Emerson Scott
"Robyn, why the hell is your alarm Good as Hell?"
Robyn groaned. "Because insomnia sucks and if there's one thing that's gonna wake me up from the rare, precious sleep I get, it better be a banger song. I'll be sleep deprived, but at least I go to school feeling like the baddest bitch."
Lizzo continued to belt flawlessly in the background while I struggled to even open my crusty eyes. "Please, turn it off. I can't reach and you literally trapped me with your limbs."
He scoffed. "Clearly you don't appreciate Lizzo. Be glad I didn't set Never Gonna Give You Up as my alarm."
"Be glad I don't have my arms free to smack you." I rubbed my temples with my hand. "Just get off of me. Let's eat breakfast."
"Find, but I'm cooking this time."
"Sure."
He turned off his alarm and disentangled his appendages from my aching ones, routinely cracking every single possible joint. Yep, still as concerning as ever. I rolled my neck and got up. Robyn stuck an accusatory finger at me. "You know, when I was promised cuddles, I thought waking up would be as romantic and sweet as tv shows make it out to be, but you're literally a bulldozer in your sleep."
"Romantic? Last time I checked, I wasn't your boyfriend. So you'll have to put up with me for the rest of your life, Bestie," I said, blowing an aggressive kiss in his direction.
Robyn grumbled something under his breath that I couldn't quite catch. "What did you say?"
"Nothing," he muttered.
"Sure. What're you thinking of cooking?"
"Just some fried eggs and bacon on toast. Don't feel like doing anything extreme," he yawned, scratching his stomach.
"Extreme for you would be boiling your eggs correctly." I grabbed my school outfit from the wardrobe, consisting of some maroon corduroy pants and a white graphic tee. "I'm gonna hop in the shower. Don't burn the house down."
"Can't promise that. But wouldn't it be funny if there was a fire and you were in the shower? Would you just run out naked?"
"Tell me one good reason why I shouldn't throw the nearest object at you."
Robyn pursed his lips, thinking about it for a good second. "That would be an act of homophobia."
I sighed exasperatedly. And just gave him a look, no words needed. He just stared at me with an almost troll-like grin. I pinched my nose bridge. "Just go cook breakfast or we're gonna be late," I said before quickly going into the bathroom to avoid anymore of Robyn's single brain cell lacking a filter.
~~~
As I was walking in the hallways with Robyn, talking about if hotdogs counted as sandwiches for the millionth time, Nathan and Oliver approached us. Not wanting to talk about trivial subjects anymore, I shifted the topic to them.
"Robyn told me you two have made up? What happened?"
Oliver smugly crossed his arms. "More than that. But that's a story for another time." Nathan gave him a look that made Oliver sigh. "Fine, I'll tell them." This piqued my interest immensely. "We're dating now," he secretly laced their fingers together so that it was only in our view. I gasped in elation, pumping my fist in the air.
"Good for you two! It's been a long time coming." Realistically speaking, I didn't know if it was possible to recover from such a rough patch in their relationship, but I guess Robyn gave them some solid advice. That they listened to.
I could tell Nathan was uncomfortable with PDA. As much as he enjoyed it, not in public. Even with his darker skin I could see a tint of blush. It was about six seconds before he retracted his hand. "Aww, Babe, you're so shy," Oliver teased.
"Oh, so y'all are already at pet names now?" I asked with a wriggle of my eyebrows. There was also the fact that they were wearing matching Burberry. Totally not flexing on my broke self or anything.
Robyn laughed. "That's what I said!"
"Nate let it slip. I'll never let it go." Oliver was glowing. I hadn't seen him this happy in a long time. I'm glad Nathan could change for him the better. I could visually see just how much they matured in the way they looked at each other, no longer carrying hate and pent up frustrations. Nathan wasn't as timid as before, showing through his body language. "Come on, Babe, Robyn and Emerson hold hands, like, all the time and everyone knows they're reallyyyy close best friends. We're like Rem 2.0."
Robyn made an indignant noise while I asked, "Rem?"
Robyn facepalmed while it was Oliver's turn to gasp, of course it was a sarcastic one. "¿Què? Emerson doesn't know his own ship name? !Ay, dios mÃo!"
Oliver only used Spanish outside of Spanish class to further his sardonic words. He only knew basic emotional expressions. That was about the extent of his Spanish besides, 'Es hora de comer' or 'Tengo hambre.' The fact he knew anything past 'hola' was astonishing. At least it was better than Robyn's. His white, redneck accent was atrocious combined with his lamentable pronunciation. I'm not even hispanic, but it offends me.
"Ship name, with Robyn?" People actually did that? Of course I knew what ships were, I made them all the time in books I read, but never real people. It's not like we're in a book.
Robyn sighed. "Yeah. Don't listen to them, Em they're just trying to be extra cheesy in their honeymoon phase. They'll rub it in our face for the entirety of next month."
Nathan played with one of his braids to avoid eye contact. "Not me. Ollie would, though. Not many other people he could brag to anyways..."
"Nate, I would scream it from the rooftops if I could." Robyn gave him a challenging, reproachful look, making Oliver cock his eyebrow. "What?"
"Then just do it, pussy." I gasped.
"Robyn!" Could he not get in a fight for like five seconds.
Oliver made an irked sound, smiling scathingly. "Says you of all people! I don't see you walking with a boyfriend around your arm. Single-ass, salty bitch." He glanced at me, which I didn't comprehend, as this petty quarreling didn't at all pertain to me.
I raised my hands, "Nope, I'm not getting involved."
Robyn stuck his tongue out and gave him the middle finger. "F*ck you," he laughed. This was just how Robyn and Oliver's friendship was. Kinda vulgar, a little rough. But it was all jests, never usually serious. You know, how people think straight basketball boys should act like.
Nathan nervously chuckled, putting a gentle hand on Oliver's shoulder. "Ollie, for the love of everything and above, please shut up. Let them figure this one on their own." What was that supposed to mean?
Begrudgingly, he sighed. "You're lucky I have Nate."
Nate smiled. "Yeah, because you've become so much sweeter since dating me," he whispered, pinching Oliver's cheek, Oliver lightly batting his hand.
The ear-ripping bell rang to signify there was only one minute left before we were late to class. I didn't want to spend another second talking about this. I was the type to run away from any fights, any drama. Even this, because it's just not my business. Me, not wanting to break my perfect attendance and punctuality streak, took Robyn by the hand and dragged him to the next class in huge strides (which were normal Robyn gaits). I wasn't holding hands to prove a point to Oliver. It was mostly because I couldn't reach to drag him by his backpack handle but we're not going to talk about that. "Let's go!" I could hear Nathan and Oliver snickering at each other behind us.
