Saturday – May 10, 2014

Three days.

Already, it has been three days since I had my second girlfriend. Karyl was a sweet girl. She was smart, pretty, adorable, giggly, demure, sexy (if I was ever into girls), a brunette with lovely waves in her hair, brown eyed (not as captivating as Alex's) and everything nice in the dictionary rolled into one helluva girl. I swear, she was sugar, spice and everything nice. But you know what was lacking in her?

Chemical X.

Yeah. If I were to spell that out, Karyl had no X in her. She was far beneath AleX. Now that boy definitely had an X to make him the perfect one for me.

However, it has also been three days since I last saw him. I may have lost some weight and still looked like shit, but I didn't care about any of that. I only wanted to see Alex. Despite that burning fire in me that kept telling me to go see him, I couldn't bring myself to walk out the front door of our house or to climb down my tree house and ride my bike to where he lived. It was like living in two different worlds for the both of us. We haven't been talking on the phone, too.

Sigh.

"What's eating you?"

And here's my ghostly company, Tom. An hour late and I so wanted to beat him for it. If I remember correctly, his hair used to be orange. Right now, it was fiery red. His emerald eyes still looked the same. Treacherous.

"I drowned two large cokes and ate two burgers and one large fries with another one right here," I told him, pointing to the untouched fries on the table. "It's me doing all the eating. Not the other way around."

He smiled and seated in front of me. He said, "Good for ya, bro. You look like you could use those extra pounds. You look like shit."

"I feel like shit."

"Well, how `bout we..."

"No," I cut him off, not wanting to dawdle for too long. "You said you'd help me. With what?"

"Deciphering the calendar," he said, sounding so cryptic.

"Alex's diary. What do you know `bout it? And what do you mean I only have the second half?"

"You don't know anything, bro."

"Well, fuck me for not knowing anything. Hell, I don't even know where Alex is right now or what he's doing or if he's already seeing someone else!"

Three days of frustration burst out of me like a breaking dam.

"Chill, bro," he said, leaning back into his chair and placing his hand on the table. Tap, tap, tap...went his fingers. "Did you ever keep a diary?"

"A diary? No. Why?"

"Not even a journal or anything like that?"

I shook my head `no'.

"You should start keeping one."

"What? You want me to write a diary?"

"Yah."

"What for?"

"For the other half."

"But I thought it wasn't a diary that Alex has. You call it his calendar, don't you?"

He sighed disappointedly. He leaned forward and ate one of my precious fries. In any other situation, I would've punched the hell out of him. Nobody takes my fries. Except Alex, of course.

"A calendar has days in it," he explained. "Diary basically means days. You know, the history of the word and all..."

"I'm not interested in any of that," I quickly said. "So you don't have the other half of Alex's calendar? I mean, diary."

"Nope."

"Then who does?"

"You."

The way he spoke...so precise and so certain...made me want to knock him out some more. His eyes stared directly into mine, as if he was trying to read what was going on in my head. He took another one of my fries and waited for something...something I couldn't tell.

"Dude," I said, eyeing him the way he eyed me. "Are you a fucking soothsayer or something?"

He laughed quite loudly and slammed a fist on the table.

"Damn, bro," he said, still fighting back his laughter. "I'm not a soothsayer. I'm just here to help you."

"Then why the fuck do you know what's happening with my life? Even my future life."

"Simple, really. I just listen."

"Listen?"

"Listen."

"To what?" I demanded, tired of playing mind games.

"To the wind, bro. It carries news from all directions."

"You mean, gossip."

"No. News. Try it." He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Hear that?"

"Yeah," I told him. "That's the sound of me leaving."

"I said, chill, bro," he calmly said. "Do it like I do. Close your eyes and listen."

I sighed and looked around. People were mumbling to themselves and staring at us. Two boys at a restaurant with their eyes closed and listening to I don't know what.

"Can you hear it now?" he asked.

