𝙏𝙍𝙀𝙀𝙎 || 𝗝𝗼𝘀𝗵𝗹𝗲𝗿

10 - Arcade

Sunday, October 3rd:

Tyler's mind was on Friday. How he risked it and sang Josh a song that was about him. He wrote it inspired by their tree project, though if Josh noticed any correlation, he didn't bring it up. He just praised Tyler on his lyrical mastery that he was convinced Tyler possessed, seeming to love the song. And that's all Tyler wanted. For Josh to love it. For Josh to love something he did.

It was the weekend now. He typically dreaded going back to school every week, but this time, he found that the thought of sitting next to Josh in their last class made him hate the idea of returning a little less.

Still, his weekend wasn't going all that greatly. His parents had barely been home—go figure—and Maxx had been trying to pressure him into hanging out. Something he was desperately avoiding.

So, he found himself at a local arcade, needing to get out of his house. The place had bowling and games and even laser tag. Typically, he just went there and played some older games. They had their more retro machines separate from everything else, and that's where he spent most of his time.

He was settling down on the stool, playing Galaga, when he heard a familiar voice.

"Ugh, fine, Jordan. I'll give you money for laser tag. Just go play," the voice grumbled, making Tyler whip his head around and consequently lose his last life. Not that he noticed. He was too focused on the boy who hadn't left his mind for multiple years.

Josh stood there, handing money to a boy who Tyler only assumed was his brother. Josh stood there as he ran off excitedly, shaking his head and sighing. Still, Tyler could tell that he wasn't really annoyed.

Josh appeared to feel the eyes on him, and he looked around, his eyes eventually meeting Tyler's. The younger boy's stomach twisted itself into lovesick knots when Josh gave a huge smile upon seeing him.

"If it isn't my favorite musician," Josh greeted him as he walked up, grinning. "Fancy seeing you here."

"I could say the same to you," Tyler said back, a smile creeping onto his face. "What're you doing here?"

"Well, I came with my brother, but he wanted to go play laser tag, and as much as I love annihilating little kids in that game, I wasn't really in the mood to play," Josh explained, carding a hand through his hair. Tyler wished for a fleeting moment that he could be the one with his hands in Josh's hair, just to know what it felt like. "How about you?"

"Oh, I come here all the time." Tyler shrugged, his cheeks heating up a little as he pushed soliciting thoughts from his mind. "Typically I play a lot of the older games."

"To be honest, I don't have much experience with them," Josh admitted, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. "Do you wanna teach me how to play this one?"

Tyler grinned at him excitedly. Of course he did.

The two spent the better part of an hour playing on two player mode, with Tyler directing Josh first on the controls, then on strategies. How you could get a double ship. How to shoot faster. How to maximize your score.

Tyler loved every moment. It just felt right to be with Josh. To spend time with him outside of their project.

"You're a natural," the younger boy told the other as he continued to play, and he was doing better than Tyler thought he'd do. He watched as Josh smiled, but didn't take his eyes off the game.

"I had a good teacher."

Tyler smiled at those words. Until he began to feel nervous as they lapsed into silence. He started thinking about asking Josh if he wanted to hang out more outside of school and their project, but he didn't even know how to approach the question.