Robyn and I shared a health class seventh period. This was our last class in the day, so I was pretty worn out by then. At least this was one of my easiest classes. We hastily took our seats that had the beautiful view of cornfields next to the window. The window was cranked slightly so that a draft was let in. This old school didn't have working air conditioning or heating half the time, so we just had to deal with it. Apparently for the rest of the class it was too hot, but I was shivering. Robyn, who was seated behind me, noticed.
As the teacher was taking attendance, he asked, "You want my hoodie?"
"No it's fine. We're gonna go home soon anyways. I can deal with it."
He sighed, already taking off his sweatshirt. "Here. I don't need it, I'm actually kind of warm."
Once he made up his mind, I knew there was just no arguing. He would just be annoying until I took it. "Kay, thanks." I sniffed it.
"Why are you smelling it?" He asked, very flustered.
I cocked an eyebrow at him. "With you sweating like a hooker in church, who knows how it'll smell. Especially with how little you do your laundry. Surprisingly, it doesn't smell bad." It smelled like the bodywash I used this morning. Apple, cinnamon, and something else more musky.
He guffawed incredulously. "What's that supposed to mean?" I just smirked at him and put on the sweatshirt with no further comment.
The teacher rang her cowbell, an unique way to catch the class's attention, but it worked. "Listen up kids, this is an important project and it's not like any project you've ever done before. I suggest you listen closely or else your life will be a living hell for the next couple of weeks."
That slightly piqued my interest. I'd say talk about dramatic wording but Miss Amelie had always been one to over exaggerate everything. And then she pulled out a baby doll from her desk. "You can probably guess what it is by now. We've called this the 'Reborn Baby Project.'" The class had mixed reactions ranging from disgust to regret to excitement. It depended on the person.
Personally, I was excited because I had always read articles about it. It seemed fun and sure I took care of Emily when she was younger, however I wasn't old enough to really remember anything or handle some of the harder things. This time around I'd be fully independent without any adult help. (Famous last words).
"For this three-day-project, you will partner up with somebody in this class and take care of a baby together. Due to the price of these babies, I beg of you to take very good care of them as if they were actually alive, okay? They're about two-thousand dollars, so good luck with that if you decide to 'accidentally' drop it in a toilet." The room made baffled noises. Honestly, I could see Robyn doing that. "Yes, it happened a few years ago, but that's a story for another day.
"The person you are partnering with should be someone you spend a lot of time with or know well, since it's a joint project." Well, it's pretty obvious who'll be my partner. I turned to give a quick glance to Robyn. "Note that if you have a partner you don't live close by or don't interact with a lot, it'll be more difficult as many of the tasks fall onto you. There are separate logs you have to fill out dependent upon your partners. If you spend time together, fill out log two, if you and your partner don't have a lot of free time, fill out log one. This is a great way to collect data and see just how you guys can handle one baby.
"Enjoy this last weekend of peace, because starting on Tuesday next week babies will be given out. Huh that's not a very good sentence out of context. Anyways, for the remainder of the class period you may find your partner, report that to me, and work on whatever else you may please, or even come up with names."
I turned to Robyn to see a shit-eating grin. "We're going to be raising a kid together! Sure we're moving a little fast, but at least take me on a honeymoon first," he said dramatically, theatrics and all.
"You have to be married to go on a honeymoon." I rolled my eyes jovially. Robyn was really milking the joke about us being together. "Anyways, what do you think about it?"
He scoffed, obviously not very thrilled at it. "Another baby to take care of. I already have my hands full."
"What do you mean another baby to take care of'? Since when did you become a single dad?
"Well, that's because you're my baby," he suavely said, topping it off with a wink and finger guns. Something in my chest lurched at the sentence. Was it disgust? Was it cringe? I don't know, but I had a visceral reaction to it.
I facepalmed and covered my flushed face. Now would be a good time to be 'accidentally' dropped into a toilet. "Oh my gosh," I muttered, melting into my seat. I couldn't even look at him, hoping that no one overheard that. "You're so embarrassing. You hang out with Nathan and Oliver too much. I think their cheesiness is rubbing off on you. If anything it's you, since you're a big man-baby."
"Sure, tell that to the guy who towers over you completely."
I wrinkled my nose and crossed my arms in indignation. "It's always the height jabs with you. I'm above average height, you're just a sequoia tree. Cognitively handicapped and childish, pick a struggle." He snorted through his nose and flicked a piece of paper at me. "Childish, just as I said." I looked over at the teacher's desk. "I'm gonna tell her we're partners."
"Kay."
Miss Amelie was writing down the partners on a pink post-it note. When she saw me approaching, I didn't even have to say anything before she interjected. "I already put you and Robyn down." She smiled with her eyes and I clamped my mouth shut.
"Oh. Okay, thank you." Well then.
Robyn snickered when I took my seat. "See, she already knew we were married."
"Uh-huh..." That reminded me of his aunt Elsa, when she asked me if Robyn and I were dating. Why was that? Everyone assumed it, even my own family. From Alice to Andrej, even Nathan and Oliver initially. Sometimes if it was insisted upon, as if they knew any better. It's not like we kiss. On the lips. And act all lovey and dovey.
Is it romantic to show affection for your friend? To show that I care so much for a person? Is it romantic to want to see that person smile all the time? To want to see them constantly smiling? He deserves happiness. Kids at our age shouldn't experience even half the things he's been through. Is that so wrong to be someone to lean on? It's clearly platonic. I shouldn't cross the lines. Robyn was comfortable enough with me, trusting enough with me, to tell me that he's gay. Even before his own mother. And to just mess up years of friendship people only dream to have just to experiment, for a fling. I'm realistic, and it's not often that high school relationships last anyways. (Nathan and Oliver are a whole other breed of madly in love, however. They're an exception).
Point is, what is it that makes it seem like we're dating? What thin line are we crossing? Am I just blind? Even after Robyn came out to me, nothing changed. He's the same, lovable Robyn I met in fourth grade. And just as immature.
He blew a wad of paper through a straw he kept from lunch, straight into my hair. "You're spacing out a lot these days. Something happened?"
"No, I'm just tired. I'm ready to take a nap."
"If that's the case, then you can just go home. You don't always have to watch me practice."
