Hiding in Closets and Lofts - 5. Chapter 5

Dillon groaned and put his head against his desk. Just like Mark had predicted, he’d waited until the last minute to do the summer reading assignment. He’d been up until one reading it.

 

“Who gives an in-class essay on the first day of school?” Dillon complained, scowling at his essay.

 

“You know, advanced classes?” Mark answered.

 

Mark, Dillon, and Aaron all shared the class together. Aaron and Mark sat side by side, and Dillon sat behind Mark.

 

“Why are you even in this class if you don’t expect it to be hard?” Mark asked.

 

“Because my mom said it would look good for college,” Dillon grumbled.

 

“Same here.” Aaron raised a meek hand. “Good for colleges…”

 

“So am I the only one that actually wanted to take the class?” Mark rolled his eyes, pretending to be offended. “You all must think I’m crazy for wanting to major in English for college, then…”

 

Dillon picked his head up from the desk and glared. “So what, did you like writing that essay?”

 

“I didn’t like it, but it was fun.” Mark shrugged. “I want to see how well I did.”

 

Dillon reached forward and grabbed the essay off Mark’s desk. “How many pages is this?” He balked. It was all written every other line like they were asked to do, but it was still a total of five papers, front and back; all in tight, neat cursive too. “I only wrote two pages… and… I can’t even read yours,” Dillon narrowed his eyes in concentration at the writing.

 

Mark snapped his papers back. “You do not want to see how bad my print is.”

 

“Yeah well you don’t want to see my cursive. I learned it for two weeks and second grade, and that was the only time I used it,” Dillon admitted.

 

“Well I feel left out,” Aaron chimed in sourly, sulking in his desk as the bell rang. They all dropped their essays up at the front of the class and met up at the door again. The three compared schedules, but only shared English and lunch.

 

Mark pointed Dillon in the right direction of his next class. Dillon tried to find people he knew from football, but there weren’t any in his class. He retreated to the back and kept to himself, checking out the people around him to see if any would actually try talking to him. None did, though Dillon did get a few long looks for being new.

 

It was that way until lunch, and Dillon hated to admit that he felt awkward the whole time. He didn’t know a single person, really.

 

At lunch he zoned in on Aaron at a lunch table, sitting with Tyler and a few others from the team. Dillon slid into a seat next to Aaron. “Where’s Mark?” Dillon asked as he presented a home-packed lunch.

 

“He’s talking with Vickie about their date on Friday,” Tyler piped up instantly. “I doubt we’ll see him at all this lunch.”

 

Aaron rolled his eyes and picked through a school lunch and a lunch from home, paired with two drinks. “They’re just talking, Tyler, shut up.” Aaron turned his attention to some of the other guys at the table. “So did I tell you what Tyler did at the party on Saturday?”

 

Tyler groaned, but Aaron just went on to tell the story of Tyler getting drunk and thinking wheat was a spider. That got him to shut up about Mark as he was trying to get Aaron to stop talking.

 

Dillon listened through it, adding in his own details to the story, and occasionally did a quick scan of the commons in search of Mark. Halfway through lunch Mark finally showed up at their table, school lunch tray in hand.

 

“Nice of you to show up,” Tyler teased only to get a warning punch in the arm from Aaron.

 

“Hey, at least I have girls asking me out,” Mark retorted, giving Tyler a pointed look. “No one wants to date a guy who gets so drunk he doesn’t remember the party,” he added.

 

Tyler swore and glared down at his lunch. “Fine, I give up. I’m not drinking again. You all are giving me too much shit for it.”

 

“Positive peer pressure, success!” Aaron cheered and raised a fist in the air. The rest of the table just gave him a strange look before going back to their lunches.

 

“So what’s the plan for Friday?” Dillon asked. “Are you two going out after practice?”

 

“Yeah, we’re going bowling…” Mark admitted.

 

“Bowling?” Tyler echoed. “How… not exciting.” That earned him another punch in the arm from Aaron.

 

Mark huffed and glared over at Tyler. “There’s not a whole lot to do around here, if you haven’t noticed. Closest… anything is in Omaha. Besides, I like bowling.”

 

“I think my grandparents used to be on a bowling league,” Dillon added. “So I think they’re good. I haven’t really bowled with them… but my mom is good, and so am I.”

 

“Yeah well my grandparents were on a league too,” Mark replied, almost competitively. “My high score—”

 

“Ladies, please tell me we’re not competing over bowling,” Tyler complained, this time earning a punch on both shoulders from Aaron and Mark. Tyler jumped up from his seat and grabbed his lunch tray. “That’s it, I’m sitting next to Dillon! So far, he hasn’t tried hitting me.”

