The Witch's Ichor

Friendly Fire [16]

The sound of cars driving by mixes with the constant chatter of people talking. Bright neon signs and flashing lights help downtown vaguely resemble a Vegas strip. Jamison glances down at the girl walking in front of him.

Zoe is marching along the sidewalk like she owns the place. Her dark locks sway behind her as she walks. Jamison can hear her humming to herself. Derek and Theo are walking on either side of Jamison, but Derek's eyes aren't leaving Zoe. Zoe insisted on leading them someplace without telling them.

"Are we headed to the arcade?" Theo asks.

"Shush! It's supposed to be my idea!" Zoe hisses.

Zoe keeps walking with her friends in tow, and of course they wind up standing outside the arcade. Theo lets Zoe have her way by not commenting on it being an unoriginal idea. Jamison can tell he totally wants to, though. They step inside.

Crunchy sound effects and the chattering of patrons fills the arcade. Scents of sweat and snacks linger like a haze. Zoe walks up to the first open cabinet, but quickly realizes she's too short to effectively play.

"You gotta be kidding me..." Zoe grumbles.

"Here." Derek offers.

Jamison gives Derek a look of mild jealousy as he places a stool down for Zoe to sit on. She quickly scrambles onto it and pushes a quarter into the machine. Theo and Derek take both sides to watch her play. Jamison doesn't really have much of a vantage point, so he wanders off to grab some snacks for the crew.

Wish he'd stop acting like her boyfriend.

~

Zoe's eyes follow the little motorbike as it zips across the screen. She holds down the turbo button. The odd buzzing noise the game produces is like music to her ears. She passes one of her opponents. She passes another. Then her bike overheats!

"No!" Zoe exclaims.

The warbling sound effect of her bike rolling over drowns out her complaints. Zoe watches helplessly as several little pixelated bikes drive past her as she recovers. The rest of the race is without issue, and she finishes last.

"Wow that uh... sucked." Theo comments.

Derek kicks Theo's foot where Zoe can't see. Zoe looks downright crestfallen. Derek softly puts his hand on Zoe's back, rubbing gently.

"Hey, it was the last race! That one's harder than the rest." Derek comforts.

Zoe's attention splits between the feeling of Derek's hand on her back and his apologetic smile. She doesn't know how she never saw it before.

Why is this stupid jock so cute?

The allure of Derek's touch almost pulls Zoe in, but she resists. Zoe pushes Derek's arm off before trotting toward a different game cabinet.

"Damn. Cold shoulder." Theo jabs.

"Shut up, Theodore." Derek scoffs.

Derek and Theo follow Zoe. She was going for Donkey Kong, but the bright glow of a claw machine catches her interest. She steps over to the claw machine with an awestruck look on her face. Her eyes are locked onto a stuffed bunny. The squishy looking thing is buried under several less than ideal prizes.

Theo wiggles his eyebrows at Derek. Derek rolls his eyes in response.

"Do you want that rabbit?" Derek asks.

Zoe glances at Derek, and nods. Derek goes to put a quarter in, but Zoe beats him to the punch. Her small hands grab the joystick and buttons without hesitation. She pushes the claw forward, and then releases the switch when it's hovering over the bunny. The claw lowers down. It clenches shut over the bunny. The bunny falls.