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From Rockybado 4: Running Up a Hill
It was David’s senior year in high school, and Brody’s junior year. They were both on the tennis team, and so was Adam Levistad. With this in mind, it was right in the middle of tennis season, and the boys’ tennis team had a tournament today. This was the fourth tournament in this season, and the boys were excited about hopefully doing well today. Except for Brody. David’s younger brother had been sick for a little over a week, causing him to miss this past Tuesday and Wednesday and come back to school on Thursday. Because Brody didn’t miss school on Friday, he was allowed to participate in today’s tennis tournament. However, what he thought he had did not just go away. As a matter of fact, he started feeling worse after he woke up this morning. “Wake up, Brody,” Mrs. Ingram said as she came into the room to wake up Brody. Thank goodness Brett was not at home at the time. He was at a university on the north side of Indianapolis. Because Brett was not at home, this meant that Brody did not have to deal with any pranks whatsoever. “Do I have to get up?” Brody asked sleepily. “Do you want to play tennis today?” Mrs. Ingram asked. “I don’t know.” “Aren’t you feeling better?” “No, I’m not,” Brody replied even more sleepily. “Well, what should I do?” Mrs. Ingram asked. “I want to play, but I feel like I’m going to throw up.” “Oh no. Let me check your temperature.” Mrs. Ingram ran out of the bedroom and got the thermometer in the hall closet. When she returned with it, she noticed Brody lying on his back on the futon with his hands behind his head. To her, this might not have been a good sign. Mrs. Ingram gave Brody the thermometer to put under his tongue. After a minute or two of waiting, it was time to see the results. “Would you like to know if you have a fever or not?” Mrs. Ingram asked her son. “Sure. Go ahead and tell me,” Brody answered. “Negative.” “So, I don’t have a fever?” “No. It’s about what it’s supposed to be,” Mrs. Ingram replied. “I think I’ll try practicing and see how I am after that,” Brody remarked. “Sounds like a plan. If you’re at the point where you feel really sick, let me know.” “I will.” “Now, I’ll need to take you, David, and Adam to practice today since Adam’s mom is at the hospital visiting her friend who just had a baby.” “Okay.” Brody slowly got out of bed. He was still feeling nauseous, but he thought that it would be a good idea to at least show up to practice and see how he felt during the day. He put on some clothes and tried to make himself look at least a little presentable. Five minutes later, Brody threw up, but he thought he was going to feel better throughout the day. He sat inside the bathroom for about ten minutes because he wanted to be close to the heater. Also, Brody was waiting to feel a little better so that he could still play today. He then came downstairs and ate a few saltine crackers, but he didn’t feel like eating much else. Brody did not talk to anyone at the table; he was only hoping that he wouldn’t throw up again today. “You’re really not feeling well at all today, are you?” Mr. Ingram asked his fourth son. Brody slowly shook his head. “Should he stay home today, Marsha?” “We both agreed that he would call me if he gets really sick,” Mrs. Ingram answered her husband. “Whatever you say. He does not look well to me.” “Well….” “I seriously think he should stay home,” Mr. Ingram remarked in his somewhat thick British accent. “This has happened to him before, and he was able to pull through,” Mrs. Ingram said. “I’ll be fine,” Brody finally stated. “You sure, hon?” “I think so.” “If you say so.” David was feeling fine; he actually wasn’t sick at all this week. And neither was anyone else. For some very odd reason, Brody was the only one in the family who had actually gotten sick. And he was really sick this time around. Of course, Mr. Ingram wasn’t sure if Brody would be able to make it through practice. And Mrs. Ingram believed that he could get better throughout the day. Let’s see how today goes. Mrs. Ingram picked up Adam from his house, since he doesn’t live too far away from the Ingram’s house on Garfield Court. Adam and David, of course, started talking. Brody, however, did not feel like conversing with anyone. He just stared out the window and hoped to the Good Man that this would all pass. Fifteen minutes later, due to random and unnecessary traffic, David, Brody, and Adam were at the high school, ready to play tennis. The two older boys walked over to some fellow tennis players and started conversing with them. Brody, on the other hand, did not talk to anyone, since he was not feeling well at all. Normally, he would be talking a mile a minute with everyone on the tennis team. But, at the moment, Brody’s stomach hurt, and he didn’t know why he was at the high school today. Brody decided that he should at least try to practice with the team. The practice time seemed like a complete blur, as in the fact that it had gone by so quickly. But, at the same time, it seemed like forever that Brody’s match was going to end. He played against one of his teammates for about an hour. When he just finished his practice match with one of his teammates, Colin Nichols, Brody started feeling sick again. He was afraid to run to the bathroom because he didn’t want to risk throwing up in front of the Good Man and everyone else. Instead, he slowly walked to the school and headed toward the men's bathroom. There was no one in the men’s bathroom, so Brody made himself as comfortable as possible. He entered a stall, closed the door behind him, and sat on the floor. Brody really did not want to throw up, but he didn’t think that he had any choice whatsoever. For fifteen long minutes, he just sat there thinking about everything, but nothing at the same time. He didn’t know what to do. He didn’t want to get sick today, but he also didn’t want to get any sicker than he already was. Brody started throwing up all of a sudden. Between bouts that lasted about two minutes, he rested his head in his arms, which lay comfortably on top of the seat. Brody thought that it would be good for him to come home, but he didn’t want to miss this tournament. Since he loves to play tennis so much, and missing one tournament could mean the end of the world. Well, not really. A few minutes later, during a bout of throwing up, two football players came into the men's bathroom. The first thing that they heard was the sound of Brody throwing up. The two football players, named Javon Peterson and DeShaun Golding, wanted to help the poor guy out, but at first they weren’t quite sure who was in the closed stall “worshipping the porcelain idol.” But then they knew. “Brody?” Javon called the boy’s name. “Hello?” Brody replied quietly. “You okay in there?” “No. I’m puking my guts out, and I feel like I’m going to die.” “Oh dude. Would you like us to get you something? Like a drink or something?” Javon offered. “Can you get a drink from a vending machine? I don’t care what it is,” Brody replied, even more quietly than before. “Definitely, bro.” “And how did you know it was me in the stall?” “Your hoodie’s on the floor, and it says B. Ingram on it.” “I have some money that I could give you.” “Don’t worry, bro. It’s on us.” Then, Javon and DeShaun ran out of the bathroom toward the cafeteria, where the vending machines were. Brody heard the two football players making crazy high-pitched noises as they were running toward the cafeteria. After laughing to himself for a few seconds, he was hoping that this would all be over as soon as possible. Of course, Brody threw up again. Javon and DeShaun were running as fast as they could to the vending machine, they continued to make crazy high-pitched noises. In the cafeteria, there was another group sitting at the tables, listening “intently” to the advisors as they were describing to their group what to expect when out and about. Apparently, the group was leaving campus as well. “WE HAVE A SICK DUDE TO TAKE CARE OF!” Javon shouted as loudly as he could. “WOOOOOOOOOO!” DeShaun shouted louder than Javon. The group, of course, stopped everything they were doing and gave the two football players weird looks. There must have been some understanding that Javon and DeShaun had good intentions, but why did they have to announce their intentions to the whole world? What were the advisors of the one group going to do? Nothing. Javon and DeShaun chose a light soda from the vending machine for Brody, and then they returned to the bathroom where Brody was most likely still throwing up. “Sup, Brody?” DeShaun said after they came back. “Sup,” Brody answered. “Here’s your drink. Hope you like light soda.” “That’s fine.” “Are you still gonna stay out of tennis today?” DeShaun asked. “Probably,” Brody replied. “I already called my mom, and she’s picking me up.” “That sucks.” “I know. I was looking forward to tonight.” “I hope there are more tourneys.” “There are. I really wanted to play in this one.” Brody didn’t feel as if he could play tennis, given the circumstances. He had already arranged for his mom to pick him up from the high school within fifteen minutes. While waiting for her, Brody stayed in the bathroom and sipped on his soda. Once his mom let him know that she had arrived, he left the bathroom and headed out of the school toward the car. After Brody and his mom would arrive home, Brody was probably going to sleep for as long as possible. A couple hours later, David and Adam left with the rest of the tennis team for the tournament. Everyone had to have felt bad for Brody because he couldn’t participate today. While some team members formed their own conversation groups and talked about random subjects, David and Adam listened to David’s music and conversed amongst themselves. “Sucks about Brody,” Adam said to David. “I know. We all thought that he was getting better,” David remarked. “Didn’t he miss a couple days of school last week?” “Tuesday and Wednesday.” “What was he sick with?” Adam asked. “He had a cold, but now I guess it’s the flu,” David answered. “Sounds like it.” “He didn’t look well at all today.” “No, he didn’t.” “I’m amazed that he was able to pull a great match with Colin Nichols.” “I am, too.” The high school tennis teams were already at their destination. The boys got ready for today’s tournament, which, of course, was a complete blur. Then, it was time for the tournament, and everyone on the team had to get mentally ready for it. An hour later, the tournament began.
