Team Catradora

1-Busted

Adora didn't play laser tag to lose.

It was her favorite part about going to the mall. Trying on dresses was fine, and eating out was fun, but it was way more exhilarating to shoot her friends.

The room seemed bigger than it was. It was arranged like a maze: walls blocked their vision and viewpoint, forcing them to navigate while trying to shoot each other. The walls themselves were cardboard and painted black. Neon splatter paint was randomly on the cardboard, giving some variety to the otherwise dark room.

Some areas of the wall were chipped, leaving room for Adora to shoot between the holes. Mirrors were randomly hanging, which allowed Adora to occasionally see from behind. 

She could see everything, if she wanted. It was helpful, especially considering how clumsy Glimmer was. Right around the corner, was Glimmer's skirt. Adora could make out small circular light off the walls-that were visible because her sequin skirt reflected it.

Adora tiptoed forward, and aimed towards Glimmer's vest. Glimmer's back was turned, and the buzzing that sounded when she shot her sent a thrill through Adora's spine.

"Ah!" Glimmer jumped, vest turning white. Her lipstick was smeared, so she immediately rubbed her face. Her hands looked bloody, and she shoved them behind her back.

Adora aimed again.

"Can you not?" She held her hands up. "Come on, Ad-"

"Ow!" Bow appeared from behind Glimmer, and immediately heat rose to Adora's cheeks. Her weapon dropped, hitting her calves. She winced, but immediately forced herself to smile.

"Oh, ugh, you two-you're, uh, well then. I gotta go." Adora turned to leave, feeling flushed. At least the room was dark, and she couldn't make out the lipstick smudges very well. Now, her heart raced, and-

"Adora, wait." Glimmer's hand grazed Adora's. Adora stopped, waiting for her to proceed. There was an awkward silence as Glimmer looked at her shoes, fumbling for an answer. "Uh, so Bow and I are dating now."

"No duh." Adora lightly punched her shoulders. "Why didn't you tell me?"

The music was now blinding. Right now, Call Me Maybe played, loud and clear. Usually, it'd be good to have something so loud that nobody could hear Adora sneak behind people. Today, it basically pounded in Adora's ears. She sighed. "Why?"

Bow appeared from behind, and placed his hand on Glimmer's waist. He offered a small smile, and it only made Adora roll her eyes. Finally, he sighed. "We-we didn't wanna make you feel like the fourth wheel, and we thought you'd get lost in the maze."

"And so you thought making out right now was smart? Come on guys, that's so impractical." Adora raised her gun, rolling her eyes. She had to practically yell over the music, so she probably sounded angrier than she actually was. "You have to be on guard. Like right now." She shot Bow in the chest, and his vest flashed white, indicating that Adora hit him.

He groaned. "I hoped you wouldn't notice."

"Have you met me?"

"Come on, let's go." Bow grabbed both Glimmer and Adora's arms, ushering them towards the exit. They stopped near the end, because both Adora and Glimmer practically dragged their feet. Adora fiddled with her fake gun, trying to find something to say. Her best friends were dating! Sure, she was happy for them, but this was weird.

"You're gonna make laser tag easy for me," said Adora. "Now you'll be hiding together. That's an easy takeout. How am I going to challenge myself, then?" She chewed the inside of her cheeks, thinking.

Bow and Glimmer exchanged looks. "So let me get this straight," said Glimmer. "You're more upset that we're ruining your laser tag game than the fact that we're dating?"

"Pretty much, yeah."

"Wow." Glimmer made a mock hurt face. "And here I thought we were close."

"Glimmer." Bow frowned. "Why don't we make this up for you? We could expand our team. Scorpia and Perfuma-"

"They're not into fighting." Adora shrugged. "I'll have to meet people online, maybe. Someone has to take this as seriously as me." She knew someone who would a long time ago. She'd felt a little closer to her when she played laser tag. A part of Adora missed her, and she wanted to remember the good times. Laser tag just helped that. It was nice to have nostalgia for it, every once in awhile.

"Oh. I might know somebody." Glimmer wrapped her arm around Adora. "What do you say? A double date? I met this girl awhile back, and she's perfect for you."

"I'm not into Lonnie."

"Pfft. It's not Lonnie." Glimmer slapped the cardboard wall while laughing. It nearly toppled at the weight of her slap. "You'll be into this one."

"Fine." Adora leaned against the door frame, thinking. It was nice and cool-which relieved her after running around all day. She was aware that she was sweaty, too. She could smell it, even if her friends would never tell her that.

Maybe her "date" would. Adora shrugged. "I doubt I'll like her."

"We'll see."