Page 5 of Solo Stan
“Don’t be nasty, Reggie,” Mama said, lightly smacking Pop with the back of her hand. Pop winked at her, and the briefest of smiles passed over Mama’s face.
They fell into silence, and Kai watched his parents eat. They picked up the bones with their hands and spun them around in their mouths like washing machines until the bones were clean. Kai could hear the clicks and pops and tuts of their lips and teeth producing a language he had unfamiliarized himself with years ago. When Kai was nine, he received the bicycle he still rode around to that day as a Christmas present. It was a bright red cruiser with whitewalls and chrome handlebars. He and Bobby rode it around the neighborhood during the heart of winter when the outside didn’t call for bike riding or Rollerblading or sitting on stoops. But he had wanted to try it. He ran right off the curb, hit a mailbox, and heard one of the bones in his arm crack like wood.
He never ate meat again.
With Kai’s stomach still rumbling, Mama cleared away the plates, leaving Pop to wash the dishes alone. He hummed softly to himself as he filled the dishwasher.
Kai settled on the floor of the living room, positioning himself in front of Mama. She absentmindedly tugged at his hair while watching the news Pop had abandoned on the TV. Kai rested his head on Mama’s knee and looked on with her, sideways.
Pop brought a hot towel for Mama to place over Kai’s head when she was done. She gently arranged it over the tight braids and massaged with as much tenderness as she could manage. The feelingenveloped Kai’s entire body, and he closed his eyes, settling into a half sleep.
“You baby that boy too much, you know,” Pop said quietly as he took a seat on the other side of the couch.
“I know,” Mama replied, her voice warm and soothing.
A hush fell over them, and for a while, the sound of the television was all that could be heard.
Kai kept his eyes closed, leaving his head leaning against his mother’s leg as he idly listened to the local news. It was the same old routine—accidents causing traffic jams, a local man opening a pizza shop and donating most of his proceeds to animal shelters, and some entertainment news about old celebrities Kai had never heard of—until his ears perked up at the sound of a familiar name.
“North Carolina native artist CYPHR, formerly of the band EZF, recently launched his solo career and has announced a surprise show this Friday in Raleigh. Tickets are currently available. You can visit our website for more information,” the newscaster announced.
With those words, Kai leapt to his feet, kissed his parents on the cheeks, and climbed the stairs to his bedroom in three long steps. He flopped backward onto his bed and had smoke in the air and his nose in his phone before his head even touched the pillow.
His phone was a relic, so it took many minutes of nail biting and buffering until he got the confirmation that his purchase for four tickets had gone through. He, Bobby, Winter, and Emmy would be seeing CYPHR that weekend whether they liked it or not.
He closed the page and immediately called Bobby.
Bobby answered the phone as though they had already been mid-conversation. “I’m just going to say it. Being a boyfriend isstressful. Especially Winter Park’s boyfriend. Ten out of ten, would not recommend.”
“Well, you did go back on your promise to go to Harvard, randomly deciding to haul your ass to the other side of the country,” Kai countered as he settled onto the bed.
“Whose side are you on?”
Kai let out a chuckle.
Bobby and Winter liked to pretend they hated each other, but Kai felt the heat of their unspoken connection, the invisible red thread that bound Bobby and Winter together. He was certain they were twin flames—two halves of a single soul reunited. A twin flame connection was a spiritual one that could shift your life and worldview in profound ways. Meeting this person was about more than just love; it could open your eyes to the divine, push you to strive for higher consciousness, and ignite a passion to become a more enlightened soul all around. This type of deep, meaningful bond wasn’t necessarily romantic in nature, but Kai hoped that when he found his own twin flame, it would be.
“Whatever, dude. I didn’t call to talk about your relationship problems. I called to ask what you’re doing on Friday,” Kai said, unable to contain his excitement any longer.
“I, uh—actually have to talk to you about that,” Bobby said. “I know we’re supposed to spend the whole summer together—me, you, and Emmy, but—”
“Robert Bae, what did you do?” Kai asked sternly.
“I may have gotten a summer internship.”
“No…”
“In California.”
“Bruh…”
“And I leave in three days.”
Kai sat up straight. “What?! When did you find out about this?”
“I was wait-listed, and I guess someone dropped out last minute. They called me yesterday.”
“And you’re only telling me now?”
