Page 30 of Solo Stan

Elias

When their necks became sore from standing in awkward positions, the two took a seat beside each other on the stoop, leaning their heads back against the door and listening to the music.

“You have your ticket; you can probably still charm your way in,” Dakarai urged. “I promise I don’t mind.”

“You didn’t leave me at the bus station earlier; I’m not going to leave you now. This isn’t exactly how I pictured us getting rewarded for cracking the code, but this is nice.”

“It is,” Dakarai agreed.

Their moment was interrupted by two squealing girls crossing the street, using their hands and purses to cover their hair as they ran toward Elias and Dakarai.

“I’m sorry, can we hide under here with you?” one of them asked.

The boys got to their feet and huddled together so the girls could join them under the awning.

“Oh my God, thank you so much. Where did this rain even come from? I’ll be shocked if any of my makeup is still on my face,” the other girl said.

Her large deep-set eyes were the most striking feature of her face, and her lashes were so full and long that they nearly met her thick brows.

“I’m Sarita and this is Imani.” She pointed to Imani, who was trying to shield her natural hair from the mist of water that persisted under the covering.

“Here you go,” Elias said, offering Imani his hat. Her dark eyes and dark skin glistened in the rain.

“Lifesaver,” she said, immediately tucking her hair into the hat and yanking it down as low as she could. “Thank you.”

“You both are here for the concert?” Sarita asked.

Elias let out a sigh. “We misplaced our tickets, so they wouldn’t let us in. We’re just trying to wait out the rain.”

“Was the person at the front a woman with a really tight ponytail and no laugh lines in sight?”

Elias and Dakarai gave each other a knowing look before Elias responded with “That’s the one. You know her?”

Sarita nodded. “My girlfriend works here, and she complains about her all the time. Her name’s Robin.”

“ Robin, ” the four of them repeated with disdain.

The door suddenly swung open, and the group was thrust back into the rain. They got completely soaked all over again by the wall of water, resulting in a collective groan.

“Oh my God, I’m so sorry. Get in here,” the person who’d opened the door said, waving them in.

Imani handed Elias’s hat back and said, “Thank you,” before ducking inside.

“Thanks so much for sharing the covering with us,” Sarita said as she was pulled inside by, presumably, her girlfriend.

Just before the door closed, Dakarai said, “Wait!” Sarita stuck her head back out. “Do you—this is going to sound kind of awkward, but do you guys want to be friends?” Dakarai shot an uncertain glance at Elias. “There’s only, like, an hour left of the show. Any chance we can come in with you?”

He remembered the side quest, Elias thought with a proud grin planted firmly on his face.

“Hang on, I’ll be right back,” Sarita said. The door shut with a metal click. Elias and Dakarai shrugged at each other, but Elias couldn’t hide how impressed he was with Dakarai’s boldness.

The door swung open again, forcing them back out into the rain.

“Did I seriously do that again?” Sarita asked, horror washing over her face.

She slid out, mindful of keeping a hand on the doorjamb so the door wouldn’t shut.

“So, the bad news is that my girlfriend said I can’t let you in.

But the good news is that this door closes really slow, and I can’t be expected to watch it until it closes all the way, can I?

I don’t even work here, so that’s above my pay grade. Sound good?”

“Yes, yes! A thousand times yes!” Elias said, clasping his hands together over his heart.

She laughed, and then, with a fervent push, the door flung wide open, releasing a rush of sound into the night. Elias grabbed the door and held it ajar but paused for a moment.

“What’s wrong?” Dakarai asked.

“You completed the dare,” he replied. “I said you could have anything you wanted.” Elias ran his other hand over the top of his head and swallowed hard. “Well…”

Dakarai pulled Elias toward him by the waist. He blinked hard, completely at a loss for words as his lips parted in anticipation.

Dakarai searched Elias’s face for permission.

Elias raised his head as far as he could without letting his heels leave the ground.

Permission granted. Dakarai grasped the side of Elias’s face and indulged his expectant mouth with a short but deliberate kiss.

Dakarai drew back and said, “I’ve already gotten what I’ve wanted all night.”

Elias had been needed plenty, but wanted ? This felt new. Internally, he was kicking his feet. He wants me? he thought, repeating it with more self-assurance. He wants me.

Dakarai maintained a hold on Elias’s waist as they walked inside, maneuvering through the black, dimly lit corridor past people headed toward the bathrooms. The passageway muffled the sounds of the concert, choking it off at the entrance and offering some relief from the volume.

Dakarai stopped Elias by the arm there, out of view of security, and leaned him up against the wall as people rushed by behind him, pressing them farther together.

Elias picked at what was left of his nail polish, betraying his nerves.

Dakarai didn’t seem nervous at all as he leaned over and took Elias’s face in his hand, resting the heel of his palm against the hollow of his throat.

Dakarai nudged his nose with his own to tilt Elias’s head.

Lingering there for a moment, Elias was expectant, though he was only indulged millimeters at a time.

Then, without further warning, Dakarai leaned in all the way.

As they kissed, Dakarai’s hand slid up Elias’s neck, and his thumb followed the line of Elias’s jaw, his fingers making a circular motion on his earlobe the same way he did to himself when he was anxious.

