Escalante.

This game was pissing me off.

    Not because I was naturally bad at it but because people were taking it too seriously. It made you think you are in an actual war and shooting off real enemies.

     Running to the back of the cafeteria had not been an easy task for me. A couple ganged up on us and I was forced to shoot like a bloodthirsty warrior. Alex was amazing at it however and managed to knock majority of them off their feet without being shot at. It baffled me how his black vest was still black when we finally made it to Carlo.

    Carlo's eyes widened when he saw me and jumped up from where he was crunched on the floor, running and pulling me into a bone crushing hug. My breath hitched when I felt his body pressed against mine and I was finally able to breathe when he pulled away. He smiled and then glanced at my vest. I watched him pale as if I was about to die.

"Oh no. You were hit."

I decided to play along. "It hurts a little." I faked a wince, holding my stomach, "I was shot three times in total."

A frown came on his face and he crossed his arms across his chest. "You don't need to be over dramatic about it."

I smiled. "Everyone's over dramatic about it. Besides," I took a step closer to him and I watched him blush, his hands falling to his side. "Think of it as a way to pour your affection on me."

     Another thrill went through me just seeing Carlo all flustered. He did practically every sign that showed how nervous he was. He scratched his head, an eye twitched involuntarily, he covered his face with his hand and he grew redder than a tomato. Watching him react like this to me gave me an odd satisfaction that suddenly made me feel possessive.

     I suddenly didn't want people to see this extremely cute side of him. I wanted him to be hot and bothered like this for me and only me. My mind quickly raced to all the people that had seen him like this, slowly getting annoyed.

     My hands caught his before he could rip his hair out and I slowly lifted it to my lips so I could kiss his knuckles, all the while staring at him. Carlo was practically at his limit because he looked dazed and something glinted in his eyes.

     However, it was gone the minute I wanted to read it because Jacob cleared his throat, earning all of our attention. He frowned, his forehead creased slightly in annoyance. "Not to step on your reunion and shit but do you guys mind? If you want to suck faces, pick up your goddamn rifle and fight your way back to the cabin." He pinned Alex and MK, who had wrapped each other together in a tight embrace, with a menacing glare.

"At least, let me get Dave before we start sucking faces." He continued to frown at the both of them and they grumpily pulled away from each other.

     MK ignored the glare but Alex returned it, saying, "Any plans on how to get the prisoners out?"

Jacob gave him a dry stare, "Last I remembered, you were last year's winner. I barely made it alive."

     My eyes widened slowly at Alex who stood tall with a smirk playing on his lips. No wonder he was so good and made me look like a pathetic amateur. Not that I minded because he saved me more times than I could count.

     I took Carlo's hand in mine then made him follow me so we could huddle closer to the wall of the building. Alex and MK joined then Alex said, "I thought we go in guns blazing."

     Everyone rose their brows at him simultaneously and he shrugged and looked at MK, "You were the mind last year. What should we do now?"

    The big badass black dude that I was once scared of just looked back at Alex like he would rather be with him than play the game but Alex frowned at him and he sighed, looking up at the sky for a while before he said, "We are too small to go in there. We need more rifles to give the prisoners for defense and we need more men if we should even think of attacking."

"Carlo is awful at this game." Jacob's frowning got deeper and Carlo sighed.

"I never said I was good at it."

"Well Dave was trying to save your ass and he got caught."

     Carlo's hand tensed and I watched his expression change from shock to anger. He was about to yell at him but I tightened my hands around his and he froze, cheeks reddening slightly.

     Since I had stabilized Carlo, I shot a glare at Jacob who just smirked, amused and I said, "Watch it. Not everyone is good at a game. We learn."

     Jacob scoffed but didn't say anything afterward making me relieved.

"How good are you, Es?" MK asked, watching me and sending chills down my spine.

"Uh, just as good as Carlo."

"He has only played Laser Tag." Alex added.

     MK nodded and I exhaled when he finally stopped staring at me. "Not bad. We need a distraction. Jacob and Alex will go around looking for as much team mates we have left. Even if it's allies." He added making Jacob frown. He continued. "I'll move in on the 20-29 block with Es and Carlo-"

"Are you mad?" Jacob and Alex chorused and he smiled.

"Probably. We'll collect as much rifles as possible. Then when we get to the block, I'll leave Es and Carlo to the guards."

"You are kidding me?" I couldn't even frown or get angry. I was entirely amused by the plan.

