Two of a Kind

Fate

Alex brought an old baseball outside and played some catch with his grandparents' old dog, Rusty. He was about to go inside, when he saw an unusual face walk into the saloon. The town was small, and Alex knew everybody there. He didn't talk to them, except for Hayley, who often kept him company at work.

Alex was intrigued. The town was so small, a new face could change the whole dynamic.

He went inside the house, taking the now slobbery baseball with him. He threw on a clean white tee shirt, and his nicest boots, instead of his painfully dirty sneakers.

Everyone was allowed in the saloon, no matter your age, unless you wanted to drink, which only a few people did. It was the only restaurant in town, and he often went there for a soda, which he couldn't get at home.

He saw the boy in the corner, talking to Shane.

"Of course", Alex thought.

Shane was in college, he was a gridball player, and pretty popular in town. He was cold, but if you could get past that, you would fall for him fast. His crooked smile paired with his cool purple hair almost made him irresistible to both guys and girls.

The new guy must have known him from somewhere, they were laughing and talking like best friends.

"Hey Alex!" Shane called, "Come sit with us, I'd like you to meet Kyle!"

"Oh shit," Alex thought

Shane must've seen him staring, which he was doing. Alex was always drawn to Shane, for whatever reason. But this new guy, Kyle, had some charm to him. He smiled a cute, gapped-tooth, smile at Alex from across the saloon, and Alex knew he should sit, instead of refusing Shane's offer. He would get to know both of them better, which was great for him.

"Haha, hey Alex, I'm in a great mood tonight. Kyle over here got me some pepper poppers!"

Kyle blushed, "Well I mean I tried to talk to him earlier and he was like, I don't wanna talk, I just want peppers, so I went over to Gus and got him some,"

Alex laughed, this new guy was funny, and pretty charming. His red flannel made him stand out from the wooden saloon walls, and his freckled face was pleasing to look at.

A few minutes of conversation passed, each guy adding their own stories and charm. Alex realized he was getting along great with Kyle. They laughed at each other's jokes, and Shane eventually left them alone, saying he had to get up early the next day.

"So Alex, where do you live? I wonder if I've seen your house yet?"

"I live right near here, just a minute away,"

"Ah cool," Kyle said, "Maybe I could stop by tomorrow, you could show me around town, unless you're new to town too," he laughed

"No!" Alex said, a little too loudly

He saw Kyle's face fall, and knew he had to apologize.

"I mean sorry, no. My house is just a mess, and I just-"

Kyle stood up. "No, it's fine. I get it. I should go, it's late."

Alex trudged home. He knew he messed things up. How could he ruin what felt like his first real friendship in this town so quickly?