As It Is

As I approached the rickety bridge, I saw two shadows just a bit ahead of me. I slowed my pace, enjoying the coast.
“Hey, Nicholas!” Lola called out. She was the first to see me, of course.
“Hell yeah! Let’s get going!” Damon yelled after her, turning to see me ride up to them. “Look out, Madison! Hell is upon you tonight!”
Our first stop was, of course, Charlie's Crust, where the greasy-adolescent served us up a large, steaming, artery-clogging pepperoni pizza, which we scarfed down as though our lives depended on it, while discussing our plans for the impending night.
"I vote we kick it Oceans 11 style." Damon spoke urgently.
"Excuse me?" Lola asked.
"You're excused," He said, "Yes, Ocean's 11. Rob the bank." I almost believed he was serious, then he broke into a laugh. "No, not quite that. But tonight, my friends, shall most certainly be a night to remember." As he said this, he raised his fist in the air, and we joined him, our fists raised high, chanting, "A night to remember!"
"So," I started, my mouth full of the remnants of a pizza, "Mighty over-seer of plans, what exactly is going to make this night so memorable, after our blind agreement in it being so?"
"I thought you'd never ask," Damon began as Lola leaned in, her pigtails cutely framing her face, eyes slanted in curiosity. And so, Damon laid out his, as he described it, marvelous plan of action- which, I must say, was pretty marvelous-sounding.
And so, after filling our stomachs and giving a mighty chant once more, we started off to truly begin our night to remember.
Walking alongside them up the road, I pulled out my Canon and turned it on, watching them through the viewfinder as they made fun of each other, laughing. I zoomed in and caught Lola throwing her head back, her pig-tails bouncing joyfully, as she laughed at something Damon said. I loved capturing people in the moment - not posed, not static, but living - and capturing Lola in that moment made me immeasurably happy. It was contagious, seeing her like that; and then I knew- this night would truly be one to remember.
Damon quickly strode over to the side of the road suddenly, leaning over some shrubbery. "My friends- It has begun," He spoke, his arm still reaching into the bushes.
He pulled out an old backpack and slung it around, quickly unzipping the front pouch and pulled out a zippo and a long stick. Lighting the end of it, the stick flared to life as sparks dazzled in the dusk sky- a sparkler.
"Sparklers? That's the night of extravagance?" I asked, bewildered.
"One would think. But fret not, this is only the beginning- a preview of the main event, if you will."
He tossed one to each of us, and soon we were running down the streets, swinging the sparklers around without a care in the world.

After our sparklers had finally ran out of life, and us of breath, it was time to ask, "So, what's the next phase, captain?"
"Phase 2: Search and Borrow."
He wouldn't fully explain to us what he meant by that, so, of course, we had to follow him blindly to our next stop, which was a house that neither Lola nor I recognized.
"Damon...who's house is this?" Lola asked quietly.
"Shush, it's all apart of the plan. Keep low,"
"Are we allowed to be here?" I asked cautiously- breaking rules was not on the list of things that I'm used to, or comfortable with, doing.
"Trust your captain, damn it."
He snuck off, walking quickly, but quietly, along the perimeter of the house, us following behind silently. Reaching the corner of the house, he suddenly stopped and raised a fist, alerting us to stop, as well. I listened closely, but couldn't hear anything. After a peek around the corner, Damon continued, stopping in front of a slightly dented garage door.
There was a brick lodged between the door and the driveway, keeping it from closing all the way, and just big enough, I noticed, to allow a slender person to squirm through.
"Damon. Tell me. What does your night's plan at this moment in time consist of?"
"Well, my dear pal, Nicholas. If you'll notice, all we have with us currently are sparklers- and, as you duly pointed out, sparklers are not so extravagant. So we need some extra flare." Lola watched our discussion, a hint of excitement flickering in her eyes.
"Yes, I have noticed. Yes, we need extra flare. Now, Damon, pray tell, why are we here crouching in front of someone's slightly opened garage door?"
"Good of you to note. Now, if you'll notice even more, for me - this garage door is open just enough that we don't need to make a sound opening, and you can crawl right in."
I started to back away from the door. "Hey, okay. I want an awesome night just like you guys, but you really want me to steal from someone?"
"I know this guy- he's a massive prick. Besides, he actually works for a place that handles this kind of stuff, he won't miss it. And it won't be just for us, anyway. So we're not really "stealing", so much as 'reclaiming', and then giving to all of Madison," He spoke with a tone of utter importance and sincerity, "And, hey- I'd do it myself, but you think these mass of muscles can fit into that space?" Lola had to contain her fit of laughter. Then Damon whipped around his backpack and pulled out a flashlight, "Here,"
"What's this for?"
"So you can see the goods, of course."
"I never agreed that I'd do this."
"But I know you will- come on, go, before someone sees us out here."
I couldn't believe he was talking me into it, but there I went into some strangers garage with a flashlight, looking for fireworks to steal. I crept around, looking through all the odds and ends one would have in a poorly kept garage, until I happened upon a box right next to a smelly refrigerator- there they were, all neatly stuffed together, loads of fireworks.
Crash.
Unfortunately, as I went to pick them up, adrenaline was coursing through me and I moved too quickly, looked too little, and ended up knocking some bottle over, which shattered against the floor, echoing all throughout.
"Nick! Quick, get out there!" I heard Lola aggressively whisper through the crack of the door.
I quickly grabbed the box of goods, but as I was about to leave the door, a certain sound occurred that sent a creeping chill up my spine.
The sound of a rather angry dog barking within the home.
"Nick! Now!" Damon whispered a bit louder, opening the garage door further, which bent at the force, making even more noise, causing the dog to bark even fiercer.
I made my way past the threshold and our sneakers had just crunched grass when a door opened behind us, "HEY! Stop! What do you think you're-"
Apparently, Lola had been well prepared for this, as she quickly pulled out a bottle-rocket, lit it, and sent it flying right towards the apparent prick's face, momentarily blinding him.
We didn't stop running until we reached the boundary of Madison- the giant lake that separated us from the next County over.
I knelt over, finally setting the box down on the rocky shore, gasping for breath, "Lola..I..Can't believe you..did that..," I managed to sputter.
"Yeah, no shit. I didn't think you had it in you," Damon, in much better shape than I, said, "I have to say- I'm proud of you. Hell, I'm proud of you both!"
"What can I say? I had some pretty great motivation back there. Look at our boy! I mean, stealing? What's gotten into you?"
"Hey, it wasn't stealing- it was reclaiming," I gave them a smirk, and they broke into laughter.

