Page 80 of Kane's Awakening
Chapter Twenty-Two
Ryker
Kane made me feel young again. Well, more like he reminded me that Iwasstillyoung and not the old man I felt like most days.
After making out in his truck, we went inside Fun World, bought a bucket full of tokens, and played arcade games. I beat him in the old Pacman, but he showed me up in the one where you threw the basketball into the hoop. He then tried the dancing game and ended up falling into the machine when he attempted a spin-and-kick move.
I hadn’t laughed that hard in forever.
Arcade games turned into go-karts, which he won because I kept bumping into the walls. But when confronted afterward, I insisted that my car had just been slower than his. Needless to say that caused him to call me a sore loser.
“I’m not a sore loser,” I lied, failing at hiding my smile.
“Not only are you a sore loser, but you’re a liar, too.” His beefy arm came around my neck and pulled me in for a kiss right in front of everyone. His lips briefly touched mine before he pulled back and caressed my cheek with the back of his hand. “Good thing I kind of like you just a little.”
I brushed his hand away and arched a brow. “Well, my loser streak ends now. Where’s the laser tag?”
His smile turned mischievous and he stepped aside, motioning up ahead. “After you, sir Loses-A-Lot.”
We put on black vests and armed ourselves with pistols before walking down a dark hallway into a large room. Four other people joined us, two on my team and two on his. There were scattered neon lights and large cushioned walls acting as barriers and hiding spots, and we went to opposite sides of the room.
When the timer started, my heart raced. It was just a game—one that had no danger level at all—but the anticipation and suspense, as well as the tight spaces and dark room, triggered my anxiety.
Something dashed to my left, and I snapped my head around to look. The light on my chest piece flashed; a sign that someone on the other team had tagged me and I was down a life. I sucked at that game and it had just started.
Carefully, I moved around the corner and peeked out before darting to the next wall and hiding behind it.
“Dude, what the fuck. You okay?” A man’s voice exclaimed from the other side of the wall I was propped against. At first I thought he was talking to me, but then I heard him ask again, a bit more frantic. “Hey! Do you need me to get help?”
A sinking happened in my gut. It was difficult to describe, but it was as if I knew who it was before I saw. I pushed from the wall and spun around the corner.
Kane was sitting on the floor with his back against the wall, holding his head in his hands and rocking back and forth.
“Kane?” I ran and fell down beside him, gently touching his shoulders. He thrashed at my touch, but I just held on tighter. “Kane, baby, it’s just me. Calm down.”
He stopped moving and became still. Way too still. That’s when I realized he was crying.
And I felt so stupid. If the situation had sparkedmyanxiety, I should have suspected it might his as well.
A dark room, hunting other people, and being shot at—way too similar to the night that had traumatized him, one he was still trying to work through. Goddammit.
I helped him to his feet and began walking him out, ignoring the jabs from the other players who bitched about ending the game early. They didn’t know why we’d left, so I didn’t hold their jerk behaviors against them. The guy who’d found Kane helped me take him to the exit and out into the main lobby of the place.
“Do you need me to call someone?” he asked me.
“No, thank you. I appreciate your help.”
He nodded before ducking back inside.
We’d left our pistols inside, so I took off both of our vests and handed them back to the person running the game. After reassuring them everything was fine, I led Kane to a booth in the corner.
“I’ll be okay,” Kane said in a shaky tone. He was pale and his eyes looked so empty. I didn’t believe him, and my expression reflected that because he added, “I promise. Just give me a few.”
He laid his head on the table and placed his arms on top of his head, hiding his face. I sat beside him and smoothed my hand up and down his spine.
“I’m sorry I ruined our night,” he mumbled before looking up at me and laying his cheek on his arm. He looked so young right then. Vulnerable. “I don’t know what happened. I was ready to go and excited… and then my heart started pounding, my legs started shaking, and it felt like fire was spreading all through my body. It felt like someone was gripping my throat and cutting off my air. And the more I tried to stop it, the worse it got.”
“You had a panic attack,” I told him, knowing that feeling all too well. “Laser tag wasn’t such a good idea.”