Even though Elias wanted what was happening more than he’d ever wanted anything in a long time, he could hear a familiar voice creeping into his brain.

He had always been a fighter, not a lover.

What made him think he could be what Dakarai needed and wanted?

Dakarai had been very clear that he was not one whose emotions should be toyed with.

Was Elias doing something wrong? As he leaned farther into this kiss, Elias noticed that something was, in fact, different this time.

He didn’t have that pit in his stomach he got when he was talking back, or picking fights, or doing anything he knew he shouldn’t be doing but just couldn’t stop himself.

He felt at ease, a sense of calm washing over him, like he had finally found his way home.

Dakarai finally pulled away, leaving Elias breathless and with stars in his eyes.

“Are you okay?” Dakarai asked, cradling him in his hands as though he might break—as if he could sense Elias retreating into his head.

Elias nodded.

He wished Dakarai had introduced himself all those years ago in the park, but at the same time, it wasn’t likely he was ready to receive him then. Tonight could have only happened tonight.

His gaze wandered beyond Dakarai, and Elias suddenly became aware that they weren’t the only two in the room. He made eye contact with someone who began making their way over to them.

Dakarai hid his face for a moment, seemingly to fix himself, before turning around to greet Sarita and Imani. They were heckling them for their cuteness, eliciting a nose scrunch from Elias and a broad, toothy smile from Dakarai.

“We saw you made it inside and thought we’d get our new friends some drinks to celebrate,” Sarita said, extending two of their four shot glasses to Dakarai and Elias.

The boys shared a smile before taking them.

They were filled to the brim with a red liquid that looked like juice.

Elias raised it to his nose and sniffed. It smelled like juice too.

Elias slurped the excess off the top of his so it didn’t spill. “Mmm. What are they?” he asked, the glass hovering near his lips.

Imani leaned in to answer. “They’re called Swedish Fish shots.”

“Swedish Fish?!” Elias repeated, snatching the glass right out from under Dakarai’s nose in one smooth motion. “We’re good. Underage, in fact. See? No hand stamp.” Elias pointed to the back of his right hand.

Dakarai chewed on the inside of his mouth as he bit back a laugh.

“Suit yourself!” Sarita sang before she and Imani downed all four shots back-to-back, then headed to the dance floor.

CYPHR grasped at his mic with his eyes closed as he sang in falsetto, and his band accompanied him on an all-acoustic version of the first song of CYPHR’s that Elias had ever heard.

The crowd went alight, a hundred swaying cell phones popping up one by one to match the slower tempo and softer sounds.

The only one who wasn’t transfixed was Elias.

He couldn’t keep his eyes off Dakarai with his profile backlit by the red stage lights, which accentuated the contours of his face.

Elias knew it wouldn’t take long for Dakarai to feel his stare.

“What’s on your mind?” Dakarai asked, finally turning to look at Elias.

“You never told me what my tarot card was earlier.”

“The Four of Wands, which represents celebration, joy, and a sense of homecoming. Does any of that resonate with you?”

Elias bit the inside of his cheek. “I think it does.”

He nestled his chin on Dakarai’s shoulder, taking the fabric of Dakarai’s shirt between his teeth and, with playful determination, attempted to draw him closer by the collar.

Dakarai tapped on his chest, signaling for Elias to rest his head against him. When he did, Dakarai draped his arm protectively across Elias’s chest, and finally, they watched the show.

“I swear I’m not usually like this,” Elias said, “but you bring it out in me.”

“Same,” Dakarai replied, his voice resonating against Elias’s back.

A goonish smile settled on Elias’s face, and he melted farther into Dakarai. Sinking into a relaxed stupor, Elias felt the tiredness from the day finally taking over as he watched CYPHR perform.

If we kiss once, we can’t take it back

But if we kiss this once, I can kiss you again

“This song has been stuck in my head for weeks,” Elias said.

“It’s my favorite,” Dakarai replied. “I’m glad I got to hear it live, finally.”

CYPHR commanded the small stage. Bathed in the glow of stage lights, against the black muslin, he moved with a confidence that was apparent in every gesture.

He handed off his guitar to a bandmate before settling in front of a keyboard to play a ballad version.

The audience was captivated by CYPHR as he lost himself within his music.

Elias tapped the beat with his fingertips against Dakarai’s arm.

They were still soaking wet, and under any other circumstances, they would have been completely miserable.

However, with the bass pounding in their chests, they didn’t even notice that their clothes were sticking to them.

They didn’t care that they’d have to be at work in the morning.

Elias hadn’t felt this way in a long time—perhaps ever.

The only thing that could make this moment even better was getting closer to CYPHR.

Elias gave Dakarai’s leg a playful squeeze. Leaning close to Dakarai’s ear, he said, “Let’s go join everybody else.”

“We’ll get kicked out if your best friend Joshua sees us.”

“It’s, like, two in the morning. I want to get kicked out,” Elias said, extending his arm to Dakarai.

Elias half expected that he’d need to convince Dakarai more, but he was surprised and delighted when Dakarai motioned for him to lead the way. Was it possible that Elias brought out Dakarai’s boldness?