War Claim (The Claim: Book 3)

Chapter 43 - Chloe (Part 2)

The movie came to an end and the darkness encapsulating the theater lifted.

Anwaatin bounced up and announced that she needed to use the washroom. Chloe felt a little pressure too and said she'd go with her. Animkii told them he'd wait for them in the arcade section of the theater near the washrooms.

They filed out and down the hallway and split up in the lobby.

When Chloe and Anwaatin were done, they approached Animkii leaning against an air hockey table.

"I was thinking we could play a couple of games," he said, motioning to the table.

"Yeah!" Anwaatin darted to the other end of the table to take up her position. "Chloe can play the winner, kay?"

"Or you can play with her first and I'll play the winner," Animkii smirked, going to the token dispenser and inserting some money.

"Aren't our parents expecting us back soon?" Chloe asked, walking up to the table and looking at the glowing neon markings in the dim black lights. It sounded like fun but she didn't want her parents to worry if they were expecting them back soon.

"I called and they said it was fine," Animkii assured her as he scooped out the tokens from the machine and turned back to them. "Ann and I used to play this all the time. It'll be fun."

"I've gotten better, bro," Anwaatin sneered, picking up her sombrero-shaped paddle and waiting for him to insert the tokens and the machine to start up. "I can beat Mamaw and Papaw all the time now."

"Well, go easy on me," Chloe said. "I've only played a couple of times with my dad and that was a long time ago."

"I'll try, but no promises." The she-wolf had an excited, yet devious look on her face that made Chloe laugh.

Animkii inserted some tokens into a slot in the machine and the table came to life. Air blew out of tiny little holes on the surface and a plastic puck clunked free from a slot at the side in front of Anwaatin. She pulled it out and set it on the table. It started to move a little with the air blowing gently from underneath. She looked across the table at Chloe, her lips twisted up in a crooked grin, and got in position. "Ready?"

Chloe picked up her paddle that was crawling away from her and placed it in front of her goal slot. "Yeah."

Anwaatin tapped the puck and it slid slowly across the table. Chloe hit it back a little harder and it picked up in speed as it bounced off the left side of the table's railing and continued down to Anwaatin's side. Anwaatin again hit it lightly but a little harder than her first, giving Chloe a chance to warm up before eventually striking the puck hard after it had bounced off their paddles a few times. It went straight into Chloe's goal before she could even realize it.

"Yes!" Anwaatin pumped her fist in the air before getting back into position. "Come on, Chloe. Warm up's done. Time to play dirty."

Feeling a little more confident in her skills, Chloe pulled the puck out from the slot it tumbled down to at the side of the machine and set it on the table. She smiled back. "Alright, I'll try."

Smacking the side of the puck, it struck the right side of the railing and Anwaatin smacked it back—into Chloe's goal.

"At this rate, the game will be over in a minute," Animkii commented, his hand blocked the grin he was trying to hide. "Go easier on her."

"I am just getting warmed up!" Anwaatin declared as Chloe fetched the puck and put it back on the table.

She sent it across the table and Anwaatin hit it back—with less force this time—and they were able to get a decent game going before Anwaatin again sent the puck flying down Chloe's goal. Chloe was starting to find her groove, enjoying the game and the challenge it bought as she retrieved the puck and smashed it across the table. Anwaatin wasn't ready and it went straight into her goal.