A Shift in the Universe Christian Mitchell Copyright 2004
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN:
On occasion Kyle and I hung out in West Hollywood. Usually we would get our caffeine fix at the Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf. Sometimes we ventured to the Abbey but I preferred the Coffee Bean. It was nice to be in West Hollywood among other gay people but sometimes I felt alienated from the rest of society. Because I had grown up in Westwood I sort of felt like I was betraying my neighborhood and friends. Silly, but that's the belief that I had.
Kyle and I had decided that we could not live in West Hollywood.
"First of all, we might want to be closer to UCLA," I stated.
Kyle agreed. "Well, and I don't think I could live right off Santa Monica Boulevard. I would have to live above Sunset or around Melrose, you know?"
"Yes, I know what you mean," I nodded. "I think my mom would prefer that we focus on the Westwood area."
"Actually, I don't care too much about what neighborhood we live in," Kyle replied. "I want a nice apartment. It shouldn't take too long to drive to school. And as long as you're with me it will be a cozy and happy home."
Initially my mother centered the apartment search to Westwood. Then we looked at a couple apartments in Santa Monica. We had checked out a dozen apartments when Kyle and I decided to look around Beverly Hills. The lady who showed us the last apartment we looked at mentioned a large one bedroom above Sunset Boulevard near Tower Records.
Kyle and I immediately made an appointment to see the apartment. The following day we met with the landlord. He was an older gentleman that had been managing the apartment building for nearly twenty years. We could tell that he was eager to rent the apartment and he stated that it wouldn't be empty for long.
The apartment was located on the fourth floor. It smelled of fresh paint and some sort of cleaning solution. The hardwood floors were shiny and in good condition. The living room was quite large. There was a small dining room and bathroom located toward the back of the apartment. We were surprised to discover a decent sized kitchen with an area for a breakfast table.
Kyle and I were more impressed by the large bedroom than any other room of the apartment. It was very spacious. The bedroom had its own private bathroom and two small walk-in closets with mirrored sliding doors. Because it was located at the far end of the apartment it had the best view looking down over Sunset Boulevard. There was a limited view of Los Angeles. Yet, it was better than being forced to look at another apartment building or trees.
"When is the apartment available?" I asked.
"The fifteenth of July," he answered.
We thanked Mr. Fredrickson and told him that we would call him later in the afternoon to let him know what we had decided.
Once we were sitting in Kyle's car he grabbed my hand. "I want that apartment."
I laughed. "It was really nice, huh? We've seen a couple better ones but this one is only eleven hundred dollars a month."
"Exactly. Five fifty each plus some utilities!" he grinned.
A couple hours later we arranged to meet Mr. Fredrickson with my mother.
"Hello, I'm Carol Anderson," she smiled and extended her hand to the landlord.
He smiled in return and gave my mother a room by room tour of the apartment. I could hear them talking, but I couldn't tell what they were talking about. I was certain that my mother was drilling him with all sorts of questions.
Fifteen minutes later my mother thanked Mr. Fredrickson for his time and said that she would let him know if we were definitely interested in the apartment.
"You may stay a while longer," he said. "Please turn the light off and shut the door behind you."
"Thank you," I replied. "Good night."
"What do you think?" Kyle asked.
"Well, it's very nice," she answered with a breath of air. "Do you guys really like it that much?"
"Yeah," Kyle exclaimed. "It's one of the best ones we've seen. And it's right off Sunset. It won't take too long to get to school."
"You're sure you wouldn't be more comfortable closer to UCLA?"
"Mom, come on. We're finally out on our own. It's not too terribly expensive. And, like Kyle said, it won't be too bad of a drive to get to school."
She stood there with her hands on her hips. "Well, let's walk the apartment together and tell me what ideas you have for furniture."
"So, that means it's okay to jump on this?" I asked with a smile.
She brushed the blond hair away from her ear and adjusted an earring. "Well, if the two of you have your hearts set on it, then what choice do I have?
At least it's in a good neighborhood and I didn't spot any cockroaches. I'm a little put off by the fact that it's right off Sunset Boulevard, party cent ral. Yet, I suppose living on or around campus would be the same."