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April 6, 2019
Levi Cranston (The Magic Video Game), Kevin Maggliardi, and Jack Andrews were at Kevin's apartment in Cambridge, just outside of Boston, and they were watching some goofy cartoons until they were going to meet up with Asad Prejesh, Mike Wong, and Jing Hao in downtown Boston. "So, it turns out my cousin is getting his tonsils taken out next week," Kevin remarked out of the blue. "I am so sorry to hear that," Levi replied. Jack was in the bathroom. "Yeah, it's gonna suck for him. He's only four and has had problems with his throat for a few months." "Is he Rosie's older brother?" "Yes," Kevin said with a smile. "I love her to the moon and back." "She's the baby cousin that you keep talking about, right?" Levi clarified. "Yep. She's the one. You need to meet her when we go to Rhode Island." "Yes, absolutely. Did you get your tonsils out as well?" "Yes, when I was in middle school. It wasn't terrible once I came home from the hospital. I mean, my throat hurt a lot, and I was tired all the time, but I managed." "Yeah, for me, it was terrible because they botched the surgery. I came out fine with no throat problems after all that, but I was back to my normal self about a month later." "That's awful. The worst part was when I was in the recovery room. I was really nauseous from the anesthesia, and when the nurse asked me if I was okay, I threw up all over myself and the nurse." Levi and Kevin shared a laugh for a few minutes. They were still watching TV by the time Jack returned to the common area. No one else was in the apartment other than them, so it was nice having the apartment to themselves. It was a nice day for an excursion in downtown Boston, and they had all decided to get dinner somewhere tonight. Chances were, they wouldn't feel up to sushi. Probably something Italian, since they haven't done that in a while. "Have you heard anything from Asad and them?" Kevin asked. "Last I heard, they were walking around campus and playing Frisbee," Jack replied. Levi's girlfriend, Mackenzie Burbanks, tried calling him, so he had to take that call. "That's nice. Would we want to venture out that way?" "I'm open. Hopefully Levi comes back soon, so we can go." "Yeah, we watched cartoons for a little over an hour now. I wanna go out," Kevin said. "So do I," Jack remarked. "And the weather isn't too bad. Isn't it like 3 o'clock or something?" "3:12." "Okay, so I was close." "Yes, you were." From Rockybado 3: The Invasion of the Naughty Blue Aliens
David and Brody were in a spaceship since they had been separated from Rockybado and their other friends. Their plan was to go back to Texamilio to reunite with them. This spaceship took off from Benjamilio and flew to random places. An automated voice boomed out of nowhere. “Care for a hot fudge sundae?” the voice questioned the two boys. David and Brody looked at each other for a few seconds. They hadn’t eaten much today because they were so focused on finding the Naughty Blue Aliens and the McSmith’s that food was, for whatever rare reason, not on the boys’ minds. David and Brody agreed that they were both extremely hungry, and they could go for a hot fudge sundae just about now. “Two hot fudge sundaes,” David answered. “Okay. Would you like sprinkles on your hot fudge sundaes?” the voice asked. Brody shook his head. “No sprinkles on either sundae,” David replied. “Most assuredly, you would want sprinkles on your hot fudge sundae,” the voice said, trying to reassure the boys. “No. I want no sprinkles on either sundae.” “Of course, you….” “You must be trying to imply that we want sprinkles on our hot fudge sundaes when, in fact, we don’t,” David remarked. “Everyone wants sprinkles on their hot fudge sundaes,” said the voice. “Well, we don’t.” “Lester, get them.” “What?!” The two boys could hear an army of Naughty Blue Aliens marching toward their general direction. There were a grand total of thirty aliens in green and red garb, even though Christmas is half a year away. Their hats were yellow golf caps, and David and Brody had to quietly laugh about their absurd attire. Otherwise, they felt pretty apprehensive. Their hands started to get sweaty, and they weren’t quite sure what to do next. “All this for not wanting sprinkles on our hot fudge sundaes?” Brody questioned. “Apparently,” David answered. The “army” of aliens entered the room. They had straight faces, and they were probably not going to take kindly to any jokes whatsoever. David and Brody tried to keep straight faces as well. It was very hard, though, because of the mixed feelings of being nervous and just thinking that the aliens’ uniforms were stupid. Moments later…. “Seize them, Lester,” the voice boomed. A few more moments later…. “You boys are coming with me,” Lester announced. “Where are we going?” Brody questioned. “Dumigal. It’s a huge city,” Lester announced somewhat rudely. They said nothing more until it happened. What happened? The aliens dropped the two boys off at two different locations. It was 11:56 at night, and the boys had no idea where they were. It looked like a normal urban street at night. David was located on the north end of the street, and Brody was on the south end. However, the street ran for nine blocks, and, at night, David and Brody would have a much harder time finding each other. David looked around him. He didn’t see much at first. Then, he decided to peer into one of the houses. This specific house had a lot of graffiti on the outside, and it looked like it was going to collapse at any given moment. David cautiously looked through the window. There were at least ten aliens wearing sombreros in this household. One of them, who appeared to be the mother, saw David first. “Oh, look, mi familia! There’s a stalker looking through the window. That good-for-nothing macho is a criminal and is up to no good,” said the lady. Moments later, the whole family screamed and ran in circles inside the house. David quickly stepped away from the house. Then, the whole family ran toward him and started shouting, “Ay Carrumba!” Half of them had water guns. Two of them carried baseball bats. One had a mace. Once David saw the mace, he tried to increase his running speed. He ran for five blocks, and then he found a tree to hide behind. The sombrero alien family didn’t even glance at the tree. They kept on running. David’s heart was pounding so hard that it was painful for him to breathe. He was breathing so hard and focused only on his recovery. Then, he noticed an elderly female alien right beside him. “Boo,” said the lady. David screamed like a little girl. “What do you think you’re doing on my here property?” the lady questioned David. David was very scared. He did not answer. “Beat it, chump!” the lady shouted. David was still in shock. The lady put ammo in her gun and charged it. David slowly walked away. Once he heard the old lady fire her gun, he started running. The old lady kept firing at him, but she always missed. Once he evaded her grasp, he got a better view of the neighborhood. The neighborhood looked like a typical urban neighborhood. However, one house was on fire, and it didn’t seem to phase anyone. Nearly half of the houses had graffiti on them. There were several crime scenes. There were five gang members walking around and looking through people’s homes. They were going south on the street. They kept singing some songs by an idolized rapper and then a random song that they probably made up. In order to avoid the gang, David ran north on the street. He made sure the gang didn’t see him. There were nine police cars following each other to a probable crime scene. David felt so uneasy to the point that he shuddered. He didn’t want to just stand there and get caught. He wasn’t sure where