Page 126 of Treacherous
It takes a hot shower, lathering products on my skin, and aspirin to ease the pit inside my stomach and the pounding headache that had taken up residence in my brain. I enter the kitchen, nearly moaning at the smell. Cinnamon and maple syrup; two of my favourite things on the planet.
What I thought was going to be a shit day has taken a turn for the better when I open the fridge to find a container of blueberry pancakes with my name on it.
I’m so confused. I’ve never told anyone in the house this is my favourite breakfast, yet here it sits. I’m not going to complain, that’s for sure.
I don’t waste a moment, placing the pancakes in a stack on a plate. Aiden and Hayes enter the kitchen while I stuff my face.
“Enjoying the food?” Aiden asks with raised eyebrows.
I hum, swallowing the food in my mouth. “Yes. Thanks for breakfast. Did you know blueberry pancakes are my favourite?”
Hayes scrunches his brows, tilting his head. “What? I didn’t make you breakfast.”
“Then who did?”
Aiden chuckles, his voice low, yet I still hear the humour in it. I narrow my eyes. “What do you know?”
He scrubs one of the plates in the sink, then places it onto the drying rack before facing me. “Jayden.”
One word. He doesn’t say anything else, leaving me looking like an idiot with my jaw open. Aiden continues to wash up like he didn’t just drop the biggest bomb.
Why would Jayden do that? Better yet, how did he know blueberry pancakes are my comfort food?
The question plagues my brain until a message from Jazmine brings my focus elsewhere.
Jazmine Allen:
Hey! Do you want to come to mini golf?
Me:
YES! Get ready to be CRUSHED
Jazmine Allen:
That’s not happening. I will be winning.
I smile. Although I would like an answer to the questions running amuck in my thoughts, it will have to wait.
A day out with my best friend is the perfect distraction.
***
“This is not fair,” I whine, as I collect my ball from the sixth hole.
Somehow, I’m losing by a ridiculous number of shots. Honestly, I swear my stick is cursed. Why can I hit a puck across the ice with men charging at me, but can’t putt a golf ball into a hole five feet away from me?
Jaz and Theo laugh, relishing in my pain. The two of them are neck and neck, with one three shots separating them. Jaz, ever the competitor, is on top and isn’t afraid to trash-talk her boyfriend.
We follow the lights on the barriers separating each hole, so we know we are going the correct way. Golf Galaxy is an indoor mini-golf course, with a twist–it’s a glow-in-the-dark course. A hidden gem amongst other activities that people gravitate toward in Phoenix.
The walls are painted, the bright colours creating constellations and aligned planets. The course has different nods to space as well with a spinning star the object to get the ball passed before taking a shot for the hole.
This is the next hole the three of us are onto and the seventh overall.
“Thank God, we decided to only play nine holes. I can’t handle losing any longer.” I say, gripping my stick.
My competitive streak can be too much when it comes to activities that are meant to be a bit of fun. I look up to the spinning star, trying to figure out the best time to hit my ball.After taking a deep breath, I tap the ball and it rolls along the green, entering the gap at the perfect time.
