Free Fall (Give Me Your Hand)

Chapter Five

Pete tilted his head to the side as he followed Kinn, Tay, and Time. Another guard stepped out when they neared the elevator, but Kinn waved him off. Bypassing the underground parking and storage area, they rode the elevator to the lowest level, where there was a firing range and training rooms. Pete let out a sigh, plugging his ears as the others fired round after round, laughing. Only Tay looked somewhat serious.

Pete was still struggling to believe that he was where he was, doing what he was doing. He was trying to avoid trouble, but it still seemed to follow him. Porsche had made Kinn a bad drink on purpose, and Kinn had used him for target practice. Pete had tried to make a decent drink–he had–but he was worried Kinn would still use him for his entertainment, despite Pete not irritating him nearly as much as Porsche had.

"Pete," Kinn called loudly.

Noticing the bangs had stopped, Pete unplugged his ears, hurrying over to Kinn's side as his stomach turned.

"Yes, Khun Kinn?"

Kinn motioned for him to come closer, so Pete did, holding his breath.

"Let me give you your first lesson," Kinn said, holding his gun out for Pete to take.

Pete exhaled in a rush as he took it. It was heavier in his hand than he expected. Kinn calmly explained the basics before guiding Pete to stand and aim at the target. Roughly, Kinn corrected his posture, ending with his broad hand at the small of Pete's back. Pete shifted his weight, trying to put some distance between them, but Kinn moved with him. Leaning over his shoulder, Kinn started giving him instructions. Pete listened carefully, and soon enough he was squeezing the trigger.

He didn't hit the center, but he wasn't too far off.

"Not bad," Tay said, sounding genuinely impressed.

Before he could think, Pete said, "I played a lot of games with my friend."

"Games?" Time asked, squinting.

Pete winced, remembering that they wouldn't even have heard of Space Invaders yet. Did Nintendo exist in this universe?

"We, uh, played pretend."

Time nodded, looking like he wasn't convinced. "We could play a game."

"Time..." Tay murmured, setting his gun down as he moved closer.

"A game?" Pete glanced back at Kinn, who had stepped away and was ignoring him.

"Yeah," Time said, moving over to Tay's side.

"Don't scare the new guy," Tay whispered.

Pete glanced at Kinn again, who was still ignoring him, as Time argued, "I'm not trying to scare him. It's a test. If he's going to look after our friend, he needs to be brave."

Swallowing thickly, Pete spoke up. "What's the game?"

Tay called Time's name again in a low, warning tone, but Time ignored him, grinning wolfishly. Tay huffed, crossing his arms as Time reached into his pocket.

"Don't flinch. It's easy. All you have to do is hold still."

Time pulled a knife out of Tay's pocket, flicking the blade out.

Pete felt his blood run cold, but he nodded. "Where do I stand?"

Time's grin widened, jerking his head as he said, "That wall."

Moving to where Time indicated, Pete leaned against the padded wall and tried to relax his shoulders. Time was a decent shot, so hopefully he was at least half as good with a knife. Making a mental note of all the places he would prefer to not be punctured, Pete took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, fighting the urge to glance over at Kinn, who was still ignoring them.