When Leroy and Zachary got to the grocery store parking lot, Leroy helped Zach out of the front seat and then went ahead to help him set up his chair. The older man had thanked him, setting it in before rolling himself towards the grocery store entrance. Leroy walked behind him, taking in the swarm of people going in and out, holding on to bags of food.

     "I'm going to get the meat first," Leroy announced when he was able to get a coin cart. Zachary nodded at him, picking up a basket from the stack.

     "I'm not to get the frozen dinners first, I'll meet up with you in the fruit aisle after," Zach said, holding on to the basket on his lap before Leroy nodded and made his way to the freezers. I picked up a couple of packets of meat, some fish, and after some contemplation, his sister's favorite shrimp. When he made his way to the fruits and vegetable section, Zachary was already there inspecting an onion in his hand.

     "Did you find everything alright?" Leroy asked, and Zach just nodded, not saying anything.

     At first, Leroy thought Zach was just tired and proceeded to pick up vegetables himself, but slowly, and, surely, it dawned on him that someone was lingering around them a bit too much. There was a lady that walked by several times, not picking anything, and anytime Leroy would look up at her she was staring directly at Zachary. He would make eye contact with her, and then she would blink, looking away before speed-walking out of their peripheral vision and somehow making her way back to the vegetable aisle again.

     It got so annoying that Leroy finally butted in and said something.

     "Hey, can we help you?" he asked, making the lady's eyes move to him for the first time. The woman stared at him, not saying anything, her eyes then moved back to Zachary—again.

     "Can we help you? Why are you staring at him?" Leroy repeated and the lady looked back at him again, before rubbing the back of her neck.

     "I was just curious," she mumbled.

     "Curious about what?" Leroy asked, but the woman didn't answer, she turned around and walked away—almost jogging as if she was being chased.

     "What was that about?" Leroy asked, looking over at Zach who has been inaudible throughout the whole fiasco. "Do you know her?"

     Leroy asked, and Zach just shook his head, getting a clear bag to add some carrots to. "No, people just do that sometimes."

     "What?"

     "They see me in a wheelchair, and they see me stand up—like I did to look at the top shelf when picking out frozen meals, and they just let their curiosity get the better of them—"

     "She basically stalked you in a grocery store because you stood up. That's not just curiosity, what the hell?" Leroy said, and Zach seemed to think about it for a bit before sighing.

     "Well, that's how people treat me. What else could I call it?" Zachary asked. "If I call out everyone that stares at me and follows me—if I call out every kid that says weird stuff or adults that just contemplate my condition like I'm not just standing there, what do I gain?"

     Leroy stared at the older man, not sure how to respond to that.

"What do I gain from being angry all the time? Being hurt? Annoyed?" Zachary asked, and Leroy couldn't really answer. "Hey, they have bok choy," the older man said after a while of silence.

     Leroy blinked, looking over at what he was gesturing at, feeling weird that they'd just abandoned the conversation like that, but he wasn't sure what to do. Zach just seemed exhausted and being angry on his behalf when Zach wasn't angry himself didn't seem like it was worth it.

     Leroy wasn't sure what he had expected from doing a grocery haul with Zachary—but he hadn't expected to be stared at like he wasn't even a sentient human being. He felt angry on Zach's behalf mostly and wondered if the older man had just sucked up the fact that children would point, and stare, and adults would observe and talk under their breaths like he wasn't even there. He wondered if Zach had to endure this feeling of deep discomfort every time he went about in his chair.

     The rest of their shopping trip was mostly quiet, and Leroy prevented himself from glaring at a child who was giggling behind an adult when they walked past Zach. Occasionally Leroy would look over at Zach, trying to see if the constant pestering was bothering him, but Zach seemed like a wall—cold, unfeeling, not saying anything as he looked through the aisles and shelves, ignoring whispers and full-on stares like they were the wind behind his ears.

     Leroy could describe how relieved he was that they made it to the checkout aisle without him losing his temper. They went through self-checkout, bagging the stuff they got before leaving the store. Leroy put their things in the back of the car before helping Zach into the car and folding his wheelchair.

     Leroy climbed into the driver's seat soon after and fumbled with the buttons before starting the engine. He looked over at Zach, realizing that the man hadn't said a sentence longer than one word since the first confrontation. Leroy wanted to talk about it, but since Zachary clearly didn't, he let it go, looking away from the man who was picking at his fingers and staring down into his lap.