"Yeah, but there's a pattern if I don't attend."
He leaned forward on his arms, which were propped on the back of my chair. "And what would that be?" Robyn reached out his hand to ruffle the wad of paper out my hair.
I leaned back against the edge of my desk, crossing my arms. "Well, weirdly enough, you always manage to hurt yourself when I'm not there."
"I'm just accident prone. I fall down a hella lot even if you're with me."
I contemplated it for a second. Down the stairs on multiple occasions, in basketball, when we skated and he gave me a busted lip, even tripping on air. Huh. "I guess you do have an affinity for gracefully face planting onto the ground. It's a miracle you're still alive after walking like a newborn baby giraffe."
"You're my guardian angel. That's why I'm still walking... Barely."
I sighed. "Clumsiness aside, I'll still come to watch you. Wouldn't want to miss your glorious fail reel in real time, front row seats."
He shook his head in laughter, chestnut colored hair curling around his face. The breeze from the window wafted into the classroom, this time cold enough for the teacher to ask me to crank the window close. I quickly complied, but shivered immensely. It wasn't the familiar, short-lived chill you get when you're cold, but more. It went down my spine, made me visibly flinch in place. I glanced down at Robyn, almost like it was slow-motion, when I heard a distinct bell ringing. Like the chimes you hear when you enter a shop, or the chimes that ring when you walk past a house in your neighborhood on a sunny day; light and warm.
I blinked and turned around to one of my classmates showing off her keychain to her friend. Owlishly, I coughed into my hand and glanced back to Robyn. He was smiling, slightly confused. His right eyebrow was raised ever so slightly. "Em?" I was more confused. What was that? "Is there something on my face?"
I carefully slid back into my seat. It croaked under my weight. "Yeah. Insomnia. You can't tell me to go home and sleep when you need it more."
He slumped, blowing his fringe aside. "Sleeping bags that bad, huh?"
I shrugged in a noncommittal manner. Quite the contrary, it seemed like it was getting slightly better. But I needed an excuse for whatever real-life lag my brain performed. "Eh. It's part of your aesthetic."
He smirked, running a hand through his hair. "Yeah, I'm still hot."
I propped my head on my hand, looking away with a half-assed eye roll. "Mn." I watched two birds dancing over the canopies of the nearby forest behind the tennis courts.
Suddenly, something warm touched my forehead. I turned back to Robyn to see that it was his hand that was the warm thing on my forehead. "Huh. Not sick."
I furrowed my brows. "You think I'm sick?"
"Seems like it. You're... different. Can't place my finger on it though."
"I feel fine," I said, more defensive than what I had intended. I can't be sick! We were supposed to celebrate Robyn's birthday this weekend, heck no. I truly didn't feel sick, though. When I'm sick, my bones ache and I feel like I can't move. I wouldn't be functioning if I was sick. Maybe I stayed up one too many nights reading books. That must be it.
Robyn just let it go as I watched him retract his hand and tuck it into his side. "Must be my imagination then."
Miss Amelie rang her cowbell again. "With a few minutes before class ends, I'd like to say just a few more things. I really think y'all should take this experience seriously. Even if you don't care about your grade in this class, these programs in these babies are no joke, it's very similar to a real baby. We'll go more in-depth on Monday on its functions and how exactly to take care of these babies. But when you go home over the weekend, you absolutely need to review the RealCare Baby videos on YouTube. These things are a nightmare if you don't do anything right, and anything you do wrong can be printed out at the end of this trial. If you don't support its head, the demon screeches will keep you up for nights without end. Even after the project."
"What's new," Robyn muttered under his breath.
Miss Amelie clasped her hands in front of her abdomen. "I'm amused that you guys seem so nonchalant. And for those of you who are excited, you're in for a treat. This project will probably make you not want to have kids for a long time." The bell rang and some kids were already out the door in the blink of an eye. "Have a nice weekend y'all!"
Robyn got a text message from his basketball group chat. "What is it?" I asked.
"Basketball practice was cancelled," he said in confusion. He scrolled up to read the past messages. "Coach said that the floors are also getting replaced. Huh." Darn that means the plans are being pushed up earlier than we thought.
We walked out to the parking lot to Robyn's van. "When are you going to start using the motorcycle?"
"Well, I do have to get a separate license and pass a written exam. With everything going on, probably not until senior year. Why'd you ask?"
I shrugged, thinking of something to stall and not make it obvious that we had something planned for Robyn's birthday besides a small party. "I dunno. Seeing this old van... brings memories, but I think it's about time to retire it soon. And you know, doesn't really match your aesthetic." As soon as we came home, we were supposed to pack everything and go straight to the campsite that was suggested by Nathan. I had made a list and everything, seeing if we had all the necessary supplies in my free time when Robyn wasn't looking. Nathan and Oliver were in charge of the camping supplies and we were going to bring the food. All of that would be piled into this van.
"Hey, Robyn."
"Yeah?"
"Let's stop by the ice cream parlor."
"Oh so now you're having pregnancy cravings?"
"Ugh, can't I just have some ice cream once in a while?" And there was the glaringly obvious fact that was quite biologically impossible for me.
"It's kinda cold for ice cream, Em. How about hot chocolate at the bakery?" It's never too cold for ice cream, but that offer was tempting. So tempting, I accepted it.
"You know, that sounds kinda good. We can get donuts as well."
"Okay, sounds great."
He drove to the nearby local bakery, run by a Vietnamese family. The famous "Le Bakery," notoriously mistaken as a french bakery due to the Vietnamese surname of Le being read as 'Le' in the french language, was a place my family used to eat at a lot, but my mom got sick of eating the same food so it's been a while. So when I said donuts, I meant the ones with sesame seeds that are hollow and wonderfully delectable.
As soon as we stepped into the shop, a nice, warm atmosphere enveloped us and the two people at the front counter greeted us, one of them being a classmate from school, the other his mom. "Hung Le! Nice to see you."
"Ah, if it isn't Emerson and Robyn. It's been a while, hasn't it?" Hung Le was in Robyn and mine 's geography class last year. Overall, that class was a riot, but very fun. Hung Le was a nice addition to that class, his calm, yet refreshing demeanor being a great foil to the chaos that went on everyday. Unfortunately, Robyn and I didn't share any classes or lunch with him this year and he didn't stay after school for extracurricular activities in order to help run his parents' business. It was clear he was going to run it even after high school, so his future was pretty set. And it was bright since business was bustling at this time of day. He outstretched his hand in the gesture as if he was comparing his height to Robyn's. "Geez, man. You seem like you grew even more than last year."