 

“So far,” Aaron grinned impishly. “And besides, I didn’t hit you, it’s a love tap. The more I hit you, the more I love you. I promise,” Aaron joked.

 

Tyler just gave him a dirty look and sat on the other side of Dillon, away from Mark and Aaron. Mark slid down one seat to fill Tyler’s spot before digging into his lunch.

 

***

 

Football practice was horrible. Monday was bad, but Tuesday’s was even worse. With practice so late in the day, the sun had been out longer and it felt hotter than the summer morning practices.

 

Everyone was complaining by the end, especially Mark, who’d spent most of practice doing sprints.

 

“It’ll be a miracle if I can walk tomorrow,” Mark complained, trying to use tired leg muscles to slide his foot into regular shoes.

 

“Take a walk after school so your legs don’t tighten up,” Dillon suggested.

 

“Yeah easy for you to say. There’s nothing to do while I walk,” Mark complained. “I want morning practices back. They were cooler, and he didn’t work us as hard.”

 

“Do you realize how early we would have to get up to do that before school?” Aaron made a face of disgust.

 

“You only say that because you stay up too late anyways,” Mark sighed. “Dillon, if you’re going to tell me to walk, you have to walk with me so I have someone to talk to.”

 

“I can’t.” Dillon grinned triumphantly. “You’ll have to suffer alone.”

 

Mark glared. “Oh really, and what’s more important than me?”

 

“My mom volunteered me for babysitting a neighbor girl, because her babysitter canceled and her parents need a night off. They’re going into Omaha for dinner and a play and they won’t be back till late,” Dillon explained, now feeling embarrassed that he had to babysit of all things. He didn’t even have homework as a legitimate excuse.

 

“Oh really?” Mark grinned. “Guess I can help you. Is it Ella you’re babysitting?”

 

“Uh, yeah I think that’s her name. I haven’t actually met her before, but my mom met her mom and…” Dillon trailed off awkwardly. “What do you mean by helping me?”

 

“Yeah. I’ve babysat Ella a few times too; your mom must have just offered you up before they could ask me. There’s a small amusement park about an hour’s drive, we can take Ella there. She loves it.” Mark bounced up to his feet. “But if we do that we’ll really need to get going.”

 

“And how does this help your sore legs?” Dillon asked.

 

“Well we have to walk around the park,” Mark explained. “So meet at your house in twenty or thirty minutes.”

 

Dillon agreed, and followed Mark out to the parking lot. It was technically dinnertime, but they could get something on the way or get something at the park. Dillon went home and showered, getting out just as Mark showed up downstairs.

 

“Uh, Mark is going with Ella and I to some amusement park. We’re going to eat out,” Dillon explained to his mom. “So I think we’re picking Ella up early too.”

 

“Alright,” Joann agreed sourly. “But I’ll still put some dinner in the fridge for you when you get home, okay?”

 

Dillon nodded and met Mark outside. “We’ll take your car,” Mark offered.

 

“How come I’m always driving you?” Dillon complained and went for his Jeep.

 

“Because you have yet to say no,” Mark laughed. “If you really have a problem with it I can drive some, just gas money is a little tight.”

 

“No, it’s fine. And what’s the point of having a job if you have no money?” Dillon asked and started up the Jeep.

 

Mark climbed into the passenger seat. “My parents own the shop so I don’t technically get paid.”

 

“Oh I guess that makes sense,” Dillon mumbled.

 

Mark pointed the way to Ella’s house and talked with her parent’s for a little while. They gave fifty dollars to cover the amusement park before sending Ella out with Mark to the Jeep. Dillon waved awkwardly from the wheel, watching as Mark helped the small seven year old into the back seat.

 

“You don’t have a roof on your car,” she pointed out, plopping down into the seat.

 

“Seatbelt,” Mark reminded her and reached over to help her.

 

“I can take the roof off,” Dillon explained. “For when the weather is nice.”

 

Ella just gave him a disbelieving look. Dillon averted his eyes for a moment, trying to think of something to say. Her mother had obviously dressed her, with her hair up in blonde pigtails and wearing pink clothes. “You’re… very pretty in pink,” Dillon said, aiming for a compliment.

 

“I wanted to wear blue but my mom made me wear this.” Ella frowned.

 

“She doesn’t like pink,” Mark pointed out, quite obviously. “So just don’t mention it.”

 

Dillon gave up and turned around in his seat. Once Ella was settled Mark got back in the passenger seat, and they began the ten minute ride to the amusement park.

