Page 19 of Fun and Games
I thought David would always be a part of my life. I never expected he'd be taken away from me.
I thought we had all the time in the world.
Mason put a hand over mine where it rested on the table. I looked up to find his concerned eyes. He gave my hand a squeeze. He didn't say anything, just let me gather myself until I was able to give him a wan smile.
"How about that drink?" Mason asked with a tilt of his head.
"Make it a double," I said.
Seven
"We've got a winner!"the quizmaster announced. "Mason, Quinn, Connor and Bree, come claim your prize: one drink ticket each."
"Yes!" I jumped up from my chair and fist pumped. "Now where's my crown and scepter?"
"I don't think that's how it works," Mason replied. "And you're getting free drinks on the house tonight, anyway. You don't care about the prize, you just wanted to win."
I sat back down. "So maybe I have a bit of a competitive streak."
"I never would have guessed." Mason took a sip of his beer to hide his smile. "What else are you a fan of? How many more trivia theme nights should I invite you to?"
"If you ever have a nineties cartoon theme night, I am so there."
Connor and Quinn returned to our table holding each other's hand on one side and drinks in the other.
"It's not really fair of us to win the drink tickets, considering we get them for free," Connor said.
"But it's the winning that matters," Quinn pointed out.
"I think Quinn might be just as competitive as you," Mason told me. "Maybe we should pit the two of you against each other."
"Or maybe us girls should team up and beat the pants off you boys," I replied.
"I second that motion," Quinn chimed in. "If you've got pop culture covered, I'm pretty good with history and literature."
"I'm not too shabby with science and nature, either," I told her. "Between the two of us I think we can absolutely dominate these guys." I held my hand up for a high five. Quinn slapped it enthusiastically.
Mason turned to Connor.
"I've got geography and sports," he told his friend. "What's your contribution?"
"Does my knowledge of eighties hair metal bands count as the arts?" Connor asked.
Mason groaned.
"They're going to wipe the floor with us," he said.
The four of us shared a laugh.
Mason's friends were great. It had been a while since I'd last casually hung out with a group of people like this. Aside from Samantha dragging me out, I didn't have much of a social life these days, and once I left my tech company job she wouldn't be around to force me to socialize.
How long had it been since I'd felt this kind of camaraderie with people?
David had been both my best friend and my partner for so long. I hadn't thought I needed anyone else. And then he'd been taken away from me, and I'd been left alone.
My sister had told me it wasn't healthy for me to spend so much time by myself. For a long time I hadn't been able to handle being around other people. Carefree smiles and joyous laughter only reminded me of everything I'd lost.
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