"Care to join me, Taz?" Lilli asks, flashing me a weary smile.
"As always, Lil'," I reply – a little too bluntly for my liking – joining her side.
"Begrudgingly, it seems."
I pat her back. "Begrudgingly or not, I'm here, aren't I?"
She stares at me, then throws an arm around my shoulders. "Yeah, I know."
"Let's take down your boyfriend," I mutter.
Lilli smirks. "And yours."
The unease disperses a little.
"Okay, everyone listen up!" Bored guy yells, surprising us with the sudden volume in his voice. When we all quiet down to listen to him, our group joining the others by the seats, he begins speaking. "Welcome to the Epic Lazer Tag Arena. Good to have you all here today, and I'm sure you'll enjoy your time here, but there's a few rules to be followed to make sure that all of you are not only having fun but are safe.
"Rule number one – No running or sprinting."
I hear Emily whisper to Ben. "He didn't say no to Rolling Thunder."
"I don't know what that is, but you gotta teach it to me," Ben replies.
"Ahem." Ben and Emily flick their heads to the bored guy. "I know it's tempting to run away from your enemies and whatever but so we don't have teenagers crying from a grazed knee, I'd rather you not.
"Rule number two – No ganging up and targeting the weakest player, no matter how satisfying it is," he goes on. "Any players caught doing so will have their points deducted.
"Number three – No eating or drinking. There's an All-You-Can-Eat-Buffet upstairs, so if you're feeling snackish, I'm sure you can wait at least fifteen minutes." A few of us chuckle a little. "Besides, once you're in, it's almost impossible to find the way out until I open the door, so hang on tight."
"What happens if the ship capsizes and you leave us all in there?" one of Emily's new friends asks cheekily.
After an intense glare, he continues. "No drugs, no vomiting. If you feel sick, you shouldn't be here in the first place, but try and find the door before you stain the floor. Trust me, it's not fun to clean up.
"And finally…" It sounds as if he's struggling to remember the final (and most important) rule. "Have fun," he concludes, then disappears into a much lighter room, inviting us in with him.
Stacked floor to ceiling are racks lined with multicoloured lights. On one side of the room, racks are carrying heavy-looking black vests, and another shelf is holding a number of elaborately-manufactured laser guns. Charlie, Harry and Ben go straight to admiring the guns, but even I can't help getting excited about getting to use them.
"Alright, stop talking and get in your groups!"
We all bunch up in our groups, and Mr Bored comes around giving us the worst group names of the century. He first points to our group. "You're the Squashed Tomatoes. A-K-A – red group." To Emily's team: "You'll be the Mashed Potatoes, blue," and Harry's and Charlie's group are now, "the Crushed Cucumbers, and you'll be wearing green."
"Um, excuse me," Emily beams. "But potatoes, and especially mashed ones, are not blue."
He glares at Emily before yelling, "Now put on your vests and grab your guns and return to your seats. If you have any questions – any valid questions – you know who to come to." He storms off before any of us have the opportunity to ask any questions.
The vest looks heavy and it feels heavier, and the gun is so elaborate, I'm tempted to smash it against the wall to break off all the unnecessary barrels. I admire the flashing lights though, which I know will look very vibrant when we enter the dark room. The image reminds me of Harry and I standing beneath the fairy lights on the top deck a couple nights ago. The thought of him so close makes me shiver. I glance across the seats to where Harry is sitting, and he happens to be looking my way too.
"When you are all ready, you may head inside," Mr Bored announces after going over the aim of the game. "No running," he says again.
Harry adjusts my helmet as we disappear into the darkness and the door is closed behind us. With wide grins on our faces and a lilt in our step, we scatter into the abyss.
***
I didn't think I could get away with heading into the same laser tag game as Harry, but it was a good idea to bring that anime hoodie and wig, as well as that make-up. And thank goodness that I had met these girls along the way, or my presence might've been just a tad more suspicious.
I don't realise that I'm holding my breath when Harry draws near to me by the gun racks, but he passes, and I know I'm safe, especially when the darkness surrounds all of us after entering the dimly-lit arena.
I've already decided on playing hard for at least five minutes before I head off to pull Harry and myself out of this game. There's no point anymore in any of this. Because I realised after that morning…
"I wish you were more helpful."
God, Harry, I wish I was too. But there's a reason I'm here right now; to help you.