Chapter Eight
I chuckle and Adalyn, Lucas and Cameron walk towards us using her phone as a flashlight.
"Why did we get out of hiding? It's not 9:10 yet." Cameron whines due to nobody following his procedures.
His procedures?
It's official. I need to spend some time away from Cameron and try to get my old vocabulary back.
"Your rules were dumb Cameron, we're safe." Mason answers.
"Fine, but if mean old Mr. Wills comes back and we all get thrown behind bars just know it wasn't because I'm a bad leader."
Adalyn stifles a laugh and looks at him with disbelief, "You learned his name?"
He shrugs simply, "Always know your enemies."
Josephine and Ethan walk around the corner next, completing all of our group.
"Sorry we took so long. Ethan got lost and I had to go find him."
He puts his head down in shame and Josephine pats his back, he grins mischievously.
"Let's get these lights back on. I can't see shit." Lucas mutters and everyone agrees.
He's right, the entire store is filled with darkness. There's only small light coming from Adalyns flashlight but other than that, everything over five feet away is just the shape of a shadow.
Cameron and Erica run to get the lights and the rest of us make our way towards the back where we'll have more open room instead of the tight isle we're all huddled on now.
"Let's play a game!" Ethan says excitedly on the way.
"Okay, what kind of game?"
Any game would be fun to play in a store this big. As a kid I've always wanted to play hide and seek in the mall but as I got older I realized how dangerous and terribly hard that would be. This store is perfect for it. It's a giant building but not too big to get lost and be stuck for half an hour like the mall would be. Plus, we have it all to ourselves.
Suddenly the lights lick back on and I'm glad I can finally see the friendly faces around me.
"Hide and seek?" Josephine offers.
Ethan looks at her with an adoring smile. She doesn't notice it and if she did she probably wouldn't even see the emotion behind his smile.
It's not a friendly smile if that makes any sense but it's a smile that shows how much she means to him without words. He cares for her a lot but she doesn't even seem to know it.
"Sounds fun," I say as Erica and Cameron walk up.
"Should we make it more interesting?" Mason starts, "The fourth person found has to do a truth or dare of the seekers choice and the seventh one found is the next seeker."
Those rules sound fun to me. It'll make the game a lot more worth it if you know you're hiding for a purpose and not just to be the last one found.
"Nose goes!" Erica shouts and everyone quickly places a finger on their nose.
We're behaving like ten year olds but I absolutely love it.
Trace is the last one to do it, probably on purpose. If you're the seeker you know you won't be doing the fourth person found punishment.
Adalyn laughs at him, "Ah, you're it!" he rolls his eyes as he gets shoved into the corner, "And no peeking!"
I hear Trace laugh softly before he starts counting.
Hide and seek may be one of the most stressful games in the world. You're given mere seconds to run and find a place that'll be hard to be seen in. At your house it's a lot easier because you're more familiar with the spaces, but in a store you've only ever entered twice it's a bit more challenging.
At least this time I'm hiding for the sake of a game and not my criminal record.
I don't know where anything is in this store, I'm just roaming aimlessly and hoping I'll be somewhere before Trace gets to thirty.
My feet take me to a big metal basket setting in the center of an isle. It's filled with big colorful balls. Ethan pokes his head out and grins at me before going back down.
I take off running, keeping my steps light so nobody will hear. A few moments later I come across the outdoor section and the perfect spot comes into view.
It's an inflated, rectangular pool with a tarp covering the top.
This spot is out of the way and so far into the corner that I'm almost certain Trace won't come here first. As long as I'm not the fourth person found I'm good!
I hurry over to the pool and lift a corner of the tarp up. Laying there, looking back at me is Josephine and I nearly scream.
"Go to the other side, there's no more room over here." She whisper shouts and shoos me away.
My eyes widen and I slowly drop the corner before jogging to the other side. I try to slip in quietly in case Trace is already done counting.
I lay on my back and let out a deep breath. I made it.
This pool is more crowded than I would've expected judging from the size of it on the outside. If it can't even fit two teenage girls laying down then it's not a good buy at all.
"This is an amazing hiding spot," a familiar voice mumbles.