Robyn crossed his arms, almost smug to me rather than Hung, as I recalled his past jabs. I stuck my tongue out at him, which he returned with a wolfish grin. "That's because I have."
Hung Le whistled. "Sheesh. What a beast. So, is there anything I can get you two?" He asked with bright eyes, wiping his hands with an orange rag.
"Two hot chocolates and half a dozen Banh tieus. Oof, sorry if I butchered that."
"No, it was a good attempt. Six Viet donuts, coming up!" He bent to grab the donuts with tongs into a cute paper bag.
Robyn snickered at me. "What's so funny?"
"That pronunciation was rough."
"Oh and can you do any better? Your Spanish is so white it just sounds like cowboy slang to me." Robyn gasped, as if he was greatly scandalized.
Hung Le chuckled while he grabbed the ingredients needed to make the hot chocolate. "It honestly wasn't half bad. Most people don't even try, so it's an appreciated effort." When he rang everything up, Robyn and I held out our cards to pay at the same time.
We whipped our heads and made eye contact that could make sparks fly with its intensity. "I'll pay!" We exclaimed in unison. "Stop copying me!" We said, yet again, at the same time. It was a miracle I didn't roundhouse kick his stubborn ass.
Hung Le raised his palms in mock surrender, nervously laughing. "Calm down, this one's on the house. So please, just get your food."
"Oh, we can't do that. I want to support your family business!" I said.
Hung Le, with more relaxed shoulders, scratched the nape of his neck and shrugged. "Fine, let's compromise. The donuts are on me on the behalf of your pronunciation. Y'all can pay for your drinks. How about that?" As expected of level-headed Hung Le.
Robyn laughed into the back of his hand. "Damn, he said it that wrong, huh?"
"Shut up," I said, stomping my heel onto his foot. He paid it back in retribution.
"Was that supposed to hurt?"
"Guys, please," Hung Le pleaded with clasped palms. We finally paid and Hung Le sighed in relief. I felt kinda bad.
"Sorry, Hung Le. I'll come back again, most likely without this manchild."
"It's fine. It's fun seeing you two again. Please come back soon, it'd be nice to catch up."
"Sure," Robyn said, waving his hand, not flippantly, but in a friendly manner.
"Have a nice day," I said. I turned to Robyn.
"Hey what's that sour expression for?" He asked, poking my cheek.
"You didn't have to be so difficult."
Robyn rolled his eyes at me. "Says you. You always insist on paying, like, every single time we go out to eat."
"Hey, I just like supporting local businesses. I let you pay for your own Starbucks orders." We got back in the van and buckled our seatbelts.
"I don't even go to Starbucks that much!" My phone rang before I said something in retaliation. I held up a finger to shush him, seeing the caller ID was Nathan.
"I heard basketball was cancelled. Are you with Robyn?"
"Huh? Oh yeah, I'm with Robyn."
"Good. I'm with Ollie right now. We have almost everything ready. I know we were supposed to leave at eight tonight, but now we don't have practice. Do you still want to go ahead with the plan?"
"Is it possible to leave at five instead? I think the office doesn't close until nine. Are you down?"
"I'll ask Ollie," Nathan said then I heard some muffled talking. "Yeah, we're good to go. Just text us whenever you two are ready."
"Okay, thanks for being flexible."
"Who was that?"
"Nathan. We all made plans for your birthday."
"At five? Are we going to go to Chuck E' Cheeses or something?" He jested.
"No. I'll tell you when we come back home. I think you'll be able to figure it out by the time we leave."
"And it's just us and Nathan and Oliver?"
"Yep. Just the four of us."
"Oh." As he was driving, I could tell he was wracking his brain over where we were going to go. I expected him to obnoxiously list many possible places and completely guess, but all I could hear was the sound of the stereo while I read my book, undisturbed.
~~~
By the time we pulled up in the driveway, it was a quarter til' three. Tight schedule, but I know we could manage.
"Robyn, I have a list of things for you to pack, I'll text you it."
He scratched his head. "Packing? This is a multi-day thing?"
"Yes, and we're on a time constraint so you better hurry up. Don't worry about the toiletries, I've got it. Knowing you, you'd probably forget your toothbrush or something."
He raised his eyebrows. "Okay." Luckily for him, when I moved in and unpacked some of my clothes, I took the liberty of organizing his room, so it shouldn't be too difficult to find anything.
While I was in the bathroom collecting the soap and shampoo and conditioner, Robyn called out to me. "Five pairs of underwear? What the hell, are we staying for a whole week?" I neatly put the toiletries in plastic bags just in case they spilled, then put those inside a small organizer bag.
"You can never be too safe. And no, we're arriving there tonight and coming back Sunday afternoon."
"Two nights then... Don't tell me you guys paid for a hotel?"
"No, we didn't. Stop asking questions now. You're just dumb for not realizing it at this point."
"Ugh, fine."
I used my duffel bag to put my stuff in, grabbing it from underneath Robyn's bed. Robyn had pulled out all the clothes I had told him to and threw them on a pile on the carpeted floor. He started to shove them into his backpack when I abruptly told him to stop. "No, don't pack like that. The way you just shove your things in there is actually disturbing. You roll it like this," I said, demonstrating it. "If you don't, you're not maximizing your space in your bag and they will all be crinkled. I suggest packing outfits together so you don't have to dig around."
"Well, sorry for not folding my clothes right, Mom. I haven't been on vacation in a while, okay? It was usually my mom who did all the packing." The sass didn't have as much heat as the past quips.
I sighed, lightly patting his shoulder. "Well it's time for you to be a big boy."
~~~
"Double, triple checked!" Robyn yelled from downstairs as I did a last minute scan of upstairs in case we forgot anything, also making sure to unplug everything.
"Good, I've called Nathan and Oliver. They'll be here in about ten minutes." I ran down the stairs and unplugged the television. "Now looking at all this stuff, what do you think we're doing?"
He pointed to the sleeping bags. "I guess we're camping. But it's between two places I can think of."
"Guess that'll be the surprise." I was still wearing my clothes from school, but to accommodate for the weather, I layered a maroon flannel then a beige utility jacket, and traded my vans for my Timbs. Robyn was also bringing his Timbs, but his were black. The doorbell rang at the same time I got a text from the two. "That's them!"
