As this Summer comes closer and closer to an end, it has made me think a lot more about life. Is there truly an answer to it? Philosophers have been trying to figure that out forever. And yet, after thousands upon thousands of years, no one can figure it out. What are we, as humans, doing wrong? What are we doing right? Is there truly a meaning? I’m not even sure. But then again, I’m not even sure what lip gloss to wear most days. So maybe I’m not a good person to figure this one out.
On Sunday, I went to visit my dad’s house. Visiting my father on Sundays has become a ritual for me now. I wish I had some wild story to tell, but I do not. We do the same shit every time I go to visit. We take a ride on his motorcycle, grab dinner (usually Olive Garden or order pizza) and watch a movie at home. It was easy for us because no matter what job anyone has: our jobs drained both of us. So, chilling at home was convenient for both of us. Maybe one day I’ll actually have a change to my “Sunday Father Visit” stories.
On Monday, I left my dad’s house in the morning. I drove back up to my mom’s, took a shower, and quickly got ready for my day. That’s because my friend, Molly, was coming to pick me up so we could head to the mall. We were meeting my friend, Carter, there as well. Molly and Carter have been seeing each other for some time now, and things seem to be going well. There have been times where I was worried about being a “third-wheel.” But because I’m friends with the both of them, I feel more like their adopted child than anything else. Besides, they’re both happy so I couldn’t ask for anything else.
Though, it’s probably not a good idea to take your adopted parents into “Spencer’s” with you. When the three of us met up at the mall, “Spencer’s” was the first store we stopped in. No, I did not ask them to help me pick out a vibrator. That’s not an activity for a Monday afternoon, perhaps I would’ve asked them on a Saturday instead. Kidding, of course. I actually just have an obsession with the t-shirts there and I buy at least two every time I go. This last time, I bought “I Love Sluts” and “Blowjob Queen”. My parents (my real ones and my new adopted ones) are definitely proud of me. While I blew all of my money, Carter and Molly tagged along behind me. I knew I had a spending problem when I walked out of the mall with three bags, and they walked out with none. But who goes to a mall and doesn’t buy anything? Exactly. I was just doing exactly what I was supposed to. It’s always good to have new clothes, especially since I was going back to ZSU soon.
After spending some time at the mall, the three of us grabbed dinner at this Mexican restaurant. It was Molly’s favorite and she insisted that we go. When we walked in, all I was reminded of was the “Casa Bonita” episode from “South Park”. Molly and I died laughing as we kept quoting the episode. Meanwhile, Carter stared at us, confused and left out. Womp Womp. Anyway, I ordered choriqueso for the table since I have to buy some every time I go to any Mexican restaurant. Then, I ordered a taco salad with steak because I refuse to order anything else. I’m not a picky eater, I just like what I like. Carter, Molly, and I quickly scarfed down our meals while quoting more stupid movies and laughing at our own jokes. Were we stupid? Yeah, probably. But what college-aged kid isn’t?
We took a pit stop at the huge international store back by the mall. The store has cafes in it. On top of that, there’s food from every single corner of the world. It’s always a vibe going in there. Carter, Molly, and I walked around and posed like the people on different drinks and foods. I have no idea why we found it as funny as we did, but we were rolling. After walking around for thirty-minutes, we couldn’t find a single thing to buy. That’s when we decided to go back to Molly’s house and watch “Ice Age”, then have a karaoke session. Molly and I did several duets. Carter and I even did one duet of “Out Of Time” by The Weeknd. The entire day had been such a vibe.
Of course, nothing good lasts forever. On Tuesday, I worked eight-hours at the movie theater. They had me making cotton candy, caramel popcorn, and cheddar popcorn. With the release of “Deadpool And Wolverine” coming out soon, we needed to be stocked on as much stuff as possible. If we ran out of anything during the next busy-ass month, the theater would be fucked. So, because I am so amazing at my job, I helped stock. Secret though, I’m really not that great. I was practically banging my head against the wall while I bagged the popcorn and cotton candy. In the little room they have us make this shit in, there’s no a/c. It gets hot as hell in there. On top of that, the room is impossible to clean at the end of the night because of how sticky everything gets. So, say you get off at 8PM; plan on leaving around 8:30-9PM instead. How did someone have such a good day to having a shitty day? Fuck my life.