Kyle and I quickly crossed the living room to hug her.
"Thanks, mom!" I exclaimed. "We're going to make this a nice home to live in."
"I know," she smiled. "If you set it up right you won't need a lot of furniture. Some open space is good, you know?"
"Don't worry. It'll be nice and spacious, if that's the way you want it," Kyle beamed.
"It's just an idea," she replied as if she wasn't trying to convince us that she wasn't trying to influence us. "I'm sure it will take some time for the two of you to conquer your messy tendencies."
"We're not that messy," I smiled.
My mother looked at me with surprise. "Who are you trying to fool? I know you're both new to the gay lifestyle, but I think the decorating skills bypassed you both."
Kyle laughed out loud. "That's true."
"Should we tell Mr. Fredrickson that we'll take it?" I asked.
"First, walk through the apartment with me. I'll speak to him before we leave."
As June came to an end Tyler, Paul, Jordan, Kyle and I embarked on our trip to New York City. We arrived at the airport late so we quickly obtained our tickets and ran to the security checkpoint. Some people looked at us strangely because we were somewhat loud and rowdy. I'm sure we looked like a group of jocks set to attend some sporting camp for the summer.
Jordan was the one who caused the longest delay at security. He unsuccessfully tried to pass through the metal detector twice. Because he likes to pil e on his clothes he had to practically strip at security. He removed the T-shirt he had put on inside out. He had already removed his belt so his jeans were hanging off his hips, exposing his underwear.
Paul whistled. "This isn't the time to satisfy your go go boy aspirations."
Several people around us laughed.
"Yeah, Jordan," Tyler complained. "Keep it in your pants please!"
Jordan shot us a dirty look then rechecked his pockets. The guard had him lift up his tank top and then he patted his legs down. The guard was becoming more irritated and perplexed since he couldn't determine what was making the metal detector react to Jordan. Then he spotted the small piercing in Jordan's right eyebrow.
"Son, you're supposed to remove all your jewelry."
"I haven't had it long. If I take it out, it might close on me."
The guard waved Jordan through then we rushed to our gate.
We had about ten minutes before boarding started so Kyle and Paul went to a shop to buy water and snack food. Tyler sat on the floor with his carry on luggage between his legs.
"This is going to be a long flight," he sighed.
"Yeah, but if we don't like the movie choices we can catch up on our sleep."
Jordan slapped me on the back. "That's right. Because we won't be doing much sleep in New York."
"The city that never sleeps," Tyler smiled.
"Well, we won't be out too much. Since all of us are eighteen, we won't be getting into any bars or clubs."
"Who knows," Jordan replied. "We might be invited to a party or two. Hell, there might be a celebration of some sort in one of the hotel rooms."
"Yeah," Tyler grinned.
"And we're in luck, as far as the age issue is concerned," Jordan smiled.
"My brother hooked me up with this guy he knows in the East Village. He can get us fake ID cards!"
"Shut the fuck up," I responded with amazement.
"No, I'm serious," he beamed. "I've already talked to him once. He said he could set us up in one afternoon. I can call him tomorrow and we can all go and get it taken care of."
"Thank God your brother bonded with other delinquents when he was in high school," Tyler laughed as he stood up.
"Yeah, I know," Jordan grinned. He turned to me and tilted his head to the side and winked at me. "Going out shouldn't be a problem."
The flight was rather smooth with very little turbulence. Kyle, Tyler and I were seated together and Paul sat next to Jordan behind us. We hadn't been in the air long when Paul and Jordan started to flirt with the stewardess. She seemed to be amused and took delight in the way that Paul kept talking to her in his usual charming manner.
Tyler eventually fell asleep and soon his head was resting on my shoulder. Kyle and I tried to fall asleep but we were unable to rest. I attempted to read and watch the movie but I quickly became bored. I placed my head on Kyle's shoulder and dozed off and on for the remainder of the trip.