"No," I answered, opening my right eye just a little bit to see if he still had his eyes closed.

"The wind is changing."

I felt like an idiot listening to a monkey. A few more minutes and I still couldn't hear anything.

"You're hopeless," he said and I opened my eyes to see him opening his, too. "Tell you what..."

"What?"

"I do the listening and you do the writing."

"What am I s'posed to write?"

"A diary, bro. I told you that earlier."

"Why do I..."

"You want the other half, right? Then write it down. Starting today."

"I don't understand any of this," I admitted. "You want me to write a diary?"

He nodded.

"...so I can have the other half of Alex's diary?"

Another nod.

"And how is that s'posed to help me?"

"Make it come true," he said, "change your own future and all that shit."

"As much as I want to do that," I said, "I only want to have Alex back. I don't care `bout anything else right now."

"You don't even know him that much, Michael. Do you really know who Alex is?"

"He's my...," I paused and lowered my voice. "...my boyfriend."

"That's a simple way of putting it. But you see, he's a powerful boy."

I gave Tom the what-the-fuck-are-you-talking-about look.

"He commands the wind and rides it so easily. He can make everything come true."

"Is he a soothsayer?" I asked him and he laughed again.

"Soothsayers foresee the future," he said. "Alex is more than that. He makes his own future."

"Well, duh. We all do, don't we?"

"He's different." Tom paused and looked down on the table. "You, Michael. You're only a part of Alex's world. You can't be as powerful as him and you know why?"

"Why?" I felt compelled to ask.

"Coz you're a pussy," he said, smirking as he did. "Want to make your future come true? Then stop hiding in your freaking tree house and get the hell out there. You're not a coward, bro. And Alex needs you outside."

I felt my blood boiling deep inside and my fist starting to hurt. Tom kept smirking at me and it annoyed me to no end that he called me a pussy.

"Alex took you out of your closet. Don't go rushing back in. Stay outside and enjoy the view, for god's sake."

I stood up to leave, but Tom held my wrist down firmly. His eyes looked scary and he looked to be burning with that red hair of his.

"Write down the things you wanna do. Focus on it and make it come true. That's all you need to do, Michael."

"Thanks for the help," I told him, implying my desire to leave. He still held down my wrist, however. "Let go."

"Ever wondered why I know so much about you?" he asked, his eyes searching mine for an answer.

"You're not a soothsayer. That's enough of an explanation for me."

"Hold on, bro," he said and let go of my wrist. He pulled out his phone from his pocket and started dialling. "Here. See who's on the other end."

"My mom?" I asked sarcastically and put the phone to my ear.

It rang for several seconds until someone finally answered. That voice...that oh so familiar voice.

"Tom!" he shouted excitedly. "Where are you? I miss you already."

I glanced at Tom who was now smiling in a twisted way.

"Tom? Hello? Are you there?"

My heartbeat sped up. My breathing became shallow and Tom was already halfway through my fries.

"Tom...answer me, please. I need someone to talk to. I miss you so much."

"Go on, bro. Talk to him," Tom said.

"If you're still mad at me for..."

"Alex?" I interrupted the boy on the other end of the phone. "It's you, isn't it?"

There was a very, very long pause and I thought that Alex had put the phone down. However, I knew he was still there. I could hear him breathing.

"Mikey? How...why..."

"It's me, Alex."

And just like that, the call ended. Alex didn't even say goodbye and he just left me there wondering what the matter was with him. I gave the phone back to Tom and sat down.

"I thought you never talked to him anymore," I said.

"He got lonely. I guess."

"So he is seeing someone else. And it's you!"

Tom sighed and rolled his eyes. I glared at him, but he just ignored it and continued with his snack.

"Don't you get it, Michael? Alex is lonely and he needs you. I'm just a friend. You mean so much more to him. Get the fuck out of your closet or I'll promise you that you won't see that cute birthmark of his anymore."

My cheeks felt hot. It may have been from my anger or from that tiny detail about Alex's dick. With that birthmark under it.

