Stories from Other Writers

The Great IKEA Game - Chapter 3

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Story Link :

https://batsandbugs.tumblr.com/post/630897427990380544/the-great-ikea-game

Masterpost Link :

https://batsandbugs.tumblr.com/post/644566288413392896/great-ikea-game-masterlist-you-can-read-it-here-on

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Food Court Shenanigans

Cautiously they snuck around from display to display - hiding their cloth robins in increasingly creative places, on a corkboard, with a dining set, on a fake bird. It became somewhat of a competition to find the best place within the display room.

They remained serious in their mission at first, but soon conversation flowed. Snide comments about passing customers, little anecdotes - Damian's humor was hilarious once you understood his sarcasm and pointed edges were just a defense mechanism (it reminded her of Chloe)- and joking around. Well, as much as they could be, being on the lookout for his older brothers.

Over an hour they hid over thirty birds, changed outfits twice, spotted Jason another time, which resulted in Damian diving behind some fake curtains while Marinette tried not to drool over a butcher-block table perfect for a sewing room (but which was way too expensive).

"Coast is clear," Marinette called, once Jason once again disappeared. Damian slid out from behind the curtain and joined her by the table.

"This is nice," he said. "But I like the dark oak better." He pointed to the options available, and Marinette had to agree.

"Yeah, but my cabinets are light brown. Not that I need this or can afford it for that matter. I didn't have a proper workstation even when I was in Paris."

"Why not?"

"No room. My parents had the bakery downstairs, then they lived on the second floor. I lived in a converted attic, which was great - I even had a balcony, but my computer desk took up a lot of room." She shrugged a little self-consciously. "Besides, my projects always ended up splayed all over the floor, anyway."

"That's fair," he said with a small nod. He pulled out a map of the store, although Marinette couldn't ever remember seeing ones to pick up. "We've neared the end of the showrooms - or at least the ones we placed calling cards in - once we enter the warehouse we'll be out in the open. I'm sure one of my brothers is stationed there."

"Question is do we want to leave calling cards on the shelves of the warehouse, or do we need to avoid them more?" Marinette asked.

Damian considered it for a moment, then shook his head. "We've still got several hours to go - open and bold moves now are an unnecessary risk. I would propose avoiding it altogether, but..." he trailed off.

"What?" she prompted. A loud rumbling sound erupted from her stomach, and Marinette instantly wanted to die. Damian bit his lip, holding off a small smile.

"Oh, laugh it up." Marinette rolled her eyes, studiously ignoring the burning in her cheeks. "All I had to eat today was a pack of crackers."

"I thought you might be hungry - you could go grab something to eat from the food court and take a break if you wanted?"

Marinette frowned. "But what about you? Aren't you hungry?"

Damian waved her off. "Nothing I can't handle. I've gone longer than a few hours without food before." His eyes were hard and cold, opposite of the teasing glint that had been there a moment before. It sent a small shiver down Marinette's spine. It was obvious to anyone - or maybe it was just her - that Damian had been through things.