Oliver was wearing a beanie and a navy blue hooded flannel shirt jacket. Nathan had a yellow hoodie under his Carhartt overalls. Nathan wore black adidas hiking shoes while Oliver was wearing tall black leather tactical boots. Was this a camping trip or fashion runway? "Hey guys! The van is ready. Just put your bags on the right side, the food on the left, and the remaining space is for the camping supplies. Might have to do a little tetris. But other than that, good to go."
"Does he know where we're going?" Oliver asked.
"No. he knows we're camping, but he doesn't know where."
"Well, you're in for a treat," Nathan said, going to carry one of the bags from his car to the van. "Emerson had a pretty good itinerary."
"Thanks but it was Nathan and Oliver who thought of going camping."
Robyn had his arms rested above his head, not even bothering to help pack everything into the van. How chivalrous. "Well, now I have high expectations," he winked.
"Which I'm sure will be fulfilled, now move your ass and get the cooler here," I grumbled, slapping his butt.
"AH! Hey, it's my birthday we're celebrating," he whined, rubbing the sore spot on his bum.
"That's on Sunday, please."
"So, how big's the tent?" Robyn asked, with the cooler in his arms.
"We brought two smaller tents," Nathan said. "My family never went camping, but I managed to find a two-person one from when my parents used to travel together."
"Mine's not as fancy as his pop-up one, but it's a tight four-person fit, comfortable for two," Oliver informed us.
"Interesting." We barely managed to fit everything into the van. It was a miracle how my mom managed to fit everything in our SUV, especially since Emily tended to pack more than she should. And my mom usually brought twice the amount of food a family of four should bring.
"Okay, I think that's everything. Is anyone hungry? Should we stop by a drive-thru and get a meal for the road?"
"Nate and I just ate some Subway."
"Despite having eaten a few donuts, Robyn's stomach grumbled. "I wouldn't mind some Panda Express."
"Fine," I said going to him and holding out my palm expectantly. "Keys."
"What?"
"Obviously, I'm going to drive. You don't know where we're going. You also tend to sleep better in a moving vehicle, and for the activities we're doing tomorrow, it'd be nice if you got the maximum amount of sleep."
Robyn relented, placing the keys on my palm with a reluctant sigh. "Okay, but that means I get shot-gun."
I snorted. "Naturally." I turned to Nathan and Oliver. "Will you two be comfortable in the back?"
"We've fit in tighter," Oliver said. "Once when our team had to travel, the school decided to have budget cuts. The team we were up against was pretty far, so the school decided to spend more money on the hotel than transportation, so instead of renting a bus, they rented a white van. That shit was a tight fit. Our personal bags were squeezed in between our legs and our basketball stuff was thrown in the little remaining space."
Nathan groaned. "Don't even remind me. Julius refused to wear shoes that whole bus ride. Nasty."
Robyn laughed into the back of his hand. "Coach almost made him ride on the top if he didn't put his shoes back on."
"I don't wanna hear it from our privileged captain who got to sit in the passenger's seat," Oliver said saltily.
Robyn made the 'L' gesture with his thumb and index finger at Oliver. "Maybe you should play basketball better." From what I heard, they played a scrimmage against Coach Mendoza to get the passenger seat. Robyn was the only one to score more than five points against him. It was a hard feat to even get two points against Mendoza. Why such an esteemed basketball player decided to go to a remote, small highschool to coach a bunch of redneck hill-billy boys is beyond me.
"Robyn, what do you want from Panda Express?" Robyn had a surprised expression. Usually, if we were together, he'd be the one to order, even if I was driving because talking to the drive thru people always made me super anxious. Hello, nervous wreck here.
"You sure you don't want me to order?"
"Appreciate it, but I'm a big boy too."
"Okay. Broccoli and orange chicken with a side of fried rice and a mango smoothie. Here's my card," he said. Not this crap again. I took it anyways since he accused me of paying for everything earlier.
"What a voracious eater," I muttered. Even after he ate three donuts and a whole mug of hot chocolate, he also munched on a bag of cheetos. Maybe I should've been like my mom and brought twice as much food as four people normally should eat.
I pulled up to the menu display. "Uh, hi."
A crackly, static voice greeted, "Good afternoon. What would you like for today?"
I inhaled and exhaled. Don't screw up this order, Em. "Can I have a broccoli and orange chicken bowl with a side of fried rice? And a small mango smoothie." Score. I didn't screw up!
"Will that be all?"
"Uh, yeah."
"Okay, your total order will be eleven dollars and twenty eight cents. Please pull up to the next window."
"Thanks," I said, probably not loud enough to be worth saying.
"Aww, a small smoothie. Are you trying to tell me something, Em?" Robyn ruffled my hair.
I batted his hand away and fixed my hair. "You don't need to lose weight, but Mendoza would have a heart attack if he knew exactly how bad your diet was."
"Mr. Sweet Tooth is talking. Pssh, I got some broccoli in there anyways."
"You don't even drink water. Don't even talk to me with your yellow-ass dehydrated pee."
"Oh my gosh will you two shut up!" Oliver exclaimed from the front seat, kicking the back of Robyn's seat. Nate quietly laughed, turning his head to the side. "I'm trying to take a nap." I glanced at the rearview mirror to see the two and Oliver was resting his head against Nathan's, both of them sharing the same striped blanket.
I ducked my head. "Sorry." The sliding window opened with Robyn's order, I paid with his card. "Here you go." When it was all said and done, I shakily exhaled. "I could never work in the food industry."
"You did well," Robyn smiled at me, more sincere than I thought he would be with Panda Express on his lap. "You're slowly, but surely starting to get better at being sociable, I can tell."
My cheeks warmed at the compliment. I'd believe it if Robyn said it, because he spends everyday with me, he'd notice stuff like that. "Ah, really? I hope so..." I pulled out of the drive thru and onto the main road and glanced at Robyn for a split second. He was still looking at me. I broke eye contact and checked up on the strangely quiet couple in the back, and yep, they were fast asleep.
"Em, you want some of my smoothie?"
"Nah, I'm good. Just a little thirsty for water. Can you open my water bottle for me?"
"Okay, suit yourself." He untwisted the cap off my water bottle and took a sip.
"Hey, that's my water!"
"Chill, you can just refill it." While it's true we had a whole beverage dispenser filled with water, it was a pain to do some unpacking and rearranging to access it. "Why, are you grossed out by the indirect kiss?"
"Wha-no! Of course not. We share food and drinks all the time, don't be ridiculous. Gimme that," I gritted through my teeth, snatching my water bottle back.