"He showed you his dick?" I asked lowly.

"We knew each other since childhood," he justified. "Of course he showed it to me."

"How do I know you're not fooling around with him?"

"I don't sway like you do. I promise you that."

I looked down at my fries and decided to eat some. When confronted with life's complexities and bitchiness, food has always been my companion. Though, I never get fat from consuming too much.

"Here. Take this."

Tom placed a piece of paper on the table. I knew what it was. It was Alex's list. The same one I saw on Valentine's Day.

"I don't have any use for it. You need it more than I do," he said

"What am I s'posed to do with this?"

"Finish it."

I took the list and unfolded it. I've read through this many times already, but there were some things that I failed to take a picture of.

"Do me a favour, will you?"

"What?" I asked.

"Prove to Alex that he can't make everything come true."

I stared absently at the long list. Down at the bottom, it said Goodbye. That was the only thing I wanted not to come true.

"I will," I said. "But first...Alex needs me."

"One more thing," he quickly added. "Don't try to stop what he has written. Only he can change it. Make yours come true and maybe he will change it. That's how you do me the favour."

Tom smiled as I got up and was about to leave. I sent him a questioning look and gestured toward my fries. He was still eating it so I just rolled my eyes and left it for him to finish.

"Thanks for the fries, bro!" he shouted as I went out the door.

It may take me half an hour to get back home. That wasn't a problem. I needed that time to think of what Alex told me back when we first kissed up in my tree house. It was on that fated New Year's Eve. The day he blasted me out of my closet.

And like all awesome ideas, my next move lighted a bulb in my head. I took out my phone and texted Pau and my girlfriend, Karyl. I needed their help anyway.

It took another two hours of preparation after I got back home. My mom wasn't around. She was rarely ever in the house during the summer, but she was always there to ruin what Alex and I had. Pau and Karyl arrived a few minutes after I got all the preparations done.

"A double date?" Pau asked doubtfully.

"Yeah. Karyl and I...you and Alex."

"Our first date," Karyl lovingly whispered. "Sounds fun."

I smiled at her and she blushed. She would've melted from the grin I gave her. It was pretty obvious that she adored me so much. And judging from the look that Pau was giving her, she would burn before she melted. If that made any sense somehow.

"Does Alex know already?" Karyl asked.

"Not yet. It's a surprise."

And it was quickly decided that our double date would be at the movies. Alex didn't like going to the movies for our first date, but I'll make him want to come with us this time. He won't have any choice and I needed to show him how the movies can be so much fun for a date.

"See you at the cinema," I told Karyl since she was tasked to retrieve Alex from their house while Pau and I got the tickets and popcorn and drinks.

While waiting for Alex and Karyl to arrive, Pau and I talked about what it was like to keep a diary. I thought it was reasonable enough for her to have one since she was a girl. I always thought that girls kept diaries.

"It's like writing a novel," she told me. "A different chapter each day. Sometimes, it takes several days to write down a page, but it's my own story."

"It's not weird for boys to keep a diary, right?"

"No, Mico. Not weird. It's just like any journal."

"Okay."

"You plan on writing one?"

"Uh...yeah. I guess so."

She giggled and I could see the twinkle in her eyes. "It's about Alex and you, isn't it?"

About Alex and me, I thought and nodded at Pau.

Soon enough, I saw Alex and Karyl walking into the cinema. My boyfriend looked oblivious to our little plot and he seemed excited seeing all the posters for upcoming films. Pau and I stood at the far corner, right where the entrance to Cinema 6 was located, and I felt sure that Alex couldn't see me from where he was approaching.

Pau placed her hand on my shoulder and I nodded. That was the signal.

She walked to where Alex and Karyl were and greeted them. Alex smiled at her and Karyl, so much to Pau's dislike, hugged her. They did the cheek-to-cheek thing and giggled the way girls do. Alex looked out of place in between the two of them.

Hurry it up, I told myself.

