028 laser tag

After the group had split into two teams between the boys and girls, Taylor and Steven had chosen Laser Tag. It had taken zero convincing for the others because Conrad was always a sucker for arcade games.

Julia fastened her laser tag vest, buckling the strap on her waist. The others had done the same, Belly and Taylor chest bumping. The blonde laughed when they suddenly began yelling at each other.

Conrad aimed his middle fingers towards the three girls, Taylor and Belly, laughing manically while Julia returned the gesture with a wide smile.

"Let's do this!" Conrad screamed, Steven and Jeremiah surrounding him, pretending to wrestle.

"All right! All right!" Belly shouted through laughs, trying to get everyone's attention. "All right, everyone. All right. The games are best of five rounds. The first and last rounds everyone plays. The middle rounds, it's a one-on-one competition, so choose your best fighter."

The others listened closely to Belly's instructions, Jeremiah's arms wrapped around Julia's shoulders from behind, a smirk on his lips.

"Probably not gonna be me," Skye commented, turning on their laser gun.

"Hey, don't sell yourself short, alright?" Belly lowered her voice, just for Skye to hear. They nodded, Belly stepping back again to assess the separate teams.

"Okay, you over here," Taylor giggled, grabbing Julia's arm and tugging her from Jeremiah's hold.

"All right, you losers ready?" Jeremiah raised his voice, sending the three girls a taunting gaze, to which Taylor narrowed her eyes.

"Three, two, one, go!" He shouted, and before anyone knew it, Jeremiah was taking off into the room, the others following behind. "First to 21 wins!"

Julia wasn't sure where everyone had branched off to, but she had occasionally heard the sound of the laser gun wiring, so she assumed they were all close.

It didn't take long for Conrad's team to gain seventeen hits, while Belly's team only had fifteen. The three girls stood together, backs pinned to one other as Steven's taunting voice rang out.

"Taylor..." He called out, almost as if he was in a horror movie. She knew she shouldn't- damned Belly's competitiveness- but she smiled. "Taylor..."

Taylor had walked off somewhere, and Julia decided to branch off. She slowly sauntered off, a gun held close to her chest. It had it difficult for her to find anyone, considering it was a maze-like structure, but that was until she saw Conrad kneeling behind the wall.

She ran towards him, a gun held in the air. However, before she could reach him, arms slung around her waist, engulfing her as they held her in the air.

"No!" She laughed, realizing it had been Jeremiah. She chuckled, trying to squirm from his grasp,or get her gun out of his way, but his arms held it down.

"Conrad!" Jeremiah shouted. "Get her, get her!"

Then, like victory quite literally slapped her across the face, Conrad took the last hit, air horns blaring loudly as his defeat.

"Yes!" Jeremiah cheered, letting go of Julia, who held a sour expression.

"We won!" Conrad laughed, approaching Jeremiah with raised arms. "Yes!"

The boys' cheering drowned out the sound of Julia's complaints, eyes narrowed into slits at the two boys who were gaining the attention of Steven, Taylor, Skye, and Belly.

"Oh, my God," the blonde mumbled under her breath, shoulders slumped as Jeremiah laughed.

"In your face!" He laughed manically, pointing at his girlfriend with a triumph smile. "In your face."

"Game won!" Steven joined the celebration, running up to Jeremiah and slapping his hands into his, giving each other a high five. The three boys' ecstatic voices shouted over the others, engulfing each other in large hugs.

Taylor rolled her eyes at them before turning around towards the locker room, Julia following behind in defeat.

Her shoulders were slumped the entire time she took off her gear, and so did the others. She tossed her vest back onto the rack before moving to the door, not waiting for the others to follow. One thing about Julia Conklin was that she was competitive. It was always a struggle growing up. Even if it was the simplest of drinking games or childish card games, she still got sour when she lost.

So, over time, everyone found their way around her tricks, and it only made her so much more angry.

"Hey, you know what? Don't worry," Belly moved closer to her, hovering over her shoulder. "We'll get them next time."

"'Get them next time'?" Conrad mocked, his voice raised an octave higher. Julia rolled her eyes, walking ahead of the group.

"Oh," Steven chuckled.

"I think we're playing Capture the Flag next," Conrad smirked. "And if I remember correctly..."

"Oh, yes. I got this, bro," Steven nodded cockily, eyebrows raised. However, none of the girls were amused.

"All right," Taylor rolled her eyes, hands perched on her hips. "I need a pee break."

She walked off, braids swaying softly, the others dispersing as they waited for her outside of the bathroom. Belly, Steven, and Conrad stalked further towards the arcade games while Julia walked mindlessly around with Jeremiah at her side.