Robyn belched, as he always did after he ate with zero manners around me. "Ah, that was good, I'm stuffed."
"Good, now maybe you should sleep, and hopefully by the time you wake up, we're already there."
"You're really going to drive the whole way there yourself? Are you sure you don't wanna switch with them?"
"No need to disturb them. I've driven for longer when my family went to Canada. Now go to sleep."
"I can't sleep that easily, you know that, even in a car. You help me sleep."
"I'm right here."
He sighed, as if I didn't understand something so simple, so obvious. "Try humming."
"I-I don't think Nathan and Oliver would appreciate that."
"Screw them, I'd appreciate it."
"We can hear you," Oliver murmured, flipping Robyn off from what I could see in the rearview mirror. "If you really struggle so much turn on some country music."
Robyn turned in his seat with a disgusted expression. "I'm trying to sleep, not make my ears bleed."
"Why do y'all hate on country music? It's not that bad."
Robyn scoffed. "Ew, country music is so straight, it's a wonder how Nathan manages to still love you after that lifestyle choice, please. Tell me a country song that ain't about screwing some girl in the back of his Ford truck and turning down the lights. Boots, horses, chicks, and booze. Add some guitar, light drums, bam, you got trashy country music."
"Suddenly he becomes a musical expert and critic," Oliver said, rolling his eyes. "You're probably thinking about the country music from the 2010's, those are actually trash. It's just pop music having the audacity to call itself country. It's a poser wearing cowboy boots."
"Ugh, literally stop talking. I have a visceral reaction whenever country music is played, so that's final."
"Suit yourself," Oliver huffed, snuggling closer to Nathan.
I drove for another two hours through the country roads, passing by cornfields, plains, and a wind turbine farm. Occasionally there'd be horses or cows. Seeing the sun set was gorgeous, and luckily, Robyn had finally managed to sleep after about half an hour of playing oldies, but goodies anywhere from the thirties to fifties. Soft piano music was playing now on the radio and the sound of the tires on the smooth highway roads were soothing. There still was about forty-five minutes left until we arrived at the National Park, but I was sure that'd fly by pretty fast.
~~~
By the time we arrived, it was already pretty dark, and half past eight. Our designated camping spot was more secluded and surrounded by trees, rather than a camper lot. I preferred this since it felt closer to nature, and we wouldn't botherâor be botheredâby other campers. It was higher up in the mountains, so it was slightly frightening to drive on these narrower roads at night, but I still managed. Although we were on an incline, this campsite was flattened with dirt, a fire pit in the middle, and a grill in front of where I parked the van.
I turned on the lights inside the van and clapped my hands energetically. "Wake up sleepyheads! We're here!"
Robyn groaned and slumped further into his seat. "Do we have to set up the tents right now, I'm pretty comfortable here." Hah, so lazy.
Nathan rolled his head. "My neck is killing me, I need to lie down properly."
Oliver slowly sat up, stretching his arms. "Ugh, same,I'm not spending another minute in this van, much less a whole night."
"I'll have you know, this van has done me very well. My family has traveled across the country in this baby," Robyn said, stroking the dashboard.
"Come on boys, the sooner we get everything set up, the sooner we can sleep. We have a bunch of activities planned out for us tomorrow."
"How is it that you're the most energetic out of all of us and you've had the least amount of sleep?" Oliver complained.
"Oh, just wait til I hit the bed, I'll be lights out," I said, already going to open the back. "So who's getting which tent?"
Nathan offered the tent he brought. "Mine actually is held off the ground with pegs and has a really comfortable mattress, but it is smaller than Ollie's. You two can use that and we'll use his, we both take up more room than you two anyways."
"Sounds fine by me," Robyn said, already retrieving the supplies. By supplies, I mean the lightest stuff first.
"All that talk and flexing about being the basketball captain, but you don't put that weight training to use. What's even the point?"
Oliver cackled as he and Nathan easily worked together to set up the tent. "Ooh, he got you there, Robyn."
"I feel personally attacked, I can't believe you guys are being homophobic, like I feel so bullied," Robyn said with straight face, staring directly at Oliver.
"You're so full of shit," Oliver laughed.
"Instead of playing the victim, come here and help me set up the tent or no cuddling." Like an obedient dog, Robyn came running and started to assemble the pegs. Wrapped around my finger, ha.
"What a freakin simp," Oliver said, shaking his head, as if he wasn't the biggest simp for Nathan.
"Ollie, stop bothering those two. Do you want cuddles too?" Nathan asked.
Oliver smirked. "Only after some hot, steamy, sweaty-"
"OLLIE!" Nathan screeched in mortification, slapping his hand over Oliver's mouth. "What the heck?! Poor, innocent Em doesn't need to hear this. And Robyn doesn't deserve to know." Innocent? Maybe. Did I want to hear this? Most certainly not.
Robyn gasped, as if scandalized. "You guys are doing it?" He asked, making the inappropriate hand gesture. I slapped his hands and shook my head.
Nathan already curled up into a ball, tucking his face into his arms. "N-no," he whimpered. Rest in peace, Nathan. Cause of death: embarrassment.
Oliver barked in laughter, rubbing Nathan's shoulders. "You guys didn't let me finish, only after some hot, steamy, sweaty spaghetti."
"Spaghetti doesn't sweat," Nathan glared at Oliver.
"It does if you put some hot spaghetti in a tupperware in the fridge."
"Smartass," Nathan muttered, punching Oliver on the arm. "I hate you."
"Translation: I love you Ollie," Oliver said, unbothered. "So about those cuddlesâ" Nathan groaned, pulling Oliver into the newly finished tent. Would've been romantic except for the fact that it more closely resembled Pennywise pulling Georgie into the sewers.
"Oh, they are so doing it," Robyn said. If doing it meant Nathan committing Oliver's murder, then yes.
"You better not be! Or we're throwing your stuff in the creek!" I yelled.
I heard unholy noises from Oliver for a good two seconds until there was complete silence. There was a sound of something unzipping slowly as Nathan stepped out of the tent, Oliver nowhere to be seen, a severe expression on his face. "Ollie's dead now."
"Why? You f*cked him so hard now he's unconscious?" Robyn said with raised eyebrows. Ugh, so vulgar.
"Robyn, literally shut up. You and Oliver were cut from the same shit-eating cloth," I said, bonking him on the head with one of the tent poles.
