The Art of Life and Love: The First Spark Chapter 2 [mm]

SPRING
May15th, 2010: Saturday
~~~~~~~
Dillon awoke as the usual stupid Coolio song Gangsta’s Paradise blasted from his phone. Of course it meant he had to get up for stupid tech school. He wanted to sleep in on Saturdays like the rest of America! What highschool students didn’t sleep in on Saturdays? Him, apparently. As he got up, he sighed and dismissed the alarm.
While it sucked that he had to wake up so early and he might grumble about it, but he really did love tech school. It was fast paced, but once Dillon went into chef mode, it relaxed him. Just to be able to do the thing he loved for hours a day calmed him. It was an escape from everything else in life. It could get so insane in the kitchen that he had to divert all his mental energy just to keep up. At the same time, he learned a lot, experimented, tried new things, met tons of awesome people, and honed his skills and muscle. To be a chef required strength for certain tasks, and to carry heavy bulk ingredients.
Dillon went through his usual morning routine, and headed out to the bus stop after he bid his folks farewell as they started to get ready. He liked his morning routine. It was a constant, something that brought some stability to his otherwise chaotic life. Dillon started his typical walk to the bus stop, which was another constant. Although, there was a variable now. A couple random mornings a week, Dillon would wake up extra early so he could leave early and say hi to Tony. It was cool to see what his current project was. A lot of Tony’s jobs were small things that he fixed in a day or two. Things like dinged up bumpers or doors, and broken mirrors, so he worked on a different project each time.
That morning Dillon was able to leave a good twenty-five minutes earlier. Since it was Saturday, it was a hit or a miss as to whether Tony would be there. He didn’t work every Saturday. It was usually when he was busy or behind on work. Dillon still woke up Saturday mornings quite early to see if Tony’s garage was open. It was a fun start to his morning. They had a lot of fun and laughs, and they’d just hang with their coffee for ten or fifteen minutes before they started their day. Dillon was still ecstatic that he had found a new friend. At this point, that wasn’t triggered often, at least not yet, since Dillon now cared about him as a person. As he got to know him and his personality, he didn’t really care about that. Tony was awesome and Dillon was grateful for his friendship.
The shop roof was visible a few blocks away, and Dillon checked his phone for any texts. Surprisingly, he hadn’t checked it since he woke up. Tony and he had exchanged numbers the afternoon they met. They only texted here and there, but that was probably for the best. He had other things in his student and social lives to worry about. There were no missed texts, but that didn’t mean much. They were already pals. They made eachother laugh like crazy sometimes. Tony was a cool dude and a good friend.
Friends they might be, but Dillon knew he had to keep his distance. He couldn’t lose a friend because he was sick in the head with that. He could control it, but in his mind or when he was alone, it always came out. Dillon didn’t know why this attraction had gone on as long as it did. Usually, even if he knew the person, he’d get bored and move on to the next hot guy. He was a teenager, and his libido could be incredible sometimes. Dillon struggled sometimes with his attraction to Tony. It had started to make him feel guilty. This guy was Dillon’s friend, and he thought of him like that? He felt like he objectified Tony in his mind. It made Dillon feel dirty and twisted. He was disgusted with himself. Why couldn’t he be normal like other guys?
Dillon turned right off of Chestnut Street onto Main Street, and walked a couple blocks up the road towards the shop. It was a fine day. It was in the mid-seventies and party cloudy, with a nice light breeze. It started to smell like summer, and it had Dillon pumped up to go to the beach. Wildwood, New Jersey was the epitome of vacations to him. He could spend all day in the ocean. It was one of the few things that he looked forward to all year. Just the thought of summer and the beach combined with a beautiful day had him in a good mood.
As he got close enough, his heart skipped a beat when he saw Tony’s garage door open. ‘Sweet, he’s here!” Dillon thought excitedly. After he turned into the lot, he saw Tony’s head pop up over the trunk of some Subaru without a front bumper or side mirrors. The paint job had flaked off in some areas and had faded with age. It didn’t look to him like a one ot two day job. Tony smiled when he saw him approach.
“Yo Dill! Mornin’ brother! You’re early today. What’s up?” Tony shook his hand.
“Dude, ahahaha! Did you just call me Dill? I don’t go by Dill to many.” Dillon laughed with a look of mild shock.
“Yea! I heard your friend call you that at the school. So since we’re friends, I get to call you Dill, right?”