Karyl stole a glance toward me and I nodded gently. She told Pau something and the two girls soon left Alex on his own. Just as we planned, they'd leave Alex standing there in the middle of the crowd while they went for the bathroom. And that was my cue.

I walked away from the shadow and toward Alex who had his back turned to me. The popcorn and extra-large soda in my hands felt like dumbbells. My legs were like shackled to the carpeted floor, but I finally made it to where Alex stood alone.

I cleared my throat and was greeted by the look of surprise in his beautiful brown eyes. He was shorter than me like he had always been. However, he looked to be smaller right now. It was like he was letting the floor devour him up.

"M-mikey?" he stuttered.

"Hey."

He looked around nervously, perhaps searching for Pau and Karyl. Those two girls weren't around. So, Alex looked back to me and smiled shyly.

"I have some popcorn and soda," I told him. "Want to catch a movie?"

"That's too mainstream, big bro," he said, giving life to those memories of our first date.

"It'll be fun. I promise."

His smile changed to something more pronounced and genuine. He said, "Okay. Your treat."

"I only have one ticket," I told him. "I guess we'll have to share a seat."

He laughed and I soon led him back to Cinema 6. The movie was a comedy, a local film which also featured love. I didn't care much for it. I surrendered the two tickets I bought and let Alex go in first through the doors leading to the big screen.

"You said you only had one ticket," he accused.

"The staff won't let us sit together. I tried, but they insisted on me buying two tickets."

"It's not fun if we can't even be in the same seat together."

I pushed him gently forward, urging him on as we searched for our seats. It was on the second tier, right by the balcony overlooking all the other unoccupied seats below us. We sat and I placed the popcorn and extra-large soda between our chairs.

"At least we get to share the same soda," I told him. "One straw or two straws?"

"Two," he mumbled. "I don't want to catch your bad breath."

I punched him gently on the shoulder and the air around us quickly made us feel comfortable. Whatever happened these past few days, I didn't thought about. Alex was at my side and the movie was starting.

"God, I hate this movie," he commented just as the plot was being revealed. "It's like an advertisement and there's not story in there. Look!"

I looked to where he pointed.

"See? They're advertising their sponsors! This isn't a movie. It's a two-hour-long commercial."

Ah, my lovely Alex. He hated the movies. That was a given. He hated it more when commercials took over the plot. I shrugged and sank into my chair, my body leaning toward him.

"I know what you're doing, big bro," he whispered.

"I'm not doing anything."

He looked at me accusingly and his lips made that ever adorable pout. I smiled at him, picked up a popcorn and poked it at his lips.

"Try it," I said.

He opened his mouth hesitantly and I pushed the popcorn in. The look on his face as he chewed was like that of a child being forced to eat. He was insanely cute.

"I like it," he said.

"I know you do. You like anything sweet."

He smiled gratefully and we went back to watching the two-hour-long commercial. We took turns sipping from the two straws dipped into the soda cup. Alex went first. I let him. Somewhere in the middle of the commercial, we both got lost in the scene and found our heads bumping into each other.

"Ow!"

"Sorry," I said and quickly brushed his hair to one side to see if I injured him.

"I'm okay, big bro."

I turned to look into his eyes. My hands were still on his soft hair, his head was lower than mine, our eyes were locked into each other and I knew that both our hearts were beating the hell out of our ribcages.

The distance between our faces was inevitably shrinking. We were both drawn to each other. I couldn't stop myself from once again tasting those lips that only Alex possessed.

And whoever said that a kiss inside a theatre is too mainstream? To hell with that. I only cared about how soft Alex's cheeks were and how I missed having him like this.

"Took you long enough," someone from behind us said.

We broke the kiss and looked toward the person. Our supposedly dates, Pau and Karyl, were watching us curiously. They were both blushing and giggling. They, too, had a popcorn between them, but they had different soda cups.

"You don't look like shit anymore, Mico," Pau pointed out.

