From Conundrums to Kisses | ONC 2020

Chapter 13: Let the Games Begin!

Teagan's POV

Teagan held her head up high as she heard the whir of a ball returning through the machine. She picked up the object, gravity not on her side as the weight of the bowling ball dragged her arm down to her feet. Hearing Colton chuckle from behind her caused her face to heat up, embarrassed at the fact that she couldn't handle a single ball. However, the teasing didn't deter her from looking at her target.

The ball was heavy in her hands as she scanned all ten pins. A few were lucky if they could even manage a ten in their first try. She took a deep breath, putting all of her concentration toward her target. All of the world faded away as she lifted the bowling ball to her face, swinging her arm back and letting the ball go with ease. She watched in amazement as the object rolled down the center of the slick but slippery floor, with all ten red and white pins being knocked down. Teagan whooped and hollered, gathering the attention of the people nearby.

"Is this your first time bowling?" A girl who looked to be her age walked up towards her. Teagan couldn't deny that she was stunning, with her black, curly hair cascading down her shoulders along with her lips that were red from the lipstick she wore. She had a natural beauty about her, with the most prominent feature being her smile.

"Um, yeah, my friends and I decided to visit the arcade to relax a bit." Teagan stretched out her hand towards her. "I'm Teagan."

The girl smiled, stretching out her hand. "Amaya. Pleasure's all mine." She gave her a wink, which made Teagan shift her weight from side to side. It wasn't that she didn't like the attention, but she wasn't used to people flirting with her before, especially a girl. Of course, Colton was the only exception with whom she felt the most comfortable with, but he certainly didn't need to know that. It would only inflate his ego.

Teagan felt her friends walk up behind her, with Colton holding a glass of lemonade in his hand. "Hey, Teagan. Just went to get a drink. "He looked at the stranger across from her. "Who's this?"

"Oh, this is Amaya. I just met her. She's really nice," she said, introducing her old friends to her new one. "Amaya, these are my friends, Colton and Ire."

Amaya laughed, showing a bright smile. "Well, thank you." She nudged Teagan's shoulder. "You aren't so bad, yourself." She cleared her throat. "It's nice to meet you all. Sorry, my friends often tell me I have an overly flirty personality."

Teagan stuttered out a response. "I−i−it's okay."

Amaya frowned. "I hope I didn't make you too nervous. Anyway, I'd like for us to get to know each other more. You seem pretty cool."

Teagan gave Amaya her phone number and vice versa.

"Thanks, girl. It was nice meeting you and your friends. Maybe we could hang out sometime!" Amaya gave her a wink, that caused Teagan's face to turn bright red.

Colton chuckled. "So Amaya, huh?" he said, lightly teasing Teagan about her reaction to Amaya's flirting.

Teagan swatted his shoulder. "Oh, shut up. Come on, let's continue playing."

Colton was next in line, the bowling pins within his line of sight as he swung his back and let the ball go with such force that it caused him to land a gutter ball. Teagan giggled as she noticed the tips of his ears turn pink in embarrassment. "You just got lucky," he muttered, walking past her and going behind Ire.

Ire did the same as her friends, landing seven out of ten pins on the first try. Teagan cheered for her friend, smiling when she received a thumbs up in response. She scanned the three remaining pins and winced. It was a tough shot for anyone who wanted to get a spare. She bit her fingernails, watching as the bowling pins fell to the ground, giving Ire a high five.

The rounds kept going as Teagan improved after each one, along with her other friends. She had never had so much fun with her friends before. She looked up at the scoreboard when the rounds had ended, with her being in first place, with Colton coming close in second and Ire in third.

Colton chuckled. "Congrats. Guess I won't be taking you up on that date. Do I have permission to kiss you on the cheek, though?"

Teagan's mouth formed a small 'o' shape at his request but was grateful that he asked her first. "You may." She felt Colton inch closer and closer to the side of her cheek. That's when disaster struck, or at least she felt like it did.

"Hey, Teagan?" Ire called out.

"Yeah-mph!" Teagan said, turning her face towards Colton, resulting in an unexpected kiss. She stood still, shock registered in her eyes before she melted into the kiss. She felt her heart beating rapidly, his lips faintly tasted of lemonade, sour but sweet. It was then that she decided that she quite liked the feeling of his lips against hers, deepening the kiss between them. He took that as a sign to lean into it as she felt his lips curl upward into a smile.

The two pulled away from each other, with Colton glaring at Ire from across his lane. "You did that on purpose," he said, stewing in annoyance.

Ire stuck her tongue out at him, prompting him to roll his eyes at her behavior. Teagan watched as he turned towards her. "I'm sorry, Teagan. I didn't mean for that to happen."

Teagan bit her lip. "It's okay. Just one question: did the kiss mean anything to you?" she asked, holding bated breath.

Colton smiled. "It meant the world to me, Dewdrop, and I wouldn't change a thing."