Something about Kevin

"You wanna do something fun?"

I looked up from my newspaper. When I entered the train, I was sitting pretty much by myself. I hadn't noticed many people entering, either. Maybe that was due to me being invested in the articles I was reading. Corrupt politicians, climate disasters, dictators committing atrocities. There was a lot going on. As usual.

"Well, do you?"

The voice was coming from behind me. I turned around and saw a smiling face looking down over the seat I was sitting in. I hate when people do that, putting their hands on the back of my seat, or looking over it. There was something about that face, though.

"I don't even know who you are." I replied. For all I knew he could be a serial killer, a rapist or a real dumb idiot.

He stretched out his arm and offered me a fist-bump. "Kevin. Nice to meet you. And excuse me for saying this, but you really look like you need to do something fun."

Normally I would have been really annoyed by now. Let me be. I'm reading a paper. That is a sign of leave me alone. But Kevin obviously didn't go by these rules. Kevin wasn't also not right. I answered his fist-bump. "I just read that we're all going to hell on this planet." I added. 

He nodded. "I know that, you know that. So, I will ask you one more time. You wanna do something fun?"

I didn’t think this over. "Sure."

"Good!" His smile got even brighter. Before I knew it he was setting next to me, this Kevin. He was wearing causally ripped jeans, a red hoodie and a black leather jacket. "So, what do you have in mind?"

"Hang on a minute." I folded my newspaper and picked up my backpack from the floor. "You just disturbed me by offering me to do something fun, and now you're asking me what to do?"

He laughed out loud. The few other people in our coach turned in our direction. I saw an annoyed face and I couldn't blame him. I would have reacted the same way. "I didn't offer you anything. I just asked if you want to do something fun."

"Hmmpff." I scoffed. He was right though. That probably annoyed me even more. 

“I’m going to help you. What do you usually do for fun?”

He was quite rude, I thought. I put my newspaper in my bag and dropped it carefully back on the floor. I looked at him. He sat there, laid back. His body a bit turned into my direction. One leg stretched under the seat in front of us, the other bend underneath him. He looked boyish, but somehow I estimated him around my own age, somewhere in his thirties. 

“I read, and feel angry about the world we live in.” I answered his question. I expected a witty reply from him. Instead, he nodded in agreement. 

“I know the feeling. That’s why I asked you if you wanna do something fun.” 

I felt my face twitch. Was that a smile on my face? I couldn’t really tell. People always tell me to lighten up and turn that frown upside down. He seemed to mirror the look on my face. “Sometimes.” I said. “Sometimes I go for a coffee.” 

He made an exaggerated disgusted noise. “Coffee tastes like poodle hair covered in mud.” 

I had heard a description like that before from a comedian, not that long ago. I felt offended then and I felt offended now. Coffee, in my opinion, is the drink created by the Gods. Or, by a goat farmer really, who noticed his animals being more hyper after eating certain berries. I wanted to explain that to him, but his mind was already a step ahead. “But I can drink something else of course. So yeah, let’s have a drink together.” 

I looked at him. “But you don’t even know my name.”

“I’m pretty sure you will tell me before we get to the place. You don’t seem the type to leave open ends.” I raised my eyebrows. He wasn’t not right again. I looked outside and noticed the train was slowing down. I had no idea which station we were heading to, I lost track. But somehow I didn’t care. Here I was with Kevin, this boyish man with by now a killer grin on his face. We were going for a drink together. 

“Well, here we are.” I said. “Let’s go, have fun. My name is Kim.”

“Nice to meet you, Kim.” Kevin gave me a small nod and jumped up from his seat. I got up as well and followed him. He had a certain swag in the way he walked. He turned his head around and smiled at me. I smiled back. The train stopped, and he pressed the door to open. No pressing the button frantically before the vehicle came to a halt. Oh, how I hate when people do that. He then gracefully left the train and I felt how I ungracefully plunged down on the station. Without saying a word we walked to the exit of the station, side by side. Kevin had a smile on his face the whole time. 

Hold on, what was this? I felt something inside, a feeling I knew too well. It was jealousy. I’m not the type to get jealous of possessions. The more someone possesses, the more burden they carry with them. It wasn’t that. It was his ease. How seemingly comfortable he was. How confident he moved. I was jealous of that. How he had just approached a stranger. How he had convinced that stranger to come along with him. And how he now strode through the station. All I had done was being moody and stomp after him. I also had no idea where to go. I had never been to this town. 

Neither had he, so we decided on the first café we encountered. It was one of the popular chains. He ordered a hot chocolate with extra whipped cream. I ordered a pumpkin spiced latte. He laughed loudly when I ordered that. I just gave him a nuzzled look. “It takes guts to make such a bold choice when you have no idea who you are with.” he replied. “I’m buying.” I didn’t object. 

We sat down and we started to talk. About climate change at first. He was just as concerned as I was, and incredibly knowledgable as well. We switched to politics and then to the latest craze of the day. He made me laugh a couple of times. And I made him laugh. At first I thought he was just being polite. But I quickly realized that he was real. When he laughed, he meant it. When he nodded in agreement, he really agreed. 

The drinks were good. We ordered again, and this time I was buying. He didn’t want me to. I insisted. We talked with such ease, and time seemed no issue at all. I knew I missed my job interview by now, but I didn’t care. This was fun. To do something you normally wouldn’t do. And I’m not the type to do these things. Certainly not as spontaneous as this. Not when I have important plans. And certainly not with a complete stranger. 

“Do you do these things often?” I asked him. He licked the remaining whipped cream off his spoon and looked at me. While putting the spoon back in his mug, he shook his head. 

“Not more than you do.” I smiled at him. It was as if we knew each other for a while. He answered the smile. “It’s funny.” Suddenly, he had a pensive look on his face. “I make people laugh all the time. It’s my job and I like it a lot. Beats an office job anyway.” 

I nodded. And how it does. I had recently decided to break all security levels and start a career as a writer. So I counted my savings and quit my office job. Not entirely sure of my success, I was currently looking for a job on the side. You know, for economic reasons. 

“When I’m not working.” he made quote marks with his fingers when he said the word working, “I’m usually on my own, reading books, getting angry in the comment sections of the internet. Just like you, judging from our conversation.” 

I picked up my mug, knowing it was empty. Yet disappointed, I put it back on the table. “You know people well.”

“Part of my job.” he smiled. “People are a great source of inspiration. But today, I wanted to do something else. Bother someone who could use a little fun. But not the kind of fun you get when you buy a ticket to one of my shows, or something like that.” 

I tilted my head, as if seeing him for a different angle would make him look different. It didn’t. “Your name isn’t really Kevin, is it?” 

“Is yours Kim?”

“I’ll tell you my real name when we meet again.” Wait, where was that boost of confident coming from? Did his rub-off on me? It seemed that way. He replied with a big grin on his face, which I now recognized from Instagram. 

“Deal. I’ll be here at the same time tomorrow. One hot chocolate with my real name. One pumpkin spiced latte with the name I think you are called.” I had to cancel my lunch plans for tomorrow. Of course I would cancel my lunch plans. He got up, picked up his jacket and effortless swung it on. “Look at you. It looks like you wanna do something fun tomorrow as well.” he smiled and left the café. 

Yes, I wanted to do something fun tomorrow. And the day after that. And the day after that as well. Even if ‘Kevin’ wouldn’t show up tomorrow, I learnt a lesson today. Lighten up. Take chances. Do the unexpected. Surprise people, including yourself. 

I didn’t want to confuse the barista, so I order a tea under the name Kim. I took out my laptop from my backpack and opened an empty page and started typing. 

“You wanna do something fun?”