Wade didn't particularly like going out at night, especially in those days, after what had happened to his family. However, he thought that perhaps bowling could be a distraction. Throwing the ball towards the pins could be a good way to let off steam and get rid of everything he was carrying inside. He hadn't told anyone except Kyle. For some strange reason, he felt embarrassed to talk about it, even though he hadn't done anything wrong. He didn't want to bother others with his problems. So he tried to look amused and smile as much as possible.

During the match, Wade proved to be quite competitive. He wanted to score and threw the ball with all his strength. Kyle probably noticed something was off. «Are you okay?» he asked him in a low voice, when Wade returned to his seat after the last shot.

Wade smiled slightly. «I’m trying to.»

«If you don't want them asking questions, you should calm down. You look pretty angry.» Kyle pointed out.

«I just want to win.»

«I can't let you. I'll be the one to win.»

«We’ll see.», This time Wade's smile was much more pronounced. He knew what Kyle was doing, trying to distract him, and he was really grateful for it. Maybe talking to someone hadn't been a mistake.

Kyle stood up. It was his turn. He threw a perfect pitch and scored the winning strike. He turned to Wade and shrugged. Told you, he mouthed with his lips. Wade smiled.

«Can we go eat now?», Bryan rubbed at his stomach.

«Poor guy, you must have used up a lot of energy to lose miserably.» Gavin said.

«Really funny. It's not that you did better.»

«At least I didn't finish last.»

«What a low blow, you’re hurting me.»

«Stop it, I'm starving.», Richard stepped between the two.

They moved to the pub next to the bowling alley. They quickly took their seats. Kyle sat down next to Wade, much to his surprise. Gavin gave his friend a look accompanied by a smirk, but was completely ignored. Wade knew what he was implying.

Having placed their order, they waited and chatted. The topic of conversation was the match. The losers tried to justify their defeat with banal excuses.

Wade's gaze was drawn to a family sitting a few tables away. A feeling of envy pervaded him, seeing those children smiling happily in the company of their parents. He held back tears as he remembered evenings like that he too had experienced in the past. He was reminiscing about those moments from his childhood when Kyle accidentally elbowed him while he was talking to the others. He apologized and then returned to the conversation. Their friends shrugged it off, but to Wade, it was clear Kyle had done it on purpose. He was truly grateful to him.

Every day since their first meeting, Wade has done nothing but reevaluate him.

He had the feeling that, since Kyle had appeared, everything was much less unpleasant. He didn't even mind going out, or going to parties, if he was there.