Spring 2019

Kevin Maggliardi, Levi Cranston’s (The Magic Video Game) friend, and Kevin's girlfriend, Shanti Lee, decided to spend a quiet evening at Kevin’s Cambridge apartment. No one else was home. Kevin had spent the afternoon with Jing Hao, Mike Wong, Levi, Jack Andrews, and Asad Prejesh. They went into downtown Boston to try an Italian restaurant that they had never been to before.

That evening, Jing, Mike, Jack, and Asad were going to some bars. Levi and his girlfriend, Mackenzie, spent an evening together at their apartment in Allston.

Kevin and Shanti decided to put on some goofy adult cartoons for a bit, while feasting on Indian food. Kevin was on the outer end of the couch, sitting sideways, while Shanti was nestled between him and where the pillows meet on the couch.

Her head was on his shoulder, and his head lay on top of her head. He took a deep breath, and Shanti wrapped her left arm around his chest. Then, she put her ear between his left armpit and his left breast. While she could hear his deep breathing, she could also hear his quiet heartbeat. She looked up, and Kevin’s eyes were closed. He must have been a little too tired of watching cartoons for over two hours.

Shanti got up and turned off the TV and returned to her place on the couch.

“Hey, Kevin?” Shanti asked.
“Yeah?” Kevin responded sleepily.
“Can I hear your heartbeat?”
“Yes.”

Without hesitation, Kevin pulled up his shirt up to his collarbone. Shanti could see his ribs every time he took a breath, and she also thought she could see his heart beating through his skin. His belly button was exposed, and she wanted to poke it with a q-tip. Her ear was pressed firmly on the lower part of his left breast, and she just paid attention to the intense whooshing of blood through his mitral valve.

“Your heart is so loud, fast, and strong. Are you nervous?” Shanti asked.
“No,” Kevin replied quietly with a soft smile.

He took a very deep breath, and Shanti noticed a couple skips in his heartbeat. She thought that was super cute.

“What is your heart rate, if you don’t mind my asking?” Shanti questioned.

Kevin checked his watch, which has that feature.

“122,” Kevin stated.
“Sounds way faster than that,” Shanti said. “I’m gonna get it to pound really hard for me. So get ready.”
“Okay!”

Shanti was wearing a white floral button-down shirt. She unbuttoned the top three buttons, so the top part of her chest and part of her bra were exposed. Her ear was still on his chest. She heard even louder and deeper heartbeats inside Kevin’s chest. He must have been getting really excited, so he checked his watch again.

“134,” Kevin replied.
“Good!” Shanti exclaimed.

Kevin’s left arm was wrapped around Shanti. She took his right hand and placed it on the top part of her chest, so that he could feel her fast and strong heartbeat as well. He placed his left hand over Shanti’s left ear, so his heartbeat was all she could hear. He was starting to breathe really hard, as he was so excited.

They were super happy with doing nothing other than this for at least ten minutes.

“Shanti?” Kevin got his girlfriend’s attention, with his hand still on her chest.
“Yeah?” Shanti replied.
“You ready to find out how fast my heart is beating?”
“Yes!”
“142.”
“Oh my God! You have a shit ton of adrenaline flowing through you.”

​Kevin let out a soft smile and then was quiet. His eyes were closed again, and Shanti thought he made a soft and cute noise through his mouth. His breathing was steady. His heart was racing, and chances were that it wouldn’t slow down any time soon.

​From The Crazy Chicken Escapade

After everyone got acquainted with each other, Kaloi took everyone home in his vehicle, which greatly resembled a mini-van, but could fit as many people as a bus. They drove back to Kaloi’s house, which looked more futuristic than anything else. The three boys were definitely in awe of the house’s aesthetics.

The house did not look quite like a spaceship. However, one could possibly mistake it for one. On the outside, the house looked as if it was built with newer bricks and siding. But, the boys figured that it would look completely renovated on the inside. And they were going to figure it all out for themselves.

Kaloi walked up to the front door and firmly gripped the knob. The entire posse watched as he was trying to dramatically open the door and let them all inside.  It was starting to work because the kooky forensics expert just stood by the door and held the knob in his left hand, and the boys especially figured that nothing was going to happen yet. He was just going to stand and hold the door knob and confuse everyone. It was working at the moment.

And then….

“So, yes. Welcome to our humble abode, everyone! Since you are our guests, I will make all of us some strawberry smoothies!” Kaloi announced.
“THEY ARE THE BEST IN THE WORLD!” Cosmo spoke hysterically.
“I like strawberries,” Jefferson said randomly.

