A Little Excerpt

January 19, 2019

Kevin Maggliardi, Levi Cranston’s (The Magic Video Game) friend that he met in Boston, was just recently asked out by his girlfriend, Shanti Lee. They have known each other since the age of four, and Shanti just moved to Boston from Los Angeles. She found a hair stylist job out here.

It was a normal Friday night, and Kevin was just getting over a bad cold. He was feeling well enough for Shanti to come over and watch their favorite TV cartoons. It was around 9 pm, and after a round or two of pizza and cartoons, they decided to turn the TV off, lie together on the couch, and think about nothing.

They were perfectly alright with not saying a word for a while. As long as they were together, they didn’t always feel like they had to say anything.

“Excited about our double date with Levi and Mackenzie tomorrow?” Shanti asked Kevin, with her right arm wrapped around him.
“Of course,” Kevin replied with a smile. He drew in a deep breath.
“I hope you know that you’re really cute when you smile.”
“Thanks, mate.”
“Any time,” Shanti remarked.
“You’re cute when you obsess over sushi. I think we’re actually getting that tomorrow,” Kevin stated.
“Can’t wait.”

A few more minutes passed, and they both thought about nothing. Kevin was staring at the ceiling, and he could not stop smiling. Shanti noticed that Kevin’s armpits were pretty sweaty, even though he had a shirt on. She didn’t care, she actually thought this was pretty cute.

Thirty minutes later, they still didn’t say a word. They just let this idea of a new relationship sink in, even though they have been best friends for practically their whole lives.

Shanti looked over at Kevin, and she noticed that he was fighting to stay awake. She has seen him like this before, when his eyes were half open, but he would try to open them with no success.

Kevin was lying on his back on the couch. Shanti decided to lie on her stomach on top of him. Her head was close enough to his chest that she could hear his steady heartbeat. Kevin wrapped his arms around her and ran his fingers through her hair. His eyes were closed, but he was still awake.

“Your heart is beating really fast,” Shanti remarked rather dreamily.
“Is it?” Kevin replied, drawing in a deep breath.
“I think you like me.”
“Well, this is kinda fun actually. We should do this more often.”
“I think we should,” Shanti said.
“Are you comfortable enough?” Kevin asked.
“Couldn’t be more comfortable. You know what this reminds me of?”
“What?”
“I feel like I’m on a waterbed, but with a heartbeat.”