“I- sure, I guess so? Haha maybe I’ll use it more. Although, it’s also the name of an herb used to flavour pickles and salmon. It’s kinda nasty.”
“Oh shit!” Tony’s face fell.
“What? What’s wrong?” Dillon asked curiously.
“That’s why dill pickles are called dill pickles! Mind blown.”
“W-wait you- you didn’t know that? Hehehahaha! Man, everyone knows that! You been on this planet for twenty years and you just made that connect?” Dillon tried his best to not breakout in a fit of laughter.
“Whatever, I’m sorry I ain’t a dill pickle expert over here! I never heard of the herb before, ok? I just eat ’em, I don’t know what’s in ’em ‘sides cucumbers.” He said defensively.
“Fair enough. Twenty years though, tisk tisk. Imma have to school you in food!
“Ugh, can it ya’ shitty brat. Don’t you have daycare to run along to?” Tony scoffed.
“Well yea, but I have to get my weekly brat quota in by midnight tonight. Or else I might be mature!” Dillon said in horror.
“I’m glad you see what an irritant you are, heheheh.” He chuckled.
‘Exactly! Haha.”
Dillon loved their morning banter. Tony’s sense of humour was very similar to his. He could get just as raunchy and problematic in humour as Dillon was. Tony stood up as he wiped his already greasy hands on a shop towel.
“Coffee! S’go!” Tony waved Dillon in and he followed
Dillon checked his phone as he followed Tony and saw he still had fifteen minutes to get to his bus. He was already almost there, so he had a good seven minutes to chat it up. That was cool with him, though. Dillon viewed even a minute with his friends as precious, in stark contrast to two months ago, where he wanted only solitude. He may have a complicated home and social life a lot of the time, but he still loves his friends and family. Without them he surely wouldn’t have made it this far at all. Tony and Dillon went through the garage, through a set of double doors, and into what appeared to be the wait area and registers. They walked up to one of those Keurig single cup coffee makers.
It was ironic to Dillon that a place that usually had the worst coffee like an autoshop actually had some of the best coffee he’s ever had. The Keurig machine was awesome, and the variety of coffee pods they had was crazy. All the different pods were all individually placed on a rotatable wire tree that had small little wire cups all over it. Dillon wanted one. Dillon really wanted one. He was a coffee fiend, especially around midterms and finals. Probably the best of the coffee pods he’d tried was some caramel vanilla dark roast. A sixteen ounce cup of the coffee, twelve Splendas, and lots of vanilla creamer and he was set. Unfortunately, Tony had the taste of a dead sewer rat, because he only drank it black. In Dillon’s view, it’s sewer water. Only people over the age of fifty drank black coffee. It was nasty.
They talked back and forth for the last few minutes Dillon had about what they were up to that day. Dillon wanted to ask him if he wanted to hang sometime, but he nixed the idea. He decided to let things happen naturally. If Tony wanted to get to know him, he’ll be there. Dillon wouldn’t chase him. He checked his phone again, and saw he had to head out. It was a bummer, but he said his farewells and shook Tony’s hand.
Once Dillon was back outside, he put his earbuds in to listen to the radio app on his phone. Right after he hit play and was about to slide it in his pocket, he felt it vibrate twice. Kat had probably texted him that the bus showed up early, which only happened a few times a millennium. Naturally, it would happen to him today. When he hit the power button on the side of his phone to turn the screen on, Dillon raised his eyebrows. There were two texts from Tony on his screen, which he opened up while he walked.
Tony 6:53 AM: Yo man its nice hangin out with you seriously. I wanna thank you to for being my friend and noticing me i guess? Im still new round here and i appreciate it.
Tony 6:54 AM: You wanna maybe chill later today? I know im an older guy so i get it if you don’t.
Dillon cocked an eyebrow. That was quick. He had thought that the hang out stage wouldn’t happen for another couple weeks. Not that he had a single complaint. Dillon cracked a crooked smile and slid his phone back in his pocket. He’d answer him on the bus. Right then he needed to not be late to it, so he picked up his pace. Finally he saw Kat as she leaned on the stoplight pole in her purple hoodie. She didn’t look happy, which was normal for her in the morning. Usually she pepped up by the time they made it to their spot in the foyer during the week, but she could be extra grumpy on Saturdays. When he made it to her, he noticed her long auburn hair, which was usually kept down, was braided. It was odd of Kat to do anything with her hair or face. She was a hardcore tomboy and Dillon loved that about her.