At least I worked with my friends, Trent and Brianna, that day. When we found spare moments in the busyness of it all, we came together to make twisted-jokes and complain. While my love life seems to be going downhill, so are Trent and Brianna’s. Brianna and her boyfriend, Jacob, are going through a rough spot right now. She seems unsure of where their relationship is headed. And Trent revealed to us that his talking stage, Carly, ghosted him. It was safe to say that the three of us needed a drink and a visit to see a shrink. There comes a time every young adult’s life that makes them say: what the fuck is even going on?
On Wednesday, my friend, Miguel, and I met up for lunch that day. Since our phone call the week before, things had become good between us again. He and I met up at a little diner that serves breakfast all day. It’s notorious for being a place that’s customers are only old people, but I enjoy it. They have good sandwiches. And this bitch appreciates a good sandwich. He and I were able to catch up about work and talk about our other friends, Aria and Alejandro. I haven’t spoken to either one of them much lately, so thinking about it, maybe that’s something I need to do. It turns out I wasn’t the only one going through a rough patch with Miguel. A week ago, Miguel and Aria had an argument regarding some boy drama. It basically ended with an “I told you so” moment from Miguel to Aria. They hadn’t spoken since. I encouraged him to make things right with her. I stand by that friendship breakups hurt a lot more than regular old breakups.
After spending some good-quality time with Miguel, I went over to Molly’s home to hang out with her and Carter. Her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Smith, had invited he and I to dinner. As I’ve mentioned before, Carter and I are both “big backs” and never turn down food. Her parents whipped up grilled salmon, Caesar salad, bread, broccoli, baked beans, and mashed potatoes for us. It was safe to say that the dinner was amazing. And everyone knows that you have to get in good homecooked meals before you go back to hardly eating anything and the meal plan. After we finished up, the three of us went up to Molly’s bedroom and hung out in there. We laid in her bed and laid close together while talking about returning to ZSU in three-weeks. While Molly and I are going into our sophomore years at college, Carter is going into his freshman year. And because we are so kind, we are giving him the advice he needs. What would he do without us? Probably die, to be honest.
I couldn’t hang out at Molly’s for too long. The movie theater was having a party for its employees that night. My managers had decided to have a “Deadpool And Wolverine” themed party before its release the next day. Trent and our other co-workers, Olga and Elliot, decided it was a good idea to get hella drunk before the work party. The three of them asked if I would pick them up, then take them to the party. And like I said, because I’m so kind (I’m actually just a pushover), I agreed to pick them up. But I wasn’t staying to watch the movie until 2AM like everyone else, so they were going to need to find a ride home.
When they got in my car, I did have a mini panic attack when they brought beers and vodka with them. Keep in mind that I’m lowkey a horrible driver and I am only nineteen. I could not get pulled over with alcohol in my car. Though Elliot was twenty-two, I drove extra carefully to the movie theater. But Olga insisted I play “Chase Atlantic” on the way there, so of course, I couldn’t say no. We screamed the lyrics all the way there. You already know that our voices gave out really fucking fast. Though I was sober and singing, Olga was not. I had to check behind me every once in a while, to make sure she was going to throw up in my car.
Once we got to the movie theater, I felt some relief to get out of the car. The four of us walked and walked to wear the managers were holding the party. I met up with Brianna and my other friends, Madeline and Cassie. The night started off with some “brain rot karaoke”. I happily took the microphone and sang the brain rot version of “Seventeen” from “Heathers”. Madeline and Cassie were dying laughing. It might sound stupid, but you just had to be there. Young adults truly aren’t that different from eleven-year-olds, don’t you think? Soon, the general manager announced that we would be playing several rounds of Bingo. There would be eight-winners, and the winner won free passes to Six Flags. Upon hearing that, my co-workers and I went into panic mode. I mean, everyone was praying and shit for the passes. I had never seen them so panicked, not even during “Barbenheimer” last Summer. Unfortunately, I didn’t win any. But Cassie won three different passes, so I was happy for her. It was also funny watching her throw them in everyone’s faces with a middle finger.
