As the bus rolled past Wallowdale, the small town didn’t seem as creepy as when they'd first passed through. Even the weather didn’t seem that shitty anymore. Sal didn’t care that he was wet from top to bottom; he couldn’t stop smiling. It was like he'd won the lottery.
Logan Porter was unconscious in the back of the back of the bus, covered with a blanket. He looked like a human sleeping bag.
The barn and the odd behavior of his fellow Giants were long forgotten. When Seth got inside the bus, he delivered a smile that went straight to Sal’s solar plexus, while appeared shy and pleased at the same time before he lay back on the car seat and closed his eyes.
Something made Sal's foot ride the brake and drive slower, something that refused to leave his mind.
Darwin.
His story had also downloaded into Sal's head back at Giant Hill. It was this huge landmark in his life that made Darwin who he was. Sal had seen all of the injustice Darwin had seen, and the graphic vision inside his head had been terrifying.
Sal hit a pothole, waking Seth. “What’s going on? Are we there yet? Is Mr. Porter awake?” Seth asked.
“Everything's fine, Seth,” Sal said, turning his focus back to the road. “I was thinking we could drop Mr. Porter off at The Old Gnome.” It was a pub and nightclub combined. Catering to a mature audience, they offered a wide selection of beer, whiskey, spirits, and pub food. The Old Gnome was located on a backstreet, away from the tourists. Back in the 1970s, it attracted a less-sophisticated crowd when it hosted bare-knuckle prize fights. Principal Johnson of Strong Edge High was rumored to have been a participant of such fights.
Because the pub was on a backstreet, it would be easier to dump Mr. Logan without causing undue attention.
“Cool.” Seth tried to sit up as much as he could. “Park a few blocks from the place, and I’ll create some illusions to make sure people think he was at the bar tonight.”
"That's one mad skill you have, creating illusions. How do I know you're really here now?”
"Touch me." Seth stuck out his hand. "My illusions don’t come in flesh and blood.”
Sal touched his hand; it was nice and warm. He quickly returned his hand to the steering wheel. “Okay, you're really here.”
Seth nodded and ran a couple of fingers over his lips.
Sal wanted to say something to Seth, something sweet, cool, and charming to try to sweep him off his feet, but for the first time, he couldn’t find the words which was weird, because being seductive was usually the easy part for him.
They closed in on The Old Gnome, and Sal parked the bus in a more or less abandoned area in Strong Edge called Strong Edge Plaza. It was the first major shopping mall to have opened in the area back in the sixties.
Strong Edge Plaza was originally an open-air mall, but it was enclosed in 1984. Over the last ten years, Strong Edge Plaza had changed ownership twice, but it hadn't helped with its decreasing number of patrons who probably preferred the newer, open-air malls in the area. Since then, Strong Edge Plaza had remained completely vacant.
“Wow, this place is amazing,” Seth said, carefully pulling Logan Porter out of the car. “How come anyone hasn’t done anything with the place?”
Sal shrugged his shoulders. “Beats me. It was supposed to have been demolished years ago.” He tossed Porter over his shoulder while Seth admired the scenery.
“Are you thinking about buying the place?” Sal adjusted Porter on his shoulder.
“Yeah. I could turn it into a nightclub—what do you think?”
“I think we should get Mr. Porter to the pub before he wakes up,” Sal answered.
They walked carefully down the street leading to The Old Gnome. Seth walked in front, keeping an eye out. If someone came in their direction, he'd make them blend into the surroundings.
When they reached the corner down of the street on which The Old Gnome was located, happy voices moved in their direction as a young couple approached.
As they neared, Seth prepared to perform his invisibility stunt.
The couple stopped a few feet away, where they kissed each other passionately.
Seth stood silently, his eyes closed as he concentrated.
Sal couldn’t believe his own eyes, and he nearly dropped Logan Porter in astonishment.
The couple was Jack and Rosie!
For real?
Kissing?
He blinked a few times to make sure he wasn’t seeing things, but it was really them. Then, he remembered that right before they'd driven down to see Aunt Vickie, Rosie had been hiding something private, something she hadn't wanted him to see.