"My comrades in arms...are you ready for the next step in our grand night?"
"As ready as I'll ever be," I said eagerly.
"Abso-frickin-lutely!"
"Good," He spoke in a serious tone, and then began to pull out an array of fireworks- all shapes and sizes, from the small fountains, to the large, sky-lighting rockets.
"Are you sure we won't get in trouble for this?" I asked them. It sounded fun and all, but I didn't want my dad getting a call from cops after he so generously let me have a night out.
"Nah," he said, "It's close enough to the 4th. Nobody will care. In fact- I'm sure they'll thank us."
"The 4th? It's April."
I didn't specify which 4th, did I?"
And with that, he began setting up our arsenal, lining them along the shore of the lake, then handed each of us a bic and set us to work- Lola in the middle of the line, and Damon and I at either end. Sparks soon lit up our view as many different rockets and sizzling-works sprouted to life and burst, either on the ground or high in the air. Madison was ablaze with a vast array of noises and colors. Of course, I lugged out my camera and captured each second of it. Damon and Lola's faces shone brilliantly in the firework's glare, and everything was bouncing beautifully off the reflection of the lake. Soon, behind us, we could hear the sound of more fireworks being set off in the town.
"See? I told you they wouldn't mind," Damon smirked.
Lola watched me, and I watched her, smiling.

After the fireworks had died down, and Damon had went on his own way back home, it had just left Lola and I walking alone towards the split between her home and mine. We stood in the middle of the road, just before the turn, and paused to say our good-byes. We did this often, but that night felt..different. It was a night to remember afterall, right?
She gave me a quick hug, as usual, and with her as-usual peppy voice she said, "I had so much fun tonight, Nick. It was all so beautiful."
So was she. I inched closer, "I know."
I didn’t know what to do. I had never been this close to Lola before. I mean, I’ve been close to her, but not like this. The intimacy I felt was like no other.
We held each other’s gazes, just standing there. And I touched my hand to her arm, and she didn’t move.
I decided what I never thought I’d decide in my life- to lean in and kiss her.
And it was at that moment things went wrong. As I leaned in, she pulled away quickly, her eyes widening in shock. I froze. The severity and tension of that moment was past the realm of average comprehension. Trying to be smooth, I attempted a chuckle, which sounded more like a dying hyena than a smooth guy playing off a terrible attempt at a first kiss.
“Nick…”, Lola started.
“No, don’t,” I pulled myself together. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done so. I over thought what was happening. By a long shot. It’s my fault. I’m sorry. I’ll see you tomorrow, at school.”
Lola just shook her head, her gaze retreating and turning instead to the ground below. I went to walk away, wanting to escape from the immense amount of awkwardness.
Lola pulled on my sleeve. She leaned in for a moment, and I could feel her breath on my ear. She kissed my cheek quickly, said “I’m sorry,” and ran off in the direction of her home.
The night that was to be remembered actually ended with deep thinking and anxiety-induced pacing around my room.