Later on in the party, I was talking with some of my other co-workers when Brianna ran up to me. She seemed panicked and irritated. She was always getting herself into some sort of situation.
“Lane! I drank Trent’s drink, and I didn’t know it had alcohol in it.”
I furrowed my eyebrows at her. “You couldn’t taste the alcohol?”
“The fruit punch was strong! I’m scared.”
“Calm down, hoe. You can sleep at my house. My mom will not give a shit.”
“Ok, thank you.” Brianna hugged me. Her love language has always been physical touch. Though mine isn’t, she’s my best friend. The things we accept for our besties.
She and I then left the party and headed back to my house. We went to my room, I gave her a change of clothes, and we got in bed. Brianna and I were ready to go to sleep, until we realized it was 11PM and we were nowhere near being ready for bed. It was late and for some reason, a walk on the golf course sounded really nice. So, we got out of bed and snuck out of the house. What we didn’t know though, is that the sprinklers were going off at this time. And instead of going, we grabbed each other’s hands and ran through the sprinklers. If any of my neighbors were looking out their windows, they saw two-stupid nineteen-year-old girls running through the sprinklers. I am sure they thought we were drunk, but we were completely sober. We were only drunk on life, or whatever the cringey ass saying is. Once we were completely soaked, Brianna and I ran all the way back to my house. We hopped in my car, then headed to the gas station to buy some ice cream.
We headed to the counter and threw our stuff up there. I offered to pay since Brianna didn’t have her card on her. The worker was tired and he seemed even annoyed. I couldn’t blame him, of course. But Brianna walked up to him with a fat smile.
“Hi!” Brianna exclaimed. The cashier looked at her as if she was ready to knock her ass out.
“Hey.” He sighed.
“We ran through sprinklers.”
“That’s crazy,” He rolled his eyes. “$12.46, please.”
I glared over at Brianna. “I wish you would stop saying dumb shit.”
She and I died laughing right then and there. We left the gas station, finally heading home. We ate the ice cream in the car before sneaking back inside. Brianna and I got in my bed, and we were tired enough to go to sleep.
On Thursday, Brianna and I woke up around 11AM. We changed into our clothes, then went to go grab lunch at “Subway”. It was an easy lunch that didn’t have a lot of talking. We were somehow tired. Afterward, I drove her back to her car and the movie theater, then headed home. Unfortunately for me, I had to change back into my work uniform because I had work in a couple of hours. I was dreading it since it was officially the opening night for “Deadpool And Wolverine”, but you’ve got to see it through, my brother. I got to work at 3:30PM and stayed there until 11:30PM. My co-workers and I were running around like crazy to get everyone what they wanted. It had been pretty busy, but nothing could have prepared us for the next night.
Yesterday, I got to work at 4PM. And when I tell you that the line for concessions was out the door the entire night. There was no time to gossip or joke, only work. We had been expecting this, but it still fucking sucked. If I had a dollar for every time someone said, “I’m going to fucking kill myself” or “Please, someone, fucking kill me.” I would have so much money. It was tiring and we were all exhausted at the end of the night. However, we all felt a sense of relief when it was 11PM and time to finally lock the doors for the night. We were able to calm down as we cleaned up for the night. Even after a hectic day, we were able to still smile and joke around after closing.
Maybe we’ll never have the answer to what the meaning of life is. We may never know what we are doing right or wrong as humans. All we can do is just think about what we have in the moment. We should live our lives with good friends and good laughs. We should take what we already have into account. Sure, there are a lot of shitty things in our lives and the world. Once we learn to be appreciative of the good time. We need to simply just “live in the moment”. Because I think we will find that life can be just beautiful once we figure that out.