"You, too, Alex," Karyl added.

Alex and I glanced back to each other and smiled. We sat back into our chairs and enjoyed the rest of the commercial. The credits rolled and my right hand rolled along Alex's thigh. That kiss left me longing for more.

"You're horny," Alex whispered once he leaned toward me. "God, I missed you, big bro."

"Me, too."

"Thanks for taking me to the movies."

To my surprise, but I really shouldn't be surprised, Alex placed a shy kiss on my cheek. He smiled sweetly when I looked at him. Our popcorn still had lots left and we didn't even finish our soda. Alex stood and took my hand, leading me out of the theatre.

"So, where to next?" he asked when we exited the cinema.

"Huh?"

"You're too obvious, big bro. You planned on a double date, didn't you? You and Karyl, Me and Pau."

"Uh..."

Pau quickly interrupted, "Right, Alex. It's a double date and I think me and Karyl need to get our hairs done. Maybe our nails, too."

I looked quizzically at her and she just nodded at me. She took hold of Karyl's arms and led her away. Karyl didn't protest. It looked as if Pau was easily turning her into a fangirl.

"That leaves you and me," Alex reminded. "Where to, big bro? And I promise not to fall asleep on our date this time."

I smiled at him as we walked to nowhere in particular. The mall was huge enough to leave us wandering around for minutes without saying anything to each other. And as much as I tried to hide it, there was still a little bit of awkwardness in our silence.

"Alex took you out of your closet. Don't go rushing back in. Stay outside and enjoy the view, for god's sake," Tom's voice echoed in my head.

Ironically, we were walking down the path outside a furniture gallery. Chairs, beds, tables and lots of other stuff lined the window. And, of course, closets of different sizes and menacing finishes.

I sighed and secretly took hold of Alex's hand. He didn't even look at me and wondered what I was doing. He didn't smile or relax. It was as if he didn't feel a thing. I tightened my grip for a brief second and received a quick squeeze in return. He did feel a thing.

"Want to get some ice cream?" I asked him when I saw a Gelato stand up ahead.

"Still your treat?" he asked back.

"Always."

He giggled and led me by the hand toward the stand. He ordered chocolate and so did I. A very common flavour, to my opinion, but it was the sweetest when I ate it with Alex. We even had the guts to switch our Gelato cones and finish each other's ice cream. We both looked silly with chocolate colouring our tongues and lips.

"I missed you so much, Alex," I told him once again while we were leaning against the rails that overlooked the ground floor of the mall. "I'm sorry I couldn't go see you."

"Don't worry. I understand your mom's a bitch."

I laughed in agreement.

"Say...," I paused, not sure whether to continue or not. "You've been talking to Tom?"

He froze and I think he stopped breathing as well. He licked his ice cream once before staring back at my expectant gaze.

"He's a friend."

"You miss him. That's what you said on the phone."

"I do," he admitted. "I didn't have anyone else to talk to and...I guess he was just there for me."

"And for me," I added.

"Huh?"

"He knocked some sense into me. I finally know what to do."

"What?"

"I'm waging war against my mom."

Alex looked at me funny. There was disbelief in his eyes, but I fired back with my own determined look. I tried hard to ignite something in my eyes, perhaps a fire that Alex could see.

"You're serious?" he finally asked.

"100% sure."

He looked back down to the ground floor. He licked his ice cream once again and I did, too. All those people walking below. All of them...what were they all thinking? Did they care that there were two boys looking down on them with one boy hopefully waiting for his boyfriend's support in the war he's about to start?

"I'm in."

"Thanks," I mumbled and reached for his hand once more. Then, raising my ice cream cone forward, I said, "To victory!"

"To victory," Alex said and mimicked my gesture.

I lowered the cone and finished it.

"That was the best goddamn ice cream ever," I said.

"I know what could top it off," Alex suggestively mumbled. He winked at me and I felt like cumming in my jeans from how he blushed furiously.

