Misbehave

“You’ve got to be kidding me.” A girl with braces gapes at the large building before her. I turn so I too can see what she’s seeing. “Told you it was popular,” her companions nudge her. Neji reaches up and pulls the plastic string taut. The simple bell that accompanies the red letters is inaudible because there are so many people jammed into the small space, but the word ‘STOP’ glows on the small sign up front reassuringly. We’re in the heart of downtown, an area in which I’ve never been. I live in the south region of the city, in the poorest part. Rampant gang violence makes the city unattractive, and the bulk of it happens in my neighborhood. I’m used to it, not the downtown district where the convention is taking place.

“Do they have ATMs nearby?” He’s in his twenties by the sound of his voice. Nervous. Is he, too, a first-time attendant? “Next stop is the Events Center,” the driver proclaims. Hands rise eagerly, immediately to pull the plastic string even though Neji did five minutes ago. We wait silently. The bus moves smoothly through traffic. It seems that every car is headed for the Events Center. I check the screen on my phone. The screen displays the current time prominently. 8:58 AM. A lot can happen in three minutes. I’ll never admit this out loud, but I am nervous. The bus hisses as it stops and its doors jerk open. The sound of footsteps fills the air as people impatiently shuffle off the bus. “Thank you,” is repeated, broken only by the sounds of the fare-box and slot accepting money. Many people use bus passes that resemble credit cards, swiping them through the slot on top of the fare-box hurriedly. Coins slip down the slot in the fare-box, and dollars are sucked into the slot near it. I slip a dollar and some coins into the appropriate slots, thank the driver and step heavily down the bus stairs. Shikamaru and Neji follow behind me.
“So where are we going?” I turn to look at them. Neji steps in front of me.
“Keep walking.”
“After check-in, I want to eat something.”
“Check-in for the hotel or con?”
“Hotel.”
“I thought so.”
I don’t eat breakfast. I’m never hungry in the morning. I’m never hungry when I’m nervous, either. It’s morning and I am nervous. Why am I hungry?

Shikamaru grabs the hotel key and we traipse up to our room. Our feet thud dully on the steps. Neither of us feels comfortable in elevators, so we always take the stairs in any given place. It’s good exercise anyway. Neji plunks his suitcase down on the left side of the first bed and removes his backpack. Shikamaru follows suit on the right side of their bed. I trot over to the second bed and carefully set down the two suitcases. The backpack bounces upon coming into contact with the bed. “Sasuke, what’s with the second suitcase? I thought we’d all be able to fit our things into one suitcase plus a backpack, each.”

“I fit all my stuff into one suitcase except for the costume I’m wearing tomorrow and its…accessories. The backpack has street clothes for Sunday, overnight stuff, my cell phone and wallet. Do they really let people check-in to the con on Thursdays?”
“Yeah, after seven when most of the stuff is set up in preparation for tomorrow.”
“Oh.”
“We’ll be eating convenience-store food for the next two days and nights. Maybe we might have enough money to eat a meal at a twenty-four hour diner. We should find out.”
“Neji.”
“What?”
“This hotel has free breakfast every morning.”
He pauses. “We’ll definitely have enough money to eat a meal at a twenty-four hour diner.”

We grab our hotel keys, wallets and walk downstairs. It doesn’t matter what part of the city you’re in—walking or even driving in these streets is incredibly dangerous because every driver has road rage. We sprint across the street. Tires screech and drivers holler at us. “Oh, shut up,” my mind shouts at them. It’s not like we crossed on red or anything. The sign was blinking green the entire time! It’s part of living in this city, though.

The convenience store is familiar, probably because it is one of a large chain. Shikamaru is grousing about how troublesome it always is to cross streets. Neji is examining a chocolate bar. He places it carefully back in its container. I ponder the chilled drink selection. Why is so much soda always stocked? The hotel room has a mini-fridge and a microwave. Does the convenience store have anything microwaveable that could constitute a meal?

“Shikamaru. Sasuke.” We both turn. Neji is poking at his cell phone. “This store is open twenty-four hours a day. Let’s come back tonight.” He walks toward the door, never looking up from the small black hunk of plastic. Two slow, high-pitched beeping noises are emitted overhead as we step onto the sidewalk. “There’s a sandwich shop that just opened. We can get enough food for the next three days for fewer than thirty bucks there.”
“I wish we’d planned things better.”
Shikamaru mumbles something about being troublesome.
“Shut up. The hotel has free breakfast and the last day is closing ceremonies and check-out for everybody by noon, so we won’t need to spend money on food the last day.”
We nod.

“Got twenty bucks?”
“Does your friend always pay for you? Was he a drug dealer?”
They both stare at me.
“Don’t answer that. Yes, I do.”
“Great. So do we.”
“Assholes!”
“Sasuke, everyone carries cash around at cons. Debit cards are used at restaurants.”
“Why?” I’m relieved that I don’t have to use as much cash as I originally thought.
“Dealers prefer cash to credit. They’ll take debit, but they won’t be happy about it.”
“I take it they have those conversion machines.”
He nods.