 

Ella seemed to like having the topless Jeep, even though it messed up her perfectly tight pigtails. She spent most of the time holding her hand out of the backseat, palm open towards the wind.

 

“If a car gets too close you’ll lose your hand,” Mark warned jokingly.

 

Ella jerked her hand back quickly and thought over it before sticking her tongue out at Mark. “You’re lying!”

 

“Oh no he’s not,” Dillon added in all seriousness.

 

“Cars don’t get that close!” Ella shrieked.

 

“And she can’t take a joke,” Mark mumbled under his breath, trying not to laugh.

 

Ella defiantly stuck her arm back out, glaring at the two teenage boys in the rearview mirror.

 

“And she’s already got the glare of a woman down to perfection,” Dillon joked.

 

“I heard that!” Ella perked up in the backseat.

 

“Take a nap!” Mark called back to her.

 

Ella huffed and slouched into the seat. “I’m not tired.”

 

Mark rolled his eyes and started to change the radio stations. Dillon tried to keep an eye out for where they were going since he didn’t actually know. It took twenty minutes before Mark pointed out the exit, and another twenty minutes of back roads.

 

“Who comes out this far?” Dillon complained, pulling into a half-full parking lot.

 

“Well there’s a town ten minutes away. Plus it’s a lot cheaper than the really big amusement parks, so people come here for cheaper prices,” Mark explained, getting out once they were parked and helping Ella from the back.

 

She already had her eyes set on some of the rides while trying to figure out what new ones she was tall enough for.

 

“Last time I couldn’t ride some of them because I was too short… but now I can ride some of them alone, can’t I?” She asked, looking expectantly at Mark.

 

“We’ll see,” Mark mumbled. “Dillon and I might want to ride some anyways.”

 

“I want to ride alone!” Ella stated again.

 

“Okay, you can ride alone in your seat if you’re tall enough and Dillon and I will sit somewhere else on the ride. How does that sound?” Mark offered.

 

“Fine,” Bella huffed as they got up to the ticket booth.

 

“Uh,” Dillon looked up at the prices for tickets and wristbands. Before he could get anything out, Mark stepped up with the money from Ella’s parents.

 

“Three unlimited wristbands, please. The green ones,” Mark said and handed over the money.

 

“Why are there different colors?” Dillon asked.

 

“Blue can ride everything. Green can ride everything but the train, and orange can ride the rides but not paddle boats, go-karts, or the train,” Mark explained as three wristbands were handed over. He tore one off and gave it to Dillon before helping Ella put hers on.

 

Ella took off for the first ride as soon as her wristband was on.

 

“Why do I have a feeling this is a bad idea?” Dillon groaned.

 

“Because she’s full of energy and is going to be running all over the place trying to leave us behind?” Mark pointed out, forcing himself to jog over to where Ella was—just barely tall enough to ride by herself.

 

“I don’t want to get on spinning rides.” Dillon sidestepped the entrance of the Tilt-A-Whirl, content to wait outside the fence.

 

“Come on,” Mark dragged him in. “We haven’t even eaten yet, and Ella is intent on riding alone so you have to ride with me. What she doesn’t know is that more weight on this one equals more spinning. What could be better than two football players?”

 

Dillon groaned again. “What part of I don’t want to spin did you not hear?”

 

Mark ignored that and dragged him to one of the seats for the ride. “Ella is in car number three,” Mark said after a quick look around. “And… oh, get in number seven. We’re riding in seven. It’s the fastest.” Mark bolted across the platform of the ride, getting a dirty look from the operator.

 

“Mark I think we’re supposed to use the walkway,” Dillon said as he took the long way around. “And again, I don’t want to spin, or spin fast.”

 

“Just get in.” Mark held the lap bar up and slid into the car. Dillon sighed and gave in, ducking down into the partial apple shape.

 

“Now you sit on that side, and I’m over here,” Mark instructed, sliding himself to the left side as their lap bar was checked.

 

Soon the ride started, and they could hear Ella squealing from her car. Dillon held on to the lap bar tight—which actually didn’t lock, much to his dismay—as the car spun on every dip and turn of the ride. Mark was leaning from side to side, trying to use his weight to spin the car even more.

 

Dillon wanted to kill him the whole time.

 

Once the ride was over, Dillon was out of the car in an instant. He gratefully watched as Ella bolted out as well, meaning he didn’t have to ride it again. Only she went to another spinning ride.

 

“You’re not going to find a lot that don’t spin,” Mark pointed out, laughing as he followed after Ella.

 

Dillon thanked the operator on the way out, and went to the next ride where Mark and Ella were waiting. The sign advertised The Scrambler, and had three clusters of four cars. Each cluster spun on a beam, and the beams all spun from the center.