After the introductions, Kaloi made strawberry smoothies for everyone, except for Jack McFrost and Jefferson, who preferred French vanilla coffee over anything else. After they all consumed this heavenly goodness, Marty and Kaloi decided to show David, Andrew, and Levi around Kaloi’s humble abode. Sporto and Cosmo accompanied them. Jack McFrost and Jefferson drank some French vanilla coffee while conversing about cats, pizza, and crow bars.

Wachnuka Kaloi and Marty showed the three boys around the place, while Sporto and Cosmo were making up random inside jokes during the tour. The two creatures showed the boys the common area, the game room, the kitchen and dining room, the forensics lab, another game room, the tennis courts (the boys’ favorite hot spot), the indoor pool, and the bedrooms, among other rooms inside the house.

Overall, the tour took an hour, as there were many rooms to be shown. However, the bedrooms, or quarters, were unlike the typical bedrooms. These “quarters” were those typically found in spaceships, or in many European college dorm rooms. There was a long wall of doors that led into each quarter, with a screen attached to each door, in order to ensure maximum privacy. Underneath each quarter was a medium-sized cubby, where one could put his or her clothes, toiletries, and other personal belongings.

As a matter of fact, the quarters looked like spaceships. There was a small ladder that led from the door of the quarter to the floor, one that could resemble several spaceships or space vehicles. David, Andrew, and Levi were astonished at the quarters, and they all wanted to go into their assigned quarters and see what it was like inside.  

“So, this is where you will sleep while you’re here,” Kaloi said to the three boys.
“They look extremely comfortable,” Levi remarked half-heartedly.
“Trust me. They are,” Marty replied.
“SLEEPING IN THE QUARTER IS THE EQUIVALENT OF SLEEPING ON A CLOUD!” Cosmo shouted hysterically.
“I believe I could live here,” Andrew said, also half-heartedly.
“I can’t decide which is better. The tennis courts or the quarters,” Sporto replied.
“Oh. That’s a hard question,” David said, not at all half-heartedly.

No one said anything for a few minutes. The three boys were trying to absorb all of the information that they had grasped and obtained in an hour. They all knew that it was going to take some time to get used to being in Wakahakai. However, Levi was more familiar with the area than the two other boys.

“What are our plans for tomorrow?” Andrew questioned everyone with utmost curiosity.

A few moments of silence. No one was really sure how exactly to answer that particular question. Marty had made it clear to the boys that he did not want them to know all of their plans because he wanted to make them a surprise. However, the polar bear thought that he should give in just this once.

“What are our plans for tomorrow? Hmmmm….let’s see. What are our plans for tomorrow? Well….” Marty questioned slowly.
“Well?” Andrew asked.
“I don’t know.”
“Okay.”

Well, never mind. Marty did not give in to the young boy’s inquiry. As curious as Andrew is, Marty did not think that it would be a good idea to say what exactly their plans entailed. With this in mind, the boys would just have to wait and see what they were going to do. At least they knew that they were spending a great amount of time in Wakahakai. Then, they were going to visit Galavanti Island, and last but not least, Texamilio.

Hopefully those two places were relatively close to Wakahakai.

Thirty minutes later, the entire posse was really hungry, and no one felt like cooking tonight. As a result, Kaloi decided that it would be in everyone’s best interest to have Chinese food tonight. He decided to call Po Yum Chinese Take-Out, which was right up the street from the house.

“Hello, Po Yum’s Chinese Take-Out. My name is Mi,” said a Chinese lady on the other end of the line.
“Hello, Mi. I would like to order Chinese food,” said Kaloi.
“I get the idea. We sell nothing more and nothing less than Chinese food.”
“I would like beef lo mein, steamed white rice, beef on a stick, fried donuts, and ya di ya da.”
“What is ya di ya da?” Mi asked.
“Trying to decide what else to get,” Kaloi remarked.
“Okay. Take your time, bub.”
“Ah. So ya di ya da includes orange chicken, pineapple chicken, and crab rangoon. That should be it.”
“Okay. That amounts to $30.30.”
“Okay. Sounds good.”

It took exactly thirty minutes and thirty seconds for Mi and her husband, Yu, to arrive at Kaloi’s house and give him the delicious Chinese food. Marty, Sporto, Cosmo, Jack McFrost, Jefferson, Kaloi, David, Andrew, and Levi were so hungry that they decided to eat all the Chinese food. No one said much until they all finished eating. After everyone cleaned up the dining room table, Marty and Kaloi decided to enter the science lab and look at microscopic slides of red blood cells. Sporto and Cosmo went for a swim in the indoor pool. And Jack McFrost and Jefferson played video games on an older game console.