"What'd you say, Mason?" Josephine asks and I suddenly become very aware of who's laying right beside me.
On my right, in between Josephine and I, is Mason.
No wonder the pool seems a lot smaller, there's an extra person chilling in here.
"Mason, why is your hand on my thigh?" I whisper and gently place his hand back in his lap.
He chuckles to himself quietly, "Sorry, it's a little cramped in here."
I roll my eyes and know that if it wasn't too dark under this tarp to see anything, there'd be a clear smirk evident on his face.
Josephines phone lights up and she begins typing with a smile.
Suddenly I hear two voices that I recognize as Adalyn and Trace. They're talking and from the volume of their voices it sounds like they're near the outdoor section.
I feel Mason tense up beside me and Josephine quickly puts her phone face down on her stomach.
"If you want to find Ethan just start making random ass bird noises and he'll 'caw caw' back. I don't know why but that's how I found him at Lucas' part a few weeks ago when he was drunk and hiding in the bushes.
The footsteps are gradually getting louder and louder the closer they get, then I hear Trace say sarcastically, "Well a giant pool covered with a tarp doesn't look suspicious."
Shoot!
I take a nervous breath and he talks again, "Neither does Josephine's pink top showing through the side of the pool."
She looks over at us and I bite my cheeks to hold in a laugh.
The sides of the pool are a light blue at the top but become clear at the bottom. It's rubber material though so it's not very distinguishable from the outside, I didn't even notice her top showing through.
"If you're going to hide somewhere Josephine, you should hide somewhere you can't be seen."
She laughs and pulls back her side of the tarp. From the distance Trace is still at he can't see Mason and I laying beside her.
She climbs out and Mason scoots closer to me. There's not an inch between us as Josephine climbs out and the two of us stay close together, out of the light.
"I'm only the second person to be found?"
I don't hear a reply so I'm assuming Trace just nodded and then I hear three sets of footsteps walk away.
When we're sure they're gone, Mason gets back on his side and all that's left is his arm resting against my own. He's sure to stay off the edge of the pool to keep from being seen on the outside.
"And then there were two," Mason says and I turn on my side to face him.
It's so warm and dark under this tarp that I might could actually sleep here, given different circumstances.
This entire night has been so much fun but entirely nerve racking. All of the events that have already happened remind me why it's important to have people you can trust in your life.
If not for Cameron coming up with a great plan to get us in here, we would've all been busted from cameras. And if Trace didn't make me lay down and disappear from view of the old man then I'd probably be sitting at the police station right now, trying to figure out a way to tell my mom I got arrested.
"How did you all meet?" I ask abruptly and it takes Mason a moment to understand who I'm talking about.
Everyone has such a tight friendship that I know they've had to know each other for a long time. Friendships like that don't just happen in high school, you have to know the people for a long time before realizing you can trust them. Except with me, they've brought me into their group so easily but I know I won't let them down.
I lay my head on my elbow and he puts and arm behind his head. He faces the ceiling but only sees the blackness of the tarp as he speaks, "Josephine, Ethan and I have known each other for the longest. We met in kindergarten when we were put at the same table. The three of us hit it off instantly and became great friends."
I'm sure Mason had the same chocolate brown eyes that won over all the first grade hearts. Josephine could see through that though and loved him for his great humor and kindness, the same reason I love him.
Girls at school pine over him constantly and he loves the attention from it. But you have to look deeper than his looks to realize what a great person he is.
"Trace and Lucas met in first grade and they both met Adalyn in second. She and Lucas started dating at the end of freshman year." he laughs, "the two of them make one hell of a couple though."
"In seventh grade Erica and Josephine became friends. She introduced us to Trace, Lucas and Adalyn. The seven of us have been best friends since the seventh grade. Cameron and Trace met about five months ago and made us a solid group of eight."
I give him a small smile, "And then I came in."
"And then you came in and made it nine." he smiles again.
In a matter of seconds the tarp is lifted and Trace is standing there, "Ethan was the fourth one found."
He pulls back the black tarp and Mason and I step out of the pool. All seven of our friends are already standing there.