 

“Ride with Ella,” Dillon pleaded.

 

“No!” Ella protested and looked about ready to jump the fence.

 

“She’ll kill me if I do,” Mark pointed out. “And it’s not any fun alone. This is the last spinning ride, I promise.”

 

“You just said they were all spinning rides!” Dillon complained.

 

“Well, not all. There’s the paddle boats and go-karts… and this is the last one I’ll make you do that spins,” Mark promised.

 

“Fine,” Dillon gave in.

 

The ride slowed down to a stop and the previous people were unloaded before they were let in. Ella took off to her own car, and Mark dutifully followed her to help her get in. Once she had her seat belt on and her door was latched, Mark pointed to one for him and Dillon.

 

“You have to sit on the outside,” Mark explained, “Because you’re bigger than me.”

 

Mark climbed in first, and Dillon followed. Mark pulled the seatbelt across them both, and the operator came by to lock the door of their car.

 

The ride started slowly at first, which wasn’t too bad. It had a nice breeze, and Dillon could see Ella’s head barely visible over the car in front of them.

 

Then the ride started to speed up, spinning faster, with the force sliding Dillon and Mark to the outside end of their car. Dillon was squished between the side of the car and Mark.

 

“You did this on purpose, didn’t you?” Dillon accused, feeling Mark’s shoulder and elbow digging into his side. “You just wanted to squish me!”

 

“You’re bigger than me, you’re supposed to get squished,” Mark laughed before getting slammed into Dillon again.

 

Dillon had to wonder if Ella wasn’t getting thrashed around and slammed into the side of her car too. They were so not riding this again.

 

The ride started to slow down, but Mark made a point to still slid into Dillon when he could. Finally Dillon just pushed him to the other side of the car and held him there by an arm. “I’m not riding this with you again. You were plotting against me this whole time, weren’t you?”

 

“Stop complaining! Ella’s five and handled this better than you,” Mark protested with a huge grin.

 

“Yeah she was also smart enough to ride alone on this!” Dillon growled, trying to open the door to their car once the ride had stopped. Mark undid the seatbelt and Dillon jumped out, hurrying around to find Ella’s car.

 

“Paddleboats,” Dillon demanded as he pulled her out of the car. “Nice and not spinning.”

 

Dillon and Mark ended up fighting over who could steer the paddleboat, and almost tipped it twice in the small man-made lake the park used. After that they were called in and given a warning for if they came back to the paddleboats later.

 

“See, you just get me in trouble,” Ella began to play the victim. She looked around and headed for the go-karts next. She got her own go-kart on a different track for smaller kids, while Dillon and Mark went to adult go-karts.

 

They spent the whole time trying to out-do each other and the three other people on the track. Again, they got a warning for being too rough on the track.

 

“What’s the point if I can’t swerve in a go-kart?” Dillon complained as they waited for Ella to finish up on her track for the second time.

 

“It’s not safe,” Mark pointed out, obviously.

 

Once Ella finished up on her go-kart, they took her around to other rides. Most were for smaller kids, but Dillon and Mark made themselves fit anyways. That got Mark complaining about his legs tightening up, and Dillon laughed at him the whole time.

 

After almost two hours on the rides, Ella started complaining about being hungry. Dillon paid for the food and got them all hot dogs, sodas, and funnel cakes. They ate at picnic tables even though it was well past dark out.

 

“We need to get Ella home soon,” Mark said, looking at his cell phone. “Her parent’s play ends soon and they’ll be home by ten or so.”

 

Dillon agreed, glad to be getting out of there. He’d had enough of spinning and cramming himself into rides too small.

 

They finished eating and went back out to the Jeep, though spent ten minutes trying to find it in increasing dark. They put Ella in the back again and wrapped in her in a sweatshirt for the ride. She fell asleep almost as soon as they were off the back roads and on the highway just before eight-thirty.

 

“Admit it, you had fun.” Mark smirked, poking at Dillon’s side.

 

“Not with the spinning. But trying to watch you fold your legs into some of the seats? Yes,” Dillon agreed. He figured Mark would have punched him if he weren’t driving.

 

“What are you doing Friday?” Mark asked.

 

“Being a hermit, why?” Dillon returned. “Don’t you have your date then?”

 

“Yeah but how about I set up a double date?” Mark offered.

 

“I don’t know anyone to date,” Dillon pointed out. “I know no one in my classes if they aren’t on the football team.”

 

“I can find you someone,” Mark insisted. “It’s bowling. Either you come or accept that I’m better at it than you, how about that?”

 

Dillon tried not to smile. “Fine,” he agreed.