“Dude… did you really braid your hair?” Dillon grinned and raised his eyebrows.
“Dont fuckin’ start Dill! It was my niece. She did it last night, and my mom told me I couldn’t take it out this morning ’cause it would “hurt her feelings”.” She said in air quotes.
“Aww you’re a good Auntie! Bet you can’t wait to be called ‘mommy’ someday, eh?” Dillon snorted.
“No, I’d feel too bad for accidentally washin’ my child with the dirty laundry.”
“Love how matter-of-factly you said that, haha.”
“Eh, I speak matter-of-factly when it’s a matter of fact, of course!”
“It’s kind of surprising you’re in the Nursing program, have I told you that? You’d probably kill someone out of shock with your ‘matter-of-facts’!” He snickered.
“Many times. At this point, I’m only doin’ it to prove you wrong! I’d only shock them into faintin’. At the most I’d get reported!” She retorted. “In awfully good mood today, aren’t oui? I’ve noticed that recently, too. Tell me on the way home.”
“What? T-tell you? How did you know?” Dillon asked nervously.
“Oh, I didn’t. You just told me! We’re talkin’ about it on the way home, k?” Kat winked at him.
Kat was too clever. He’d have to be cautious around her with what he says. If he’s not, then Kat would probably be able to easily deduce that. It annoyed him. Largely because he fell for her stupid trap. Dillon wouldn’t fall for the same trick twice. On the other hand however, would Kat even care that he was sick with that? Dillon oddly felt an urge to tell her. She was the closest thing he had to a best friend with Dominic gone. Perhaps he should learn to trust in his friends more. Kat had only ever been supportive, never judgemental. Should he do it? Should he tell her? He’d think about it. Maybe on the way home.
Just then, the bus rolled up and released a loud hiss as it stopped. The door slid open, and got stuck three-quarters of the way, like usual. They were in a city that wasn’t exactly well-to-do after all, so a lot of things that needed to be fixed wouldn’t get fixed. It may have not been the best neighborhood, but it was his home. He loved his home, even if they wouldn’t love him back if they ever found out about that.
He scanned the bus to see what his seat options were when he boarded. Kat took her usual place next to the emergency exit window halfway down the length of the bus. They very rarely sat together in the morning since they listened to their music and didn’t talk anyway. That’s another thing he loved about Kat. She wasn’t a clingy friend and needed her personal space just like him. There was no pressure for either of them to be all chummy, either. It was a simple friendship. Simple, but strong. Two qualities that Dillon needed more of in his life.
Dillon typically sat as far in the back as he could. It was an ingrained habit to avoid the bus’ camera, because on the bus home he, Kat, and some buddies would mess with the bus driver and the other students on the bus. What could he say? It was good entertainment on the way home. For example, one time Kat rolled her chapstick all the way up and flicked it from the back bus into the bus driver’s perm. She didn’t notice until the next day when she’d apparently slept on it all night. The vice principal went back to look at the camera footage, but because of the the town’s terrible mismanagement of public maintenance, the camera was broken. The broken part blocked Kat, Dillon, and the others from view. Everyone knew that they’d done it, but when confronted with the video the first time, they easily talked their way out of it. The best part was they didn’t manage to get the camera replaced for another three months. It was a grand time.
Once Dillon had claimed the second to last seat on the left, he yawned as he pulled out his phone and swiped it open. What should he say? He couldn’t just ignore it out of nerves. Tony had mentioned he moved here from Pittsburgh. Dillon had told him about the area and all about the school. Kind of like a student chaperone. Dillon could imagine how tough it could be to adapt and fit in to an unknown area. He stared at the text and scratched his chin. That second one was a doozey. Tony seemed like a confident alpha type person, yet he seemed just as nervous about Dillon’s acknowledgement as he was about Tony’s.
The fact he was worried that Dillon might turn him down because of his age warmed Dillon’s heart a bit. It felt like Tony was just as happy about their friendship as he was. The thought that Tony was worried that he’d be turned down promted Dillon to action, and he started to formulate his reply.
Dillon 7:18 AM: Haha no worries man we’ve all been new somewhere, right? I could thank you in turn. I care bout you dude you’re age means nothing to me. I’m game to hang with my friend anytime :D
Tony 7:21 AM: Sweet youre a pretty cool dude. If you wanna swing by the shop im here till 4. Chef me up somethin good!
