AN: Warning for a brief mention of cults!
"Aw, come on!" Balloon groans, as the arcade machine once again chimed for my victory. "You beat me again!"
"What can I say? Got eight years of practice under my belt!" I grin. "But you came close this time, though! Maybe you'll beat me one day!
"Man, you're ruthless at video games!" Balloon huffs, but he still smiles at me. "You really are related to Knife, huh?"
"You kidding? When I was a toddler he used to give me an unplugged controller so I could 'play' with him. It's something we've really bonded over." I take the pouch of quarters that we had propped against the control panel, shoving it in my pocket. "C'mon, you wanna grab a soda? My treat."
"Sure! Wait up!"
Me and Balloon race down to the snack counter, where we see a familiar face at the register, tapping the countertop absentmindedly.
"Fan! Hey!" I shout, waving to our highschooler friend.
He glances up, smiling at us. "Suitcase! Balloon! How's it going, guys?"
"We're doing good! Just creamed Balloon at Rhythm Blasters," I reply, as the both of us move to take seats at the stools near the counter. "We're just taking a break to grab some sodas."
"Oh, I got that covered for you two!" Fan pulls out two cans of Dr. Fizz from behind the counter, sliding them over to us. "Here you are! Don't worry, it's on the house today, just don't tell anyone, aight?"
"Thanks, Fan!" Balloon and I chorus, as we open our sodas and begin drinking.
"Hey, Balloon, while we're taking a break, can I borrow your English notebook for a second?" I ask, sipping my soda. "I kinda spaced out during class and forgot to take notes, and we have that quiz tomorrow on that book we've been reading, remember? Blood and Oil?"
"Oooohhh, you're in Mrs. Highlighter's class?" Fan grimances. "Yeesh, I feel sorry for you two. I had her when I was in seventh grade, she was the worst. Really strict with assignments and tests and everything."
"You tell us!" Balloon reaches for his bag. "She once blew up on this one kid cause he tried to pull the classic 'dog ate my homework' excuse on her."
"Yeah! It nearly drove me to tears, and I wasn't even the one getting yelled at." I sigh, tapping the countertop. "But at least we know not to get on her bad side."
"Yep, that's—" Balloon trails off, his eyes widening in a panic. "Oh crap, you gotta be kidding me..."
"What's wrong, Balloon?" Fan asks, looking concerned.
"M-My copy of Blood and Oil, i-it's not here, I—it was in my bag earlier, I swear!" Balloon was starting to hyperventilate.
"It must've fallen out of your bag before we left school." I remember having to remind Balloon to close his backpack after we had left the building. He tends to be a bit clumsy like that.
"Oh crap, this is bad, this is bad...we have English first period and I'll get hell for not having the book..." Balloon was beginning to panic now, scratching at his sleeve anxiously.
"H-Hey, don't worry! W-We can go to school early and grab the book! No big deal," I suggest, patting my friend's shoulder to try to comfort him.
"Or I could take you guys later tonight," Fan offers. "Assuming they still have the same janitor from when I was in middle school, he hardly ever locks the school. Obviously a huge red flag and surprising that he hasn't been fired yet, but on the other hand, I can't think of a single sane person who would break into a substandard middle school in Ohio."
YOU ARE READING
Hidden Mysteries
Fanfiction[II AU; Humanized] By all records, twelve-and-a-half year old Suitcase Slams is a fairly average girl. She's just started seventh grade, she likes hanging out with her new best friend Balloon (even if her dad's boyfriend doesn't like him all tha...