"You still mad at me?" He smirked, arms wrapping around her neck from behind, following each step. "Didn't like losing, now did you?"

"You're such an ass," Julia rolled her eyes. "You literally cheated- I don't know what you think you're talking about."

"What?" Jeremiah scoffed playfully, dropping his arms from around her and turning the girl around so she faced him. "I'm sorry? What's that? Is that a little bit of, uh, jealously I hear?"

"No," Julia bit back, eyes narrowed. "I'm gonna get you back for that, don't worry."

"Don't worry?" The curly-haired boy repeated with an amused chuckle, eyebrows raised. "Oh, please, Capture the Flag is Steven's forte. You're done for."

"Keep talking," She shook her head, unable to hide the smirk that followed. She turned back around to meet with the others, but his arms were back around her neck, pulling her back against his chest.

"I'm sorry," he pouted, chin dug into the crevice of her neck. "I'm sorry, okay? I'm sorry you suck so badly at Laser Tag."

"Oh, my God!" Julia laughed loudly in disbelief, ready to push her boyfriend off, but he only resisted, arms wrapping tighter around her frame from behind. "You talk so much shit, you know that?"

He laughed, feet falling into step with hers from their close proximity. "You act like you don't love it."

"Mm," Julia hummed, biting her lip to stifle the smile that crept into her features. "I don't know about that."

He sighed through his nose, breath fanning her collar bone. "Okay- but seriously, I'm sorry I cheated. You and your pathetic team didn't deserve that."

"What-"

She was silenced by his lips meeting her neck, a soft feather like touch before he was pulling away to join the others. An incredulous scoff past her parted lips, eyebrows furrowed deeply in thought.

That little prick.

"Jere!" She called out between his laughter. "I can't believe you. Seriously, you're unbelievable."

However, before she could catch up to him, Jeremiah was already walking off to find his brother, the sound of his infectious laugh slowly getting quieter.

The blonde let out a final scoff before she was moving past a crowded arcade game, finding her siblings standing in a hallway leading to the bathrooms, presumably waiting for Taylor.

"I've never actually seen anyone reading one of Mom's books before," her younger sister's voice caught her attention, approaching the two from behind. Her hands found both of their shoulders, looking past them at a tan, blonde lady sitting at a bench, engulfed in her mother's book: It's Not Summer Without You.

"I know," Steven let out an impressed exhale, lips curling upwards proudly. "Me either."

"Wow," Julia gaped, staring past her two siblings in awe. The woman before them seemed to he tangled in the web of memories their mother so perfectly laid out in her words, and her heart fluttered in happiness.

Belly suddenly shot forward. "Oh, should we send her a picture?" She questioned with wide eyes, reaching for her phone in her back pocket.

"Bells," Julia chuckled. "You can't just take pictures of strangers without them knowing."

"What?" Steven whirled around at the same time, eyes much more fear stricken than his sister's. "Dude, no, no. If you take a picture and send it to her, she'll find out where we are and come and bust us."

"Mm," the dark-haired girl hummed in agreement, pocketing her phone in defeat.

"Hey, did we..." Steven cleared his throat. "Did I even tell you that she went to New York? I mean, you know, for, like, the book thing?"

A ghost of guilt seemed to wash over Belly's face because she clearly hadn't known, and it made her question whether or not she was far too caught up in everything to remember.

"She actually seemed kind of nervous," Steven admitted.

"Come on," Belly tilted her head in disbelief. "Laurel doesn't get nervous."

"You're wrong about Mom," the boy was quick to defend, eyes casting an almost disappointed look, but it quickly washed away at the presence of Taylor, who had just returned.

"What, Taylor?" Steven abruptly spat playfully, eyeing the girl cautiously.

"What do you mean?" She recoiled, hands on her hips. "Why are you being mean?"

"Being mean?" The bickering forced knowing smiles from the two girls beside them, Belly wiggling her eyebrows excitedly. They so clearly liked each other and the only ones who couldn't see that were themselves. "What are you talking about? All right, all right. Fine, fine, fine, fine. Next challenge, me versus you."

"You ready to have your ass kicked?" Taylor challenged competitively.

Steven chuckled in amusement before he began walking off. Julia dropped her hands on Taylor's shoulders, inching closer.

"You better kick his ass."

"You bet your ass I will."

authors note!
IM SO SRY I HAVENT UPLOADED. i honestly have no clue what happened, but i all of a sudden lost motivation for this story, but im back now:)