Ice Cream

Robert wishes for ice cream and gets something better.

Robert’s head felt like it was being crushed in some medieval torture device. It had been throbbing all day and there was no aspirin in sight. The lights of the bus might as well have been small suns, and every time the bus stopped, they got brighter. This particular bus seemed to make an inordinate amount of stops. All Robert wanted to do was go home.

He suddenly found himself thinking about ice cream. It had been a muggy June day with the sun beating down hard and no relief in sight. It was slightly more bearable now that the sun had sunk down, but still he thought of ice cream. He wondered if two scoops of mint chocolate chip would cure his headache. Whatever the cure may be, it did not lie in a rumbling bus or the loud girls who sat near him, engaging the entire bus in their gossip.

Ice cream and a boy. Robert smiled a bittersweet smile. If only the two came together.

The bus stopped and Robert ducked his head down, trying to avoid the stinging ultraviolet light. He felt someone sit beside him and briefly glanced up out of habit, slightly surprised to see a young man about his own age next to him. The first thing Robert noticed was the boy’s fading green hair. It reminded him of mint chocolate chip ice cream and he smiled.

The boy smiled back, a wide sunny smile. The kind of I’m-glad-to-be-alive smile that Robert saw so little of these days.

“Hi,” the boy grinned, brushing some hair from his face. It was then that Robert noticed the sides of his head were shaved close, golden hairs just barely peeking up.

“Hello. I’m Robert.” He didn’t know why he felt compelled to tell this boy his name, but he did all the same, unable to keep his eyes off the other. He had eyes as brown as chocolate.

“People call me Johnny,” the boy said with genial nod.

Robert thought this was appropriate and was reminded of Johnny Ramone, only more colorful. He gave a gentle nod and smile in Johnny’s direction, watching him pat at the thighs of his ripped jeans. Robert was terrible at small talk and even worse at trying to talk to strangers, but still he felt compelled to keep conversation up with Johnny, who seemed the most interesting thing he’d seen in ages.

“What’s your favorite kind of ice cream?” he asked, a sheepish smile on his lips.

“Umm…” Johnny tilted his head and frowned as though it were a matter of grave concern. “Cookie dough!”

Robert smiled because Johnny smiled, and it was infectious.

“I like mint chocolate chip, myself.”

Johnny gave a thoughtful nod to this. “Yeah, that’s pretty good too.” He picked at something on his threadbare black shirt and rubbed at his nose.

“It’s sad, you know. I haven’t had a good scoop of ice cream in forever,” Robert said after a moment, wondering if Johnny was secretly thinking of him as the creepy guy who wouldn’t shut up about ice cream.
“Really? Oh man. I get ice cream like all the time! You ever have those waffle cone things? They’re f*****g great.” Johnny looked like an excited kid just talking about it, and Robert couldn’t help but love his enthusiasm.

“Food is probably my favorite thing ever,” he continued with a laugh, watching Robert, who looked like an old movie to him, all dark features and pale skin. Black and white. Cookie dough.

“I know it doesn’t look like it.” He raised skinny arm and shrugged.

“Food is pretty good, yeah. I mean, it’s essential and everything,” Robert said, feeling overwhelmingly shy compared to the boy beside him.

Johnny was looking up at the front of the bus to the sign that told them what street they were on, and made a face. “Stop’s coming up soon,” he said, frowning some as though he wanted to stay on the bus forever.

Robert gave a nod, quietly disappointed that he couldn’t talk to this boy longer. And he knew he’d never have the courage to ask him for his number. It would just remain one of those distant memories, he supposed.

“Wanna get ice cream with me?” Johnny’s voice pulled Robert from his thoughts.

He was smiling that wide smile again, and Robert really wasn’t sure he could say no. The shy part of him went into overload, coming up with excuses in the back of his head. I’m busy. No, I really shouldn’t. Got this big headache. Need to get home before it gets too late. Oh, f**k it. Robert, when was the last time a cute guy asked you to do anything?

Robert managed his best sunny smile in response to Johnny’s and nodded. “Sure.”

The bus pulled to a stop a few moments later after Johnny leaned over to pull the cord and the two of them shuffled down the aisle and out the door, hit by the warm kiss that was this June evening. Robert looked around him, trying to figure out exactly where they were. It wasn’t terribly far from his own apartment, but still an area of the city he’d never really explored.

Snapped again from his thoughts, Robert felt Johnny’s hand on his, tugging him down the sidewalk with a laugh. “Come on, before they close!”

