Astral's Adventures

Ah yes, the summer of his senior year. A time to be alive for him at least. He would never be at home. Insisting on camping whenever possible. Being able to bounce around from place to place and take care of himself. He would stop in at home to check his mailbox. There he was able to see his full scholarship. It made him joyful that he made it there himself.

This wouldn't be his only focus however, he would also become the life of all of the parties that he went to, being able to sign autographs and take selfies with everyone that asked him to. He would always admit to himself that this lifestyle wasn't for him. Great in short bursts, but during the span of three months always partying every day of the weekend felt like too much to him.

His body would certainly agree as he still needed to maintain a level of shape and fitness for basketball while his limited diet didn't do enough to feed him. He knew he was losing weight. Often feasting at every grad party he was invited to. He was so busy being friendly and helping others out. He forgot about taking care of himself. With his limited funds he would prepare to throw together a graduation party.

Even then, he had a location and now all he needed was the venue of it itself. Spending every last penny he would be able to set up his grad party. Thinking to himself, 'This day is for me, I can do what I want.' He would have all of the food delivered as the people came streaming in. Everyone he ever had an interaction with would show up. They all would question him on what sport he was doing in college and if he would ever be a professional athlete. He eventually got tired of explaining and would just answer no to each of these questions.

The party itself was a huge success. Lots of people showed up yet, on the morning after sitting in his hammock he felt a lack of pride in the night before. Feeling like even though it was for himself he didn't earn the right to call it his party. Everyone didn't celebrate him, they chose what he has done to celebrate instead. He felt sickened by this and would want a week to get away.

Would he head north, to the family cabin. Relaxing with nature and being one with the surroundings around him? No, that would require permission from the others. He just wanted to take off for a few days and not worry about anyone else actually watching over him. That's it, what about going to see the ocean. What ocean though?

He could go to Hawaii and enjoy the tropical weather and savor the coastal winds, have fun surfing and be someone who nobody knows the name of. Or he could go to the beaches along the Carolina's for a week and go continually more southwards as the week goes on? Smiling, he would book a flight for his first option. A relaxing week in Hawaii should do him some good.

While in Hawaii, no one on the island knew his name and why he was so popular. It made him happy. A place to peacefully relax. During the day he would travel around the beaches, enjoying the warm ocean breeze and smell of salt. During the night he would enjoy the local cuisine before heading into his hotel room for the night to sleep and do it all over again.

He felt so refreshed and would be ecstatic to go back home. When he did, he would get yelled at by his parents, so called friends and his family. All telling him that someone of his caliber shouldn't just vanish off of the face of the earth. They all wanted him to make money so he could spend it on them, not himself. Spiraling him into an unhappy space he would drink his sorrows away in pain.

The next morning waking up somewhere he didn't know where. He would look over to his right and see one of his friends next to him. Wondering what he even did last night. He would open his phone up and scroll through all of the photos from last night. He drank way too much way too fast and yet he didn't feel too bad. He would keep scrolling seeing how his friend became so handsy with him. He didn't have any recollection from here on out. Seeing what the two of them did during the night made him chuckle a bit.

He would walk outside and relax on the deck as he saw the remnants from all of last night's festivities. Feeling hazy he would go over to the open cooler and grab a water, counting the bottles he had. Five, six, seven, eight? Eight bottles downed in a night? He wasn't too shocked until he felt a slight smack on his ass.

"Last night was fun and we should do it more often." She would comment as he would just take a sip of his water. She would rest on him dressed in very loose clothing.

"I have no memory of last night, so you may have to jog my memory." He would turn to face her, kinda dazed by the entire idea of him being proactive. But he wasn't the one who took the initiative. He would laugh as she reached her hand down gently.

"Don't worry, when I go off to college elsewhere we can be done." She would lead him inside for an hour before he was coherent enough to leave. He would smile and give her a goodbye kiss. They would spend the rest of summer together. He was focused on making sure his basketball game would be more than good enough for the college level.

He would take another small break from everyone by just spending two days at home while his parents were away. Enjoying the peace and quiet before his parents came back and ruined it right before he left for the college dorm.