else to hide. Then, he found a bush to hide in for a few minutes. The same family who kept on shouting, “Ay Carrumba!” passed the bush. David let out a huge sigh of relief and felt for his heartbeat. Now, he didn’t hear anything else going on in the neighborhood that would bring up attention. Meanwhile, Brody was trying to hide from the sombrero alien family, the old lady, and the random gang. There was a naughty blue alien dressed in orange. He had a revolver and pointed it at Brody’s chest. “Mr. Little Kid, you’re dead,” the alien said. Brody didn’t move. “Mr. Little Kid, you’re dead,” the alien said again. Brody was breathing very hard. “MR. LITTLE KID, YOU’RE DEAD!” the alien shouted. David crept up behind the orange-clad alien. Brody finally saw David; he felt a huge sensation of relief, knowing that his brother was right here, that he found him in the nick of time. With this, Brody had to think, and he had to think very quickly. “WAIT!” Brody shouted. The alien’s eyebrows rose. Brody grabbed the gun out of the alien’s hands and pointed it at his chest. He didn’t just point the gun at his heart; he actually pressed it firmly against his chest. He could feel his pounding heartbeat through the gun. “I wanted to be a computer engineer. I wanted to go to college. I wanted to study computers and engineering. So, I wanted to be a computer engineer. But it’s gone. All gone. Bye, world. It was nice knowing you while you were young,” Brody said in a serious tone. While he said this, he walked backwards behind a bush. Neither David or the alien saw him. Then, they heard the gun go off. David’s mouth dropped. The alien acted indifferent. “Oh. He’s dead. I’m leaving,” said the alien. He left, and David walked over to the bush where Brody was. He found his younger brother lying on his back. He was breathing very hard. His right hand was on his chest, most likely feeling for his heartbeat; and his left hand was on his stomach, which pulled up his shirt, exposing his belly button. “Are you okay, Brody?” David questioned his younger brother. Brody nodded. “Are you scared?” Another nod. “Don’t be. He’s gone.” Brody let out a heavy sigh. “Come on. We need to get out of here.” David helped Brody get up. Once he got his little brother stable, they each took a puff on their inhalers, and they both started running out of the urban area. They ran from there to the nicest house on the block, which was quite a distance. Well, actually, they stopped at a little park that was surrounded by trees to catch their breath. After running so far, they were breathing very hard, and it took them a while to regain their composures. “How did you perform your stunt?” David asked. “I walked backwards, and I had the gun pointed at my chest,” said Brody. “I know that much.” “But then, once I was behind the bush, I put the gun over my head. I didn’t actually shoot myself.” “That was brilliant,” David commented. “I came up with that idea at the very last minute,” Brody replied. “It was still brilliant.” The two young boys continued to run all the way from the park to that house. They could see it from so far away, and they thought that someone from that house could help them. David and Brody were very sore from their long run from the crappy urban area to the decent neighborhood. They knocked on the door and waited for a response. After two minutes, a short pink haired lady in a blue and white checkered dress and white pinafore opened the door. “Hello, boys. My name is Aunt. Welcome to my humble abode,” she greeted warmly. “Hey,” David responded. “Hello,” Brody said politely. “What can I do for you boys? Food? Drinks? Kitties?” Aunt questioned. “Can we stay over for the night?” David asked. “Why, certainly. I need to put these toiletries to good use.” David and Brody looked at each other and then at Aunt. “What time is it?” Brody asked. Aunt looked at her watch. “It’s 1:30 in the morning. Are you ready to call it a night?” she responded. “Not at all!” Brody answered. “Neither of us are morning people. I usually wake up at nine o’clock, and Brody normally wakes up whenever,” David said. “Okay. Good thing I know when, for sure, to expect you guys up,” said Aunt. “Really?” David asked. “Consider it a treat,” Aunt said. David and Brody shrugged their shoulders simultaneously. “What do you normally do until about two o’clock in the morning?” Aunt asked. “We play video games,” Brody answered. “I have an old game console in the common area,” said Aunt. Both boys high-fived each other. Then, they played video games until four o’clock in the morning. After all, this was the nicest house on the block. From The Magic Video Game 4: The Upbringing of a New Comedian
Levi continued to play video games with the younger nephews. Even though Evelyn Maeve was in the same room as them, she didn't play video games. She wanted to watch them play, as well as sit with Duchess and Prussia, the family's cats. Duchess was sitting on Evelyn Maeve's lap. And Prussia was sitting by her right side. Evelyn Maeve was waiting for everyone to decide what they wanted to do. Levi was more focused on the game that he was playing. And the two younger nephews were amazed at what they were watching Levi do on the TV. But they needed to make a decision on what they wanted to do as soon as possible. At least Evelyn Maeve thought this to be the case. "Levi, what are we doing?" Evelyn Maeve asked. "Ice cream," Levi replied, still focused on his game. "Okay. When are we going?" "I'm going to finish up this round, and then we'll go." "How long will that take?" Evelyn Maeve asked. "When pigs can fly," Levi replied half-heartedly. "Nice answer." "Well, we're still trying to figure out how to make pigs fly." "You know what I'm thinking?" "What?" "Horchata ice cream." At that, Levi dropped everything that he did and got up to put his shoes on. That had to work for Levi, and Evelyn Maeve knew it would. The other kids were excited as well. Olivia was just okay with getting out of the house for a while with their mom. They were both getting their hair cut today, so they were most definitely looking forward to the mother-daughter bond time that they would have. Then, they would most likely go in town and have lunch at one of the restaurants on Lincolnway. For them, today was going to be good as well. They were not going to leave until 12:30, and it was only 11:30. Levi, Evelyn Maeve, and the three nephews were planning to leave at noon. Their plan was to eat a quick lunch at the house, and then they would head out to the other side of downtown. "What do you guys want for lunch?" Levi asked everyone. "Wanna just make cheese sandwiches out of that French bread that we need to use up?" Evelyn Maeve inquired, trying to sound more grown up. "That sounds good to me. We should have enough." "We have enough of those bread rolls that will feed us and then some, and then again...." "Very funny, Evie Maeve," Levi remarked, shaking his head. "You'll want two sandwiches, right?" Evelyn Maeve asked with a smile. "Oh absolutely." "You and that saying." "I've had that saying for a while now." "I know you have." Levi wanted to make the sandwiches, since he has a certain way of making them that he likes. He cut the six bread rolls in half and put provolone, mozzarella, and asiago cheese between the halves. He made one for Evelyn Maeve, the three nephews, and two for himself. He was just that hungry so he knew he'd want more than just one sandwich. He also took the carton of milk and poured everyone a glass of milk, assuming that was what they'd want. Once Levi made the sandwiches for everyone, he had everyone sit at the table and eat lunch. The three nephews were goofy, as usual. Evelyn Maeve and Levi couldn't help but laugh at them trying to create as many bubbles as possible by