Episode 28 - Colorful Love

As the two reached the top of the stairs to the High Line, there was a brisk breeze, reminding them that November wasn't the best time to be walking high above the city streets. Amari pulled his gloves out, slipping them over his frigid fingers.

"Gloves. Smart."

"You didn't bring any?" He started to pull them off, but Yangyang stopped him. "You could hold my hand instead. If we run into anyone you know, you can just tell them I'm blind and you're guiding me."

"Of course I wouldn't do that," growled Yangyang. His tone seemed angry, but Amari wasn't sure why. The next moment, the man reached out and grabbed his hand anyway, stuffing it into his pocket. "I'll just hold your hand to hold your hand. And keep mine warm at the same time."

Amari turned to face him, eyebrows raised. "What if someone sees?" He pulled his hand out of the pocket and put it into his own coat. "It's okay. We don't need to be affectionate all the time. I won't joke about it anymore."

He heard Yangyang let out a little huff, but the man didn't reach for him again.

"If your hands get cold, lemme know, and we can share the gloves."

They walked in silence for a long while, Amari stopping at each open space to look out over the city skyline. It was a clear, bright day and he followed the outlines of the dark buildings against the sunny nothingness.

"What does it look like?" Yangyang asked, suddenly close enough to startle him.

"Uh, I guess... it's kinda like those black and white shadow boxes? With the cut out of a scene at the front, and white in the back for contrast?"

He didn't think that accurately described what he was seeing, since the lines weren't sharp like that, but it was difficult to compare it to something recognizable. The details of most images had long since faded in his memory.

Yangyang didn't say anything, instead taking Amari's hands out of his pockets and pulling off his gloves. "Kind of small."

He put the boy's bare hands back into his coat and wrapped an arm around his shoulders. With a gloved hand hanging over Amari's chest, they started walking again, the boy guided along with him.

"That's better," the man said, his deep voice no longer upset, and Amari smiled, glad the awkwardness between them was gone.

They walked a few more minutes and Yangyang stopped. "Ah, good. We're here. I'm hungry."

Following him down to street-level, then across the road to Chelsea Market, Amari could hear the growing noise of people and shuddered.

"What do you want to eat?" Yangyang ignored his reaction and took him by the shoulders again, tighter this time, his calm voice instantly comforting. "Something we can take with us."

Amari was led into the busy market feeling like they were the only two there, the man pulling him between each restaurant, shop, and stand.

"Oh, my sister will love these.

"How about pizza? Nah, you live in Brooklyn. Why eat pizza from Chelsea?

"Sushi. That's easy to pack up.

"Do you need more coffee? This place is great.

"Is there anything you want to get? Maybe bring back some spices for Zig?"

By the time they were through, Yangyang had two bags in his hand, full of food and other gifts and treats.

"Ah. Maybe I went a little overboard?"

Amari smiled brightly at the man-child and reached out a hand. "Want me to carry one?" His hand was slapped away and an arm rested on his shoulder instead. "I didn't know you liked shopping that much."

"It's fun sometimes. Browsing through stuff, buying things for people." Yangyang swung the bags in his hand, making the boy sway a little under him. "Let's find somewhere to sit and eat."

They wandered until they found a secluded bench and sat, Yangyang pulling out the packed sushi. As they ate, Amari let out a little sigh of relief, feeling the fish and rice fill his empty stomach.

"I'm surprised you lasted so long." It was meant as a joke, but Amari nodded seriously.

"Yeah." Taking another nigiri, he shoved it whole into his mouth and slouched down comfortably on the bench with a frown. "I didn't even eat breakfast this morning. Fucking Nicky."

"Nicky?" Yangyang was already finished, leaving the rest for him to devour. "Ah, the guy that showed up that night?"

Amari nodded, wiping his fingers with a napkin. "Yeah. Some old friend of Ziggy's." Closing up the rest of the food, he placed everything away into the bag. "He fought with his wife and needed a place to crash."

"That's strange, for Ziggy to have that kind of friend."

"Exactly! The whole thing's weird..." He sighed and leaned back on the bench. "But, who'm I to judge?"

"Well, if it's strange, you'll find out sooner or later." Yangyang struck his thighs with his hands and stood, grabbing the two bags and pulling the boy to his feet. "Come on. I'm stuffed and need to walk."

The pair strolled along the path, Yangyang leaning on Amari, the two sharing war stories about Ziggy and his crazy friends, until they came to a large, open space. Amari could tell there were objects scattered around, but had no idea what they were.

Reading his mind, or more likely his face, Yangyang said, "Sculptures. Abstract." He led the boy to one and put the bags down on the ground. "I like this one."

Amari reached out and ran his fingers along the edges as he circled it. It was wide, with sharp angles – square - and much taller than him. Most of it was open space, but the rest was a series of intertwining bars made of a smooth, cold metal.

He imagined a cube, hollow at the center, shaped by many thin, interconnected squares, all woven together. It was difficult to picture in his mind, and since he couldn't reach the top or the inside, he couldn't know if he was accurate. It didn't really matter. What he felt was what he saw.

It was quiet around him, and Amari realized Yangyang was gone - wandering off while he had been examining the sculpture. He turned and looked around, but there were too many people and he couldn't distinguish one figure from another. For some reason, even though he had spent years traveling the city alone, he felt a moment of panic.

Finally, one of the figures stepped out of the crowd and put an arm around his shoulders, the smell of shampoo and aftershave and sandalwood clear in his nose. There was silence next to him and Amari felt as if the man was staring.

"What?"

"Nothing." His deep voice was hushed.

"I like it. It's sharp and symmetrical. Beautiful." Amari spoke of the picture in his mind, what he pieced together from touch.

"Very beautiful." Yangyang spoke softly, sweetly, and the boy wasn't sure he was talking about the sculpture.

"What're you thinking about?" he asked the man, sensing something else in his tone.

"Ah, you don't want to know." Before the boy could respond, he was quickly dragged to a small, rectangular wall. "I like this too."

Amari guessed they were looking at a mural, but unlike the sculpture, there was nothing light or dark on a flat surface and he couldn't feel a two-dimensional image.

"Describe it to me. Whatever's on this wall."

He felt timid asking, having never asked anyone to do such a thing before. Yangyang stayed still a moment, then took one of Amari's hands by the wrist.

"You said you can remember colors, yeah?" The boy nodded. "Close your eyes."

Amari obeyed and Yangyang lifted his hand to the upper right corner of the wall, gently moving it in a downward arch to the opposite corner, his fingers brushing against the smooth wood.

"Red."

Near the end of that line, he continued with a shorter sweep upward, intersecting the red.

"Orange."

Then, an almost straight, horizontal line through the middle.

"Yellow."

From the upper left corner, Amari's fingers curved down. It wasn't as long as the red line, bowing instead of arching.

"Green."

Then, an arc from just above where that line ended to below where it had begun.

"Blue."

Another straighter line, angled, crossing the wide middle.

"Indigo."

Then a sweeping curve upward from bottom to top, staying close to the center.

"Violet."

Yangyang released Amari's hand and the boy's fingers lingered on the wall. "It's a disconnected rainbow. Jumbled."

"Yeah." The man pulled him in by the shoulders and his fingers fell, his hand dropping to his side. "On the bottom it says 'Love is beautiful in all its forms.'"

Amari smiled and shifted a little closer. "I like it."

"Yeah, me too," Yangyang said quietly, but the deep, sweet tone held a hint of disappointment. After a brief moment, he bent down and picked up the bags. With a tight grip, he turned the boy's body around. "Let's go."

They continued walking, sometimes chatting about random things, sometimes quiet, until they reached the end of the High Line.