Rowley returns to the cinema

90.It was mid-summer in Rowley’s town and the warmth of the sun infused everything it touched with an inviting warmth. Despite the pleasant weather and the alluring lakeside picnics, the murmurs of excitement were centered around the re-opening of their beloved cinema after it had been closed for months due to repairs.

Rowley's heart pounded with anticipation as the day approached. at eleven years old, he was an ardent movie buff, his adoration for films was in his blood; after all, he came from a line of film enthusiasts. Given that his grandfather had been a distinguished cinematographer and his parents ran a small but successful film production enterprise, his passion for films was expected, and in this particular instance, it centered around the peculiarly titled “Captain Arse Face 5: The Smelly Horse Poo Attacks the World.”

The title of the movie was a convoluted mess of toilet humor, but it held a certain charm for Rowley. With his saved pocket money, Rowley went on a shopping spree. He purchased a cart full of candies, exactly one million, interspersed with a solitary, plump grape, a peculiar tradition that Rowley followed with every theatre visit. Thus, armed with his toothsome inventory, he headed for the grand cinema re-opening.

As Rowley strolled nervously, victoriously through the grand hall, he stumbled on a loose cable, sending his trolley of treats barrelling down an aisle and straight into the sacred chamber of the celluloid - the projector room. In his dismay, he accidentally broke the sound machine, filling the cinema with an eerie quietness.

The large audience grew restless, throwing around hushed insults. With a spark of an idea, he quickly hooked up his speaker to the projector, and soon the hall was echoing with his favorite gangster music, while the film visuals continued. Amidst the audience, Rowley’s dad sat in a state of confusion, his eyebrows furrowed, struggling to comprehend the peculiar sound mismatch.

In his nervousness, Rowley inadvertently stepped in front of the projector beam, casting a huge silhouette of himself on the cinema screen. This elicited a bout of laughter from everyone present—everyone, that is, apart from his father, who simply stared at the imposing shadow with a mix of realization and dread.

Just as his father was about to storm towards the projector room, the screen flickered. A new video, one that Rowley had secretly recorded, began to play. It was neither a blockbuster nor a cinematic masterpiece. It was far too personal and far too embarrassing for one person in particular: it was Rowley's dad, bare in the tub, manipulating a bath duck.

Laughter echoed throughout the hall, loud and uncontrollable, and for a fleeting moment, the cinema melted away into a cacophony of pure hilarity. The red-faced man found himself overwhelmed with the backlash of reality. As the uproar subsided and the actual movie resumed, Rowley made a quick exit from the projector room, adrenaline surging through his veins.

Later that night, even though the scolding from his father was expected, there was something unexpected too—the contagious laughter. Rowley's mum learned about the incident and couldn't help but bursting into laughter. In the echoes of uncontainable laughter, his dad eventually joined in, unable to resist the humor of the situation. That night, the family fell asleep with teary eyes and joyful hearts, all thanks to Rowley’s cinema incident which proved that sometimes, creativity knows no bounds.