[Neo Zone] Population: 23 Kids

Duck Life

Shotaro and WinWin crowded around Xiaojun as he played a game on his phone, the oldest giving tips occasionally. Though when you're playing Duck Life there's only so many tips you can give.

WinWin had a timer going on his own phone, and he was almost constantly comparing it with both the speed run website with rankings and his own time he got. In other words, they had run out of things to entertain themselves with that afternoon and there were too many people working in the cafe for them to be helpful.

So they were doing the only logical thing to do. A Duck Life speed run.

The premise of the game was to raise a duck, train it in running, swimming, and flying while extending its energy bar so it could make it through the races. To complete the game, you had to get first in all the races against computer run opponents.

Twelve minutes, seventeen seconds and nine-hundred twenty milliseconds was the current record online set by some person in Australia. Their goal was to beat them today.

"Hey, we're making cookie sandwiches with frosting in the middle upstairs. You guys want some?" YangYang asked, poking his head around the basement door.

"Can't. Xiao's doing a speed run." WinWin fired back.

YangYang raised an eyebrow, "None of you can eat a cookie sandwich because Xiaojun's doing a speed run?"

They all nodded, not daring to break concentration from the screen.

YangYang sighed, coming downstairs and shutting the door behind him. He stood next to their huddle around Xiaojun, peeking over their heads.

"Duck Life? You're skipping out on cookie sandwiches for Duck Life? We even made homemade frosting!"

"We're trying to break the speed run record of around twelve minutes." Shotaro explained.

"Again. You're not having a cookie sandwich because you have to finish a game in like twelve minutes? Not at all?"

WinWin sighed, "What kind of cookies?"

"M&M."

"Are Markhyuck fighting up there?" Shotaro questioned.

YangYang paused. Last he knew they had been separated when Mark went to go have lunch with his Mom. That was after they were fighting over how Mark was tearing sticks of gum in half instead of eating the whole thing.

"Pretty sure Mark's still with his Mom right now."

"We'll come up in a bit to have one. Just make sure they don't eat them all." Xiaojun finally answered.

WinWin and Shotaro immediately berated him for breaking concentration, especially since he was so close to beating the record. Xiaojun felt like his fingers and head were going to explode from all the focusing he was doing.

Satisfied with his answer, YangYang returned upstairs. Everyone not doing a speed run, working, or having lunch with their Mom were in the kitchen putting frosting on the bottom of M&M cookies and either folding them in half or putting a second on top.

Setting aside six cookies, YangYang sat on the counter next to Jaemin and ate a second cookie sandwich. Homemade frosting just made it so much better, too.

"Who's running the register?" Jaemin whispered.

YangYang did a quick head count of the room, and then counted again just to be sure. If WinWin, Shotaro and Xiaojun were downstairs, Mark was out, and Doyoung, Taeyong, Jungwoo and Sungchan were working... and there were fifteen of them in the kitchen...

"Who's running the cafe?" YangYang asked loudly.

"Johnny's on register."

"No I'm not, Hendery is."

Hendery raised his hand slightly, "I'm right here."

Bickering and mumbling started going around the room, trying to figure out who was last put in charge of running the register. It wasn't until Jaehyun pointed out that the cafe was unattended that Jungwoo ran downstairs to fix that. He then of course had to recruit back up because of the long line, and chaos broke loose.

With everyone running around upstairs, it kept the three in the basement free from distractions as they spent the entire afternoon perfecting their speed run strategy.

And they did beat the record by twenty-milliseconds.

Chapter idea credit to Crimson