Tetris in Red

31: Tetris in the Pier

31: Tetris in the Pier

Rhys

"If you must know, this is the most stressful date I've ever been in," I mutter in a huff, still upset about everything that happened in the past hour.

My hair is colored dark blonde like the last time but my make up and clothing are more understated. I'm wearing a white oversized shirt above some black shorts like Alec's. We also have black masks and baseball caps on. Basically like those Korean couples you see on Tumblr.

I take it one step at a time, but each step I take only keeps multiplying the anxiety that is already choking me.

Alec, with his badly made eyebrows, seems unbothered though. His relax arm firmly placed on my heavily tensed shoulders. "Relax, love. If ever someone recognizes us, we can just run for our lives like the last time."

I snort. "That's your plan? Genius."

He laughs loudly. "Aw. My date is bitching on me already and we haven't even gotten to the wine part."

"This is not funny, Alec. Can we just go back?"

"Nope," he says, popping the 'p'. "Stop thinking and act like we are only a regular couple. No one will suspect if you don't give them an idea. Just imagine you were a child prodigy who escaped a lab after being confined and experimented there all your life." He makes a sound of wonder, I can't help but snort. "Look at all these rides, Red. What do you wanna try first?"

He lifts my chin up to look at my eyes, his gray ones crinkling at the corner. I chuckle and shake my head. I guess he has a point. I'll stress over this the whole time if I wouldn't make an effort to enjoy it. "Did you tell Holland about this?"

He snickers. "God, no. He'll feed my ass to his chickens if I did."

I halt in surprise. "His chickens?!"

"Yes, love. Holland owns a chicken farm." I tilt my head, urging him to continue. "It started off with one chicken he bought from a farm market in Alabama where we were shooting a music video. Guess the chicken grew on him that he decided to buy a flock of seven chicks. He owns like a hundred of them now. He hasn't eaten that chicken, though."

A sputter of laugh comes out of me. "Oh my God, I didn't know that. I've been calling him chicken since we met. Why has no one bothered to tell me?"

"It was fun listening to you giving him shit for it."

"I would've not called him that if I'd known. That was too realistic and lessens the effect."

He laughs. "Why'd you call him that, anyway?"

I shrug. "His ponytail."

"Ahhh. There's also a reason why he grows his hair, but that's a story for another day." He gestures to the shops. "Come on, let's see if we'll see something we'd like,"

Over the next few hours, we rummage through the long line of souvenir shops. There's a band on the stage serenading the crowd with a chill-out song and we stop in front of it to listen for a while. Alec seems to be a little far away in his trip down to memory lane when I nudge him on the shoulder. He looks at me with a smile in his eyes and motions for me to walk to a cotton candy cart.

Alec bought a big, pink one for both of us. "What if I don't like pink?" I ask him, because he only came up and buy one without even asking.

He recoils, his eyes filling with worry for a moment before he shrugs."Well, I don't like pink either so I guess we both need to suck it up. It all tastes the same, anyway."

I chuckle. "You're the worst date I've ever had, I swear to god."

His eyes narrow. "I'm the most handsome one you've had. That makes up for it."

"You're so... so... ahead of yourself. "

He smirks. "Was I wrong?"

I pretend to think about it... hard. My eyes turn into slits as he looks at me, seeming nonchalant by the prospect that maybe he's not, in fact, the most handsome date I've had. If he cares, he doesn't show it. He only waits. I shrug and munch on the fluffy sweets on my hand. "I'll let you think about it and live your life without knowing whether you are or not."

He crosses his arms. "Well, that's just cruel. Admit it, now."

"Aw, poor baby. Aren't you such a spoiled one?" I grin cheekily before turning away from him. "Come on, I want to go to the aquarium."

x.x.x

We just visited the aquarium, rode the historical carousel and played arcade. We are approaching evening now, the lights turning on one by one until the pier is nothing but festive of colors. The crowd has already tripled significantly since we first step foot here that we are bumping shoulder to shoulder. I should be anxious by now, choking on it even, but I'm not.

Despite my earlier comment about Alec being the worst date ever, he's been the most fun I've had among all the men I've been with. He makes me laugh, does the stupidest things and it's been so easy to talk to him about everything and anything under the sun. I have to admit, I'm surprised that no one has recognized us. No one had even spared us a second glance.

We are just a regular Korean couple on a regular date.

Alec had managed to win me a large baby Yoda and a cute little monkey. I hug them to my chest as we walk to the Ferris wheel, our last and final ride for today. My heart is bursting with happiness I don't know what to do with it.

He walks backward while grinning down at me, a hand enveloping mine. He's still giving me that stare: so open, so warm, so inviting. He gave me that when we were looking through the shops and I found something I like. He did that when we rode the carousel and the wind is breezing through us. When we were riding the roller coaster and his arms were tight around me, and then when we were playing at the arcade and I became too competitive.

And every damn time Alec MacSweeny stares at me with that boyish smile and that twinkle in his eyes, it keeps on rendering me stupid that I can't help but stop and stare.

"Look at you," he says huskily. "You're a mother of a baby Yoda and a cute little monkey now. How adorable."

I chuckle. "Well, am I doing it right though?"

He pulls me to him, his warmth so inviting that I easily sink into his arms. "I have never seen anything so precious than what I'm holding right now."

I feel his nose burying into my hair, the tingling feeling traveling all the way to my toes. "Is that so?"

"Definitely so."

"You're being very touchy-feely, Alec. I'm not sure if I like this side of you."

His chest vibrates against my cheek before he leans back. "First, you couldn't admit that I'm the most handsome date you've ever had, which I know I am, by the way. Second, you don't like me being a clingy boyfriend? I must say, you wound me greatly, love."

I grimace at him mockingly. "Who said you're my boyfriend?"

"Do you have a Tylenol?"

I frown, suddenly concerned. I begin scanning him from head to toe, patting his body as much as I can for any wound with the stuff toys on my hand. "No. Why? Are you hurt?"

"Because you just injured my ego. It'll probably need surgery." He pouts.

An exaggerated scoff leaves me as it registers what he said. I walk quickly to the Ferris wheel with him hot on my tail, mildly irritated that he could get me so easily. I hear him laughing before I'm thrown to his shoulder, a surprised squeal escaping me. "What the hell, Alec?"

"Shut up for once, Red. Just shut up."