So without waiting for Pau and Karyl, we took a ride back to our subdivision, went to Alex's house and ended up with nothing separating our skins while lying on his bed.

"W-wait," he mumbled in my lips. I drew back and stopped kissing him. "We need to pick something out from the jar."

I got off him and saw how hard he still was. It seemed that he didn't mind and just stood to get the jar from a nearby table. His butt wiggled as he walked which, I thought, he intentionally did. My erection only got more painful and I wished with all my heart that we'd pick out have sex with my boyfriend this time.

"Your turn," he told me when he got back on the bed, sitting cross-legged.

I had to tear my eyes away from his dark spot before picking something out from our jar. I crossed my fingers and slowly unrolled the paper.

have s...

My heart was beating really fast and I could feel my dick anticipating the next letters and words.

have some ice cream while cumming

My expression went blank, my dick was still fully anticipating the sex thing and I could feel my already flushed face gaining more and more colour.

"So?"

I showed it to Alex and he laughed and blushed, his dick rocking with his laughter.

"You wrote this, didn't you?" I asked.

"Yep!"

"We just had some ice cream earlier and we're already naked on your bed. Getting more ice cream means getting dressed and..."

"No problem, big bro," Alex interrupted. "I think we still have some ice cream left from last night's dessert."

"And?"

"I'll get it and you just wait for me here."

He got off the bed, but before he could take one step toward the door, I grabbed his arm and looked at him seriously.

"You're not wearing anything."

He giggled and said, "We're alone in the house."

Oh, right. His parents did say that they were just leaving when we arrived. I let his arm go, but it was then that I noticed the mischievous look he was giving me.

"Now, what?"

"Ever went around naked in your house?"

"When I was little, yeah. Why?"

"In someone else's house?"

I looked at him strangely and answered, ever so slowly, "No."

"Then this is your chance!"

He quickly yanked me off the bed and dragged me out of his room. My dick was still up, but it felt like it was slowly turning flaccid. Being led by Alex, I could see his bubble butt smiling at me.

"Cute butt as always," I said over his shoulder.

"You can't have any of it," he replied. "Not yet."

We ended up in front of the fridge and Alex took out what was left of the ice cream they had last night. It wasn't that much, but it sure was enough for some fun.

He scooped a little with his two fingers and held it up to my mouth.

"Lick it."

I poked my tongue at his fingers before swallowing them.

"Tastes good."

"I don't like vanilla that much," he admitted before scooping some more onto his fingers and licking it himself. "But I don't really mind."

"How `bout we go back to your room now?"

"You're kidding, right?"

"Huh?"

"We're alone in the house, Mikey. We can do it wherever we want to."

The way he spoke sent shivers down my spine and woke up my dick. It throbbed in anticipation again and Alex was quick to put some ice cream on top of it. I hissed from the coolness and thought that he just killed every nerve on my precious glans.

"Couch or floor?"

"Couch."

We headed to their living room and he set the ice cream, which he scooped into a glass earlier, on the coffee table.

"Hey, Alex," I said as we sat. "Ever wondered who's seme and uke between us?"

"Who's top and bottom?"

I nodded and he looked deep in thought.

"No. Not once. Did you?"

"Yeah. I mean, it doesn't really matter, but...I just thought of it once."

"And which did you prefer?"

"Top."

He smiled and wrapped his arms around my neck, pulling me down on the throw pillows lying on the couch. I moved my leg over his waist and locked his hips between mine. He kissed really hard when we were finally lying down with me on top.

Teeth, tongue, cheeks and gums.

I remembered that from a commercial on TV. Right now, that was exactly what we were doing. Our hips grinded onto each other, my dick rubbing against his. Who would've thought that missing Alex this much had quickly made me want to cum?

"Not...yet," he mumbled and broke the kiss. "Ice cream."

I got the glass from the coffee table and was about to eat some, planning on kissing him with the taste of vanilla, when he told me to scoop some onto his chest and tummy instead. I obliged and drew a line of vanilla down his chest and circled his navel. He flinched a little from the cool sensation.