"I agree, Emerson. He's not usually this obnoxious, but around Robyn they just feed off each other's chaotic energies."
Oliver slowly crawled out from the tent like a corpse rising from the grave. "I got my ass beat, but not in the way I like it." Nathan, holding the rest of their stuff at the back of the van, whipped his head at Oliver.
"That's it! I'm finishing you off for once and for all."
"That can be taken in two ways," Robyn snickered like an immature sixth grader.
Nathan sighed, pointing a finger at Robyn. "Robyn you're next, and Emerson, you can help me hide their bodies."
I gave him a thumbs-up as Nathan power-walked towards the tent. He threw the stuff at Oliver, both the stuff and Oliver disappearing into the tent. Nathan gave one last peace sign before their tent was fully zipped up.
"Come on, Robyn. Stop pussyfooting around and help me get this last rod through the top. Then we can finally sleep."
"Pussyfooting? Are you from the middle-ages? Please, the only pussies I want near me are kitty cats."
"Oh my gosh. You're insufferable."
"A gay joke was long overdue," Robyn said with pride.
"All of your jokes are expired before you even open your mouth, don't even start."
"Your role of being a single mom in the friend group is expired."
"A single mom?!" I exclaimed in exasperation. "Who else is gonna keep your feral ass in check?"
"Do you really want me to answer that?"
I sighed loudly, creating half moon-shaped indentations in my skin from my fingernails on my temple. "No, not really." We finally finished building the tent, no thanks to Robyn. "Come on, bring our backpacks, sleeping bags, and the lantern. And I'm hitting the hay as soon as I lay down."
"Cuddles?"
"That depends if you want to move your ass or not. Ãndale!" I swear if the rest of Robyn's birthday celebration is just me babysitting a 6'3 man-baby...
When we filled the mattress with air and placed our sleeping bags, pillows, and blankets, I jumped face down, almost knocked out on the spot. The tent was indeed smaller than Oliver's but not to the point where it'd be a tight fit. It was cozy and probably twice as expensive than any tent my family had ever camped in. Besides, my mom preferred glamping in a trailer or renting a cabin.
Robyn came into the tent and did the same thing I did, face planting straight into the air mattress. "Boy, I am tired."
I laughed. "From what? Definitely not using your brain. I swear, you only use your brain as a filler to prevent your skull from collapsing."
Robyn clapped. "Ooh, a new roast. That one is pretty good, I might have to use that one in the future."
"Thanks, it doesn't take much to state the obvious facts."
"Wow, Em, you woke up and chose violence today."
"Just getting it out of my system before I treat you like a king on your birthday." I tapped his cheek. "Let's see how I'll wake up tomorrow and see if I choose violence." I sighed, sinking into my sleeping bag.
"How are we supposed to cuddle if we're just gonna be in our sleeping bags like tuna in a can?"
"You're really desperate for cuddling, aren't you?" I muttered, already unzipping my sleeping bag. I threw my left arm and leg over him and sighed contentedly. "Ah, much better. It feels like I can breathe easier like this."
"You're a koala bear."
"And you're my personal heater, so turn off that lantern and go to sleep," I said with my head tucked between his side and the blanket.
"Okay."
It was dark and I could hear everything from the wind blowing through the trees, the sound of owls hooting, something crawling on the ground. I could also feel Robyn staring at me. "Robyn?"
He jolted slightly, either since he was caught in 4K, or he was about to fall asleep, who knows. I heard him swallow. "Yeah?"
"Are you nervous? Wait, that's weird to ask, you just seem scared."
He laughed. "Why would I be scared? You're here."
"I don't know, but I feel like you're holding back from something."
"What's 'something?'"
"I-I'm not sure, but I just feel like you've been tiptoeing around something." Around me. But that doesn't make sense.
As if he read my mind, Robyn said, "You're not making any sense, Em. You know I can always be a hundred percent honest with you."
"Is that so?" I shifted my head so it rested on his chest. "I can still pellucidly recall you lying about eating my cheesecake."
"Oh, you know I've long made up for that."
"But I ain't forget."
"You're just reading into stuff too much."
"Well you thought I was sick earlier. Obviously, I'm not."
I heard him wet his lips with his tongue. "Must be something in the air."
"Must be," I agreed. I patted him on the chest. "Let's actually go to sleep. This is the last time I'm going to say it. If you can't, tough luck, because I'm knocking right out."
As I was talking I felt my eyelids droop, feeling the heaviness of my fatigue at once. My mind was drifting off into incoherencies, tuning out things that Robyn was saying. If he was saying anything at all. I couldn't remember. I felt weightless, yet like a bird that wasn't ready to take flight just yet, testing out the wind, reluctant. I don't know if I was half-awake, but I think I dreamed about a dancer. This dancer was a silhouette in the distance, I think a boy, but as graceful as a ballerina. He was far out of reach, the only thing lit up by a spotlight in the darkness.
It was following him as he leaped around. I wanted to see his face, but even with the spotlight, he was just too far. I blinked and I could make out the color of his clothing. A billowy, yellow blouse. I noticed he was tiptoeing closer to me, but his face didn't become any clearer.
I wanted to meet him halfway, but I couldn't move, stuck in a stasis of only watching, no touching, no moving. I had no control of my body. He was only an arm's length away when he stopped in front of me. No face. Just blurred lines, like a glitch over the planes of his face. If I was a lucid dreamer, I would've reached out, but I was the same, unmoving spectator.
The figure put his hands behind his back. I wanted to hide away in anticipation. What if it was something scary? It had been a while since I had a nightmare. I didn't want this to be one.
Roses.
The figure held out roses. Yellow, red-tipped roses. Just two. Delicate and vibrant in color. If there was one thing I'd remember from this dream, it's those beautiful roses. Not one thorn.
I blinked and the figure ran away. I couldn't stop him, reach out to hold onto him, couldn't yell and ask his name. As if he could talk with no mouth, but it was a dream after all. Should anything that happens make sense? He outran the spotlight, blending into the darkness so I couldn't see him anymore.
I blinked one more time and the only thing under the spotlight was the red-tipped yellow roses. One was on fire, the other frozen, lightly frosted.
"Sweet dreams, Em."
~~~
A/N: sorry if Em seems a little more sassy than usual (or a little ooc), maybe I have consumed too much MatchaBlossom content (that's a lie you can never have too much MatchaBlossom) but yeah some people have off-days, I don't know if that dynamic has just rubbed off on me or it must be the pink full moon. Anyhow, this chapter was meant to encompass the entirety of Robyn's birthday-camping trip, but I felt that there would be moments better suited from Robyn's point of view, because I'm sure y'all are dying to know how Robyn is coping with all these bottled up feelings.
