anything else.
Finn started talking—rambling, really—about something, anything, and Adam could only be grateful. It was uncanny the way the kid knew how to settle Adam down. When Adam was done with lunch, he wiped his mouth and managed a twitch of his lips for Finn, who had worked really hard not to let silence take over the table.
“It was real human, you know? To sit and talk to me. Oh!” He’d almost forgotten. He reached for his backpack again and pulled out a little cardboard packet, which he shoved at Finn, embarrassed. “Here. It’s, well, more personal than the last one—”
“Do you have any in your diary?” Finn asked, so dead-on Adam knew his Latino-mocha skin washed ruddy just from the heat in his face.
“Of, uhm, you ?”
Finn shook his head. “Asked and answered. That’s okay, then. Even if this one isn’t personal, I know you’re thinking about me.” He smiled then, luminously, and Adam was possessed with the desire to spill his sketchbook out for Finn to see, to share his secrets, to invite this kid into his heart.
“But I hope you like this one,” he said weakly.
Finn looked at the picture with avid eyes. “That’s the other night at sunset, isn’t it?”
“Yeah.”
“We were standing closer than that,” Finn told him surprisingly. “I know because I realized how brown your eyes are.”
Adam’s face heated all over again. “Yeah, well. Macias. Mexican. You know.”
“Hot,” Finn said playfully, raising his eyebrows.
“Yeah, it is getting that way in here. You know, I gotta—”
Finn’s face fell. “Yeah. You gotta go. Hey, when do you get off tonight?”
“Seven, wh—”
“Good. I get off at six thirty. I’ll pick you up.”
“Where’re we—”
“Movie. My treat. Popcorn too.”
“I gotta walk the dog!” If Adam had paws, all four of them would be splayed out, just like Clopper’s when Adam tried to pull him away from some especially tasty-smelling dead thing. Abort, abort, abort! Friendly human is taking me somewhere I don’t want to go!
“Good! I’ll go with you. We can dose the cat, walk the dog, and then go to the movies. Now hurry, you’re going to be late. Don’t forget to wait for me!”
And Finn got up and left, returning to work and the line of customers who hadn’t diminished one bit, even though other people who looked much like Finn were busy serving them.
Adam was left gaping after him, aware that he’d just been hauled into a date by the collar.
The people at Candy Heaven were not sympathetic.
“So,” Darrin said delicately as Adam returned from lunch a few minutes early, “how is Finn?”
“He’s fine. He’s terrific. I think he’s taking me on a date. Does that bother anybody else? That should bother you. It bothers me. Is anybody else freaked out about that ?”
Darrin listened to him ramble as Adam put on his apron and stationed himself behind the counter at the weighing bowl. Then Darrin pulled a gummi lemon sour from a pile of them, extracted it from the wrapper, and while Adam was in full cry, asked, “Are you allergic to lemon or sugar?”
“No, but did you hear what I—omph!”
Adam’s entire face tried to squeeze shut, and he fought not to swallow the little round ball of goo down the wrong pipe. It took him several minutes of rolling the thing around in his mouth before he sucked in a mouthful of spit, tucked it between his teeth and his cheek, and managed, “What in the hell is the matter with you!” before he had to swallow again.
“Well, my boy, I figured if you didn’t stop talking and go out on your date, you’d become a sour old man in no time at all. This was just a taste of it.”
Adam squinched his eyes shut and wondered how in the hell those kids who ate this shit by the pound could manage it. As he did that, he had a vision of his grandmother, nose wrinkled, eyes narrowed, looking just like she’d been sucking lemons all day, while she told Adam’s mother what a loser he was
Finn started talking—rambling, really—about something, anything, and Adam could only be grateful. It was uncanny the way the kid knew how to settle Adam down. When Adam was done with lunch, he wiped his mouth and managed a twitch of his lips for Finn, who had worked really hard not to let silence take over the table.
“It was real human, you know? To sit and talk to me. Oh!” He’d almost forgotten. He reached for his backpack again and pulled out a little cardboard packet, which he shoved at Finn, embarrassed. “Here. It’s, well, more personal than the last one—”
“Do you have any in your diary?” Finn asked, so dead-on Adam knew his Latino-mocha skin washed ruddy just from the heat in his face.
“Of, uhm, you ?”
Finn shook his head. “Asked and answered. That’s okay, then. Even if this one isn’t personal, I know you’re thinking about me.” He smiled then, luminously, and Adam was possessed with the desire to spill his sketchbook out for Finn to see, to share his secrets, to invite this kid into his heart.
“But I hope you like this one,” he said weakly.
Finn looked at the picture with avid eyes. “That’s the other night at sunset, isn’t it?”
“Yeah.”
“We were standing closer than that,” Finn told him surprisingly. “I know because I realized how brown your eyes are.”
Adam’s face heated all over again. “Yeah, well. Macias. Mexican. You know.”
“Hot,” Finn said playfully, raising his eyebrows.
“Yeah, it is getting that way in here. You know, I gotta—”
Finn’s face fell. “Yeah. You gotta go. Hey, when do you get off tonight?”
“Seven, wh—”
“Good. I get off at six thirty. I’ll pick you up.”
“Where’re we—”
“Movie. My treat. Popcorn too.”
“I gotta walk the dog!” If Adam had paws, all four of them would be splayed out, just like Clopper’s when Adam tried to pull him away from some especially tasty-smelling dead thing. Abort, abort, abort! Friendly human is taking me somewhere I don’t want to go!
“Good! I’ll go with you. We can dose the cat, walk the dog, and then go to the movies. Now hurry, you’re going to be late. Don’t forget to wait for me!”
And Finn got up and left, returning to work and the line of customers who hadn’t diminished one bit, even though other people who looked much like Finn were busy serving them.
Adam was left gaping after him, aware that he’d just been hauled into a date by the collar.
The people at Candy Heaven were not sympathetic.
“So,” Darrin said delicately as Adam returned from lunch a few minutes early, “how is Finn?”
“He’s fine. He’s terrific. I think he’s taking me on a date. Does that bother anybody else? That should bother you. It bothers me. Is anybody else freaked out about that ?”
Darrin listened to him ramble as Adam put on his apron and stationed himself behind the counter at the weighing bowl. Then Darrin pulled a gummi lemon sour from a pile of them, extracted it from the wrapper, and while Adam was in full cry, asked, “Are you allergic to lemon or sugar?”
“No, but did you hear what I—omph!”
Adam’s entire face tried to squeeze shut, and he fought not to swallow the little round ball of goo down the wrong pipe. It took him several minutes of rolling the thing around in his mouth before he sucked in a mouthful of spit, tucked it between his teeth and his cheek, and managed, “What in the hell is the matter with you!” before he had to swallow again.
“Well, my boy, I figured if you didn’t stop talking and go out on your date, you’d become a sour old man in no time at all. This was just a taste of it.”
Adam squinched his eyes shut and wondered how in the hell those kids who ate this shit by the pound could manage it. As he did that, he had a vision of his grandmother, nose wrinkled, eyes narrowed, looking just like she’d been sucking lemons all day, while she told Adam’s mother what a loser he was
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