That’s what we do all night long until both of us are too tired to lift a finger and fall asleep in each other’s arms, naked under the comforter.
CHAPTER 34
Fact: Cake has magical powers
Nevaeh
Hiding behind a fallen tree trunk that’s covered with a patterned camouflage blanket, I take note of rapid heartbeats, hushed footsteps, and whispers around me. Two more steps and I’ll be in range to shoot Harvey.
When Seiji suggested we celebrate August’s fourth birthday in a paintball arena, I never imagined it to be this fun.
A week back, August and I were watching a movie and there was a scene of a little girl celebrating her birthday surrounded by friends, balloons, and cake. When I peeked at monkey, he was looking at the screen with such longing that I just had to make it happen.
After a long day of ruffling through all the paperwork we found on his pack, Angel found his date of birth, which coincidentally was coming up sooner than we thought. After a lot of debate, we unanimously chose Seiji’s idea.
There was no way to refuse him when he stormed into the theater room with a PowerPoint presentation packed with background music and pictures. Each member of our small group was supposed to present one idea so we’d have a variety to choose from, but let’s be honest: no one stood a chance against Seiji.
For his presentation, he picked the Griari Empire of ancient dragons. The dragons turned the field at the edge of their kingdom into a public gaming area to boost inter-speciesrelations and apparently their paintball arena is the best in all realms.
Since Horsemen have a good relationship with the empire, Anxo was able to secure a private arena for us, so we wouldn’t have to be part of a crowd.
Hazel and I have been battling for the top spot the entire game. I bet she regretted teaching me how to handle a gun properly the second time I shot her.
By now, I’ve shot Seiji four times and Harvey five because he was so busy admiring Grace; the lovesick fool forgot the basic rule of ‘never turning your back on your enemy’. Hazel is fuming, stomping everywhere because she has been shotseventimes by yours truly.
Now to the important question: how many times have I shot Angel? It’s pretty obvious.None. Because I love him, and we don’t shoot people we love.
I’m about to scare the living crap out of Seiji, who is hiding behind an ugly green drum when my little monkey appears out of thin air and blocks my path.
We initially planned on not shooting August, just in case he felt bad, but after he burst out laughing on his first colorful splash, it was clear he didn’t mind getting covered in rainbow goo.
The little man stares me down accusingly like I’ve stolen his last slice of pizza. Doing his best to act stern, August rests his hands on his hips with a miniature gun hanging off his back.
Glancing at thegunsin my hand, he shakes his head in exaggerated disappointment.
“What’s with the look, kiddo? This isn’t cheating; it’s called strategy. No one said I couldn’t take an extra gun,” I try to convince him in a hushed whisper.
When we first got here and observed the setup in the middle of the woods, for a second, I worried if this would trigger Augustabout the night we escaped, but so far, I haven’t seen any signs of panic or stress.
His eyes narrow, picking apart my lie. “Okay, fine! Maybe they said no extra guns… but… but I’m doing this for our team!”
August sighs, and he pinches the skin between his eyes. I get goosebumps from how eerily similar he looks to Angel when he is tired of my shit.
Outstretching his hand, August silently asks me to hand over my extra gun.
“Are you sure you want to be an honest player, kiddo? We can beat Angel and think how much fun it will be to watch Hazel sulk!”
I try to win him over to the dark side because it’s more fun here but he keeps blinking at me as if I’m the one being ridiculous.
“Ugh, fine! But let me tell you, you’re turning into mini-Angel with all those morals. Here, take away my chance to crush these truckers and make ‘em wish they never challenged me.” I give up my extra gun, but not before I make sure he knows how much I hate it.
As if trying to remind me of our surroundings August throws his tiny hands in the air.
“Oh, I know it’s just a game wisebutt!” I whisper yell, crossing my arms and abandoning both my guns to sit cross-legged on the floor.
August pads over to me to kiss my forehead, cupping my cheeks in his little hands before grabbing up my extra gun and skipping away. Shit, now he will reveal my stunt to the game-watching person keeping score. I watch him hop away, getting shot by colorful paintballs and giggling with every blast.
A gun on my back makes me stiffen. I slowly turn to look over my shoulder, and my heart leaps to find Angel behind me. Picking up the gun I abandoned he points it at me.
