From A to Z

R

With the Initiation Rites of his fraternity finally over, Adam invited Zach to visit an amusement park. At first, Zach turned down his offer and reasoned that he was not fond of rides; but after incessantly begging, coupled with his natural charm, he was able to get his friend's agreement.

It has been a month since he decided to distance himself physically from his friend and this trip was the way he thought to make up for his sudden absence. Although Zach did not seek any compensation or, at the very least, a proper explanation from him, Adam still felt compelled to do something. Besides, he missed seeing his friend.

Zach looked nice with his simple clothing: an unbuttoned blue plaid polo worn over a plain white shirt, paired with black shorts. As he sat on the passenger seat, his shorts were pulled to the middle of his thighs, exposing his smooth and slender legs.

Although he was used to Zach's silence, Adam could not help but feel bothered by it for some reason. His silence could not be caused by his clothing since he was only wearing a plain white shirt, brown chino shorts, and a white cap turned backwards. He wanted to wear a sando because the weather was too humid for a shirt with sleeves, but he thought that his well-built arms may appear too imposing to his friend. He did not want him shying away from him. Was he still bothered by his final project? Did he make some progress over the past month? He recalled that Zach has never mentioned about this project of his and Adam also did not raise the matter, afraid that it was a topic that his friend did not want to talk about.

"Are you sure you're alright?" he asked Zach for the nth time as he parked the car outside the amusement park. "We can postpone this trip if you feel unwell."

Zach turned his face towards him and smiled. He even closed his eyes to make it look sincere, but Adam has seen how his real smile looked like that he knew very well that what was being shown to him now was fake.

"I'm just thinking about... things," Zach answered.

"That's why we're here: to take away those things off our heads even for just a day."

He reached for Zach's hair and tousled it. Zach shoved his hands away, chuckling. Adam bit his lip to suppress his grin. He finally managed to make him laugh.

Holding out his hand, he said, "Give me your phone."

Zach's forehead furrowed. "Why?"

"I will put it here in my belt bag."

Adam lifted his shirt to show the brown bag wrapped around his waist. Zach abruptly looked away and handed him his phone. Adam scratched his head as he took it. He must have raised his shirt higher than he intended to.

"Can you..." Zach cleared his throat. "Can you also keep my wallet? I'm afraid I will drop it if I keep it in my pocket."

"Sure, but just to be clear, everything is on me."

Zach handed him a small purse with an inawin design which Adam tucked inside his belt bag.

Adam felt thrilled when he heard the screams coming from the Tower Drop. He could not wait to ride that again. It has been three years since Adam has been in this place; and in that last visit, he was still with his ex-girlfriend.

The two of them had a "mandatory" photo in front of the man-made lake with The Grand Carousel in the background. It was Betina who said that their amusement park experience would not be complete without having a photo with the centerpiece of the park which is The Grand Carousel.

After the photo, Adam spread out the map handed to them at the entrance.

"Which ride do you want to try first? We are... here." He pointed at their current location on the map. "Do you want to try the Tower Drop? It's not far from here."