We Align

Flips and Flops

The flip flop game. Have you heard of it? A group of people sits in a circle. You ask someone a question privately, and they answer the question out loud to the group. Then they flip the flip flop. If it lands upside-down you keep the question to yourself. Although if the flip flop lands right-sided up, you must say the question out loud, allowing the group to know the meaning of the answer behind the question.

-Madison

Flips and Flops

It was a hot spring day. Summer was approaching. Myself, Emily, Jayden, Marq, Kira, Monte, and James were all at the pirate park. We all sat in the shade in a circle, in the order, I have previously stated (Emily on my right, James on my left).

As we chatted amongst ourselves, we eventually got bored. I proposed a new game to play, the flip flop game. After I explained the rules, Emily wanted to go first immediately. She sat in between Jayden and me, so she had the power to chose which direction we move in. She chose to start with Jayden.

This is where things get a bit complicated. We did not exactly play by the rules. We played in our own little way. You are supposed to ask a question to the person beside you, then they ask the person beside them. But, Jayden ruined everything by saying he didn't have a question for Marq, so he skipped his turn. Marq clearly did not understand the game because he chose to ask Jayden a question. Not how the game works.

This is what happened.

Emily asked Jayden a question by whispering it in his ear. Jayden listened as his cheeks tinted red, he glanced my way, making eye contact, and he quickly looked away. "Answer the question already!" Emily demanded impatiently.

Jayden whispers, "Madison." I replied with, "yeah?" Assuming he was speaking directly to me. The thing was, he wasn't. "The answer to the question is Madison." Jayden declared in a low voice. Then, Jayden picked up the flip flop nervously and flipped it. It landed upside down, the question was now concealed between him and Emily.

Marq happened to find a loophole in the game. When he asked Jayden his question all Jayden say out loud was "okay." Then he whispered into Marq's ear. The flip flop was flipped and the question was hidden once again.

It has seemed that Kira, Monte, and James figured out Marq's loophole and used it as well.

I am very observant. I noticed everyone's reaction to the questions and answers. They would immediately dart their eyes towards Jayden then at me. Of course, they would try and play it off.

It was finally my turn. I had a hunch that everyone knew something that I did not. I used the loophole too. I had to. I asked James, "what did Monte tell you? Keep it between us, okay?" He replied, " I cannot answer that question." I asked him, "why not?" He responded that "it would intervene with the question and answer Monte and I discussed."

"Fine," I said, letting it go.

"Let's play grounders...not it," I say and immediately place my index finger on my nose, confirming I was not it. Everyone got the memo, except for Marq. He was it.

Ever since I was little, I had been drawn to trees, now I was 11 and I was still drawn to them. I thought immediately that hiding in a tree would be the best option to win grounders.

The problem was there are no large trees at this park.

This is where things got difficult.

While the game was going on, I started on the edge of the pirate ship seeking a tree with one thick branch. I eventually found one without being tagged. It was time to make my move. My best friends love attacking each other. It never mattered that I was a girl and I didn't mind either. Through our numerous battles on the mat, I have maintained a great amount of stamina to work with. It was only around a fifty-meter distance.