blowing into the milk through the straw. Back in the heyday, Levi and Evelyn Maeve both did that with their milk. And they thought it'd be funny to try it now. "How many bubbles can I make?" Lemmy asked everyone. "I see ten," Levi half-joked. "Wanna try, Wevi?" "No, thanks. I'm good." "You should make some milk bubbles!" Lemmy exclaimed. "Maybe not right now," Levi replied. He is a craft beer enthusiast. "Okay." "Want to get ice cream now, since everyone is done with lunch?" "Yay!" "Let's roll!" The five kids left the house and walked toward the city square. Evelyn Maeve was making some goofy small talk with the nephews. Levi was listening in on what they were saying and couldn't help but laugh to himself. The kids walked from Elmhurst Avenue to Chestnut Street, which took them to Campbell, then taking that to Lincolnway. The kids walked a ways on Lincolnway until they reached Morgan Boulevard and Lincolnway. Then, they all knew where they were. The kids were more than excited to go to the ice cream parlor. Evelyn Maeve was excited to get horchata ice cream. And Levi was also excited to get horchata ice cream. They were hoping to make this order simple for everyone. "Hello!" The person behind the counter greeted everyone in a friendly manner. "Hello," Levi replied. "What can I get for you today?" "I would like two orders of horchata ice cream in the waffle cone, and three orders of cake batter in a waffle cone." "I WANT HORCHATA ICE CREAM!" Lemmy shouted excitedly. "Okay, three orders of horchata and two orders of cake batter," Levi replied. "Will that be all for you then?" The person behind the front counter asked. "Caleb wants vanilla!" Lemmy shouted. "Okay. Sorry about this. Three orders of horchata, one order of vanilla, and one order of cake batter," Levi said. "That is fine. Will that be all for you?" "Yes, for now." Levi paid for their orders, and when they got their ice cream, they all sat at a table by the door. The young nephews were shoving the ice cream in their mouths. Levi was amused at what their nephews were doing. Evelyn Maeve was also amused at them. Levi and Evelyn Maeve were just enjoying their horchata ice cream. Lemmy and his two younger brothers were enjoying their ice cream and being goofy little kids. They all sat in the ice cream parlor for another thirty minutes. Levi walked back up to the front counter and asked for a cup of water. Then, they were all ready to head out. The three kids wanted to go back to the house. And, as a matter of fact, so did Levi and Evelyn Maeve. The five kids took Morgan Boulevard from Lincolnway up to Chicago Street, which would take them to Elmhurst Avenue. A walk like this would last about twenty minutes. Evelyn Maeve was making more small talk with the three boys. Levi stayed amused at the conversation that was going on between everyone else. He was texting Jack on the way home because they were hoping to get a tennis practice in this evening. He wasn't too sure if this would happen though, since Jack might already have had plans. David knew that he couldn't practice tonight, and Asad said maybe. Mackenzie, Levi’s girlfriend, knew she couldn't because she was visiting her grandparents tonight. Then, it would most likely just be Jack and Levi practicing tennis tonight. "Yo, are you gonna play tennis tonight?" Levi asked his best friend via text. "Yo. Not too sure. Might have plans tonight," Jack replied via text. "Awww man." "I know. This happened last minute." "What's up, man?" Levi questioned. "My cousin's dad has a wedding shower in St. John," Jack answered. "Hope it's fun, if you go." "We are still debating." "Why wouldn't you go?" "We're not sure." It wasn't too long before Levi, Evelyn Maeve, and the nephews returned to the house on Elmhurst Avenue. Twenty minutes later, they were finally home. Levi wanted to play video games. Their nephews wanted to watch him play. Evelyn Maeve made herself some peppermint tea. She felt like having tea now, so she went for that so-called “temptation.” Levi was too focused on his game, so he wouldn't want tea right now. And the three nephews didn't want milk or anything. Once she was done making her tea, she walked back to the common area and watched Levi try to beat his game. He was that focused. "DANG IT! I MISSED!" Levi shouted at the top of his lungs. "How?" Evelyn Maeve asked. "I tried hitting the ship from the side. Oh well." "How many more tries do you have?" "Oh, I dunno," Levi replied, feeling slightly discouraged. "How long have you been playing this game?" Evelyn Maeve questioned. "A while. I should've been able to beat it by now." "Have you ever beaten it?" "With a baseball bat? No." "That's good." Levi is sweet as can be; he is a master at sarcasm. He can pull off sarcasm very well, especially on his family and friends. He knew that was not what Evelyn Maeve was asking. But Levi wanted to lighten the mood and make everyone laugh. The little nephews would probably not have gotten the joke. They were too busy watching Levi play video games anyway. So they probably weren't even listening. A few minutes later, Levi lost the game, and he quit playing. Now, the nephews wanted him to read a book to them. So Levi picked out the most difficult to read science fiction novel that he could find in the bookshelf by the TV. Once he sat back down on the couch, the three nephews sat next to him. Levi opened the book and started reading everything in goofy voices. The three nephews were amused that they could listen to their fun uncle read something much over their head. And Evelyn Maeve was amused that Levi was enjoying himself while reading that book in funny voices. All in all, an interesting way to spend a summer afternoon. It was 2:36 in the afternoon, and Louise was most likely coming around 4:30, so Levi had enough time to continue his reading. And Evelyn Maeve had enough time to collect more “stories” for her social media app. Levi continued to read as much of the book as he could in all different kinds of voices. The time seemed to go by very quickly with all of that going on. And then Levi heard a knock on the door. Only he didn't answer the door. He had his hands tied up with the reading and such. Evelyn Maeve answered the door. It was Louise, and things must have been going well for her husband's sister. The kids' mom and Olivia were going to be home around five o'clock in the evening. The kids' dad ended up making a stop in Crown Point to visit Elizabeth, the kids' other half-sister, and her husband, Paul Weiner. Evelyn Maeve made some small talk with Louise. The three nephews heard their mom's voice and clung to Levi's arms. They were having a great time here with Levi. They obviously did not want to leave yet. Louise had been talking to everyone else. Levi continued to play video games with his nephews, who were still trying to cling to his arms. They were just watching him try to beat the level that he was on. And Evelyn Maeve was also watching them. This was quite entertaining for a little while. "Boys, time to go home," Louise shouted toward the common area. "NOOOOOO!!!!" Lemmy shouted. "David Lemster Baranovsky-Soriano, we have family friends coming over tonight." "But I want to stay with Wevi!" "It's time." That was most definitely not enough coaxing for Lemmy. He was hoping to stay at the Cranston's house and watch Levi play video games. And Evelyn Maeve was pretty fun as well. Lemmy was having a great time. And so were his two little brothers. Levi finished his video game, and Lemmy jumped up in his arms. Caleb Ogden wanted Levi to carry him as well. When he walked toward Louise, who was in the kitchen, he was carrying Lemmy in one arm and Caleb in the other arm. Andrew Harrison was with Evelyn Maeve in the common area. This was going to be interesting. "Looking for these knuckleheads?" Levi asked his oldest sister. "Yes!" Louise exclaimed. "You might want to get them, or they might decide to come with me." "You know...." "What would they do at your get-together? Just curious," Levi remarked. Lemmy's head was pressed firmly against Levi's chest. "Yeah, I guess I see where you're going," Louise said. "Would it be cool if I had them for another few hours?" "If you say so. Just don't get them too excited about fried chicken." "Don't worry. I will." "Levi...." "Just kidding." September 7, 2018
