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Gustavo couldn’t hear what his friends were saying. He was too focused on Martina’s figure ahead of him in the lunch line.
“Man, I don’t want no fuckin’ cheese sticks,” Gideon said like he always did whenever there were cheese sticks for lunch.
“Fuck that, man. Are y’all tryna go to Dennis’ party tomorrow?” Kevin responded.
“Yeah, if I can spend the night at your house. I definitely want to see Alicia’s ass there, too,” replied Gideon.
“Vo?”
Gustavo came back to reality.
“Oh, yeah, I’m down. Martina was saying she was gonna go, too. I’ll come over to your place after work tomorrow.”
“Alright, cool. When do you get off?” Kevin asked.
“Six.”
“Damn, we’re gonna need a bottle, too,” Gideon mentioned.
The group moved along in the line to grab their cheese stick lunches, discussing different ways they would try to get a bottle before the party.
“I mean, your brother can’t get it for us?” Gideon asked Kevin.
“Nah, he’s working the rigs in South Dakota this week.”
“Yeah, I’m not taking my dad’s tequila again,” Gustavo added.
“Yeah, we know,” Kevin replied. They’d grown tired of the story.
“He was so pissed, I almost thought he was gonna send me to Mexico.”
Gustavo carried on with his story until the cheese sticks hardened. The boys went through the rest of their days without knowing how they would get their alcohol for the party.
Saturday morning, Gustavo rolled out of bed and into his work uniform, which was just a cheap t-shirt with an iron-on logo and a pair of jeans. He brushed his teeth and went down to grab some breakfast. The rest of the day was routine and flew by. His kiosk job at the mall did not always produce the most interesting days.
Around noon, right before his lunch, Gustavo caught the eye of someone in the crowd. An older man in a button-up shirt and jeans. Recently, Gustavo had been reprimanded for having been caught sitting on the job. His manager showed him a picture of himself seated in a chair and had been given a warning. This guy could be a secret shopper or something.
Gustavo stood up and began acting the part of a good popcorn salesman for the next hour. He stopped families and gave samples to the children. He shouted the slogan and offered patrons to try a sample. The whole time, Gustavo is spotting the old man watching him from different spots in the moving stream of shoppers.
After some time, the old man walks up to the popcorn stand.
“Hello, sir. You look like a fan of delicious popcorn.” Gustavo said in his cheesiest salesman voice. “Would you like to try a sample?”
“Yes, well, I think you’re very attractive.” The man said in a subtle island-Latino accent.
“What?’ Gustavo was taken aback.
“Yes, I think you’re cute, and I would like to spend some time with you. I can get you some food and drink.”
“Uh, no, man, I don’t swing like that, and I’m 16,” Gustavo said, realizing the man was not working for the popcorn business.
“I can buy you some drinks if that’s what you like,” the man insisted.