7:22 AM: Im feelin somethin chicken!
Dillon 7:24 AM: Yea, that sounds dope! I get home around 2 since its Saturday. Haha bitch you gonna pay for it? Fine if you want chicken, go slaughter one and bring it to me de-feathered lol.
Tony 7:33 AM: Cool i look forward to it. Hey careful what you offer! Haha ttyl.
Dillon felt equal parts surprised, nervous, and elated. He wondered what they would do. He got home at around two, and Tony will be at the shop till four. That gave them a couple good hours. Or would they do something after? For now, Dillon put it out of his thoughts. He had to worry about school and that stupid talk he was supposed to have with Kat. Dillon knew that once Kat fixated on something, there was zero chance she would let it go or forget. At the same time, he felt a rush of affection for Kat. She noticed and cared enough about him to fixate on him in the first place.
The bus arrived at the tech school at almost a quarter to eight. Once Kat and he had said their farewells till that afternoon, Dillon went into chef-mode. One of his favourite modes. The typical Saturday lesson was to simply run the restaurant and kitchen, basically by themselves. Dillon thought it was a sadistic joke the teachers had invented. They got to watch a bunch of stressed student chefs go insane with the workload while they did nothing. It was really busy on Saturdays, too. The students’ families came in to the restaurant to see what their kid could do, which put even more pressure on them. Well, aside from Dillon, who was in chef-mode and immune to panic.
It was busy enough that their six hour shift had flew by. Next thing Dillon knew, the head chef warned them all they had to wrap up their current tasks and clean up. Each student got a different thing to clean every week, and with twenty-six students total, cleanup didn’t take that long. Often times they were done with time to spare, and were able to snack on the extra food. Though, Dillon had ‘sampled’ his ingredients and dishes the whole time. He was a bottomless pit and he needed the extra calories to sustain chef-mode. Dillon would eat anything delicious no matter how much, and he was proud of it. It was a terrible habit for a diabetic to have, but the allure of tasty things was too strong. So he just compensated with insulin later after he checked his blood sugar. A lot of times it was fine if he didn’t compensate, since fast paced physical work could lower his blood sugar, too. Dangerously low if he wasn’t careful.
On the way out after they had been dismissed, Dillon followed his usual procedure and shook his carpentry buddies’ hands while they walked out to the busses together. Who knew what kind of trouble they’d start today? If there would be any, since Kat wanted to play therapist. As Dillon and his buddies talked and started down the automotive corridor, he was brought back to the day he met Tony. He had been so terrified and nervous, because Tony had been in his fantasies for a while. He found him very attractive, and Tony was exactly his type. A man with a low, smooth voice, some muscle but some softness as well. Dillon was drawn to his lightly tanned skin and eyes. The thing that Dillon was most crazy about were his chest and belly. The guy dripped masculinity constantly. Tony was one of those contactor type guys with the thin beater tank tops and tan steel toe work boots. The kind that catcalls to chicks as they pass by, which Tony had actually done a couple times.
Tony’s personality was quite cocky. He had the vibe of an alpha male, and was definitely a womanizer. Dillon thought at least part of his bravado and confidence were defensive mechanisms. Tony had shown a touch of insecurity with his texts earlier that morning. That’s fine with Dillon, though. He couldn’t pry. Tony had to open up of his own accord. If he pressed him at all, he could push Tony away. Either way, that bravado and confidence still worked on the ladies. He seemed to have a new girl on his arm every week.
That thought annoyed Dillon. It made him feel things he’d never felt before. He didn’t know what it was. The fact that those random bitches that come and go like the weeks of the year get to see Tony’s personal sides drove him crazy. They get to see his most intimate parts and be so close to him. It wasn’t about the sex for Dillon, he didn’t mean his physically intimate sides. No he felt this unknown emotion when he thought about how those whores got to be so close to Tony, but didn’t care about him at all. Dillon truly cared about him as a friend, and as a person. He’d love Tony so much more, but he wouldn’t want a sick freak of a teenager. Tony would be disgusted by that. He could never find out. If he did, Dillon could kiss their friendship goodbye. This community was one that didn’t accept those with that in their ranks.
