Page 250 of Something Rad
Robbie laughs, reaching up and wrapping his hand around my neck, joking for a second like he’s going to strangle me before he instead pulls me in for a kiss.
After he releases me, he turns back to the album in his hands, removing the vinyl from the sleeve and placing it on the turntable. Once it starts spinning, he glances down at the back of the album cover before lifting the tonearm, setting it to play a specific song.
WhenEverybody Wants to Rule the Worldstarts playing, a massive grin spreads across my face. I let out a sigh, tipping my head back as Robbie cranks up the volume.
“You like this song, Cooper?” Robbie asks.
“No,” I shake my head, staring up at the ceiling. “I just think it may be the greatest one ever made.”
“Well then,” Robbie asks, tugging on my hand and making me look at him, “why the hell aren’t we dancing to it?”
I let out a chuckle as I let him pull me towards him, spinning me around as he sings along to the intro lyrics. I join right in, swinging side to side with him and belting out the words at the top of my lungs, feeling so free with no one around to see us.
We start dancing our way through the aisles, signing to each other like we’re two kids in a music video, acting like total goofballs and loving every second of it. I throw my hands in the air, snapping my fingers and swaying my hips while Robbie whips his head back and forth like he’s a frontman on stage. By halfway through the song, I have a sheen of sweat coating my brow and Robbie’s hairstyle is perfectly destroyed. He grabs my hand once more, spinning me into him, and I crash against his chest with laughter, my mouth finding his.
We stay that way for a few moments, our bodies still moving to the music but our lips locked, until a flash of light catches our attention and we’re pulling back from one another.
We both look towards the front of the store, trying to find where the light may have come from. Robbie’s eyes squint and then widen when he catches sight of headlights coming into view from down the road.
“Shit,” he mutters.
“What?” I ask. “Do you think it’s anyone we know?”
“Better to be safe than sorry,” Robbie murmurs. “Stop the music, will you, baby?” He asks, squeezing my shoulders before letting me go and bolting towards the front door.
“Uh– I– Okay,” I nod, stumbling over to where the record player sits. I shove the arm off of the spinning record with a loud scratch, internally cringing as Robbie visibly cringes, flicking the lock closed on the door.
“Sorry,” I wince.
“I’ll get over it,” Robbie says as he jogs over to me. “Now, get down.” He places his hand on my back and motions for me to crawl behind the counter.
“Should we turn off the lights first?” I ask.
Robbie shakes his head. “They would’ve already seen the lights. They’re the only ones on in this whole strip center. Even though we only turned on a few, I’m sure this place looks like a beacon. We’ll just draw more attention by turning them off now.”
“Okay,” I nod, thinking that makes sense. I glance over Robbie’s shoulder, seeing the car approaching and realization hitting me. “Oh my God, Robbie, I think that’s a cop car.”
Robbie doesn’t hesitate as he crouches down, bringing me with him. “It’s fine. We’re fine,” he says, settling us behind the counter. “If they can’t see us, they’ll just assume Billy’s sister accidentally left her lights on. The door’s locked. They can’t come in.”
“Okay,” I breathe, nodding. “Yeah, we’re fine.”
I hear the distinct sound of a car coming to a stop not too far away, followed by an engine being shut off. I swallow hard.
Totally fine.
A few seconds go by before Robbie starts inching towards the edge of the counter.
I grab his arm. “What are you doing?” I mouth, barely audible.
“Just checking. It’s fine,” Robbie whispers back, and I’m wondering at this point if he keeps saying it’s fine because it’s true or if it’s for his own benefit.
He slowly leans over, just barely peeking around the corner before he snaps his head back. “Goddammit,” he grits.
“What is it?”
“Fucking Strothers,” he mutters.
“Paul?” I question him, my brows pinching.
