Dirty White Nike Air Force 1s

The light emitting from the street lamp cast a mean glow. It was like a giant lightning bug hovered over the block. Samir and Cadra sat on the curb. The former, 23, and the latter, 21, had just finished their shift at the coffee house.

Samir’s face looked rugged or strong or worn for his young age. He had been hustling all of his life from job to job. Cadra’s face featured a softness. A delicate nature visited her visage. Her alabaster skin and green eyes and smooth hair, tousled a bit, shone under the light.

“That’s what I’m going to do. That’s exactly it,” Cadra said. “I’m going to be a mathematician. I wanted to be one when I first got out of school and started college.”

“I’m going to be a hotel and restaurant manager,” Samir remarked. His brown skin absorbed the luminescence. “It’s small time. A few hundred thousand dollars a year, but I’ll advance, though.”

“It’s not small time. Anyway, you can be a manager of one of those exclusive resorts. Far from our stomping ground in Wilmington, Delaware.”

Samir shrugged. “It’s not that bad, this city.” He smirked. “We’re going to make it out of here, come back, and then see what else we can do to change this place. I mean where we live.”

Cadra moved closer to Samir. She felt his back. A slight dampness made his white tee cling to him. He leaned in for a kiss. Cadra closed her eyes and felt the soft and wet meeting of lips. They both withdrew and giggled.

“Are you hungry?” Samir asked.

“I had some donuts earlier. I’m okay.”

He stood to his feet. “Yes, I’m going to be a major player not too long from now. I’m going to go to all the conventions. And don’t worry, you’ll be my arm candy.”

She smiled, kicked at him playfully and he laughed. It was a jubilant little chortle. Then, Cadra stood.

“I’m good with money as you well know. My drawer has never come up short. I don’t even look at the monitor. I calculate latte and espresso prices in my head. I can go back to school.”

“You’ve been saving up enough. You could probably get your master’s.”

“Maybe.”

“You’ve got your side hustles. That site where people give you digital gifts. That’s special.”

“Yeah,” Cadra said. A tinge of sadness crept into her voice. She looked down. She wore a black hoodie she had changed into because the summer night grew cooler. She wore the black slacks from work. Samir wore the same black slacks from the coffee shop and continued to sweat.

“How are you even wearing that hoodie? I’m burning up standing here.”

“It got cold out here.”

They also shared something the shop allowed them to wear despite the policy stating that they must don black sneakers or slip-resistant shoes. Both of them wore dirty white Nike Air Force 1 sneakers. As they stood, they noticed that they had spent this entire time pondering their futures.

“I don’t think we have to worry about either of us making it out of Delaware,” Samir opined.

Cadra looked at him almost hurt. Here thin eyebrows furrowed.

“What did you say?”

“I said––”

“I actually was just testing you. I know what you said. I’m getting out of this state.”

“C’mon. We’re going to do what we said. We can be boomerangs.”

Go out of the state and then come back with more knowledge and insight. And money.”

Cadra looked at Samir with slight anger.

“When I leave, it’s for good. Even if I live in the highest residential structure in the state, I’m moving to Boston, or Philly, or LA, or even New Orleans.”

“What’s a mathematician going to do except teach? You can start at New Sweden.”

“I don’t want to teach. I’m going to be a software programmer for machine learning.” Samir took a visible step back and clutched his chest. His eyes brightened.

“Well, damn.”

Cadra smiled a little. “Yes, there’s more than just professorship when it comes to mathematics.”

“That’s going to take some serious learning.” Cadra looked at him and canted her head slightly.

“What, do you not think I can hack it?”

“I didn’t say that.”

“I can hear it in your voice…you don’t beleieve me.” She folded her arms and faced away from him.

“It’s not that at all. I know you can.”

“Yes. I’m prepared for the rough parts. I’m ready to take my knowledge of numbers and apply it to my future.”

“I understand. That’s why I’m going to have my own restaurant and hotel like Mercier. I’m going to make sure my patrons are going to tell other people how excellent the service is and probably have a playhouse as well.”

Cadra looked up at him. The glow still remained and reflected off his brown skin. Her own white flesh stood in contrast to his.

“We’ll get there, though.”

“Of course,” Samir said. “We’ve got only a set of years ahead of us. In death, they mean nothing. Nothing has any relevance but life. It has been said that life signifies nothing. That we’re just here and shouting and acting out only to lead up to the grave. I think it’s the opposite. Our lives are full of importance. We must suck up the marrow of life and enjoy it.”

Cadra smiled. It wasn’t a weak smile or one that looked like her face drooped. It was radiant and free and open.

“Tell me how you plan to win at life,” she said.

“After school, I’m going to engage in enough research to know how to best serve customers and create an atmosphere of elegance and charm. I’m going to enlist the top chefs from all over the world and bring them to Delaware. I’m going to bring in sculptors and painters that make works that are objective and more interesting than the schlock they try to pass off as art now. What about you?”

“I’m going to study robots as best I can. Then I’m going to get a firm grasp on artificial intelligence, although only humans can be intelligent. Then I’m going to immerse myself in machine learning. I’ll probably have to get a degree dealing with robotics as well.”

“We’ll get there,” Samir said.

“Of course,” Cadra replied.