the booth, a cheap bottle of alcohol in his hands whilst he had a bow tie around his uniform collar. "mi lady."

i walk over, dropping my bag and jacket to the floor as i take in the scenery. "stan" i smile, standing opposite him. he hands me a flimsy bit of silver ribbon for a headband, so i wrap it round my head. this is his lovely idea of formal wear with our work uniforms. "you've really out done yourself."

"so, it's not everyone's date destination" he quirks his eyebrow at me, us taking a seat in the booth. "but, it's personalised. and i thought you'd like that."

"stan, i love it" i hug him as i cuddle into his side. "i love you."

i feel him press his lips onto my forehead, where the ribbon is, and mumble "i love you too." then he turns his attention to the bottle of alcohol. "fancy some?"

"yes, please" i settle my head on his shoulder. stan screws the top, like you would champagne, when suddenly a cork flies across the bowling alley, denting the ceiling. "uh, oh my god!?"

"yeah, let's not tell gladys" he smirks, pouring the liquid into some plastic cups. "let's also not tell gladys we've got alcohol in her alley."

i giggle with him before we start a bowling game. me and stan are quite good at bowling, but we're more competitive. he got a strike and i looked away from his dancing celebration. "mkay. whatever, curly."

"you know you love me."

when i got a strike, he rolled his eyes and dismissed it like i had. but i kept dancing until i decided to straddle his lap for attention. and for a bit of fun.

"stanny, are you not proud of me?" i ask, my words dripping with innocence. this is purposeful as i know it's gonna drive him crazy. i bat my eyelashes at him jokingly.

"ella" he breathes, holding my thighs trying to control himself. "jesus, the things you do to me."

"i know" i tease, before i kiss his cheek and try to get up. but stan's grip on me had prohibited my actions. i arch a brow a him. "oh?"

"can't we just make out instead?"

i think about the offer, knowing all i want is to do exactly that. so, i propose a deal. "we can do that. but only if you say that i win."

he rolls his eyes as his head drops back. "for god's sake, els. you really are something" but i don't kiss him until he caves. "fine, you win this game."

we crash our lips against each other, enjoying our decision to finish the game. his kiss intensifies as i allow his tongue to battle mine. i wouldn't say we've had a thing about dominance in our relationship, but tonight's different.

after making out for 12 minutes, enough time that i made him moan 3 times and he made me groan 4 times, we go and get some food that he's prepared on paper plates.

i wondered where he'd disappeared to whilst i finished my cold pizza slice, until i heard the music. blasting and blaring are bloodwitch, so we both jump together, letting ourselves be loose. with the stress of school and the stress of syd's unpredictable powers, it was nice for us to head bang and be complete morons.

the music changes to 'total eclipse of the heart' where things get really dramatic. we ended up on our knees, pretending to beg the other to love them. air grabs and pained expressions were pretty key for our performance.

the song ends and changes, so we just stare at the dented ceiling and hold each other's hands. we're too knackered from our emotional ballad that it's best we just listen to 'africa' instead of dance it out.

"you had a good date?" stan asks me, kissing my hand and fiddling with my knuckles.

"oh, stan" i exhale, turning to face him. "this date will go down in history."

i'm back babayyyy
well you know, inspiration struck
crazy shit's happened to me this week and baso, my dad was arrested last night which was freaking weird.
everything should be chill, just a lot's going to change
anyway, i hope quarantine's not too shit for you all, lov lov lov you all