David, Andrew, and Levi were playing table tennis and video games in the huge game room for quite some time. For two hours, because of how many games there were and also because of how much fun they were having. Then, they all sat at one of the round tables in the same room and decided to take some time to get to know each other.

“How many siblings do you have?” David asked everyone.
“I have four siblings: I will be 15. Caleb will be 13. Adam will be 11, and so will Cameron. And Alyssa is 6,” Andrew answered.
“I have five sisters altogether. Four are older, and one is younger,” Levi said.
“Are you all full-blood siblings?” Andrew asked.
“No. Louise and Elizabeth have a different dad. Victoria, Olivia, and I are full-blood siblings. And Evelyn Maeve is adopted,” said Levi.
“What is Louise and Elizabeth’s surname?” David asked.
“Baranovsky,” Levi answered, half-heartedly, “And Evelyn Maeve was adopted from Ireland. Her last name was Loden before she became a Cranston. She was adopted when she was a few months old.”
“Is she a redhead?” Andrew asked.
“No. She’s a brunette and very pretty. We’re like best friends,” Levi answered.

David, Andrew, and Levi sat quietly in the room, without saying much to each other. David and Levi have known each other for quite a while. Andrew just now started getting to know the other two boys. Chances are that Andrew has seen David and Levi around some time, but even though this may have been the case, he never had the chance to get to know them very well. When Levi lived in Crown Point, he and David were both in soccer club. Andrew was in some soccer club since he lived in Lowell, but he might have seen David and Levi at some of their small competitions. All three boys live in around the same area, but the only difference is that Levi lives in Porter County, and David and Andrew live in Lake County. But they all live within a thirty-mile radius.

It’s a very small world, isn’t it? The world is only going to get smaller in a matter of time.

“How old are your sisters, Levi?” David asked.
“Louise is 26. Elizabeth is 25. Victoria is 18. Olivia is 16. Evelyn Maeve is 6.”
“And you, David. How many siblings do you have?” Andrew asked David.
“Two older brothers, one younger brother, and an adopted younger brother: Dawson is 21. Brett is 16, and Brody is 13. Toby is 10,” David answered.
“Oh wow. I can’t believe we have so much in common! Where’s your younger brother adopted from?” Levi asked.
“Luxembourg. His last name was Schwann before he was adopted as a baby,” said David.
“Did you know that I’m Jewish?” Levi asked.
“No! Are you strictly Jewish?”
“Yes and no. We’re Jewish on my mom’s side, but we also celebrate Christmas because my dad was born Methodist. When it comes to Thanksgiving, on the actual day, we celebrate the traditional way on my mom’s side. However, on my dad’s side, since he is part Italian, we all go over to his parents’ house and eat Italian food, and this is the next day.”
“We celebrate the exact same way! My dad is also part Italian.”
“No way! We’re so similar.”

The three boys stayed up for a while longer. They were not at all tired. As a matter of fact, they were all full of energy, and they were fired up for the adventure that they knew they were going on. Today, David, Andrew, and Levi met Marty, Sporto, Cosmo, Jack McFrost, Jefferson, and Wachnuka Kaloi.

What nice guys.

And, eventually, the three boys were going to meet a robot named Rockybado, who hails from Texamilio, and they were also going to meet Dacston, a t-rex, Jokie, a brachiosaurus, Valpatic, a velociraptor, and Sammy, a stegosaurus, who gleefully reside in Galavanti Island.

Everything that David, Andrew, and Levi were hoping for in an adventure. Right now, however, they were all focused on the games they were playing, as well as getting to know each other better. The three boys continued to play video games with each other for a few more hours.

“What time is it?” Andrew asked.
“Two o’clock in the morning. Why?” Levi replied.
“I think I’m going to fall asleep right here.”
“You know what? I am feeling the exact same way,” David remarked.
“Aw, you guys are no fun!” Levi exclaimed sarcastically.
“What time should we all wake up, though? Did Marty say something about nine or ten o’clock in the morning?”
“Nah! I think whenever is okay.”
“I think I’m going to my quarter anyway. You guys can have more fun playing video games, but I think I will fall asleep right here if I don’t go to my quarter soon,” Andrew said.
“I’m with you!” David nearly shouted.
“Okay. I’m going to stay up a little longer and see if I can beat my high score. Good night, guys!” Levi remarked.
“Good night!” David replied.
“Good night!” Andrew replied. 