It was Saturday afternoon, and Levi Cranston (The Magic Video Game) and his friends, Kevin Maggliardi, Jack Andrews, Jing Hao, Asad Prejesh, and Mike Wong decided to play a friendly game of soccer. Mackenzie Burbanks, Levi's girlfriend, and Shanti Lee, Kevin's friend and love interest, were sitting on the grass watching the boys play soccer. It was a pretty intense game so far. "So how long have you and Kevin known each other?" Mackenzie asked Shanti. "Since we were four," Shanti replied. "So have you ever dated since then?" "Casually, yes. But we never really went steady. We thought about it, but he went to school here in Boston, and I was in LA." "What did you study in LA?" Mackenzie asked. "I studied to be a hair stylist," Shanti replied. "Very cool." "What do you do?" "I'm a graphic designer, and Levi is a systems engineer, so he's the IT nut." "As is Kevin." The girls were still watching the intense game. It was Kevin, Mike, and Jing versus Levi, Asad, and Jack. Not that it really mattered, because they were doing this for fun. Of course, Kevin and Levi were the more competitive and active in the game. Jack wanted to be the goalie for his team, so he wouldn't run as much. Jing felt the same way for his team. When the boys took a breather, Kevin ran over to where Shanti and Mackenzie were sitting, and fell to the ground on his back. Shanti noticed that his hands were underneath his head, while he was trying to catch his breath. Kevin was not wearing a shirt, so Shanti could see the ends of his rib cage every time he took a breath. While his right hand was still underneath his head, he let his left hand rest comfortably on his chest. Shanti thought that she could see her friend's heart pumping violently against his hand, and she thought it was kinda cute. "Put your arm down, Kevin," Shanti said to her incredibly sweaty friend. "This feels so good, though," Kevin replied. "But you're so sweaty." "That's what soccer will do to you." "Are you alright?" Shanti asked, noticing that Kevin was still breathing hard. "Yup. Couldn't be better," Kevin stated, drawing in a deep breath and pressing his left hand firmly against his chest. He then heard his stomach gurgle loudly, and his face turned a little red. A few minutes later, Kevin recovered and got back up. With him being all sweaty, he had picked up some grass on his back. Shanti wiped off what grass she could get with the back of her hand and realized how sweaty he really was. Kevin ran back to the field to play some more soccer with everyone else. The game got even more intense, even brutal to some extent. A few of the boys tripped on nothing and fell on top of each other. The soccer ball hit one of the boys hard enough in the chest, causing him to lose his breath for a few seconds. All of the boys were extremely sweaty after an hour and a half of soccer in this weather. Once they all decided to call yet another breather, Kevin noticed that his nose was starting to run. He wiped his nose with his left arm and noticed that he was having a nosebleed. With that in mind, he slowly walked over to the side and knelt down facing the grass and pinched his nose to stop the bleeding. He already had blood on his face, which dripped down to his chest and stomach. The only way that he could have had such a nosebleed would have been from breathing in too hard and potentially causing a lot of pressure in his nose. "Good game, everyone!" Jack shouted as he clapped humorously. He then noticed Kevin pinching his nose, and he still had some grass on his back. "I hope Kevin's okay," Levi remarked. "You alright, Kevin?" "Yeah, had a nosebleed," Kevin replied. "A shower would be nice." "Yeah, I think we are done anyway," Jack stated. "Good." "Once we all shower and whatnot, I'm thinking sushi in downtown tongiht." "Hell yeah we should." September 23, 2012
Levi Cranston (The Magic Video Game) and one of his friends from college were talking about their relationships at lunch. During this time, they were both college students at a university in northeastern Indiana. "How long have you been with Mackenzie?" Levi's friend asked. "Going on seven years," Levi replied with a smile. "That is the longest relationship I have ever heard of." "Oh really? I know of a few that have lasted pretty long, including my sister's relationship." "I wish all of us were as lousy as you," Levi's friend remarked somewhat sarcastically. "What is that supposed to mean?" Levi asked, pretty confused. "Wouldn't it be fun to hang out with other girls so you can see who else is out there?" "Um, no. I'm pretty happy with where I am." "Can I hang out with Mackenzie? She's really cute." "No." From The Magic Video Game
It was October 15th, 2005, and Levi just woke up from sleeping for nine and a half hours. He played video games with two of his four older sisters until two o’clock in the morning. Victoria, 17, and Olivia, 15, woke up at about eight o’clock in the morning to make breakfast. Evelyn Maeve, 5, was keeping Levi company. Their parents had to work. Louise, the oldest, a 25-year-old manager at a business in Crown Point, was working for only half of the day today and would come over at noon. It was already 11:30 in the morning, and Levi woke up, took a shower, and put on some everyday clothes. When he was in the bathroom getting ready for the day, he looked in the mirror and saw a reflection of himself, an absolute mess. His dark brown hair was messy from sleeping for a long period of time. He had marks all over his arms from moving around too much on the couch while sleeping. Levi was recovering from strep, so he wasn’t quite himself yet. When he came downstairs, the first thing he grabbed from the refrigerator was a glass of ice cold water. He lay back on the couch, where their cats, Duchess and Prussia, were waiting for him. The cats walked up to Levi, lay on his stomach, and purred. Levi decided to pet them while watching his favorite cartoons. “Levi, we made our Italian skillet,” Olivia said as she walked into the living room. “I’m not really that hungry,” Levi answered weakly. “That’s unusual. You normally eat. A lot.” “I know. But I feel sick to my stomach.” “You should eat a little something, though. Do saltines work?” “I’m okay with that.” Olivia gave Levi a few saltines and a can of light soda, so that he could have something in his stomach. While watching TV, he thought very much about Mackenzie Burbanks, one of his good friends from school. Knowing each other since the age of eleven, Mackenzie is someone Levi has always been fond of. Her brown hair, brown eyes, and beautiful smile would always make Levi consider a relationship with her. He closed his eyes and imagined this relationship until he heard the front door open. It was now 12:30 in the afternoon, and Louise arrived at her half siblings’ house from work. She brought some chocolate turtles from the local candy shop for them. Victoria, Olivia, and Evelyn Maeve ate their share of the candy, but Levi did not feel like eating much, since he still wasn’t feeling well. He continued to watch some stupid cartoons while the pain in his throat gradually worsened. Thirty minutes later, he suddenly developed a horrible taste in his mouth, accompanied by a sore throat, cold sensation, and