Captive (Polybius x Reader)

Longing

Even more kids than usual seemed to be milling around the Sparkade that afternoon. Upon seeing this, YN was immediately repulsed by the idea of walking into the small building with so many of her peers cramming the place. But she was already here, and she might as well see if she could get a quick round of Polybius in. Or two. As she opened the glass door, she realized that hardly anyone was even bothering to play the other games. There was a line that streaked from the left wall to the right of kids waiting for a chance to play Polybius. It was eerie, but YN reluctantly took her place at the back of the line like the rest of the sheep. The room was abuzz with chatter, even more so than usual.

"OH MY GOD, TRISTAN BEAT THE GAME!!" a girl suddenly shrieked.

A sharp shock went through YN, and the room went dead silent. Seconds later, screams rose from the crowd, mixed sounds of rage and congratulation.

"No he didn't, he just beat level 2!" someone else corrected her. The noise subsided, but the sharp pang of jealousy in YN's chest remained. She shuffled her feet irritably. /I could've gotten to level 3 if that asshole hadn't pushed me/, she thought bitterly, then checked herself as she remembered that Max was still missing. The line hadn't moved in about five minutes, and shouts of annoyance were starting to rise from the crowd. "Tristan, move your ass!" growled a male voice just behind the bespectacled teen in front, who was frantically trying to fish another set of quarters out of his pocket. An employee had even stepped in by now. "Look I'm sorry, but this game is in really high demand for some reason and you've already paid for two plays," drawled a bored-looking blonde wearing a uniform. "You're going to have to step out of line." "I-I h-have the right to be here," the nerd stammered, his face turning bright red. "You h-h-have no authority to make me leave." The employee pointed to a sign near the door reading "We have the right to refuse service to anyone". Then she grabbed him by the arm and led him away from Polybius as he screamed and ranted at her. "I'll-I'll have my parents press charges!" he hissed. "I must know its SECRETS!!"

That last part was a little weird.

YN craned her neck to get a better look, and she saw that behind the curly-haired boy's glasses, there was a wild, almost inhuman look in his eyes. He looked like he'd been trapped in a tiny room with only saltwater to drink for a week. Tristan was one of the G&T kids, possibly more quiet and awkward than YN herself, but here he was raving like an absolute madman at being pulled from an arcade game. YN thought Polybius was a great game, but was it seriously worth losing your dignity over? Still, she found herself getting more and more impatient as the minutes dragged on, realizing she'd been chewing her lower lip anxiously as she wondered when her parents would expect her home.

After the Tristan incident, a two-play limit had been put on Polybius given its ever-increasing popularity. It was nearly 4:30 by now, and every few minutes another kid would step into line. People chattered and complained, and occasionally a fight would break out over line cutters. YN, however, found herself fidgeting with anticipation. She was the third person in line, and she had realized at this point that she could hardly stand watching anyone else play the game. It gave her a strange sense of what almost felt like jealousy, as strange as that was. No one had been able to get past level 3 yet, and YN was determined to be the first. As the second person in line finally smacked the machine, swore, and shuffled to the back, YN's heart leaped with joy at seeing Polybius's screen again. Seeing the decadently swirling blue spiral was almost like seeing an old friend. Eagerly she paid for the game and slammed the start button.

The machine's cooling fans hummed louder.