Miles Away | Nick Mara

Eight

Soon after, we decided to go bowling. The alleys were nearly empty too; one family were playing a few lanes away, but other than that, we were the only ones there.

The lanes were lit up with neon lights everywhere; neon signs were all over the walls, the pins were painted bright yellow, the balls were all different colors, and even the seats were colored bright orange. A dim blue light lit up the rest of the room. We could barely see each other, but after a while, we got used to the lighting.

"We gotta go in teams," Brandon said as we sat down. "Otherwise it'll take too long to finish."

"Why do we have to finish quickly?" Austin asked him.

"Because I'm meeting Charlotte later for dinner," Brandon smiled.

"Aw," I teased. "Well then we could just pair up and play."

The others agreed.

"Shotgun!" Zion yelled.

We all turned to look at him before he carried on: "I'm having Aubri as my partner."

I laughed and moved to sit next to him. In the end, Edwin and Nick paired up, and Austin and Brandon were a team.

They were a lot more competitive than I thought they'd be. Edwin's reactions were hilarious when he couldn't hit them all; he'd yell in frustration, then lay on the ground with a frown. Brandon would drag him back to the sofas every time.

It was my turn. I stepped up and grabbed a ball. I laughed, slightly nervous, as I walked towards the lane. Swinging my arm back, I rolled the ball along the floor. We all watched as it travelled to the other end.

"STRIKEEE!!!" Zion yelled, as all the pins crashed to the floor.

I spun around to face them, surprised at how well I'd done. Zion ran towards me with his arms open. He wrapped them around my waist, swinging me around and lifting me up. My arms were around his neck, holding on as he screamed and ran back to the chairs. I continued to laugh as he set me down slowly. As soon as I reached the sofa, he jumped up again and ran a lap around the alley.

"WE WON!" He screamed. "Y'ALL ARE SUCKERS. WE WON!!"

I couldn't stop laughing as we high fived. The others watched us, laughing, but slightly disappointed.

Brandon left shortly after we finished, but the rest of us decided to go to the arcade next door.

Music blasted from the speakers above us, and bright lights shone from the screens of every game. For a moment, we stared in awe.

"I remember the first time we came here," Nick said slowly from beside me.

"Yeah," I sighed with a smile.

This was where we'd hang out if I was ever in LA. After every meal, after every movie, we'd always come here to play a game before going back home.

"And I remember beating you in every single Mario Cart race," he laughed.

"Pfft," I laughed. "No way."

"I'm serious."

"Yeah okay," I said. "We'll play again today, and I know I'm gonna beat you. Again."