intense nausea. “I think I have a draining abscess in the back of my throat,” he said, terrified. “Okay. Let me call Mom and Dad,” Louise answered calmly, for she knew what she was doing. Once Louise got off the phone with their mother after five minutes, she and Levi headed to the hospital. Victoria, Olivia, and Evelyn Maeve stayed home and hoped that things were going to be fine. By the time Louise took her younger brother to the hospital, Levi started crying very hard. His throat hurt badly, and he still had the bad taste in his mouth. He felt very sick, and his head was pounding. He was then starting to feel very dizzy. Once the doctor called the two into the examining room, Levi felt a little relieved. The doctor performed all of the possible procedures that every doctor would. He mainly checked Levi’s throat to make sure nothing was very serious. When the doctor could see Levi’s tonsils, it was obvious that there was a ruptured abscess on the side of his left tonsil. There was an abscess on his right tonsil as well, but the doctor did not want this one to also drain suddenly. The doctor knew he had unpleasant news for both Louise and Levi. He asked Levi how many times he had strep in the past few months, to which Levi responded that he had strep at least twice every two months. This peritonsillar abscess was the fourth one he had had over the course of five months. The doctor said that Levi needed to have his tonsils taken out, and he needed them out soon. Once Levi found out the news, he remained calm on the outside. However, on the inside, he was horribly nervous. Levi remained emotionless in his appearance. He found himself breathing more heavily. He could also feel his heart pounding hard against his chest. He wasn’t sure if he felt like crying or if he just didn’t want anyone to see his true emotions. He was scheduled for surgery in an hour and thirty minutes. This was plenty of time for their parents to arrive at the hospital before Levi’s tonsillectomy. Once his parents arrived at the hospital with Levi’s favorite plush dinosaur, Levi clutched the toy. He pretended that it was Mackenzie, and he hugged it tightly so that he could get his mind off the obvious. Their parents also did whatever they could to calm Levi down before he had to go to the operating room. Once Levi’s name was called by a nurse, he could feel his heart rate skyrocket a second time. He and his parents went with the nurse to the prep room. This was where Levi had to have yet another physical examination, where the same possible procedures that a doctor or nurse would perform were actually performed. Levi was then taken to the operating room. Before he knew it, he had the laughing gas mask put over his face. He was told to breathe deeply. Levi focused on his breathing while also listening intently to the fast beep-beep’s of the heart monitor. He was very nervous at first, and then he thought about Mackenzie. She would be there in spirit, with her ear pressed firmly against his chest so that she could actually hear his strong heartbeat and the gentle whooshes of his breathing. She would tell him that she loved him and that he would make it through the surgery very well. This calmed him down a lot. He noticed that his heart rate slowed down a little, and he wasn’t breathing too hard. He was now in a state of peace. “I love you, Mackenzie,” Levi thought before he fell asleep. When he was finally under the anesthetic, the surgeons started operating on his throat. Things were going well enough until one surgeon accidentally cut a sensitive spot right above Levi’s tonsils. This spot was so sensitive that the surgeons could not stop the bleeding for about five minutes. “Oh no!” said one surgeon. “We missed,” said another surgeon. “What do we do?” “We will have to cauterize the wound. Cauterization wand?” “Cauterization wand.” The surgeons tried to use the cauterization wand, but the surgical instrument was not working for some reason. No one knew why they could not cauterize the second injury. “Oh no! The wand isn’t working,” The second surgeon reacted. “Shoot!” exclaimed the first surgeon. “What are we going to do?!” “Second best option. We will have to stitch the cut together.” Once the spot was stitched together, the surgeons felt better about the whole situation. They believed that Levi was going to be in a lot of pain once he woke up, but he would be okay at least. Once his tonsils and adenoids were taken out, he was wheeled into the recovery room. “Levi, wake up,” said a nurse. Levi opened his eyes. His vision was blurry. He felt hot. His throat felt hot. He was incredibly thirsty. Above all, he wondered where his parents were. When he was able to return to his senses, he did not feel much different. His throat hurt even more now than it did before surgery. It felt like he had four cases of strep throat, all at once. His throat also felt very hot, as if a flame torch had been forced down. His parents then came into the room. “Hey, Levi,” his dad said calmly. Levi really did not feel like talking much. “Worst. Day. Of. My. Life,” Levi muttered quietly. A nurse then came into the room. “Would you like cherry, orange, or grape?” Nurse Michaelson asked him in a motherly manner. Levi pointed at the grape popsicle. The nurse gave the grape popsicle to Levi’s mom. His mom opened the wrapper, and then held the popsicle while Levi was slowly sucking on it. Nurse Michaelson felt very sorry for Levi, based on the hearsay that she was given about the trouble the surgeons went through just to take out his tonsils. She, a big woman probably closing in on 60, always smiled sympathetically. She wanted so badly to make the atmosphere in the recovery room slightly more comfortable. “How’s your throat, hon?” Levi’s mom asked while she held the popsicle up to Levi’s mouth. Levi shook his head, meaning that it really hurt. “One of the surgeons accidentally cut the area above where Levi’s tonsils used to be, and the surgeons could not control the bleeding. So, they had to stitch the cut in order to stop it,” the nurse explained with utmost compassion. Levi let out a heavy sigh. “So, that’s why it hurts so much?” Levi questioned softly. The nurse slowly nodded. “Would you like to see what your tonsils looked like?” Nurse Michaelson questioned Levi, who, in return, shrugged his shoulders. He didn’t care that much about what his tonsils looked like. Nurse Michaelson brought in a small bag with two enormous blobs of tissue inside it. At first, Levi was pretty grossed out. He grew nauseated for about fifteen minutes, and then he did not think his tonsils really looked that bad. “Can I keep my tonsils in a jar?” Levi questioned the nurse with a weak smile. There were five seconds of silence, and then his parents and the nurse started laughing very hard. Levi couldn’t help but smile because he was proud that he made everyone around him laugh. “I wish I could say yes, but if you did, your tonsils would decay, and they would smell horrible,” the nurse responded. Levi shrugged his shoulders. He really could not stand the fact that he had a burning sensation in the back of his throat. “Did someone force a burning muffin down my throat?” “No.” “Oh.” “Your throat may feel hot because of the cauterization wand that the surgeons used.” Levi let out a heavy sigh. It was obvious that he really was not himself. On a normal day, he would never assume that anyone forced a burning muffin down his throat; much less would he have much interest in keeping his tonsils in a jar in his backpack. “Je m’appelle Levi Cranston. J’habite a Valparaiso. Je suis americain. Je parle français.” “Are you taking French right now?” “Yes, sir. I love it.” There were five seconds of silence. The nurse and Levi’s parents could not help but laugh. Levi let