「ABSENCE」 TMNT 2012

23; Coney Island

    If one were to take a girl on a date somewhere in New York City, where would one take said girl? Of course it would need to be a memorable place. Something for her to look back on fondly or years to come. It would also have to be impressive. Maybe something she's never thought of. Something colorful; pleasing to the eyes. A place that would flood her senses and make her want to go back. A place she would forever associate with the one taking her out.

    Lucas had been pondering this for days. He didn't want the evening to be too elaborate. But this was still a date, after all, so he had to put some thought into it.

    As he thought about it, the perfect place came to mind. She'd said before that she'd never been, and she wouldn't mind going. It was somewhere no one in their right mind could necessarily hate. It might me a bit cheesy, but who could resist the overrated atmosphere of an amusement park?

He and Karma had been texting back and forth nonstop since their first meeting. The more they chatted, the more it felt as if they had already been good friends before the introductions. A joke that sprouted in between one of their many conversation topics had encouraged the upcoming outing. They had both mentioned their single status at one point or another, whereupon Karma, with a laughing emoji at the end to eliminate the seriousness, stated, "'I think the rule of thumb is people who compliment each other this well are supposed to be a couple.'"

    "'Then I guess we better get started on that relationship,'" Lucas had added, chuckling 'irl'.

    "'I'm free on Saturday.'"

    "'I'll pick you up at 6.'"

He texted her about it again on Friday afternoon, saying, "'don't forget our date. Meet me on West 50th Street. We're taking the subway. Dress casual.'"

    When she asked if he was still kidding, he assured her he was not. So the date was made official.

    On the day of, Lucas meandered across the street from AMW apartments, keeping a lookout for Karma. As he approached the meeting place, he spotted her. She had just sat down on a bench to wait for him.

    Picking up his pace, he pushed through the crowd until he reached her. She saw him out of the corner of her eye and looked up. "Hey," she greeted. "How are you?"

    "I'm great. You ready?"

    She nodded and followed close behind him as they descended the stairs to the underground subway tunnel. It was a Saturday, so the amount of people was a significantly larger amount than on weekdays, making it tougher to squeeze through the suffocating bodies. But they made it though the gates and were able to find seats onboard the train.

    "Where are we going?" Karma asked curiously, leaning near Lucas' ear.

    "You'll see."

Unsatisfied with the simple answer she was given, she settled back in her seat to wait. If she were to be perfectly honest with herself, Karma hated this. She was always on top of things; always the one to know what was going on. It irked her to have no idea where she was going. If she pried hard enough, she could easily figure it out. But just this once, she decided to give someone the benefit of the doubt. It was unlike her, but she found she didn't mind Lucas' company, and she didn't mind that he had taken the time to plan this. It was flattering that he thought highly enough of her to spend time with her.

The subway screeched to a slow halt, gently shoving people onto each other while they struggled to sit straight. Lucas offered his arm for Karma to hold as they meshed with the rest of the passengers pushing for the exit. Both were used to the minimal personal. It bothered them little. But they had no desire to get separated on their first date.

    The evening sunlight blinded them temporarily as they stepped out of the tunnel and onto the street. Karma lifted her hand to shade her eyes, squinting at her surroundings. It was obvious they were no longer within the city, but on the edge. A seagull squawked overhead, and loud music bumped it's way to her ears. There was a buzz about the area. Children laughed. Ahead, looming in the sun and casting shadows before them, roller coasters and a giant Ferris wheel carried screaming people up, then down again.

Lucas glanced down at her as they crossed the street. She was still attached to his arm. But even though they walked together, he had to lengthen his strides to keep up with her quick pace. She stared up at the rides with an excited longing twinkling in the depths of the dark pools in her eyes. But they weren't as dark as he'd once thought. They glowed with an ebony backlight. They reminded him of every morning he sat at his kitchen table, staring groggily into his morning cup of coffee. So that's why he felt awake when he was with her.

"I used to come here every other weekend when I was a kid," Lucas mentioned wistfully after they had passed through the entrance. He shoved his hands deep inside his shorts pockets.

    Karma tore her gaze from the Ferris wheel. She hadn't looked away since they'd arrived. "Then what do you recommend we do first?" She inquired. "This is my first amusement park experience."

A grin like that of a boy making his first soccer goal spread across Lucas' recently shaven face. "Well, we could go play some games," he suggested, pointing to the rows of tents and booths.

Karma nodded and allowed him to lead the way to a typical hit-the-target game, where he payed a few dollars and picked up three, rubber balls.

"Wanna give it a try?" He held the balls out to her.

Her red lips quirked up at the corners. "Sure." She picked one out of his hand and tossed it up, letting it fall back into her palm before hurling it. The ball zipped toward the target and bounced off the center circle. She turned to Lucas with a challenging smirk.

Astounded by her show of skill, Lucas could only stare disbelievingly at the target. "Impressive," he mumbled.

The man running the booth chuckled and crossed his arms. "Think you can beat that, boy?" He chewed on a thin toothpick as he watched the youngsters.

He looked down at the two balls he held, then shrugged. "Yeah. Sure I can."

"What if you don't?" Karma teased.

"I will," he insisted, more to reassure himself. "Tell you what. If I get it on the first try, you buy me ice cream."

"And if you don't?"

"Then I'll pay."

She stepped back to give him space. "Sounds good to me."

Lucas took a ball in one hand, now more motivated to make the shot because five dollars were on the line. Focusing his gaze on the target, he pulled his arm back and rolled his wrist a couple times. Then he sent the ball flying with a powerful throw. It hit dead center, much to his relief. He pumped his fists in the air, muttering a victorious, "yes," under his breath.

    Karma reached out and tried to pry the last ball from his fingers. "Just give me one more chance to redeem myself," she begged.

    He laughed and shook his head. "You agreed to the deal."

    "You still get to pick a prize," the employee reminded.

    "Yeah, Karma," Lucas said. "At least you won a stuffed unicorn."

    Defeated, Karma rolled her eyes at him. "Actually, I'll take the bear, please."

    The man nodded and pulled it down for her. She thanked him and tucked the brown stuffed animal under arm.

    "Yeah. Thank you," Lucas called.

They walked to the ice cream stand, teasing each other, laughing, and shoving each other off the pathway.