I was like no biggies, this chapter is gonna be fun camping trip time and then I realized this chapter already had like 10k words. No way am I going to turn this into a 15k chapter story. I needed to upload something anyways, because it's been a while.
I hope I properly conveyed an awkward tension between Rem that neither can quite place their fingers on. We are slowly, but surely getting there bois.
Word Count: 10658
IMPORTANT PLEASE READ! Anti-Asian Hate Crimes. The following paragraphs are addressing the racism against Asians and my personal opinions and experiences as an Asian. If you disagree with what I say, I'm not the problem, you are babe. Warning, it could be triggering.
Okay so taking a break from the fluff for a second we need to address Anti-Asian Hate Crimes. I almost never talk about anything remotely political on this platform because I felt like it wouldn't be read anyways, but now that my story is growing at a rate I can't comprehend, so I think it's worth mentioning. Because it also affects me and I hope it inspires others to talk freely about it. I feel like #StopAsianHate doesn't even get half as much attention as Black Lives Matters did and as a Southeast Asian myself (specifically Filipino) it makes my blood boil reading all these articles about assaults on Asian people, the videos of Asian people getting harassed just for breathing. Men who are barely making ends-meet to provide for their family. The worst thing is that most of them occur to old people! Old people who can't defend themselves. Old people who can barely walk on their own. Imagine how low you must be in your life to stoop to that level of pure evil. It's utterly immoral and contemptible.
We have been the silent minority all this time, ignored and pushed aside for various reasons. Many people like to say "oh you can't complain the stereotypes about Asians aren't even bad" what, like getting good grades? Being skinny? Well guess what, getting good grades is a pressure many students understand, but for Asians it's on another level because your parents DO expect a lot from you, but add on strangers' and classmates expectations on you it all piles up. And don't even get me started on "all Asians look the same" or "all Asians look skinny" Again, pushing this 'skinny stereotype' is dangerous. As if Asia already didn't have a big enough problem with beauty standards and self-love. There's a reason why Asia has some of the highest suicide rates in the world. But superficial standards are a discussion for another time.
Now let's talk about my personal experiences. Growing up in the rural-suburban Midwest, the majority is white people. In elementary school, I was the only Asian kid besides one or two other Indians; and that's about it. I vividly remember the phrases they'd sing to me while holding their index fingers to lift the corner of their eyes, "Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese, oh no what did my mom do to me." The fact that I was the only kid they did this too since I looked the closest to the Asian most people think of when they hear Asian (back then I was paler and compared to being Korean or Chinese) I was targeted. Back then I didn't realize just how racist that was, laughing along, and acting fine. But that's not. Getting called a chink, Ching Chong. All that shit. Ugh. Asian racism has become normalized. Everything is "just a joke." My Chinese friend self-deprecating himself and making Chinese-racist jokes to get people to laugh, that's messed up. One of the worst ones happened to my dad. He was called an "f*cking chink" when he went to Las Vegas. He was supposed to be on an anniversary trip with my mother to have fun. And then he gets called a racial slur. Huh. Bastard it lucky I wasn't there. Because my dad just kept his mouth shut and didn't respond. Similarly, in Walmart he encountered a prick who called him a certain homophobic f-slur just because my dad didn't have any change to give him. People associating Asians with homosexuality just because of their differnt facial features is whole other levels of messed up. (Like how BTS is called gay constantly as if gay is an insult? And since when did facial features become a telling way of someone's sexuality??)
Like many Asians, there is a lot of self-discipline. We don't get violent when we get offended, or insulted. We just take it. Again, the silent minority. The media doesn't talk about it the way they do with other racial issues because it's not fear-mongering enough. Do you know how the rest of the world sees black people through the media? Yeah, those awfully inaccurate and perpetuated stereotypes because of the disgusting media and news, painting them in a bad light. Yes they have suffered a lot and while people attempt to have justice, the news does the opposite. I asked my international relatives how they perceive black people after everything and it's sad how the news portrays them. It gives no excuse for black people to be racist against Asians, however. Yes, I understand white people commit Anti-Asian hate crimes as well. But it's just sad when black people do it as well. Of all people, shouldn't you understand what we're going through? Black people committing these crimes have the same energy as black people looting and burning black-owned businesses. We should be taking steps forward, not leaps backwards. Asians have been overworked and used in the most dangerous labor camps back in the day, especially the Chinese. It was basically slavery, but no one talks about that. People try to silence #StopAsianHate, having the excuse that it was made up by some as black or white social justice warriors, Uhm no. Asian hate has existed for decades. The fact that it's only gaining attention now is despicable. We try to speak up, but there's not enough of us, even willing to speak up in the first place. Or we're scared to get attention, scared the media will also spin us in a bad light than what we already have been due to COVID. Let us have a voice for once. Please.
This pandemic has worsened these Anti-Asian hate crimes. Everyone is blaming everything nowadays, so it's only natural that they would blame Asians. That's the blame game. Chinese people shouldn't be targeted just because that's where the origin of COVID-19 is perceived to be from. If anything, give them sympathy. And blame the tyrannical government. People tried to speak out. Before anything was talked about, the Chinese people tried to make at least something known, warn the world. But they were snuffed out like a flame. All those doctors, gone. Knowing the Chinese government, probably dead. And now it's gotten out of hand.
Before everything shut down and the only cases in the US were the very few on the west coast, I went to the mall with my Asian group (my siblings and few other Filipinos). My brother accidentally made eye-contact with a group of delinquent white boys. They looked at each other, laughed, and ran up the escalator to us. They were just so eager to spew some racist bullsh*t. I braced myself for the worst and of course they came for my brother, the shortest one and the only boy of the group. They called us the usual racial slurs, but then a new one. "Go back to Wuhan you covid-ridden freaks." There were so many things wrong in that statement, but the only thing on my mind was to protect my brother, who was scared out of his mind. Fortunately, I wasn't raised to be violent, unfortunately, I was born with a sassy mouth so I said a few things to make them go away, make them feel ashamed of themselves. People are so quick to spout hate for what? Shits and giggles?
Stop making us your personal punching bags, an easy target to poke fun at. People are all suffering no matter what ethnicity, in their own ways. At the end of the day we all bleed the same color of red. Condemn all violence and discrimination.
#StopAsianHate