Chapter 11.5 (Continued) - Alexei and Amir's Backstory

The small girl points up to the fluffy dessert and laughs.

Walking up to the small snack booth, Amir smiles at the young woman behind the counter.

"Two of the large cotton candy, please."

She nods, turning around to grab the sweet candy.

"You want anything, hitta?" the tan-skinned boy asks, leaning against the counter.

"No, I'm fine."

"Not even a soda? A juice? A water?"

The brown-skinned teen shakes his head.

"Here you are!" the young woman says. "That'll be $5.40, please!"

Amir places a $10 dollar bill on the counter, taking the cotton candy from her hand.

"Thanks, mamas. Keep the change."

The girl blushes and smiles.

"Oh, um, you're very welcome."

Walking over to the baby carriage, Amir hands a cotton candy to Khristina who stuffs it in her mouth.

"You need to feed it to her, she could choke on it." Alexei says, grabbing the candy from Khristina.

The little brown-eyed girl looks up at the both of them, her mouth starting to quiver.

An angry expression forms across her face, her diaper suddenly forming a watery spot on the bottom.

"Khristina!" Alexei says, with a frown as he picks her up.

"PFFFTTT!" the small girl replies, spitting in his face.

Grabbing the baby bag, the three head to the restroom area, Alexei quickly changing the small girl's diaper.

He walks back out of the restroom and gently puts his younger sister back in her carriage.

"You want some cotton candy, lil' girl?" Amir says, waving a piece in the air.

"Canby! Canby!"

Chuckling, Amir hands a piece to Khristina and she quickly eats it, stretching her arms out in an attempt to ask for more.

"What're you, a baby whisperer?" Alexei asks, sitting down on a bench.

"Nah, I just gotta lot of lil' cousins." the tan-skinned boy replies, handing her another piece. "I wouldn't mind giving you another lil' sibling, though."

The brown-skinned teen lightly hits his friend's arm and he laughs.

"Anyway, we should check out that new rollercoaster!"

"We can't take Khristina on a rollercoaster." Alexei says, shaking his head.

"Yeah, you can. They installed small seatbelts to where parents can sit and enjoy the ride with their babies. Come on, I'll show you."

The two boys get up, taking turns pushing the baby carriage towards the other side of the amusement park.

Amir jogs over to a picture of the rollercoaster, pointing to a family that was pictured screaming.

"See? I told you!"

Alexei nods.

"I still don't think it's safe for little Khrissy. She's only one."

"Bro, chill out! Let the girl have some fun, damn!"

Taking the baby out of the carriage, he gets in line followed by a concerned Alexei.

"Can I have my sister back? This isn't safe for her."

"She'll be a'ight. Won't you, Khrissy?"

The little girl nods, kicking her feet.

"See, she's getting to be a big girl, so she knows how to stay safe!"

Letting out a sigh, the brown-skinned teen crosses his arms in defeat.

"Fine. But I need to hold her while we're on the-

"WAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!" Khristina screams, tears rolling down her face.

"Awwwww! It's okay, baba's got you." Amir replies, bouncing the small girl up and down.

Alexei rolls his eyes and sighs.

"You might as well adopt her at this point."

The three step onto the ride's platform, strapping themselves in the safety belt.

"There. You're all set!" Amir says, as Khristina laughs.

Shaking his head, Alexei reaches over to undo her safety belt.

"Don't let her sit forward. She needs to face you so all the wind won't hit her face."

"Man, the girl wants to see some shit too. She'll be fine!"

"Idiot, this is my sister we're talking about! I know what's best for her!"

"Bro, stop! Put her back in the seat, the thing's starting to move!"

Khristina giggles as the two boys each try to grab her.

"Give me my sister, she's going to get killed in your hands!"

"No she won't! I'm hella responsible, we can call my dad right now and he'll tell you too!"

All of a sudden, the ride stops and the two boys look down, their hearts sinking.

"Oh shit." The two say in sync.

Loud screams fill the air as the rollercoaster quickly drops down, somewhere around 215 miles per hour.

Khristina laughs as the two boys practically fall out of their seat to keep her from flying away.

After about two minutes, the ride comes to a complete stop and Alexei gets up, quickly taking Khristina from Amir's arms.

"That's it. We're going home." the brown-skinned boy says, putting Khristina back in her carriage.

"But we ain't even-

He gives the tan-skinned teen a "shut up" glare and Amir shrugs.

"Okay, okay. Just let me grab some snacks for our ride back. You can go ahead and get us a spot in the parking valet line."

Nodding, Alexei pushes the baby carriage down the sidewalk, Khristina looking up at him and giggling.

"Tank Boo!" she says, clapping her hands together.

The brown-skinned boy smiles, picking his younger sister up.

"You're very welcome, Khristina."

Turning to his left, Alexei notices a tired Amir dragging himself to where he and Khristina stood.

He yawns, giving the parking attendant his name who quickly fetches his car.

"Thanks, man. Here's your pay."

The man smiles down at the $2,000 and nods.

"Thank you kindly, sir. Enjoy the rest of your day."

Putting his wallet back in his pocket, Amir walks over to the passenger side and gets in.

"A'ight, hitta. Your turn to drive, I'm beat!"

"Would you like me to drop you off at your place then?" the brown-skinned teen asks, pulling out of the amusement park's exit.

"NOOOO! I mean nah, I'm tired, but not that tired. However, I think someone else might be."

Braking at a stoplight, Alexei turns to his right and smiles.

Khristina calmly sat on Amir's lap, her small hands balled up in a fist as she rested against his torso.

"She so tiny and adorable, man. I wish I had a lil' sister like this one."

The brown-skinned boy lightly chuckles.

"Not everyday is sunshine and rainbows with a little sibling."

Amir shrugs

"Yeah, I'll get through it, though."

After about thirty minutes of driving, the three arrive back at the La'rine's estate.

Looking at his watch, Alexei smiles.

"Perfect. We made it here within a quarter until eight."

He looks up and turns to Amir, before shaking his head.

"I thought he said he wasn't that tired."

Sighing, the brown-skinned boy leans forward against the steering wheel.

"I know you can't hear this, but I'd like to thank you for sitting with me during lunch and getting to know me. You were right; all I ever wanted was someone to have a conversation with."

*BEEEEEEEEEEPPPPP!*

Startled, the brown-skinned teen leans back and softly laughs, Amir yawning as he wakes up.

"We're here. I'll take Khristina off of your-

The tan-skinned boy shakes his head.

"I've got her. I don't think she's leaving my side anytime soon."

Both boys smile down at the small girl who still slept, a light smile now spread across her face.

"So anyway, what's for dinner? I'd like to know now so I won't run out of stamina while eating-

"Don't even think about finishing the sentence."

The two boys step out of the car, walking up towards the front door.

"Hey man, I had lots of fun today, it was pretty cool getting to know someone who genuinely wants to be my friend. Well, we still ain't confirm that part, have we?" the tan-skinned teen says.

Alexei shakes his head and Amir sticks out one of his hands.

"Well, if you'd like us to become official, gimme a handshake!"

The brown-skinned teen shakes his head, shaking his now newest and only friend's hand.

"WAAAAAAHHHHH!"

Looking down, the two teens chuckle as Khristina holds out her small hand, wanting one as well.

"Oh! I ain't forget about you, Khristina!" Amir says, using his pinky to do the handshake.

She giggles, turning to her brother to shake his pinky finger too.

"Of course, Khristina." He says, shaking the small girl's hand.

Amir smiles and continues to walk forward.

"A'ight! Now let's go eat, I'm starving!"