ɪ ɢᴏᴛ ᴛʜʀᴇᴇ sᴛᴏɴᴇs ɪɴ ᴍʏ ᴘᴏᴄᴋᴇᴛ

[persequor]

[ Alone at the indoor pool, Arya grabs one of the pool chairs and throws it in the water. She does the same with the next. The one after has a heavier frame. It's a little difficult with only one hand, but she drags it toward the edge. It makes an ugly sound as the metal scrapes the floor. ]

Comments

[fantasies]

[Ding, elevator!]

... You had a magical travel-dream, and it took you to an arcade?

[persequor]

[ She just gives him a look of, "Are you stupid or something?" and climbs in. She hits the number for the floor. ]

[fantasies]

[A pause, while he climbs in after her.]

Oh.

[More pause.]

Well, have you ever actually played any of the games before?

[persequor]

Yes.

[fantasies]

Great, that means we'll get to play each other.

[Ding ding! He hops out of the elevator and makes a beeline for the arcade.]

[persequor]

[ She follows at a more reasonable pace. ]

[fantasies]

[Lame! There are GAMES TO BE WON.

He hovers by the door to wait for her, eagerly.]

Come on.

[persequor]

I'm coming! Why don't you go turning everything on?

[fantasies]

Okay, okay. [He turns to go in, calling back over his shoulder:] Which one do you want to play?

[persequor]

[ Shrug. ] I don't care.

[fantasies]

[FINE. he'll just turn them all on.]

Okay, which ones can you play?

[persequor]

I don't know. Any?

[fantasies]

Okay. Let's play the zombie shooter one, then.

[persequor]

Sure.

[ Arya takes a seat and waits expectantly. ]

[fantasies]

[He powers up the game, gets it through the intro screens, picks up one of the guns, and lifts the other one toward her.]

Here. It's a team game.

[persequor]

[ Arya takes it gingerly and stares at it like it questioned her. ]

[fantasies]

You hold it like this. [He holds his up and demonstrates.] And shoot it like this. [He pulls the trigger a bunch of times, to show how the "shots" show up on the screen.]

You wanna shoot just zombies, not the people.

[persequor]

[ She pokes him with the gun. ]

I know not to shoot people.

[fantasies]

[He grins at her.]

I know, I'm just saying. Sometimes the game tries to trick you and people pop up where you think zombies are going to, so you have to be careful.

[persequor]

I will be.

[fantasies]

Okay, then let's do it! Ready, set...

[START.]

[persequor]

[ And just then a nutcracker peers at them from under a pile of games. Arya leans around him and pecks him lightly on the lips. ]

[fantasies]

[He jerks a little, surprised, but the nutcracker's magic keeps him in place so that the peck is, at the very least, mutual.

The second he can, he leans away from her and wipes his sleeve against his mouth, the game forgotten.]

What was that?