out another weak smile. He was completely out of it. The anesthesia was slowly wearing off. And then…. “I love you, Mackenzie!” Levi then blurted out with tears in his eyes. “Awwww,” his mother answered sympathetically while moving closer to him to wipe his tears with some facial tissues. She then put her hand on his chest to calm him down. Levi cried himself back to sleep. He and his parents stayed in the recovery room for another two hours. Then, they went home. Four days after the surgery, he still felt horrible. He got up to brush his teeth and put on clean clothes. His mom took a few days off to take care of him. She came into the living room where Levi was resting. “Hey, sweetie. How do you feel?” his mom asked, and Levi shrugged his shoulders. “My throat hurts. I feel like I was pushed out of a 64-story building. I’m hot. I’m tired. And I want a cold drink,” Levi answered plainly. “Cold water sound good?” “Sure.” “Oh, and Mackenzie called about two hours ago. She was wondering if she could come over. She’s worried about you,” his mom said as she was walking to the refrigerator to get her son a glass of ice cold water. Levi started thinking about Mackenzie again. After five minutes of some intense contemplating and pondering, he let out a weak smile. “Can she come over?” he questioned. “It’s up to you. How do you feel?” his mom answered with another question. “I’m okay with that.” Levi eventually called Mackenzie when he finally felt up to it, which was later that day. He dialed her number. Levi almost dialed the wrong number at first because he couldn’t remember Mackenzie’s number. However, after a few tries, Levi had the right number. And, after Mackenzie heard her phone go off, she answered it. “Herro, Revi,” Mackenzie answered the phone rather humorously. “Hey. Want to have a video game party?” Levi asked. “Okay! Can I come over in about thirty minutes?” “Okay!” “All right. See ya!” “Bye!” After Levi got off the phone with Mackenzie, he went up to his bedroom. He searched for a specific ring that had a small plastic pink flower on it, which was a ring that Victoria didn’t want anymore. Levi then put the ring in a small jewelry box and hid it in a place where no one would find anything obvious. Mackenzie came to his house thirty minutes later. She knocked on the door. Levi answered it. “Hey, Mackenzie,” Levi said with a weak tone in his voice. “Hey. How are you feeling?” Mackenzie answered back. “My throat hurts.” “Oh well. I have some games that we could play today.” “I’m cool with that.” Levi and Mackenzie spent at least two hours playing video games. After the two kids finally quit playing them, Levi went up to his room, took the small jewelry box, and put it in his pocket. He went downstairs and lay back down on the sofa. He slowly moved the box in his hand. “Hey, Mackenzie?” he questioned a little softly. Levi could feel his heart banging against his chest. He was very nervous about this. “Yes, Levi?” Mackenzie answered politely. Levi took a deep breath as he took the box out of his pocket. Fifteen seconds later. “Will you be my girlfriend?” Levi questioned as he opened the box with the ring. “Are you serious?!” “Very.” “Yes!” Mackenzie answered as she grew speechless to the point where she started crying. She reached over to where he was and hugged him tightly. It was pretty obvious that Levi was not feeling well. He started shivering, and Mackenzie put some blankets over him. She then decided to stay for another hour and watch some cartoons with him. Levi’s mom came into the living room where Mackenzie and Levi were because she wanted to check on Levi. She had a conference call that she just finished. When Levi wrapped himself more tightly in his blankets, his mom looked at Mackenzie. “Mackenzie, you should probably head home. Levi might have a fever.” Afterwards, she checked her son’s temperature. He had a 100.8 degree fever. Mackenzie definitely needed to go home. Before she left for home, she gave Levi another hug and kissed him on the cheek. Levi let out a heavy sigh and gave her a kiss on the cheek. Once Levi’s mom drove Mackenzie home, Levi fell into a blissful sleep for several hours. From The Magic Video Game
It was the next morning, and Olivia just woke up. She looked at the clock, which said eight o’clock in the morning. She looked over at Levi, who was still sleeping soundly. He looked as if he was at peace because his breathing was very steady. He was sleeping on his side, and he was snoring quietly. Olivia could hear him snoring, so she decided to grab a book, which was on the coffee table, and she hit him on the back. This woke him up quickly. Not only did he wake up to that; he woke up in a horrible mood. Levi gave his older sister a deathly stare. “Can you grow up, you immature weirdo?” Levi asked as he glared at Olivia. Olivia couldn’t help but laugh a little at Levi’s reaction. She was pretty sure he would react in that similar fashion, given that he is not at all a morning person. She then decided to go to the kitchen to get a bottle of cold water, since she was pretty thirsty. When Olivia returned to the bedroom, Levi was lying on his back, with his hands behind his head. His shirt was pulled up to his chest, and Olivia was pretty sure she could see her younger brother’s heart beating against his skin. It was pretty creepy, but also pretty cool. Olivia decided to set her alarm clock on her phone and lay it against Levi’s chest. Her phone was moving up and down with Levi’s fast heartbeat. The alarm clock on the phone went off at 9:30, and Levi felt it go off on his chest. He picked the phone up and threw it across the room. Levi basically found himself crying while fighting to go back to sleep. He was now lying on his stomach, and Olivia had to take deeper measures to try to get him out of bed. Today was going to be super productive. Olivia now found a long knitting needle in a random place in the room, which was overall pretty messy. She used it to poke Levi in the armpit. He jumped quickly and turned over to glance at Olivia. “Owie,” Levi responded feebly. “When are you gonna get out of bed?” Olivia asked. “When pigs can fly.” “I think we’ve already established that.” “You think we’ve already established what?” “Pigs can fly.” “Are you joking?” “No, sir-ee.” Levi didn’t move. He still lay on his stomach, mindless of what was going on today. He didn’t really care about that right now. All he wanted was to stay in bed and get as much sleep as he could. It’s summer. What else is better in the summer than getting too much sleep? “Okay? I am going to get out of bed when Sasquatch invades the planet,” Levi said. “A lot of people don’t know who Sasquatch is.” Levi hit his head with his hand. How could anyone not know who in the sam hill Sasquatch was? He tried going back to sleep. Once again. This time, his hands were underneath his chest, therefore squishing them. He could feel his own heart beating in his hands, like a small bird trying to flap its wings. “Seriously?! When are you going to get out of bed? We have a ton of fun things to do today, bro!” Olivia said cheerfully. “I know. When the cure for Kleine Levin Syndrome is found,” Levi answered matter-of-factly. “Again, most people don’t know what Kleine Levin Syndrome even is.” “We do.” Olivia had to shrug her shoulders once again. She found that it was obviously very hard to wake up her younger brother. Levi, of course, made a few more attempts at falling asleep. Olivia let him sleep for another five minutes. After those five minutes were up, she felt obligated to poke him again in the side with the knitting needle. “Owie,” Levi responded, this time not so feebly. “That’s what you get when you’re a sleepyhead who loves to sleep in,” said Olivia. “Fine. I’ll get up.” He sat up on his