Dillon had thought he could maybe invent a girlfriend, or a girl he’s been with, to make himself seem even more normal. He had to push his ability to act to it’s brink if Dillon wanted that to remain unexposed indefinitely. At the right time he would let it slip to Tony that he had a girl he saw. It sucked to have to lie to Tony, let alone everyone else, about that. Tony was his friend but he just couldn’t confide in him. He’d have to bury what’s on his heart and consign himself to the reality that he’ll never have him like that. Dillon would have him as a good friend. That’s all he should care about, but his heart couldn’t help but be troubled over it. Could it be that Dillon felt real romantic love for Tony? No, it couldn’t be. They’d only known eachother for a month. His parents said it takes longer than that to really love someone. Dillon was merely infatuated with him. He would get over it eventually.
Dillon took a last whiff of the wonderful rubber smell in the auto corridor, and turned down the hall that led to the front exit. While Dillon half dreaded the conversation he would have with Kat, he also sort of looked forward to it. If the right opportunity presented itself, he had decided to tell Kat about that. Upon further thought, it was ridiculous that he hadn’t told her about that sooner. Kat would stick by him. That was just fact. Dillon and his buddies pushed through the double doors and headed to their bus. There was only a few busses there, since not all programs taught on Saturday. As Dillon laughed and carried on with his pals, he looked up at their bus and saw as Kat looked down at him from a seat further from the back. She winked, and his stomach twisted. Now that it was here, Dillon was nervous.
After he boarded the bus, he went straight to where Kat was and sat next to her. Of course, she had undid her braids probably right when she arrived to her classroom. Usually they would both sit as far back as they could, but it seems that she had wanted to give them some privacy today. Kat would do this if any of their friends needed to talk. She was good friends with them, and was always someone that they could lean on. Dillon felt even worse that he hadn’t just told her. Kat looked at the other guys that followed him.
“Keep it movin’, peanut gallery. Hey! Brenden, I will fuck you up, bitch!” She shouted at him when he gave her the finger.
“Yes, mother dearest, I shall honor mine parent!” Brenden retorted.
Kat shook her head and rolled her eyes. She turned around, scanned around the bus, and glanced at the bus driver as the engine started up. It surprised Dillon slightly that the bus driver still kept her perm after they had thrown that lollipop in it. Good ol’ Karen the bus driver lady. She was not a good sport, but she was fun to toy with. Yes, Dillon could be an asshole sometimes. He was a teenager, ok? It was his job. Kat turned her attention back to Dillon once she was confident they wouldn’t be heard. She still kept an eye on the ‘peanut gallery’ in the back.
“Ok, spill it Dill. What happened? Like I noted this morning, you’ve been different lately. Happier. It’s starting to creep me out, dude. I need to know so I can sabotage you if something bad happens to me. It’ll make me feel better.” Kat said casually.
“I just u-uh I-I-” Dillon stuttered. He was very nervous. He wasn’t this nervous when he told Dominic, nor throughout that day.
“Words Dill, use your words. Deep breath.”
“Y-yea um well, I made a good new friend at tech school. He ran into me and cut me with his screwdriver when he was borrowing a autobody work station.” Dillon pointed to the dark pink line on his elbow. It still wasn’t fully healed. Curse his diabetic body’s slower recovery rate.
“Ok, and? What next?! You got over a half an hour to spill everything.”
“Jeez you’re timin’ me? Ok mommy, are you gonna count to three, too? Haha.” He paused. “Uhm y’know that autobody shop on Main? The tan and gray one? Four car garage?”
“Yea yea Vinnie’s. I’ve passed it countless times. He work there? What’s his name?”
She nodded in recognition.
“H-his name’s Tony, and yea he works in the last garage farthest from the wait room. Uh, I-I don’t know, he’s a cool guy who’s talented with paintin’ and restorin’ cars n’ all.” Dillon he said with a small smile.
“Wait, you said you met him at school, right? What grade’s he in?”
“Well, actually he’s twenty and graduated ’09. Moved from Pittsburgh.” Kat gave a disgusted frown. She was a ride or die Eagles fan, too. Dillon smirked. “Don’t worry, don’t worry, he don’t rep the Steelers-”
“-Oh, thank God-”
“He reps the Titans!” Dillon announced cheerily.
“TENNESSEE?! THEY HAVE NO DEFENSE! No defense no team!”
“Thats exactly what I said to him! He has no defense! Ahaha!”
“Sounds like a nice dude. You should introduce me to him. You know I’m fuckin’ dope as hell.” She winked. “Tell me about him.”
“Surprisingly, not that far off from the peanut gallery back there. Down to earth, mostly. Kinda rough around the edges, though. He’s a cocky manly man, y’know the type. But he’s kind, even if he tries to come off cool and indifferent.” Dillon said fondly. “He’s an interesting guy.”