Andrew and David entered their own quarters and fell asleep. Levi decided to play games for another hour, and then he also grew exhausted from this long day. He entered his quarters and did not quickly fall asleep. But, after a few minutes of thinking about absolutely nothing, he was somehow able to go to sleep.

It was then the next morning, and all three boys were still sleeping soundly in their quarters. Marty walked over to the quarters at 9:30 that morning, carrying a vuvuzela with him, so that he could wake up David, Andrew, and Levi.

Sporto accompanied him. Cosmo had volunteered to accompany him, but Marty wanted someone who was not as loud, hyper, and hysterical (oh my). While Marty and Sporto would attempt to wake up the boys, Cosmo, Jack McFrost, Jefferson, and Kaloi sat at the dining room table, drinking coffee with hazelnut cream and eating apple turnovers.

A perfect way to start the day.

From the kitchen to the boys’ quarters, the two walked for a few minutes. Due to how spread out the place was, Marty and Sporto had quite a ways to walk.

While the two were walking toward the boys’ quarters….

“So, you’re using a vuvuzela to wake up the boys?” Sporto questioned his polar bear friend.
“Indeed,” Marty replied with a toothy grin.
“That will get them very excited for today.”
“I know! That’s why I’m using the old fashioned method.”
“What will that prove?” Sporto felt compelled to ask.
“Well, the boys will wake up on the right side of the bed, and they will get excited about this joyous day! We have a lot of things planned,” Marty replied, sounding a little stupidly optimistic.
“I don’t know about that. Do you remember Levi being a non-morning person?”
“Nonsense. I’m sure those boys went to bed at a decent hour. They were all so tired when they arrived in Wakahakai.”
“I thought I heard noise coming from their quarters last night.”
“Well, I didn’t.”

End of conversation.

Marty and Sporto finally arrived at the boys’ quarters after five minutes of all that walking. A few seconds later, Marty drew the neon green vuvuzela to his mouth, and with pride and dignity, he blew very hard into the plastic instrument. Out of all three boys in their quarters, Andrew was the only one who heard Marty gleefully play the vuvuzela.

A few moments later, Andrew slowly opened his eyes. He was lying on his stomach. On top of the comforter. It was way too hot to sleep inside it. The boy had a rough night. The journey to Wakahakai might have been a little much for him, especially since the boys did not go to bed until after 2:30 in the morning. They were all up at that hour, getting an opportunity to reconnect with each other by playing video games.

The boy was awake, but he was not out of bed yet. He still lay on his stomach while fighting to go back to sleep. His eyes were closed, but, once he was awake, he was awake. The troubles of being a light sleeper.

Time to get up.

Andrew sluggishly got out of his quarter, found his clothes in the cubby beneath the quarter, and decided to get ready for the day. It was going to be long, but hopefully fun. He had a chance to really get to know the two other boys and everyone else last night.

Meanwhile, back in the dining room, where Marty and Sporto returned to their friends, coffee with hazelnut cream, and apple turnovers….

“Good job, Marty. You only woke up one boy,” Sporto said.
“At least I tried,” Marty replied.
“Who was the boy that you woke up?”
“I believe that was Andrew. They all look the same to me.”
“You think?” Sporto asked.
“Their hair color, how they keep their hair, you know?” Marty replied.
“I don’t think they look that much alike. Maybe to a degree. David and Andrew especially.”
“Well, what I do know is that they all have a lot in common.”
“Like what?”
“They all play tennis. They all play video games. They all like Chinese food. Stuff like that.”

Marty decided against returning to the boys’ quarters. He started to feel very bad for trying to rouse the boys out of bed. Andrew, of course, could not go back to sleep. And Marty realized that it would be extremely futile to use the vuvuzela again, in an attempt to wake up the two other boys. It was so obvious that David and Levi would sleep through the “alarm.” With that in mind, Marty stayed in the dining room with the rest of his friends.

​“Kids these days,” Marty said, afterwards shaking his head.
“What happened?” Jefferson asked, thinking of nothing else to say.
“Kids need their sleep.”
“Indeed.”
“Did you use your vuvuzela again?” Jack McFrost asked his polar bear friend, afterwards shaking his head in disagreement.
“Let’s just say that I made an honest attempt,” Marty replied, half-heartedly.