Hold Me Close (Edited Version)

Chapter 15

We slipped out if the house while no one was looking and Ryan lead me to a pretty nice arcade not too far away for the neighborhood. It was an old arcade, but the games looked like fun, and were simple enough I knew I could play them despite not knowing what the majority of them were. "So, this is where you go to get away?" I asked, eyeing a Pac-Man game in the corner.

He grinned. "Yup. I come here all the time," he said. "Mostly after having an argument with my parents because killing a few hundred virtual zombies is actually pretty therapeutic."

I chuckled and he pulled me to the back of the arcade, up to a desk where an older guy, maybe in his early twenties was standing. The guy smiled when he saw Ryan, obviously recognizing him, and said, "Back again, huh? What happened this time?"

"Just another business related fight. Nothing different than the usual," Ryan replied, indicating that arguments, such as the one I had witnessed, happened a lot.

The guy glanced at me. "Who's this angel?" he asked.

I frowned, already beginning to dislike the man just from a single nickname. Ryan chuckled at my reaction. "Just a friend. We were hoping to get some free tokens," he said, crossing his fingers behind his back.

The man nodded and leaned on the counter slyly. "I can do that. You are a regular here so it's not a real big deal. But..." He smirked at me. "Your little miss here has to pay his fair."

I frowned at him, annoyed by yet another name. Ryan hid a small smile. "How much?" he asked.

"A kiss," the man replied.

I blanched. "Excuse me?" I asked sceptically. "Absolutely not."

The guy grinned at me. "Oh, not for me. I'm not into guys," he said. "But, Ryan, I know'll take it for me." He snickered when I blushed at the very thought, and nodded to Ryan. "So, how 'bout it?"

I snuck a glance at Ryan and saw he was a little pink himself. Maybe this arcade wasn't as cool as I thought it to be. I rolled my eyes and turned on my heel. "This is stupid. I'm leaving," I said.

Ryan shot a look at the man who quickly cleared his throat. "It can be on the cheek," he suggested. "It doesn't had to be a full on make out session."

I snorted. "Like that makes a difference."

Ryan shrugged. "Ben is pretty adamant about payment, so I guess we should go," he said, itching to provoke me.

Ben nodded. "Yup. Sorry, little miss," he told me.

I clenched my teeth. I knew they were messing with me, but my pride would not allow me to be beaten by a little kiss. Granted, a kiss would have been easier if it was anyone but Ryan, but I refused to consider kissing anyone else anyways. "Fine. Ryan," I said, struggling to speak. I looked at the gound. "Look the other way..."

Ryan stared at me like he couldn't believe I was agreeing to this before he snapped back to reality and cleared his throat. "Oh, uh, yeah..."

He turned away and my face burned as I leaned closer to him. "Don't you dare turn your head," I muttered just before taking the plunge. I took a deep breath and went in for a quick peck on the cheek, pulling away immediately and turning scarlet red. I could've sworn I heard Ryan mutter, "Oh, my gosh..." as I was retreating into my reclusive brain cage.

Ben made a small hm, looking between the two of us skeptically. "I don't know. Maybe you should try again," he said. I glared daggers at him and he laughed, please with the performance. "Alright. You did good, little miss. Both of you get free tokens all night. Have fun," he said. He gave us both a cup of tokens and we walked away to pick a game t play.