Sal hopped from one foot to the other like a little kid, and he wasn't one bit ashamed. He was deliriously happy. It was as if every fiber of his body was vibrating.
Seth was back.
A boyish grin spread onto his cheeks as he burst out of the arena.
Sal was hopeful. He had a good feeling that day, like nothing that felt so right could ever go wrong. It just couldn't.
In his euphoria, he'd forgotten to dry his hair after his shower, so water dripped down onto his t-shirt.
When Sal stepped outside, flecks of golden sunshine mingled with the few wispy clouds in the sky. He was met with applause, cheering, whooping, hollering, clapping, and a buzzing excitement.
He shook a few hands, handed out hugs. Everyone seemed to want his undivided attention.
Sal’s eyes wandered through the crowd.
Where was Seth?
He felt heat rise to his cheeks, and his brain went into overdrive. Panic built inside of him like a rolling, unstoppable snowball.
Had Seth left again?
God, he had abandonment issues.
He heard a soft voice that sounded within him, wrapping itself around him, vibrating with power and command:
Other side of the building. I want you for myself.
Without any further goodbyes, Sal pulled the door open and hurried back inside the arena, heart throbbing inside his chest.
He dashed through the arena, searching for a back entrance. When he finally found an emergency exit door, he slammed it open, stepped out, and searched frantically around.
The area seemed deserted. Sal felt the panic build up again. Tension grew in his face and limbs, but his muscles relaxed when Seth stepped from the shadow of the building.
“You're dripping wet,” he said. He flashed his trademark charming smile, which made Sal go weak at the knees.
Seth traced Sal’s lips lightly with the tip of his finger.
“It’s like that time we danced in the rain.” Sal reached for Seth’s hand and interlocked it with his own.
Seth bowed his head. "I’m sorry, Sal, for the way I left. I've been thinking about you every day.”
"You take my breath away,” Sal said, completely dazzled.
Seth led Sal’s hand up to his heart. “This is what you do to me.”
Sal felt Seth’s heart beating so hard, he feared it might fly out of his chest. He pressed his lips against Seth’s with passion, love, and affection, and felt Seth’s body press in, soft and warm as their bodies tangled together.
“You’re buzzing,” Seth said, pulling them apart.
“Yeah. You’re here.” Sal leaned back in. He had no wish for the kiss to end.
“No, you're literally buzzing.” Seth smiled with the kind of smile that made Sal feel happy to be alive.
“Shit. It’s my phone. One sec.” Sal reluctantly pulled the phone from his pocket.
“Hey, Carl. Sorry, I got held up.”
He felt a few delicate touches of Seth’s warm lips on his neck, and he nearly dropped the phone.
“I’ll be out in a minute,” he said muffled into the phone. To Seth, he said, "You're in so much trouble,” with a grin on his face.
“I like trouble," Seth said, his eyes burning seductively. "Trouble's my middle name.”
Sal jumped onto Seth’s back, and Seth gave him a piggyback ride to the front of the building where Jack, Rosie, and Carl met them. Their curious eyes fixed on Seth.
“Hi, guys. Meet Seth,” Sal said, jumping down from Seth's back, his face stretched into a gaping grin.
It took second or two for the new information to sink in. When it did, Jack blurted, “You’re Seth? Wow, you’re pretty saucy. Sal wasn't kidding.”
“You can say that again,” Rosie said, sounding impressed.
“By the way, I’m Rosie, and that’s Jack.” Jack waved from behind her. “But you can call us whatever you want.”
“So, you’re the knight in shining armor that has my brother going all Norman Bates,” Carl concluded briskly.
“It’s been that bad, huh?” Seth sniggered. “I’m sorry.”
“It was really quite refreshing to watch him squirm a little.” Carl smiled and winked at Sal.
“Here’s an idea: maybe we should share all the of Sal's childhood stories with Seth like we did with Charlie." Carl gave Sal another sticky smile.
Sal glared at Carl. “Cheeky bastard.”
"Where is Charlie, by the way?" Sal asked when a truck pulled past them, going high speed.
The jaw-dropping moment in which he heard the crash almost stopped his heart. The impact sent a man flying across the car's windshield as the truck plowed into the sidewalk at sixty-five miles per hour, forcing another driver off the road. For a heart-sinking moment, the man disappeared behind the truck.
Sal’s eyelids fluttered. The violent bang of metal was deafening.
It was then the awful truth hit him like a knife in the chest: it had been Charlie who was knocked to the pavement. He lay there, disoriented and bleeding.
Sal made his way to the accident. Someone tried to hold him back, to calm him, but he was too strong, too wild.
His breathing grew ragged. He gasped, and the strength left his legs. Sal sank to his knees and rested next to the bloody mess that had been a perfectly ordinary person only moments before. He pressed his forehead against the bloody body in front of him, and the sobs punched through, seeming to rip free from his body.
Sal felt his chest tighten into a knot and a quiet rage built inside. The world turned into a blur, and so did all the sounds. Everything darkened into nothingness—he was losing his mind again.
The darkness spread inside of him like poison. It took him beyond all reason, beyond all natural methods of calming.
His need for revenge was like his need for oxygen, and a part of him craved it. His hands clenched into shaking fists.
“I will fucking kill you, you son of a bitch,” Sal screamed as he got to his feet and approached the truck. He picked up a huge piece of metal and forcefully attacked the driver’s window, splintering it into what seemed to be millions of pieces.
Sal grabbed the driver by the hair and neck and tried to pull him out of the vehicle, only the seatbelt was in the way. Instead, Sal beat on the man's terrified face until his knuckles bled.
As the blue-red light from the police cars flashed brightly behind him and the accompanying sirens sounded, someone strong pulled on him from behind, dragging him, kicking and screaming, away from the truck.
The truck driver sat there with a bloody face, his nose smashed, and eyes almost shut with swelling. He leaned against the steering wheel with his arms wrapped around his guts like he was holding them in.
“If you kill him, it'll mean I’ll have to put in overtime.” Seth’s voice was like liquid sunshine, and Sal stopped fighting.
He brushed Sal's hair back and kissed him gently.
Sal sunk into the warmth of Seth's side. His touch made the horror around him melt away for a second.
Amidst the menace, madness, and confusion, Sal heard his brother’s voice say, “You've got to get him out of here. The bus—it’s on the other side. Come on”
Seth took Sal by the arm. “They won’t see us. Let’s go.”
Sal clung to Seth like a kid clinging to a doll. He was numb, yet somehow in agony. They slipped away as the police closed off the area around the arena where the driver had crashed.
Carl jumped into the driver’s seat while Seth sat on the floor in the back with Sal. “Where to?” Carl yelled back at Seth.
“A place called Giant Hill.” Seth hugged Sal tightly. There was no other way.