Page 22 of Stop and Seek
Not that his opinion mattered much when Max made up her mind.
“Alright, boys over here, girls over here. Naw, I’m just kidding,” Kyran yelled, directing people like some manic air traffic controller. “As long as we end up kinda-sorta-maybe even, it’ll be okay. Can you imagine this with only one hider? The horror.”
Laughter rippled through the crowd, someone shouting, “Do it!” before the chatter grew louder, voices overlapping.
Noah turned his hand over. He picked at the grime under his nail, brain stuck on awaymore interesting subject—bathroom guy.
Random fucks weren’t new to him, but,jesus, the way that red-headed sounded? Off the charts hot.
The way he was sointo it—
Noah just wanted to try something a little new and. Damn.
He exhaled sharply, shaking off the heat before he ended up having to explain why he was hard.
Not a good look.
So when he saw the light from Benji’s phone, he couldn’t help himself. It was an easy way to pass the time, and the Benji-Kyran unit had been acting so distant.
Ten years was plenty of time to get over what happened when they were seniors.
“Where do you plan on hiding first?” Noah asked, drifting closer.
Benji’s shoulders tensed before he opened his mouth. His voice wobbled when he answered. “I have a few places I’m considering.”
It didn’t make a whole lot of sense as to why Benji was scared.
Not like Noah did something tohim. Or Kyran.
Why were theybothacting like he’d cornered them in a dark alley or some shit?
Before he could push, Kyran’s loud laugh cut through. “I’m herding cats. Sheesh. Two minutes go by fast. Good luck, hiders. And, go!”
The pop gun cracked, deafening in the teeny-tiny gym, and then the world broke into chaos—people screaming, sneakers and sandals squeaking on the floor.
Noah turned around, leaning his forehead against the smooth stone and pulling out his phone. The texts in the group chat were still going full force, each disappearing almost before he could read it.
Alyssa Torrez
uwu *glomps u*
Tyler Bernhardt
whyyyy
Charity Richardson
HAHA
Maxine Sterling
girl cringe lmao
He smirked,thumb hovering over the screen as GIFs and half-baked memes flooded the white space.
If the hiders were smart, they’d turn their phones off. In the silence, a chirp, a buzz, would give them away. He could picture it now—bodies crammed under desks, breath held behind dusty display cases, some squeezed into unlocked utility closets. The “creative” ones would try their luck outside in the courtyard or football field.
That’s where therealfun was.