bed with his eyes closed. Poor Levi. Of course it would take him a long time to really snap out of it after he was roused out of bed by his older sister. When Levi finally came to his full senses, he felt like he had just jumped into a pool. “Ewwww….I’m so sweaty,” he said. “Ewwww….you so sweaty,” his sister repeated jokingly. And it was true. Levi finally got up and looked at himself in the mirror. He was a total sweat bomb that invaded Wakahakai. His hair looked damp and messy. He still had streaks of sweat pouring off his face. He had sweat stains on the front of his shirt and his armpits. “Yeah. This is gross. I’m gonna shower. Now,” Levi said to Olivia. “Yeah. That is gross. Go shower. Now,” Olivia answered back. Levi picked out some clean clothes from a drawer and headed toward the shower. A few seconds after he had left the bedroom, Olivia had to laugh again. As a matter of fact, the room was actually pretty cold. There was no way Levi could have broken out in a sweat this morning. Olivia must have had another trick up her sleeve. She poured water on his armpits and shirt right before he woke up. Not to mention that she also dumped some of the bottle’s contents in his hair. She obviously did very well on this trick. Levi would be dumbfounded once he found out about the feigned sweat. It was fifteen minutes later, and Levi came back into the room. He was shirtless, and he was wearing his plaid shorts. He walked over to the coffee table and took a drink out of the bottle of water. “Were you thirsty?” Olivia asked Levi. Levi looked at Olivia suspiciously. Now, he thought she was up to something. He put the water bottle down and noticed that it was empty. Surely he didn’t drink all of the water in the bottle. “Olivia?” Levi questioned. “Yeah?” Olivia replied. “Did you….pour some water on me before I woke up?” “Well….” “You did.” “Well….” “And you wanted me to think I was sweating?” “Well….” “Good one.” “Thank you.” “You’re welcome.” Soon after, Marty came into the room. Levi was still lying on the mattress, but he did not make any more attempts to go back to sleep. If he did, he was most likely going to be annoyed by Olivia. Once again. Marty had tall glasses of what looked like pina coladas in his hands. He offered one to both kids. Olivia and Levi both accepted the polar bear’s offer, and they simultaneously put the glass to their lips. After a few dainty sips of the drink, Olivia put her glass on the coffee table. Marty was not so sure whether she really liked the drink or not, or if she just wanted to savor the flavor. Levi, on the other hand, downed the whole pina colada in one sitting. “I take it that you liked it,” Marty said, primarily to Levi, with a smile on his face. “Yus,” Levi answered quietly with a smile. “And you, Olivia?” “It was good. I didn’t want to just drink it all in one sitting,” Olivia said. “Well, it’s on the house.” “Did you get a ladder?” Levi asked. Everyone looked at Levi after his random question. Five seconds passed, and then they all had to laugh pretty hard. It was funny because of how abrupt it was. Then, Marty had something that he needed to tell Olivia and Levi, and he had to tell them pretty soon. “We have plans to visit Princess Spaziana,” Marty said. “W-wait. Is this basically where we rescue the princess? Is this some sort of trick or something of the like?” Levi asked with utmost curiosity. “Silly Levi.” Levi just shook his head. There was yet one more thing that had to catch his eye. When Levi looked out the window, he saw that there was a lovely aurora display in the sky. He decided to look out the window for quite some time. It was exotic things like this that have always interested him. Levi’s secret ambition is to take a trip out to Alaska and spot the auroras in the sky, and he wants to take his friends with him. He has jokingly made plans to take his friends to Fairbanks, Alaska, have a campfire, and just look at the auroras. Jack Andrews and Asad Prejesh, his best friends, said that they would be game for a trip like that. David Savino and the Boca twins hadn’t said anything about this proposition yet, but they would probably rather make a trip to Hawaii. Levi had no idea that auroras even existed around Hawaii. Surely, they don’t. This was probably a figure of imagination. This really couldn’t be happening. “Well, we told Princess Spaziana that we would meet her at 2:30 this afternoon at Aurora Mall,” Marty said. “Speaking of auroras,” Levi said, without paying much attention to what Marty had just said. Olivia and Marty walked over to the window and also saw the pretty auroras. Right now, there were streaks of turquoise and fuchsia that filled the sky. The two kids have never seen anything of the like before. They were both amazed at what they saw. “Yep. Wakahakai is the only place around Hawaii where auroras occur. It makes sense that Wakahakai is the best place to live,” Marty said proudly. “I’d love to live here, if I couldn’t live in Rhode Island,” Olivia said as proudly. “How is Rhode Island?” “Amazing. We were both born there, and most of our family resides there.” “We go to Rhode Island for a few weeks every summer,” Levi said. “I’d love to go there some time,” Marty said. “It is amazing to say the least.” Olivia wrapped her arm around her younger brother, and he, in turn, let out a heavy sigh. Thanks to their small talk about Rhode Island, he really wanted to go there now. Badly. Of course, it was really nice in Wakahakai, hence the auroras, laps of luxury, and whatnot. But Rhode Island is Levi’s second home, and home is always where the heart is. Levi thought deeply about what Princess Spaziana might look like. She would probably look nothing like his girlfriend, who has basically been an angel sent to him by the Good Man. But curiosity decided to get the best of him, and he had to inquire about her looks. “Is Princess Spaziana remotely pretty?” he asked. “Gorgeous. Absolutely gorgeous,” Marty answered. “What does she look like?” “Brown hair, blue eyes, hearty smile, fair skin, big heart, I don’t even know where I can begin on all this. And her middle name is….Aurora.” 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.” October 21, 2018
It was around 10 am the next morning after Kevin Maggliardi was held at gunpoint. He just woke up after falling asleep around 8:30 the evening before. Kevin woke up to his heart racing and in a cold sweat. He wore his clothes from the night before, and he was hoping for a long and relaxing shower. It took Kevin a while to get back to his senses, and he really did not want to get up. His friends, Jack Andrews and Levi Cranston (The Magic Video Game) were with him once he woke up, and they got him something to eat. Jing Hao, Asad Prejesh, and Mike Wong had spent an evening in Boston, and Asad stayed over with Jing. "Good morning, sleepyhead," Jack said to their "baby brother." "I feel so disgusting," Kevin replied sleepily, as he took off his hooded sweatshirt. It was drenched in sweat. His hair was very messy from sleeping so long. "How are you feeling?" "Same as last night." "How's your chest?" Jack questioned. "It really hurts to breathe," Kevin replied, slowly and painfully drawing in a deep breath. His fingers were pressed against his chest. "I woke up several times last night." "We didn't hear you at all." "I can hear my heart beating in my ears, and it's starting to get annoying." "Just plug your ears!" "I wish. Once someone aggressively grabs your backpack and throws you against a wall with a revolver pressed against your chest, it changes things." |
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About my BlogMy blog contains anything and everything one should know about my books. Aaaaand a lot more as well. |
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