-Three Years Ago- He was still kissing me passionately, more than anything I have ever experienced. He placed his hands on the ropes of the swing to move me closer to him. He continued to press his rigid lips on mine. I drove my hand to the side of his face, stroking tenderly. My heart began to pummel as Alan began to stand up, bringing me with him, but we maintained to kiss. His hands went to mine and our fingers intertwined. What is this, like, second base?

“Violet?” a voice intermittent our ostensible make-out scene.

Alan pulled away from me, staring at the dark figure on the porch. The figure dropped their beer can against the cement causing liquid to splash.

“Violet, what… what are you doing, Violet?” the figure asked, coming towards Alan and me.

The stature was Frank.

“Violet, answer me.” Frank came in between Alan and me, shoving Alan with his elbow.

“This is Alan, Frank. Alan, this is Frank.” I waved at Alan trying to ease the tension. I smiled apprehensively.

“Violet, we have to leave. I have to show you your birthday gift.” Frank began to tug on my arm.

“At this moment you have to show me? Can’t you see I’m busy?” I raised my eyebrows.

“Busy being permissive,” he huffed.

“That was uncalled for, Frank,” I bellowed.

Frank turned around to face Alan. “It was nice meeting you Alan.” Frank raised his hand, forming his hand into a fist.

“Frank, no!” I screamed before Frank’s fist smashed into Alan’s jawbone.

Alan dropped to the ground with blood running from his nose.

“Oh my God! You dick,” Alan shouted, touching his fingers to the side of his face.

“Frank!” I bawled, running to Alan’s side. I picked him up off his feet. “Alan, are you alright?”

Alan, without delay, punched Frank in the face. In wrath, Frank hit him back, but Alan blocked his blow and thumped him in the eye. Frank soared to the ground.

“You’re crazy!” screamed Alan. Alan spitted on Frank and walked away, leaving me to clean up the mess.

Frank lolled on the ground, holding on to his eye with his hand.

“Frank, what were you thinking?” I cried, slouching on the ground beside him.

“What did I do?” Frank wheezed, sitting up.

“What did you do? What did you do?” I laughed. “Are you serious? You just punched a guy for no motive at all, got in a brawl, and you act as if you didn’t nothing wrong. I can’t believe you did that. I’m in shock, honestly.”

“You don’t even care that I got injured, do you?”

“Why should I care? You interrupted a licentious, sweaty, hot moment among a guy I just met ten minutes ago to beat him up. I don’t know, Frank. I’m bewildered and I could care less about your eye.” I glanced down at Frank who was looking at me. “How’s your eye?”

Frank dropped his hand and glared at me. “Okay,” he mumbled.

“I’m not finished yet. How dare you call me permissive as in a slut!” I stood up. “That’s not fair, Frank. I knew this was a terrible idea to come to this party. It’s your fault.”

“My fault?” Frank asked, struggling to get to his feet. “All I wanted to do was take you somewhere, but you had to be difficult and make me wait. It’s not fair to me, Violet.”

“It’s my fucking birthday!”

“We’re leaving.” Frank jerked on my arm. “Come on, Violet.”

“I’m not leaving till we reconcile this-this argument of what’s fair and not.” I rested my hands on my hips. “Your eye is swelling up, Frank.”

“Stop being fucking bipolar,” he shouted. “One second you’re screaming at me for being wrong or something and now you’re treating me all nicely. I’m sick of your tactics.”

“I’m not using any strategy of mine. I wasn’t aware I had any when it came to variance with my friend.” I blinked and tears rolled down my cheeks. I sat on the swing set again, sniveling.

“Are you crying, Violet?” Frank questioned, concerned. He came over to me, getting on one knee, and placing his hands on my knees. “Violet?”

“What?” I blubbered.

“Do you want to go?”

“You go. I’ll stay here. I don’t want to be with you.” I wiped my nose with the back of my hand.

“I can’t leave you here when you’re vulnerable.” Frank positioned himself on his feet.

“I’m not susceptible. If I was, I wouldn’t do this.” I lifted myself off the swing and slapped Frank across his face. “There, I just smacked your lack of common sense off your face.”

Frank looked wounded interiorly rather than exteriorly as he held his face with the palm of his hand.

“That’s it, let’s go.” Frank whispered. He picked me up and threw me over his shoulder.

“Frank, you’re idiocy is driving me insane,” I yelled, kicking my shoes.

He brought me to my car, bringing my feet to the car.

“Where’s your car keys?” he asked, holding his hand out.

“You have an engorged eye. I’ll drive,” I murmured.

“You’re drunk, Violet.” His voice was so flat and filled with no emotions.

“I am not. I can handle myself. You can’t see so I’m driving.” I hopped in the driver’s seat and waited for Frank to get in the passenger seat.

I started the engine and pressed my heel on the gas pedal to drive. It was night and I could barely see the lines on the road.

“I take it we are not going to the other side of town now,” Frank mentioned.

“No, we’re not,” I responded. “I’m taking you home. We’ll have to do it some other time when we’re not pissed at each other and in rage.”

“I don’t know why you slapped me.”

“You’re illogical, Frank. I’m sorry you don’t understand that you’re hurting me more than yourself.”

“I still want to give you your gift though. It’s vitally important. I will probably die if I can’t tell you.”

“Tell me what?”

There was a century of silence before Frank said:

“Tell you that I’m in love with you.”

“You’re what?” I asked, alarmed. “No, no, no. We’ve been over this. We can’t have these feelings.”

“Violet, men and women can be merely friends without temptation of sex and etcetera. It’s just that… It’s not going to work for us. You know it, I know it, and the whole world knows that we keep progressing to a pair of charming lovers.”

“Lovers,” I repeated. “You did not just say the word lovers.” I quaked at the word. “That is sick, Frank. Lovers,” I said again. “Men and women might be bonded by sex, but not us. No way, Frank, no way.”

“Maybe we just had this attraction for a long time.”

“Stop getting all quixotic on me. I don’t want to hear it.”

“I’m just bringing up the topic.”

“Well, let it go.”

“Do you feel the same way?”

“Do I feel the same way about what?”

“Now I wish I never told you.” Frank shook his head. “You ruined my evening.”

“Frank, you know I love you. I am desperately in love with you. I’m just frightened to take our friendship to the next level.”

“The next level? It’s a whole new level, Violet. It’s a whole new system of levels.” Frank sighed. “What are you telling me?”

“I’m telling you to let it go. It was a burden, and now it’s not. There’s not much more inside your chest, but it’s worth more than what you see.”

“Every burden has a version in somebody else, Violet,” Frank stated.

Notes

The last two sentences are from an Acamedy Is... song.
But yesssss there ya go.


-christy-