The owners of the shop are smiling and shy. The shop smells good. It’s crowded and loud. I listen as others order feta and mint sandwiches. Those, and mortadella sandwiches, are the most popular. The food is prepared quickly. I wonder why the women preparing the sandwiches aren’t worried about their hands being chopped off—they’re not even looking at what they’re doing! They’re talking to their customers, looking them in the eye and everything. The children in front of us order steak-on-pita sandwiches. The sound of knives chopping is audible as we approach. Six women talk and laugh with one another behind the counter in a language I’ve never heard before. One of the women looks to be our age. She smiles warmly. “Have you guys been here before?” We shake our heads. “Great! I love newcomers! My name is Zrina. Do you have any ideas for what you want?” We place our orders and at Zrina’s request, sit down at one of the many small, round, polished brown tables. It’s warm in here. Zrina calls to us. Shikamaru and Neji retrieve the food as I pay the cashier. Debit. If I pay for all the food with my debit card, we can eat more filling meals…my thoughts trail when I am nervous.

I study my sandwich. I’m not used to new foods. Flavor explodes in my mouth. I didn’t know it would be so strong—feta cheese and mint. Wow. It’s good, though.
“How’s yours?”
“Good.” Shikamaru pauses to answer, then returns to devouring the steak-on-pita sandwich.
“I’m glad we’re coming back here,” Neji remarks. “I’ll order this,” he gestures to the mortadella sandwich, “until I can pronounce the name confidently.”

“Now what?” I ask as we exit the restaurant. “Call your brother and tell him by tomorrow, you’ll have photo proof that you followed up on the bet,” Neji steps into the street. We follow. I glare at the back of his head, remembering my brother’s challenge a month ago: Dress in three different, stereotypically effeminate outfits before my twentieth birthday, provide photo proof that I went out in public and tried to pass as a girl. As a reward, I’ll get a fifty-dollar gift card to my favorite bookstore, another to a local coffee shop, and a third to my favorite kinky sex shop. My brother was drunk out of his mind and laughing—he laughs a lot when he’s that drunk—when he dared me. I recorded what he was saying over my cell phone and agreed. The next morning, he was badly hung over and pissed off, but he smirked and agreed the deal was still valid.

“Hi, Itachi.”
“Where are you?”
Oh, right, I haven’t told anyone. “I’m…out.”
“Sasuke…”
“What?”
“I had no idea.”
I blush. “Shut up! That’s not what I meant! I’m—not at my condo!”
“Are you with a new girl? Cheating on Hinata?”
“No!”
He’s always so smug when he works a reaction out of me.

“I called to tell you that over the next three days, I’m taking you up on the bet. Shika and Neji are with me. They’re honest—they’ll tease me mercilessly.”
“Good.”
“I hope Deidara dumps you,” I grumble as my friends and I enter the hotel room.
“I hope you go through all sorts of misfortune for that, Sasuke,” he responds icily. Ooh, sensitive. We hang up. “How’s your brother?”
“An asshole as usual. The bet’s still on. I’m using you as witnesses.” Neji smiles at that. “Is it seven o’clock yet?” I exhale and fall back on my bed. “No. It’s nearly twelve o’clock.”
“Call your girlfriend if you’re bored, Sasuke.” I sit up abruptly. “Oh, shit!”
“What now?”

“I ordered some books online a few nights ago and won’t be there to pay the shipping when they arrive!”
“Relax,” Shikamaru grumbles. “You won’t get any of them until Wednesday.” I fall quiet. “When are you going to pull that stick out of your ass?” he continues. “Never. It’s part of my endearing personality.”
“Mine too,” Neji looks out the window. “Troublesome,” Shikamaru gazes up at the smooth, white ceiling. I fish my cell phone from my pocket, grab the spare hotel key and stride out of the room.
“Sasuke, where are you?”
“I’m with Shika and Neji. We’ll be back on Sunday...afternoon.”
“Okay.” Hinata’s voice is so quiet.

The line is huge. People are dressed in street clothes—t-shirts and jeans, with some people wearing skirts.
“Name?”
“Sasuke Uchiha.”
“Let me see your ID.”
I show it to her. She narrows her eyes as she compares my photo to me. “Okay, here’s your badge.”
“Thank you.” As I break from the line, I stuff my ID back into my pocket. My back finds purchase against the wall I walk to. Shikamaru and Neji appear, badges clipped to their shirts. I quickly attach my badge to my shirt. The walk back to the hotel is silent and uneventful. The hotel is quiet even though it’s nine at night. “Do people normally stand two hours in the line to get their badges?”
“Of course. Two hours is actually pretty fast.” Shikamaru turns on the TV and channel-surfs. Neji sits down on the floor to meditate. Eventually, we all sleep.