     They stayed quiet and actually thought about it, leaving me shocked that they would put such a plan into consideration. Alex was the first to speak, nodding his head slowly. "That might just work. Even if the allies we get tries to attack us, we'll have more men by then. They would be forced to lower their weapons."

Jacob grinned and nodded vigorously. "I like this."

"Then let's start now since everywhere has gone quiet again." MK said and Jacob and Alex nodded, clutching their rifles.

"Wait, we don't have an opinion on this?" Carlo managed, tensing further.

     Jacob rose an amused brow at him, "Dude, your opinion right now doesn't matter because either ways, you're going to die. Get shot while following MK or get shot distracting the guards. It's all up to you to think like a survivor and shot them where it counts." He patted his shoulder, ignoring the glare I was throwing at him then waved at us before following closely behind Alex, rifles up and ready to shoot.

    When they had disappeared, MK nodded at us and I nodded back, ready. Carlo hesitated, reaching for his rifle slowly but eventually raising it up. I gave him a reassuring look and he nodded back at MK.

     Without another word, MK started to lead us from behind the cafeteria. It had gone ghost again and the only sound I could here were the birds tweeting very far from here, followed by the trees bumping their leaves into one another. MK wasn't speaking as we followed quietly behind him. He preferred to use hand signals to tell us what to do.

     We had manage to pass the boy's dorm and had collected as much rifle on our way. Yet there weren't anyone one out. Was it that they had killed each other off?

     It seemed the same thing was on Carlo's mind because he came closer to me and said quietly, "It's too quiet."

"I noticed."

     He nodded at me and I turned back to MK just as I bumped into him. He cursed then pulled me and Carlo to hide behind a building. I was just about to ask what was happening when I heard a shot go off. My body refused to move and MK cursed again when footsteps were heard. He took his hands to his lips and began to move in the opposite direction. Carlo followed after him and I walked with my back to them, rifled up and ready in case someone tried to jump us.

    At the other side, there was a tree that has fallen down and it looked big enough to hide us. MK motioned for us to run to it and we did while he watched out backs. He joined us soon after and exhaled.

"Those bastard are everywhere."

     I glanced over the fallen tree and saw a bunch of guards. About five patrolled a particular cabin which I could bet the prisoners were in. I ducked back and told MK what I saw and he nodded and said, "The both of you have to draw the soldiers out. Most of the ones patrolling will come after you and that would give me enough chance to take out the four guarding the cabin."

I nodded and he added, "I'm going to leave it to you Es." He nodded at Carlo and we gave him the rifles we had collected, saving two for ourselves just in case.

     MK gave us one last look before sprinting back in to the narrow space between two cabins and disappearing. My hands shook with adrenaline rushing through me that I could hardly hold my weapon. Carlo grunted beside me and I looked at him as he cringed then exhaled sharply.

     My eyes trailed to his cause of pain and I saw him wriggling his wrist. Carlo must have noticed my concerned look because he hid it and said, "It's nothing too serious. I hit my hand on the tree."

I mouthed a sorry and he shrugged, reaching for his rifle. "So, any plans?"

Nope.

     I actually thought we'll just go there, guns blazing but I had a feeling that wouldn't work. I had to think of something. My years of Laser tag cannot be for nothing.

     Then it hit me when I saw someone try to shoot one of the guards.  

     Sitting upright when I heard the sound of rifles going off, I turned to Carlo who was looking over the tree at shoot off. He slid back down and said, sweat streaming down his forehead. "I know what to do." I said then turned so I no longer had my back against the tree.

The person -more like people- shooting wasn't from our angle so the people patrolling were distracted, trying to fend off the attack.

     This was the best time to snipe at the four other standing guards in front the cabin, but the bad thing was, they were clean. Meaning they hadn't been shot before. And ten, was honestly a long way to go.

"Carlo, I want you to find another hidden place and shoot them from it."

Carlo frowned, "Last I remembered, I wasn't good at this kind of game and that meant I didn't have focus." He scoffed, "I cannot believe Birdie wanted to teach me fencing."

     The hairs on my neck bristled by the sound of her name. It made me remember a day I honestly didn't want to remember. I shifted on my feet until I was squatting then said, "Now is not the time to be remembering one of your flings. You can do this."

     Carlo watched me for a minute, his face blank from any expression and it made me a bit irritated because I wanted to be able to read him like I always could. He nodded slowly and I continued, "The minute you get a good angle, start shooting. Wasting any more time could be deadly."

