My Biggest treasure

7

It was already around midnight, but it was Friday and he had managed to leave an hour earlier. By variation and counting that Tobi had hit them like a limpet, they did not end up going to the usual bar, but a tavern adjacent to the main road from Kuri to Sunt; it was a dump known as "The Red Cloud." At least it was full enough to consider having a few drinks without the risk of being caught in a raid during the health inspection.

Although its usual place, it could be considered as an extra-luxurious bar compared to the decadent building of "La Nube Roja". There was a turntable that still played the odd record (if the damned, moldy artifact didn't throw it away) and an attempted mini-bar. Six rickety tables and a scratched pool table filled the rest of the space.

The question of having come was based on the insistent comments of Tobi - whom they had not seen for fifteen minutes, in a sudden exit to the bathroom, according to him - And Shis had supported the motion only if Santino accompanied them; They needed a designated driver.

And he did not refuse, he had enough trouble now with watching Shis's loudmouth risk him spreading the most valuable information with whatever living being put in front of him. If Luke, or worse, his father was to find out about such a thing, the best thing would be to be well dead and buried.

Once Tobi had gone to who knows where almost as soon as they arrived, Shis tackled that topic that had become taboo during the previous days. Santino didn't deny it, it was stupid to do so and he was no longer sixteen or seventeen years old. He was a grown man and he had to face things as such.

Fixation, he had said to himself at first, but it wasn't that either. He noticed, that Sunday and the last time he had seen him, his faint blush.

An evocative gesture. Lovely.

And the last detail, that box of dangos. Beyond the gift itself, it was the intention that stood out. A large part of him - probably the "automatic" - had already accepted and digested reality; he was in love.

Stupid and nonsensical word, but that's the way it was.

And the other side; Conscious and irrefutable, he argued and denied the situation, now expressed in the words of his cousin.

He could not and did not want to think about it. He was no longer a child, he had made many important decisions in life, and not by simple genes, he was in charge of the company. He had to face reality, open the boil, try to live with the healthy pus… or simply try to pop it.

"I keep thinking about her," he murmured almost to himself. "I like her."

Shis noticed that he even seemed to be smiling. Santino rarely did, not even when he was dating Hana. Likewise, how to articulate more than three words in a single sentence.

"Now I've seen it all ... Okay, but then don't say I didn't warn you," Shis said resignedly. He rolled onto his shoulder, noticing a young man a year older than him, frizzy black hair and orange contact lenses. He smiled conscientiously without him or Santino noticing — It was about time, here comes Tobi's airhead, let's go. Let him pay the bill.

XXX

Sunday morning passed like all others in Kuri, with the only difference being that the "Yama Flower Shop" business had closed its doors to the public for the only time on that particular morning.

The reason could be seen in the barely audible hubbub on the first floor of the building; in the living room of the Yama domicile, specifically.

"Ne, I can't believe this." Jax leaned his elbows on the table. He had narrowed eyes and a curious tantrum grimace. "How is it possible that the bastard is not coming ?!

Alexa simply nodded her head, as she diverted her attention from Jax's accurate incrimination, noisily stirring the ice from her glass of lemonade.

"Well, I call that a complete lack of sensitivity and courtesy." How improper! - Yanai replied - If Sail did that to me on my birthday, she would send him with a direct kick to the moon.

A boy as pale as candle wax sat beside her.

"I would never do that," replied the aforementioned with a terse voice and a flat smile.

"Nah, if I saw the bastard ...!" Jax got up, putting one foot on the chair and outlining a crude imitation of a heroic pose.

"Jax…" Karen, gently pulled him by his shirt sleeve, silently motioning for her to sit down.

"No problem, seriously," Alexa interrupted. "Luke had to help with some things in the morning, but he would pick me up in the afternoon." He planned to take me to dinner.

Jax sat down again, arms folded and nodding at Karen's shy gesture. No one spoke for a split second.

Alexa shrugged, feeling the weight of her friends' gazes on her. As every day and almost predictable as the answer had sounded, this time it was more than half the "truth". 

This time she was right, completely and irrevocably. The day before, after being late because of Jax and his "extra-important emergencies", she (she used to call incidents like losing her house keys, leaving her phone forgotten somewhere, or similar childishness). She returned home, finding a small collection of unanswered messages in her cell phone inbox. 

There were only three of them, but considering the peculiar sender, there were too many. They all had the file from Luke's phone. She barely dialed the digit when the callsign was pierced. It was him and there was nothing extraordinary in his tone of voice or his monosyllabic expressions, she didn't even notice ups and downs when she mentioned her proposal for tonight. 

Typical. 

And today, the only call she got was from Jax and it was from the other side of the door of her house.

Alexa came downstairs listening to the scandal made by her partner. The words "surprise party" were so clear on his face that she looked like she had a phosphorescent ad. Still, she tried to fake some confusion when she got to Yanai's house. 

Being Sunday and holidays maybe something else could have been improvised, but after the last economic ups and downs by Jax, the season of excessive sales for Yanai's family and Alexa's moods, the "meal between friends" seemed the right thing to do. most suitable option. A few bottles of soda, a home-made barbecue for twelve (there were seven in all, but considering the bottomless stomach of Yanai and Shin's classmate Chou Mishi, it seemed to have been little), some music and a simple cake The classic "homemade" was more than enough. 

Karen and Yanai had spent a third of the morning doing it, though Yanai spent more time threatening Jax with making him see stars if he ever found a single trace of his "unseemly" fingers in the shoe polish.

"Anyway, it's utter rudeness." At least he could have come even to make an appearance ... ”Yanai said, running his hand over the knob of the radio, looking for a station. He played two instrumental music and stopped on a fuzzy signal; the voice of the three o'clock newscast sounded fuzzy, amidst waves of interference. 

"... And after this first robbery of the month," Taro's Autoservicio "will close its doors until further notice. The store employee, who ended up with a leg injury due to an intentional shooting, declares not to have seen the signs of the attackers and they left no trace. The loot was deducted from the two thousand four hundred ryo contained in the box. The public prosecutor of Kuri affirms that ... "

"Bleeh, I'm bored by the news." She faked a yawn. The noise from the interference ceased, along with the transmission. She turned the knob and the distortion of the sound focused on the chorus notes and the second verse of the ballad hit "Long Kiss Goodbye" - Mjum that's better.