Kyle occupied the window seat. When the New York City skyline was in sight he awakened Tyler and me. The excitement we had earlier in the day had returned. Once we were off the plane we walked through the airport to the ground level transportation area. It seemed like we had walked for nearly a mile by the time we finally emerged outside. The sun had started to set while we stood in line with several other people waiting for a taxi.
We had to allow some people to get ahead of us until we secured a mini-van taxicab. The driver was French. He was very nice and talkative. "Welcome to New York," he smiled.
Our hotel was the Marriott Marquis located in Times Square. By the time we arrived the sun was pretty much gone and lights illuminated the entire area. Being from Los Angeles, it was a slightly overwhelming experience. Obviously there are a lot of lights and billboards in Los Angeles but Times Square seemed completely surreal.
The Marquis had an enormous lobby. The elevators were made of glass so you could see the entire hollow middle of the hotel as you ascended higher into the sky. By the time we reached our rooms on the forty-fourth floor I was dizzy from pressing my face against the glass and watching the floor below.
One of the rooms was located on the very end of the hotel so it overlooked Times Square. The Virgin Mega-Store was directly across the street from us.
I was mesmerized by the thousands of people walking on the streets below. "Wow!" I exclaimed. "This is cool and freaky at the same time."
Tyler appeared at my side and looked out the window. He grabbed my waist and gently pushed me toward the window. "Don't fall."
I jumped back. "You fucker!"
Kyle and Tyler laughed as I walked across the room and tossed my luggage on the bed. I fell onto the comforter and flipped off Tyler.
"You would have done the same fucking thing to me," Tyler cackled.
"Of course," I replied. "I just didn't think you'd beat me to it."
About ten minutes later Paul and Jordan walked into our room. Jordan sat on the small sofa while Paul threw himself on Tyler's bed.
"I called Jonathan," Jordan announced.
"Who the hell is that?" Tyler asked.
"The guy who's going to hook us up with fake IDs. We're supposed to meet him tomorrow at two o'clock."
Kyle looked at me with an expression of astonishment. "Really?"
"Hell, yeah," Jordan responded. "We came here to have a good time. And we're going to have a good fucking time, man!"
"Exactly," Paul smiled. "This might be the last time that we're all able to get together like this. It should be a non-stop adventure of fun and frolic."
"The three of you will be in Los Angeles. I'll be in San Francisco and Paul will be in Phoenix," Jordan said. "This needs to be a trip to remember."
"You make it sound like we won't see each other again," I complained.
"Yeah," Kyle frowned. "That's not going to happen."
"Well, of course not," Paul replied. "But we're not going to see each other as much as we have over the years."
The five of us were silent for about a minute.
Jordan clapped his hands loudly. "Okay, let's snap out of it, guys!"
"I don't care about Broadway shows or all that other tourist crap," Tyler said. "I just wanna hang with my boys. Go out, have a good time and get drunk. And if I'm lucky, I'll get laid, too. Since Lisa and I are no longer together, I'm a free man."
"A free horny man," I replied. "But let's make sure that none of us gets into any trouble."
"Hey, we've always been there for each other," Paul interjected. "If someone gives us any shit then we've got our backs covered."
"And if one of us gets arrested, we'll bail him out," Jordan shrugged.
We all laughed and pointed at him.
"I think we should keep an eye on you," Tyler smiled. "If anyone gets arrested, it will probably be you."
"Hey, I'm a good boy," Jordan protested. "You'll probably get your ass thrown in jail before any of us even has a chance."
"I hope not," Tyler replied. He pondered the thought for a few seconds. "You guys will bail me out, won't you?"
Again, the five of us laughed.
"Of course, you asshole!" Paul shouted with a hoot of laughter.
"Let's get something to eat downstairs?" Paul suggested. "Then we can walk around Times Square."
We agreed to eat dinner in the hotel. After we showered and changed our clothes we took the elevator to one of the restaurants below. Following a quick meal we raced outside and walked the streets of Times Square.
Everywhere you turned there was a person walking in some direction toward their destination. We did our best to weed our way through the crowds without losing each other. After walking around for nearly two hours we returned to our hotel rooms to get some rest.