They got to the ice cream shop and Robert watched little kids with their families, licking up dribbling chocolate from their cones and hands, and was reminded of his own youth. He filed into line with Johnny and turned to look at him, finally getting a good look at the boy. There was a line of silver hoops up one ear, and his green hair was hanging messily in his face. Robert couldn’t help but smile. Johnny didn’t seem concerned with trying to fit into some subcultural model of cool. Rather he seemed to just do the things that made him happy, which was refreshing.

Robert was far less colorful than Johnny, and he thought they must look rather contrasting next to each other. He wore a lot of black, which was foolish in the summer, but he did it all the same. Even his hair was black and it hung down around his ears without much style to it at all.

“So what do you do?” Johnny asked, hands sliding into his back pockets as he watched Robert.

“Oh um, I work at a book store. Nothing very interesting.”

“That’s really cool! I’m kind of between jobs right now.” Johnny gave a shrug and Robert wondered how hard it was for him to get a job with hair like that. It made him sad, really, that employers still put so  much stock into what a person looked like versus how good they were at doing their job.

They chatted idly while waiting in line. Robert found out Johnny was in a band, which didn’t really surprise him much. Johnny promised to let him know when their next show was so Robert could come without Robert even having to ask. Johnny found out Robert was going back to school in the fall as a film major and asked if he could be in one of Robert’s movies.

When it was time to get their ice cream, Johnny ordered for them and pulled out a wrinkled five dollar bill to pay for everything. He waved his hand at Robert, dismissing his half-hearted protests and handed him his mint chocolate ice cream cone.

Together they settled down on a bench, quietly savoring their frozen treats. Robert couldn’t remember the last time he felt this genuinely happy. Since meeting Johnny not twenty minutes ago, he had become all smiles and his headache seemed to have reverted to an occasional dull pain. He hadn’t stopped to worry what might come next, just settled back and let Johnny navigate things. It was a nice feeling, not having to worry.

Robert stared up at the stars, or what he could see of them past the bright lights of the city around them. They were faint, just beginning to peek out and Robert smiled at them, wondering what they thought of these two boys. He wondered if they even noticed them at all. Surely their lives were but a moment in the life of a star.

He was so trapped in his thoughts that Robert barely registered the warm feeling against his lips. It was Johnny, and his lips felt soft and perfect. Robert turned into the kiss blindly, feeling Johnny’s tongue swipe out hesitantly. Robert’s heart felt like it might burst out of his chest, and he couldn’t say that he would complain if it did. Johnny pulled back after a moment and smiled sheepishly to Robert.

“I was right.”

“About what?” Robert asked, frowning lightly.

“You do taste like cookie dough.”

“You taste like mint chocolate chip.”

They both laughed, shyly, and looked at each other again. This time they both leaned in, kissing each other and secretly hoping it never had to end. As far as Robert was concerned, it never would, for every time he had mint chocolate chip ice cream, he would be reminded of a sweet punk boy with green hair and a smile brighter than a June sun.
 

Author's Note

This is my first venture into writing after a long absence, so don't be too harsh.

Reviews

[N]

Who would be harsh? This was very well written, especially for your first venture into writing after an absence.
Your dialogue is great! Also, your characterization is good. I feel like you put a lot of thought into Johnny and Robert's characters.
The imagery is amazing; you use so many details and I can see the entire story in my head.
And, the ending was very sweet.
Great job!

[Fadra93]

It was so cuuute! I loved it. :]

[BrokenStaR]

OMG who can be harsh reading this??? :O
its damn good i mean it! ;)
you related the story like as if it was in a movie, i could picture each scene! that was great!!
also the part with the sarcastic jokes actually made me laugh.. ;) especially during that bad phase of my life, it made me dream about it.. and what if this happened again?! :P ill be looking forward to read your next stories coz i think they are really cool and descriptive, i read the other one too, but didn't comment!! yet, i truly think they are really good!! keep it up!!

[Dianah]

I really enjoyed the tension in this. The dialogue is very realistic and keep the reader fascinated. I don't normally read short stories on here but I would like to read more of your work.
'Surely there lives were but a moment in the life of a star'
Lovely. You are a natural story teller.

Dianah

[CLUTZ]

beautiful......

[DaGirlNxtDoor]

haha loved the title! it was a very good piece! KEEP ON ROCKIN!!!

[Gabriella]

First of all you should know that I am a very tough critic though I may have no right to be. Second, I might be in love with this story. You created chemistry, like goddamn, in a way that I can only ever hope to learn to do, and you paint an amazing picture with words here - I am in agreement with the review below me, I can see this. The entire story is so real and so sweet. Oh, and you spell checked it, which is more than I can say for about half the people in writer's cafe! Please keep writing - you are talented and I am not just saying that.