"We were the last ones found?" I question, not able to hide my excitement. Maybe my hide and seek skills aren't completely awful.
Trace nods, "Yeah, if it weren't for your talking we'd still be looking too."
Dang it! I thought about shutting up but I figured if Trace was close we'd be able to hear him again. I don't how seven of the loudest people managed to sneak up on us.
Ethan rubs his hands together, "I choose dare. What's my dare?" he says confidently
"How are you not nervous?" I ask.
He gives me a look of disbelief, "Emma, I once rode the back of a motorcycle naked."
Lucas gives me a look of disgust, "I was driving that motorcycle."
So many questions come to mind but I decide to keep my mouth shut.
"Call the twentieth person in your contacts and explain to them why you're the sexiest person alive."
Ethan keeps his confident grin as he pulls out his phone and begins scrolling through his contacts. His smile soon fades as he realizes the name behind number twenty.
"Um slight issue," Ethan looks up from his phone, "my twentieth contact is granny."
We all start laughing and Lucas breaks into a smile, "You have to Ethan."
He frowns and presses 'call'. Ethan sets the phone on a shelf and puts it on speaker while everyone gathers around to listen.
"Hello?" an old womans voice breaks the silence and Ethan narrows his eyes at Lucas.
A few seconds go by and Ethan still hasn't said anything.
His grandmother sighs, "If this about that box of fruity pebbles you wanted me to buy I have them at my house you just need to run by and get it."
Trace smiles and I stifle a laugh.
Ethan takes a deep breath to prepare himself, "No granny, this isn't about the box of cereal. I just wanted to let you know how incredibly sexy I am. Every girl at school is drooling, every time I walk by I have to be careful not to slip on the saliva pouring from their mouths. They even fight over who gets to smash me next. I've never met anyone sexier than myself and I honestly believe that I'm bringing sexy back-"
"Boy shut the hell up," his granny interrupts and Ethan gives Lucas a knowing smile, "you're not bringing sexy back, you're the reason sexy left. You need to tell Mason to quit putting you up to dumb shenanigans and let your poor old grandma get some sleep, yea?"
I officially love Ethan's grandmother. She's a smart woman to know it was one of the boys who put him up to this, she's just got her money on Mason when it should be on Trace.
We all laugh quietly, doing our best to stay secret from his grandma.
"Actually granny it wasn't Maso-"
Trace takes a step forward and pushes Ethan behind him, "I'm so sorry. I wasn't able to stop them from making such an idiotic decision but I promise they won't be calling you anymore, I hope you sleep well and goodnight granny."
His grandmother laughs, "Trace, what a sweet boy. You always were my favorite. You keep being a good boy and goodnight honey."
Trace smiles, "Will do granny."
He hangs up the phone and Mason looks at him wildly, "Now granny's going to hate me," he pouts, "and she makes the best strawberry jello."
We play a few more rounds of hide and seek which ends with Lucas having to do twenty push ups while Adalyn slowly adds things to his back, one of those things being Cameron. Josephine had to let Mason write something embarrassing on the back of her thigh and everyone except her can see it, and Erica ended up having to deep throat a banana.
Perfect example of why you should always wash the produce you buy. A banana has a peel but the bell pepper Ethan tried balancing on his head doesn't.
"Will I be qualified as lame if I admit to being tired?" Erica asks.
"Not as lame as Emma who nearly fell asleep in hiding." Mason says with a smile directed toward me.
I laugh, "Whatever,"
When we get to the back of the store I see Josephine looking at something, "What is it?" I ask her and she gestures to the projector advertising sales on the wall.
She turns and looks at the rest of the group, "I could hook that projector up to a DVD player and we'll have something to watch a movie on."
We agree and her and Adalyn head off to set it up.
"I'm not laying on this cold floor all night, Emma and I are going to go find some blankets."
He makes a good point. This store is already cold and the tiled floor is probably twice as cold. I don't want to be laying on a dirty, icy floor all night.
We walk to the other side of the store and find the blankets.
While Trace and I are alone and I have permission to talk, I decide to ask him some questions I've been wondering. Like who those kids at his house were. It was a young boy and girl who looked oddly similar to him. He doesn't have any kids of his own so they're either his siblings, or maybe cousins?