Jack had been with a girl on the night of the concert at Giantsfair, and Rosie had been that girl.
They turned and walked away, chatting away about the evening they'd just shared.
Seth opened his eyes when Jack and Rosie turned a corner.
“I thought they’d never leave,” he said, wiping his face free of sweat.
Sal didn’t respond. Rather, he began to walk toward The Old Gnome, still unsure of what he'd just witnessed.
Seth took the lead again, making sure the coast was clear. Sal leaned Porter up against a brick wall close to the pub, and Seth closed his eyes to create his little decoy, making it seem like Porter had had too much to drink, and he'd tumbled outside of the pub to get some fresh air, only to fall asleep against the wall.
“Okay, let’s go.” Seth started to jog down the street back to the bus.
Sal went after him. “Are you okay?” he asked when they'd reached the bus.
“I'm fine. I just need some water. Can you take me to the gas station we stopped at earlier? They had a vending machine.”
“The gas station where you kicked the shit out of those two bozos?" Sal said, amused
“You liked it, you derp, and you know it,” Seth responded with a smile on his face.
They drove up to the lot at the empty gas station, which had been closed for the night. The area had been deserted, making the place seem unearthly. Sal almost expected zombies to creep out of the building at any moment, making him flee in horror.
“What’s inside the barn?” Sal blurted out as soon as the bus stopped.
“Unsettling things,” Seth replied honestly. “I’ll show you later.” He stepped out of the bus and went over to the vending machine where he bought a bottle of water and a canister of Pringles.
Sal turned on the radio.
When Seth returned to the bus, he walked around the car to the driver’s seat and opened the door. “The song on the radio. What is it? It sounds familiar.”
Sal turned up the volume. “It’s some weird disco song. Why?”
“Some disco-song?” Seth laughed mildly. “That’s Night Fever by the Bee Gees, dude—they're legends. They helped define the disco era. Have you ever heard of a film called Saturday Night Fever starring John Travolta?”
“Vaguely.” Sal chuckled. “I don’t do disco.”
“Oh, but you don’t know what you’re missing,” Seth said, reaching in over Sal and turning up the volume as high as it could go.
“What the hell, Seth?”
“Dancing's always fun, even for those who think they have two left feet.” Seth took a step to the right, one to the left, one backward, and one forward in time to the beat. He even did the disco-point, moving his hand up and down with his index finger pointing out. Seth looked hot, even while doing those idiotic dance moves.
“Come and dance with me," Seth said, putting out a hand and waiting for Sal to take it, "don’t be such a wallflower. Are you afraid you might enjoy it?"
“The 1970s called. They want their tailored three-piece suit, shiny shirt and hip-hugger pants back,” Sal said, trying to be dismissive, but he couldn’t help but laugh. “Besides, it is still raining.”
“Dance with me.” Seth’s eyes glowed in the darkness. “You're still wet besides, aren’t you?”
Sal took Seth’s hand. “Seth, I really don’t dance.” He felt like a small kid on the first day at school: unsure of everything.
“But that doesn’t mean you can’t dance.” Seth more or less pulled him out of the car. “Just follow me.”
Sal did what he was told, the infamous puppet on a string, but to his surprise, he actually enjoyed himself. He moved around after Seth, copying his moves. Gradually he started to do his own twists, turns, dips, and tricks. The scene was wacky: two young men, dancing disco, in the rain.
It was also perfect.
The music from the radio faded out, and Sal and Seth laughed. Sal felt light-hearted. He ducked under the roof of the bus and turned off the radio. When he faced Seth again, Seth's features were serious, and his seductive eyes had become regretful.
“I have to go, Sal. I’ll see you around.” He put two fingers up to his lips, kissed them, and put them on Sal’s lips. “I left something in the glove compartment for you.”
“What?” Sal dropped his car keys, and he bent to get them. When he stood back up, Seth had vanished into thin air. It was a nice party trick, having the ability to simply vanish whenever you felt like it.
Confused, branded a fool, and left behind with mixed emotions, Sal got into the bus and drove home.