“Cool dude I’m happy for you! Don’t forget you’ve known me longer. When did you meet Tony?” Kat gave him a half grin.
“‘Bout a month ago, but I technically met him a while before that ’cause he almost hit me with his car, haha.” He laughed nervously.
“Hit you with his car?” She whispered incredulously.
“No, no not like that haha he cut me off turnin’ into the shop lot with a busted-ass Cadillac he was workin’ on.”
“Oh wow… he definitely is peanut gallery.”
“Where did you even get the term ‘peanut gallery’?” Dillon smirked.
“I don’t remember, but you best watch it before I lump you in with those boobs.”
She smiled fondly at the guys in the back. She had a quick temper and could really be harsh to her friends, but she really did care for them. They in turn respected her for it. They had all known eachother longer than they knew Dillon, so from an outsider’s perspective, they acted and loved eachother like siblings. Even though they could get into some nasty tiffs. They had welcomed him with open arms and he was proud and grateful to be their friends. They had a blast together, especially with good ol’ Karen. Dillon snapped back to reality when Kat said something he didn’t quite catch.
“What’s that? Sorry, I spaced for a sec.”
“Does he know how you feel?” She whispered right in his ear.
“Thought so.” Dillon frowned. “I planned to tell you during this conversation, because I figured it would veer to this subject. Damn it, am I that obvious?” He whispered, panicked.
“Dill, calm down and listen to me. I do not care who you want to love. That’s not why we’re friends. We’re friends because we care about eachother’s happiness, and because we love and support eachother for the people we are. I won’t say anything, but the peanut gallery feel the same. Trust your friends, bro.” She whispered with a grin and a glint in her eye. Amusement?
“S-so how did y-” he began
“-half the conversation about yer friend you had a smile plastered on your face. Yer eyes had that… spark. It’s almost imperceptible, so no, yer not obvious. A chick like me that’s known you for a while can pick up on things guys can’t. Plus, yer answer confirmed it for me again. 2-0 Kat! You’s are all meatheads.”
Dillon rolled his eyes. Earlier that morning he told himself he wouldn’t fall for that trap again. Kat was too much sometimes.
“So y-you don’t think anyone would notice? I-I can’t have anyone find out Kat, I can’t.”
“Dill, calm down! Nobody will find out. You look and act like any other teenaged boy. This is between us. My lips are sealed, so relax and answer my question, although the answer is clearly a given…” She said softly.
“N-no he doesn’t know and it’s gonna stay that way. He doesn’t want a sick fuck.”
“Oh stop the fuckin’ pity party. You’re not sick nor a fuck. If yer close enough to Tony to have feelings for him, do you really think he’d tell you to take a hike? If he did, do you really want someone like that? Even as a friend?” She huffed.
“Kat, you know what happens to people like me around here. It ain’t pretty!” Dillon whispered harshly.
“God, Dillon it’s not like yer puttin’ up a billboard or some shit. Not everyone has to know! You really don’t appear like that. I myself never guessed until just now.”
“Y-yea?” He huffed a laugh.
“Yea. I’m with you, man. Ya feel me?” Kat gave a crooked grin.
“Yea, I feel ya.” He smiled.
Dillon felt a lot better. It felt like a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. Maybe it isn’t a weakness to lean on friends for support. Perhaps it’s really a strength. That shared weight bonds people closer together. One day in the future, he knew there would be a day that he would be real with everyone, but that time unfortunately, is not now. So long as he had Tony in some capacity, he was happy. At least for now. It was a much better option to have him as a friend as opposed to not all.
After the bus dropped them off at their stop, Dillon and Kat said their farewells until Monday. Dillon started his walk home while he pulled his phone out to check the time. Seven after two. So he’d have a couple hours with Tony. Unless they chilled after he left. He wasn’t sure. On one hand, he figured a hang out with Tony after he was done for the day was a little fast paced. On the other hand, they were friends. What was wrong with that?
Just in case, Dillon texted his mom beforehand. He did not want to piss her off again, unless he wanted to clean all three bathrooms. After a moment of thought, he started to type while he walked to the shop. He wondered what Tony and he would do. Whatever they decided on, they’d have a blast.

Source: reddit.com/r/Erotica/comments/i13eti/the_art_of_life_and_love_the_first_spark_chapter