Deo was sure he was being followed, not by one person but a whole network of them. He couldn't figure out what they wanted as they hadn't approached him. If anything, these people were hired for surveillance and not to injure him. Deo's hoverbike sped across the intersection. Adonis sat behind him, hugging his waist. They both wore helmets with visors and face shields as the bike dipped and swerved, cutting through the traffic, the wind pushing against them. Tall skyscrapers surrounded the road; lights, vehicles, and pedestrians reflected in their mirrored windows.
Red light.
Deo slowly pressed the break till the bike hovered in place, and glanced at his left mirror. A black van turned right, and once again, a purple car appeared to their right, three cars behind them. It came to a stop. Its windows were tinted, so Deo couldn't see inside. Deo increased his bike's elevation, rising above the traffic. It was dangerous to fly above other cars and forbidden unless it was an emergency.
Deo smiled. This was an emergency; some asshole was following him. He had to get to work, and these assholes wouldn't give him a break. The advertisement for his friendbot had been pushed back one week due to his secretary fumbling, and scheduling a dinner with a female celebrity at the same time as the ad on his mother's orders. Deo had pushed off the dinner long enough and went on the date, but he had moved the advertisement. He wanted to be there when it was shot since he had given Adonis a role in it. Luckily, the little boy they had hired was available this week as well, so it worked in their favour.
When the bike was ten feet in the air, Deo felt Adonis' arms tighten around his waist. Deo turned the throttle. The motorcycle shot forwards, ignoring the red light. As he had guessed, whoever drove the purple car panicked and did the same, raising their elevation to fly above the rest of the traffic. The two vehicles sped and turned haphazardly at intersections, narrowly dodging tall trucks and overhanging street lamps, earning a chorus of honking horns and yelling from disgruntled drivers.
Adonis squeezed Deo's waist, clinging on for dear life in a way Deo found humerous.
They passed the large cube-shaped body of the Duffins' Sports' Arena, and the purple car merged with the stalled traffic below, abandoning its chase. If Deo continued driving like this for much longer, he would be pulled over by the cops. He didn't see the black van take over from the purple car as it had done before, but he continued his mad driving in case they were being followed.
He travelled straight, circled back, then turned left at a roundabout, heading towards the park. He lowered the elevation and merged with the other traffic close to the ground as they crossed a bridge. The Donovan river passed bellowed them. Its current was a dull rush compared to the noise made by the vehicles around them. The pace was slow; bumper to bumber. Again, Deo considered flying above the crowd but didn't want to risk a ticket and stayed put.
Technically, one had to be sixteen-years-old to ride a bike without a licensed supervisor. But all the guys Deo's age had a fake license. Naturally, Deo had bought one himself. He would be fine as long as they didn't break any laws and get caught. It wasn't like some cop was sitting bored in his car, saying, 'I'm telling you the guy riding that bike looks like he's fourteen years old.'
Adonis continued to squeeze Deo tightly although the scary part had passed, and Deo knew that the boy was terrified. They couldn't hear each other over the traffic, and Deo didn't fancy removing his helmet. He decided not to say anything to calm him down, but feeling apologetic, he reached down and patted Adonis' hand in a guesture he hoped the boy would interpret as 'It's okay, now'. The boy didn't relax; his arms continued to hold Deo, their muscles tense and tight. At least Deo had tried to comfort him.
Since it would be another few minutes before they got to the park, he used the time to think about his date from last Friday.
His mother had picked a nice Spanish restaurant with dark mahogany furniture and potted miniature palm trees. The place had been well-ventilated with marble flooring. His table had been tucked into a corner by the wall, and the waiter had been attentive and pleasant. The girl his mother had chosen fit the category of beautiful, and he had known her for a while. Anna Carran. Their mothers were friends. She and Deo had played together, or rather Anna had tried to get Deo to play with her when they were children, but he had ignored her and did whatever he felt like doing—reading, playing the piano, anything that didn't require him to pay attention to her.
Now that they were older, he had to be civil and respectful. He was no longer a child. His actions reflected his upbringing and could potentially defame his parents. He spoke kindly to her as they ate the corn chips and salsa dip given to them as an appetizer. He complimented her bone structure. She had very fine bones and was fit and slender, so he joked that she must be very light and easy to carry on someone's back.
Adonis was pretty light as well. Deo could carry him on his back for over an hour while hiking. About two days ago, he had jumped on Adonis' back, and the boy had carried him roughly five metres before collapsing to his knees, cursing. Deo chuckled at the memory.
At the same time, Anna laughed at his compliment, flashing her white teeth.
Anna wore a red dress with a slit that showed off her slim legs. She wore her black hair in a high ponytail that reached the middle of her back like Adonis had done; Deo supposed the style was fashionable among women and didn't think much of it. Glitter was on her cheekbones, and she had delicate white skin. While Adonis had looked like a fierce yet beautiful Greek warrioress, Anna looked like a fairy. Petite and pale.
A waiter brought them drinks, and Deo ordered two plates of chicken empanadas with rice and diablo sauce. Anna said, "Thanks."
Deo said, "And what would you like?"
"That was all for you?"
Deo's pet was part Spanish, so Deo had bought some food as a treat for it. But he didn't tell Anna that. He smiled and told her, "I eat a lot."
The waiter paused for Anna's order. "I'll have the seafood paella," she said.
They handed their menus to the waiter, and he walked off. Anna picked at the chips, taking small bites. "So, tell me about you. Anything new?"
"Nada." Deo shrugged. "But my mother tells me you are doing a movie."
"I am, but it's another six months till we start shooting. It's about a nuclear war and our attempts to fix the earth after, but many of us end up getting sick and dying. I think it'll be good."
