Only a Game (Olympus Drive Chronicles)

Chapter 73: Me and my dads (Under the Sea edition)

Teddy

I wake up starving and shivering. I fell asleep on top of the blankets.

I get up and check the phone, out of habit. I text my mother that I got a new number, cell reception is horrible, I'll be home soon. She answers almost immediately:

Her: I'm so sorry I called your father I was just so worried about me

Me: It's fine I'm just tired. Cell reception sucks. Sorry about the new phone number I tripped and broke my old one.

Her: don't worry I'm glad you're okay it was so odd they wouldn't confirm if you were even there

Me: huh weird anyway I'll call you later I'm sleeping lol

Her: okay I love you

Me: Love you mum

I get up and go take a shower. I am bandaged rather competently, and sewn back up. I'm going to have some very cool scars I'll be unable to explain getting. I get dressed in some of Grant's clothes, jeans and a black REI t-shirt (an American store I guess). They're a bit too big but he left a belt so I make do. I put conditioner through my hair like my mother tells me to, and then set out to find my family.

I almost get lost on my way back to the kitchen, but it's just a straight hall so in the end it goes okay. According to the phone it's the middle of the night.

SurferDude© is in the kitchen making what looks like ice cream sandwiches.

"Where's my other dad?" I ask, a little annoyed, stuffing the phone in my back pocket before he sees it.

"Your--- what?" he stutters.

"My other dad, you know, the better one, where is he?" I ask.

"Your what?" he does not stutter now. 

"My preferred dad? Where is he? I want to talk to him about the VR game," I say.

SurferDude© swears and looks around like he wants someone else here to appreciate what an idiot I am. He's dressed in fuzzy pants, flip flops, and no shirt. He has the tattoo of a wave on his ribs. Very extra if you ask me.

"Why are you awake it's---oh ice cream," Grant walks in and directly toward the ice cream. He's wearing track pants and a wife beater.

"Oh, wow, good you're awake, sucks you'll never get back to sleep now," SurferDude© promptly catches him in his arms to start kissing his neck.

"You got out ice cream hoping I'd wake up, forget everything you've done in the past forty-eight hours alone, and come to bed with you?" Grant asks, trying to walk away to get the ice cream.

"It worked didn't it?"

"NO! Also Teddy is standing right there—"

"Hi," I say, waving at them.

SurferDude© lets his husband go, mumbling something about not liking people in his house for a reason.

"So preferred-dad—"

"I did not tell him to say that—"

"No, I know he comes by it naturally, go on," SurferDude© growls.

"Why didn't you trust Naughty Bull games?" I ask.

"I thought they kidnapped their lead designer, dude named Metion who definitely killed his own partner in Talos Productions which I used to work for—why?"

"They did kidnap Metion—he was imprisoned in the Labyrinth along with his son, Viktor," I say.

"What?" Grant asks, eating an ice cream sandwich.

"Yeah, I know," I say, going to the pantry. I find sea salt crisps, "They got out, Viktor helped me escape in the end."

"Like I said---never liked this Minos person," SurferDude© says.

"We know," Grant says, dryly.

"What are you going to do with that monster?" I ask.

"Kill him?" SurferDude© says.

"Why?" I ask.

"You are?" Grant asks.

"Yeah. He's been eating people, he told me so. Also he's not very smart he doesn't speak well---what else would I do?" SurferDude© asks, eating ice cream.

"Cage it up somewhere?" Grant asks.

"I mean—that wasn't his fault, was it?" I ask, weakly, "I mean like a lion or a tiger or something. He can't help what he was being fed."

"No. But he ate people. I super don't care. I'm not letting it loose for my brother to find out about and get cross with me over," SurferDude© says.

"He wouldn't—" Grant begins.

"I know you like him because he shows you basic human decency but no," SurferDud©e says, "It's final---you two were the ones whining about being nearly eaten by it."

"Yeah but---," It doesn't feel right. I don't know why.

"Okay, well what are we doing about Minos and his personal Most Dangerous Game thing?" Grant asks, "I mean, maybe he has more monsters? Also kidnapping people isn't great?"

"Oh that's already taken care of. I did that earlier tonight while you two weren't speaking to me," SurferDude© says, proudly and like it's not at all his fault we weren't speaking to him.

"How—how is it taken care of?" Grant asks.

"There aren't going to be islands there anymore."

"What?" I ask.

"There aren't going to be islands there anymore."