"Hot and cold," he whispered. "Shit...my dick feels soooo hot right now!"

"Want me to lick it off you?"

He nodded and I quickly descended on his body, kissing downward from his jawline to his navel, careful not to get ice cream on my chest and to lick him real clean. Vanilla and Alex. Two of the most wondrous flavours on earth.

"Put some on my dick."

I wondered how he felt when I put vanilla on his sore dick and when I made an ice cream cone out of it. It must've felt good since he kept pushing his hips upward and I tried hard not to choke before I made him cum.

And god, he tasted so good.

I popped his dick out of my mouth and crawled backwards, pulling his butt along with me before going over one side of the sofa and having his legs drop over the edge. His cute butt rested on the armrest and it was such an erotic and beautiful sight. That curve in his back, the look in his eyes and the steady salute of his erection.

I moved in between his legs and lapped him up, from his exposed glans down to his nuts. I spread his butt and licked down there, too. He kept moaning and writhing and calling out my name in sporadic and hoarse breathing.

I resumed with the blowjob, leaving his butthole occupied with my fingers dipped in vanilla ice cream. Hot and cold, I kept thinking over and over again.

Vanilla right up inside his ass.

I didn't hear what came out of his mouth when his seed came out of his dick and shot to the back of my mouth. Was this a variant of vanilla? Tasted sweet. Perhaps from the ice cream earlier, but it also felt hot.

"That was the best," he said exhaustedly. "I missed you so much, big bro."

"You haven't been jerking off since we last had some fun, have you?"

"How'd you know," he asked and stared up at me.

"I almost choked from your cum. Waaaay too much."

He giggled and rested his head back down. "You should really try it."

"Try what?"

"Ice cream inside your butt."

"Yeah? How'd it feel?"

"I'll show you," he answered and quickly pushed himself up.

He had me sit on the couch while he knelt on the floor, giving himself a taste of vanilla ice cream with some of my own syrup. And we did clean up afterwards.

~*~*~*~

Thursday – May 15, 2014

"Okay, first phase," I started and showed Alex the blueprint of the war we were about to start with my mom. "Introduce Karyl to her. As my girlfriend."

"Make it believable, okay?"

I nodded and moved down to the rest of our plan.

"I'll even ask her to marry me if I have to."

Alex giggled and slapped me gently.

"It hurt," I mumbled.

"Huh?"

"You know, when you slapped me that other time just to get me to agree with getting myself a girlfriend."

He shifted his gaze away from mine and looked troubled. I felt guilty, having brought that up. I knew he didn't like what he did, but I just had to tell him that it hurt a lot.

"Sorry," he mumbled.

"I can't be mad at you, Alex. If you want to slap some sense into me, I don't mind getting hurt."

"I won't do it again," he said as he looked back at me. "I promise."

"We can't be so sure. Just promise me that you won't hold back when you really feel like slapping the hell out of me."

He smiled and I knew that he agreed right away.

"Second phase," I continued. "Flame you in front of her."

"Make it believable," he kept reminding and I kept nodding.

We made our way down to the last phase and that was the most crucial of all. Alex took out the piece of paper we picked out from the jar earlier and taped it onto our blueprint. That was the last phase.

"Cosplay," he read and we both nodded in agreement.

Rolling up the blueprint, which was really just a worksheet from my dad, I put it back in my bag and we both relaxed on the cool grass. It was a cloudy day and the breeze felt good up on the untamed grassy ground overlooking our neighbourhood. I felt sure that my mom knew where I was, but she couldn't have known that Alex was with me. We were behind a large boulder and I was sure that whatever binoculars she had, she couldn't get a good view of us.

"It doesn't matter if we lose the battles," Alex mumbled as he moved closer to my side.

"As long as we win the war," I finished before turning my head to look at him. "For victory."

"For victory."