     Leroy looked out into the parking lot for a bit, spotting one of the many people that had lingered around them, and stared at Zachary. Another wave of annoyance was starting to overwhelm him. He closed his eyes, counted to ten, then let out a sigh before starting the engine.

     "Did you get everything you were looking for?" he asked, looking at Zach from the side of his eyes.

     "Yeah..." the older man trailed, going along with the mundane conversation. "We were there for quite a bit, weren't we?" the older man said, looking out into the parking lot. The sun was starting to withdraw a bit, leaving behind dramatic shadows and splotches painted in deep orange. "I'm a bit hungry."

     "Do you... do you want to go grab a drink then?" Leroy asked, looking to the side. Zach looked a bit confused, judging by the perplexed look on his face.

     "A drink?" The older man squinted at him. "Like a beer?"

     "Oh, no!" Leroy said, shaking his head as he tightened his grip on the steering wheel. "That's not what I meant." The man leaned back in his seat, looking back and Zach with a smile. "I meant if you'd like to grab a coffee or a soda at a drive-through, since we're not doing anything, and you look exhausted." The younger man explained.

     However, now Leroy thought about it, maybe he should have asked him if he could go for a drink. Though he wasn't sure if Zachary even drank. He didn't seem like he would, but there was always pub food and low-alcohol drinks...

     Well, that would be for another time. Leroy thought to himself, shelving the idea at the back of his head. The last time he's been to a pub was on a date, and he hadn't really gone with any other dudes, it was something he'd like to experience.

     "Oh, I see," Zach mumbled, responding to the question about coffee as he shrugged his shoulders. "Sure, why not? We have a bit of time," he said, checking his watch. "And it's not like the meat will go bad."

     "How about a McCafé drink?" Leroy asked as he began to drive out of the parking space.

     "McCafé?" Zach asked, genuinely confused. His hazel eyes seemed to dull as he pushed away a strand of twisted hair.

     There was silence for a bit, and then Leroy chuckled. "Please tell me, you're not about to say you don't know what a McCafé is."

     "Well, I won't say that if you don't want me to..." Zachary trailed, biting back a smile that was forming on the corners of his lips. "But that is definitely what I'm thinking."

     Leroy scoffed. "I don't believe you."

     "I don't really go outside. I don't know what's there not to believe," Zach said, rolling his eyes. "As long as they serve drinks, and maybe a snack here and there, I don't care."

      "At least tell me you know what a McDonald's is," Leroy said, driving out of the parking lot and into the main road. "If you say no, then you're not from this planet."

     "Of course, I know what a MacDonald's is," Zach said as he rolled his eyes. "Can't eat much from them, though."

     "That's probably for the best," Leroy said, and Zach lost his shit—in a good way, of course.

     The older man laughed so hard that he started coughing.

     "Come on, it wasn't that funny," Leroy said, with a smile creeping up his lips. His chest felt lighter, and the hopelessness of being in the store eased out of his mind. Zachary was laughing, and his sour mood from the grocery store seemed to have been lifted by a joke.

     "I mean, there are layers to it," Zach said when he calmed down. "To why it's funny, that is," he mumbled, resting his head on the glass as he looked out of the window. "So, what's a McCafé?"

"Think of Starbucks, but worse, and run by McDonald's," Leroy said, looking to the side to catch a glimpse of Zach. "And don't tell me you don't know what Starbucks is."

     "I do," Zach said. "My sister loves getting drinks from there."

     Ah, Starbucks, apparently the lifeblood of every young woman.

     "Okay, well," Leroy said. "We're going to McCafé because it's closer. I don't have Starbucks money, and Starbucks might actually kill you who knows."

     Zachary laughed again, and Leroy could feel his chest squeeze up. Well, supposedly Zach liked jokes that were sort of at his expense, but also not really. Witty jokes? He'd keep that in mind. Zachary made him feel like a clown and the funniest person in the world. It made him feel good—useful even.

     He loved it.

     He blinked, realizing what he'd just thought. No. He focused on curving into a lane. I'm just relieved, that's all. Relieved to hear him laugh. He was happy to know that the occurrence at the store hadn't ruined the older man's mood for the whole day and that he had helped to make him smile.

     Of course, he was happy.

     Zachary was his friend.

     Leroy frowned a little. It didn't sound right, even if it was right—at least Leroy hoped so. The younger man rolled his tongue behind his teeth, shutting his thoughts away as they became uncomfortable. He wasn't going to ponder on it for too long. He was just going to enjoy his time with Zachary.