     He nodded again then did another brave thing today. Carlo kissed me softly on my lips and I swore I saw stars. He pulled back and I held his stormy eyes. I didn't know how long we stayed like that but there was something deeply endearing about those eyes. It made something in me burst and I felt suddenly fuzzy.

     I wanted to kiss him again and this time, taste him. Feel his every muscle and let him tug on my hair. I wanted to see him squirm beneath me, touch me in place I've only dreamed he would touch. The event happening around us didn't occur to me because I just wanted to be with him, inside him and him, inside me. Just the thought of having him take me was setting my blood on fire.

     I leaned in to kiss him but Carlo reddened and pulled back, covering his mouth with the back of his hand, "Es, we are in the middle of a war. Can you save that sexual look for later?"

     A grin broke on my face, "So there is a later? Which means you are equally interested."

     Carlo gave off a groan which sounded so much like a moan, I had to fight the urge not to take him right there. He ran away to find his angle before I got any more sexual with him. Smirking, I made a mental note to tease him seriously after this game was over.

    Thankfully, the previous shoot off was still going on and I was able to catch one of the guards trying to get into the cabin. I pointed my rifle directly at him and shot, grinning widely when it hit him.

     The guard fell to the floor and the other three became skittish, looking around to find who had attacked one of their own. I counted to ten in my mind and the man who I had shot stood up.

     According to Alex, that was recharge time. If I manage to shoot him five time, he had to wait for two minutes before standing up. That gave his attackers enough time to finish him off.

     Setting my target back at the boy I had shot, I fired two more and he went down making two other boys cover him while he recovered. The three still alive, were now looking in my direction, but good thing I had a building to block their view.

     Firing again, I hit the two covering for the first boy I shot. I was able to give them both two before they fell. The first boy I shot was already back up and I started to fire again, enjoying the way they all looked skittish.

     However, someone shot him twice. One on his chest and one barely missing his body. I could only guess it was Carlo because MK wouldn't be making such a mistake.

     I grinned and continued, enjoying the thrill of watching them shoot at the air in hopes it would hit their attacker. One barely touched me but I didn't care since it only counts when the paint touched the vest.

     After countless shots, Carlo and I were able to take out the four that were guarding the cabin. Two were in two minutes time out and others were as dead as they could be. I stood up only to have a shot fired at me.

     My eyes widened when I couldn't find who had shot me but I knew the person was in front of me. By rules, I fell back against the tree and counted till ten. When I knew I was alive again, I rose my head up slightly just to see the crowd coming out of the cabin, majority of them wore the 10-19 vest. The people who didn't wear it, pointed their guns at them. I could even see my sister shoving someone with her rifle.

     And it confused me.

     My sister was in cabin 30-39. What was she doing in Cabin 20-29? She was probably allying with them. Puta

     I scanned the crowd again and my breath hitched when I saw the person, just as he fired. I ducked immediately and the paint flew over my head, staining me hair to an awful shade of green.

    Footsteps were heard and I could only assume he had called more friends and they were heading my way. They took their time and I guessed the person leading them was using hand signals because I could hardly hear a word from them.

     Looking down at my vest, I realized I was closed to doom. I had one life left before falling into a two minutes recharge. I couldn't use the escape route where MK had run off to because I would have been shot by the time I got there.

     Cursing under my breath, I glanced around and realized my only escape route now was running into the woods beside me and hiding in a bush or something. I cursed again before picking my other rifle.

     I started to stand but Carlo came out of nowhere and started shooting behind me, using two of his guns. He looked amazing the way he stood, legs apart and face twisted into a very grim expression. The people behind me shouted in shock then started firing back.

     Carlo glanced over at me, not even caring if he were missing the people he was supposed to shoot. I cocked my head in the direction of the woods and he nodded, letting me know he understood. He started to move forward and I took that as my chance to stand. I turned, shooting at the people in front of me.

Sadly, they were more than I knew so I gave up and was able to get into the woods without getting shot my fifth time. Carlo busted in not soon after but he fell to the floor immediately.

     Running to him, I was able to make out six different paint stains on his vest making me gasp when I realized he was down to half his lives and he was in recharge.

    I think the game messed with my head a little because I almost thought he was gone. He hadn't move and I could hardly feel a pulse. When I shook him and he didn't answer, I felt like tearing up. Seeing him like this made me think he was actually gone until he groaned and slowly sat up.

     My heart skipped more beats than I could count when I saw him so alive and I pulled him to a hug and kissed him.

Fuck it.

This game and I are done.