Labyrinth | ✓

n i n t h ♂

A/N: The flower boys :D

***

Fun.

Before Rena appeared and illuminate my gloomy life with hope, having fun rarely, to the point of never, crossed my mind. I even had forgotten what it felt like, because I almost never experienced it ever since that fateful day. For me, having fun was like dopamine seeping into the walls of one's mind, resulting in a delightful, amazing moment. Some people would often describe it as being on cloud nine, or over the moon.

Both Seb and Lynn had ever mentioned about being this way when they were with me or their friends. On the other hand, I didn't even get to feel anything but hollow and a complete emptiness. I just didn't understand how those types of feelings worked at first. I admit, I thought they were merely masks to hide their true colors from being exposed.

Now, I do.

As Rena and I played a lot of arcade games like basketballs and Skee balls, streams excitement jolted throughout my entire body. Something was pushing me from the inside, like that of an unknown force. It was an injection of adrenaline, rather than dopamine itself. Well, maybe a mixture of both.

The air hockey battle between Rena and I was intense and thrilling. The heavy atmosphere weighted against my shoulders as I concentrated on the sprinting puck. I got distracted a lot of times, but I managed to score against Rena when the time almost went out. In the end, the final points were 5 for me, 4 for her.

"Wow, you're now better than me!" Rena announced.

"Well, I played several rounds with Seb before." For some reason, I have the need to scratch my head when I was queasy. "He defeated me a lot of times, though. He's really good at it, especially when he tried distracting me."

"Hey, at least you're able to beat me this time." She convinced, grabbing on the plastic bag, containing the rabbit she had gotten at the UFO catcher.

"I guess so." I breathed a handful amount of air, before resuming on our journey. We had been travelling around the arcade for some time now, searching for any interesting games to play. The others didn't interest me at all, nor did they perk Rena's interest. It was finally the time to leave, but then, I was wrong.

She abruptly stopped during our way out. Thanks to my quick reflex, I did the same thing, precisely stopping in front of her. I stared curiously at her, wondering what gained her attention. I noticed that her eyes were fixed at a certain machine, standing adjacent to the crane games. She slightly tugged on my shirt, looking straight at me.

"Ed, do you wanna go to the photo booth?" She asked. "Come to think of it, w-we never really have photo of both of us. You know, I have been taking so much selfies with Aly that it's countless, but I never even have two or one with you..."

Her voice was dwindling in the end, but it was still considered audible enough. Another round of butterflies soared inside my organs, filling each and every corner. I swallowed down my accumulating feelings and tried acting as mundane as possible.

"Uh, I'm okay as long as you are."
I bluttered out without thinking, but at least I agreed.

I have only two photos of Rena and I as teenagers. One was during my birthday back in December, and there were Seb, Florence and Alyssa within it. The other was during Rena's birthday. The trio was also there, joined by her other friends.

The others were referred back to my childhood; the ones that I had hidden to block out the past.

"Okay..." She beamed. "Come on, we have to go before s-someone takes the place."