"Was that your brother and sister?" I ask as his eyes roam the shelves for blankets we can use.
He turns his head slightly but stays quiet. I come to the conclusion he's confused, "That night my dog ran into your house there were kids there. I was just wondering how you know them."
He's quiet for a moment before answering, as if he's trying to think through his words carefully, "Yeah, that was my brother and sister."
We each get an armful of blankets to layout once we get back to the others and begin heading back.
"Where are they now?"
He smiles at the thought of them but keeps his answer simple, "Neighbors house."
I nod and take notice into the fact he doesn't want me to know. It's best I quit pushing for answers. If Trace wanted to talk to me about them then he wouldn't be being so secluded with all of his replies.
We get back to the others and toss the blankets down. We got a few throws for us to lay on and and some quilts we can use to cover up. It's not going to be the comfiest nights sleep but it'll definitely beat sleeping on the cold tiled floor.
People begin grabbing at the blankets and we lay out all of the throws first. We grabbed three in the mix of our bundle so we'll be sleeping close to one another in order for us all to fit on the blankets but I'm okay with that idea. I'm wearing shorts and being surrounded by warm bodies is perfectly fine with me.
The projector begins playing "The Good Dinosaur" along the back wall.
"Looks like she let Josephine pick the movie," Lucas laughs.
Everyone begins getting settled as Josephine and Adalyn walk up. Trace and I only grabbed seven quilts so Adalyn and Lucas are sharing one, Josephine and I are sharing one and everybody else gets their own.
Starting on the left is Cameron, Erica, Lucas, Adalyn, Josephine, me, Trace, Ethan and on the far right is Mason.
After only twenty minutes into the movie I hear snoring from some of the people around me, I just don't know which ones it belongs it.
I turn over to face Trace and tuck my hands under the chin of the blanket. I kicked my shoes off before covering up and that's really starting to bite me in the butt. Most of your heat escapes from your feet so I don't why that seemed like a good idea when I was already freezing.
"Want to use my blanket?" Trace asks softly and I shake my head.
"No thanks, I'll be alright once my toes get feeling to them again."
The floor is about five times colder than I expected it to be. After taking my shoes off that five times colder doubled and wearing shorts was just a stupid idea.
I know we're in the middle of a store and I could easily get up and throw on a pair of sweat pants or a hoodie or even triple up on blankets but I'm comfortable and I'd be insane to move.
My eyelids are heavy and if it weren't for the fact we're in the middle of breaking the law, I'd be asleep right now.
He shakes his head, "You're so stubborn."
I'm about to make some smart aleck retort back when one of our friends snorts loudly in their sleep.
Trace and I both start laughing and I raise up to see who's still awake.
Everyone from Cameron to Mason is sleeping, everyone except Trace and I.
"If you're trying to figure out who just snorted, that'd be Adalyn. She always snores so loud in her sleep that sometimes Lucas and I will put her in the bathtub just so we can get some rest."
My eyes widen and he laughs, "I'm kidding."
I could only imagine the words Adalyn would be shouting if she woke up one morning in her bathtub. She's a good person but she puts up with nobodys bullshit. That's one of the things I love about her.
My eyes flutter closed but I quickly open them to keep from falling asleep. I'm just nervous that if we all go to sleep, what's stopping us from getting caught by the owner if we're not awake to defend ourselves.
"What's wrong with your eyes?" Trace whispers with a hint of humor behind his voice but I ignore it.
"I'm trying to stay awake."
He furrows his eyebrows, "Why?"
"If everyone is asleep then it's a thousand times easier to get busted. What if we don't wake up on time and he walks in to see us all sleeping? He might have the cops outside by the time we all wake up and then we'd-"
Trace stops me by pinching my lips together, "I've already thought about all of this, which is why I'm staying up."
He gently releases my lips with a smirk evident on his beautiful face, "You can go to sleep, Emma."
That's all I need to hear for my eyes to slowly close and by that point, I know there's no way I can stay awake any longer. The last thing I see before my eyes close, submitting me to sleep, is Trace stand up and walk away.
Authors Note:
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