"That's nice." Deo lost interest. He scrolled through his social media. Adonis had 250k followers for no other reason than he was cute and sometimes posted covers of pop songs. He also loved to reshare photos of puppies. The most recent was of a golden retriever puppy that was so light it's fur was almost white. It sat on its haunches, head bowed as if it was sitting through a reprimand, and trying to look remorseful. It reminded Deo of Adonis. That kid had the same expression often. He was sorry for a second, then went back to giving trouble.
Deo commented on the picture: You found your twin.
Adonis replied: Master Deo? To what do I owe this pleasure? I thought you had a date.
At the same time, Adonis sent him a text: Did the girl run away? Very smart, she is. Very smart, sir. I applaud her.
Deo: Give me your paw.
Adonis: ☹ ☹ *gives paw*
Deo: *hits paw with ruler* Be good next time.
Adonis: Woof!
Adonis: Hey, boss, do you think I would look good with my ears pierced?
Adonis sent a picture which Deo opened. The boy wore a shirt that drooped to reveal his collar bones. He had turned his head to one side, showing the lovely contours of his face. He was smiling. His ear was small and reddish, showing his embarrassment. Deo had often forgotten, but Adonis had long eyelashes. The gentle slope of his nose suited his feminine face. It was a very beautiful picture. Deo's left eye twitched in irritation.
Deo: Don't sent guys pictures like that; do you understand?
Adonis: .... I was simply asking a question. I didn't ask if I was hot or anything; don't get your panties in a twist. So answer me, would I look good in diamond studs or not? This is life or death, Deo. It could complete my rocker vibe and make the ladies' fall for me. Or it could make me look like a total douche. What do you think? Tell me mano to mano.
Deo:.... I have nothing to say to you.
"This idiot." Deo put away his phone and noticed Anna watching him. "What?"
She smiled and asked, "Girlfriend?"
Deo laughed. "No. It was just an idiot I know."
"I have never seen you blush before."
Deo was taken aback. "What?"
"You blushed."
"I didn't."
She winked. "Okay, you didn't." She paused to sip her drink then asked, "Did you know that Relar has reached out to celebs who supported the #nokillRelar movement?"
"What? Why?" Relar ignored the idea before, so why were they suddenly embracing the advocates. To make themselves look good? Probably.
Anna said, "They have invited 25 celebrities—including me to participate in the round this September."
"You didn't say, 'yes', did you?" Deo trusted very few people in life—his parents and maybe one or two friends. He definitely didn't trust Relar. Its purpose was to produce money; that was all. It would do so at the cost of its players. He added, "Besides, the age limit is 16 and you're 15. You can't play."
She said, "I said 'yes'. And they lowered the age limit to 14 since it will be illegal for players to kill each other this season. Look, Deo, this could be amazing for my career. I have always been a costar; I want to be the main actress for once. I want to show people that I can fight; that I'm cool and an athlete."
"Jogging is not a sport, Anna. It's exercise but not a sport."
"I wasn't talking about jogging." She rolled her eyes. "For your information, I have spent the last five years learning fencing, and I'm pretty good at it."
"Ever won anything?"
She looked down at the table, but didn't answer.
"Then you are average at best," Deo told her.
Her eyes watered. "Can't you support me? I mean, we are supposed to be friends, but sometimes I feel like you hate me. You only see the worst in me."
If she ranted to his mother; Deo would be in for a long lecture. He cleared his throat and reached over the table to touch her hand. "Hey, it's okay. It's okay. I believe in you; you are a beautiful, talented girl. You'll do a wonderful job." He said with more conviction than he felt.
She batted her eyelashes, leaned towards him, and said, "You know you could apply for the games too; they are holding selections right now."
Deo thought of Adonis, who wanted to participate in Relar two years from now; he couldn't let his pet participate without him. If Adonis made a mistake, he would die. Deo had to be there to help his pet. He told her, "Now's not a good time for me. My company is launching a new product soon. I need to be there to ensure its success."
Anna's smile faltered. "It's just that I have watched you train for Relar your whole life. I thought it would be nice to do it together." She pouted. Deo felt somewhat sorry, but he didn't care much. At the end of the day, he and Anna weren't that close.
He said, "Another time then. If you decide to play the game again in the future, we'll do it together."
***
Deo and Adonis arrived at the park. Deo parked his bike at the side of the road and paid for an hour of parking via his phone.
In front of them was a field of beautiful green grass decorated with a few lines of oak, maple, and spruce trees. A long metal fence at the far end of the park prevented children from running into the river. Deo saw his commercial crew setting up lights and cameras in the middle of a field. People scurried as they prepared for the shoot. Adonis straddled the bike. He held his head as he hunched over. A diamond stud glittered in each of his ears. Deo had to admit they looked good on the boy, but Adonis's pretty complexion was pale and sweaty as he forced himself to take even breaths and avoid vomitting on the bike. He was mumbling, "Devil. Demon. Satan."
Deo smiled. He found Adonis' misery entertaining. He said, "Get up; everyone's waiting on us."
Adonis groaned. He said, "With all do respect, your majesty, you drive like a madman. I feel ill. I'm close to death. Leave me here to die."
"Don't be so dramatic. If you do a good job, I'll give you candy after."
"You think I'm that easy?" Adonis raised his head slowly and said, "But I suppose I could handle a few more torturous minutes by your side if you give me a bag of caramels."
"Good boy." Deo ruffled his puppy's blonde hair. He liked the way it felt between his fingers. Smooth. Soft.
Its sweet smell lingered on his hand after.
Adonis got off the bike and stood next to him. Deo felt tempted to get the boy a leash; he felt Adonis would be a great deal more obedient on a leash.
***