"The round is over."
That announcement confirmed the end of the first round, as everyone returned to their team zones. Everyone made it back in time, so no one was infected.
"That was a good round," Ash said, dropping to the floor.
Malakai crouched down next to him. "We didn't do shit, but that was a good round."
Ash let out a short laugh before pointing out, "Look, Sabrina's got the gun."
Malakai's eyes followed his finger. Sabrina was standing a short distance away, surrounded by a small group of teammates who were all talking over each other.
"Oh shit," he remembered something, snapping his head to Ash. "Did we get infected?"
He lifted his arm and twisted his wrist to look all around his wristband. His wristband looked exactly the same.
Blank. No change.
"Mine doesn't show anything," Ash said, holding up his wristband.
"Same. I don't think we got infected," Malakai replied, unsure.
Ash stared at Sabrina for a sec, "Should we ask Sabrina?"
Malakai stared at Sabrina for a sec, "Yeah, go on."
Malakai and Ash lifted themselves from the floor and walked a few steps to Sabrina. It was like they were going to their big sister for help.
"Sabrina," Ash called out, raising his arm up like he was flexing an expensive watch. "Our wristbands are blank."
Sabrina paused mid-conversation with Naomi and saw Malakai and Ash approaching her. She looked at his wrist, then his face. She gave it a second to see if he was asking a serious question.
"That means you're not infected," she slowly said, still confused if he was being serious.
"I told you," Malakai said, making him sound like an idiot.
"Bruh, you didn't know", Ash replied, turning his head to him unimpressed. "You guessed."
"This guy", Malakai grinned, shaking his head. "It was obvious," he lied, treating him like an idiot.
Ash stared at him, feeling betrayed.
Malakai avoided looking at his face to avoid laughing and talked to Sabrina. "Did anyone get infected?"
"Surprisingly, no," Sabrina lightly shook her head.
"I thought for sure we would've been infected," Ash said.
"Were you around a lot of people?" Sabrina asked.
"Nah. Just around his friends," Ash replied, pointing at Malakai.
"We didn't even do that much last round," Malakai added.
"You had fun, that's for sure," Sabrina faintly smiled. "I saw you two running everywhere."
"Everyone did that though," Malakai shrugged. "What did you do last round?" he nodded to her.
"I walked around with Naomi," Sabrina said, side-stepping a little to show Naomi. "We explored the place."
Naomi brushed her eyes at Malakai and Ash, who were looking at her, waiting for her to say something.
"Your hair is sick (cool)", Malakai casually told her, trying to start a conversation.
"Thanks," Naomi replied flatly, her tone unchanged.
"We got vaccines innit?" Malakai asked, remembering. "Did you put them on your wristband already?"
"Yeah, we already did," Sabrina replied. "We had to scan the side that said vaccine on her wristband. Did you see how the vaccines look?"
"Yeah, my friend found one and showed us."
Ash's eyes locked onto Naomi's wrist. "How do you know if it worked?" he asked, seeing no difference in her wristband.
"We don't," Sabrina answered. "We'll have to wait until someone gets infected."
Malakai's eyes drifted back to Naomi. Curious. He was interested in her appearance.
"Do you always wear a mask?"
"No," Naomi answered with no hesitation.
"Haven't you seen her before?" Sabrina asked, confused because Naomi's aesthetic wasn't basic. Spotting her isn't hard.
"Yeah. I've deffo seen her hair during some lectures. This is my first time seeing her properly though," Malakai replied. "Are you going to take off the mask in this challenge?" he asked Naomi.
"No," Naomi answered with certainty.
"What about for me?" Malakai wittily flirted with his signature smirk.
"Ew, no," Naomi replied just as quickly, narrowing her eyes at him.
Malakai laughed a little, looking like he got the reaction he wanted.
Ash looked at him, confused, "You deadass laughed at a girl saying ew to you."
Malakai smiled, "Bro. It's funny. I don't know why."
Sabrina let out a soft giggle, "You wanted her to say ew."
"Yeah," Malakai nodded. "Every time she says ew, it sounds genuine. Like she's actually disgusted"
"How is that funny?" Naomi asked, her eyes still narrowed, not understanding him.
Malakai looked away, shaking his head, "Naomi, you're funny man."
Naomi didn't respond. She didn't understand him at all.
"Did you guys see the kissing booth?" Sabrina asked, continuing the conversation.
"What? What do you mean kissing booth?" Ash asked back.
"There's a booth, and you go inside it to kiss," Sabrina replied. "And you get a bullet or a vaccine if you kiss."
"Why though?" Malakai asked, finding it odd, his expression showing that.
"On the inside, it said it's because it's nearly Valentine's," Sabrina replied. "So couples can go in and get a bullet or vaccine for their team."
"People go inside, kiss each other, and get a bullet or a vaccine," Ash repeated. "People are just going to go inside to kiss and get privacy."
"What kind of kiss?" Malakai asked. "A normal one or a French kiss?"
"I... don't know," Sabrina replied, not expecting that question. "A normal kiss should be fine."
Malakai nudged Ash, "We should go inside there."
"What the- No! The fuck!" Ash replied, quickly moving away. "I know you're playing, but dawg. There's plenty of girls here."
Malakai smirked. He enjoyed taking the piss (joking) like this. "I've got no one to kiss," he said. "And I can't lie, I don't wanna kiss anyone."
Sabrina kept composed, but her eyes tried to lock onto his, trying to send a sign.
"Unless it's Naomi," Malakai randomly said, clearly joking to get a certain reaction.
"Ew."
Malakai grinned, knowing that was coming. "Bro, we could finesse the system. You can keep your mask on, and we'll kiss," he said. "We'll kiss through your mask."
"I'm not kissing you," Naomi firmly replied.
"Aryt…" Malakai accepted. "What about him?" he pointed at Ash with his thumb.
"Wha-?"
"Ew, no," Naomi shook her head, causing her hair to move violently, not even looking at Ash, her eyes showing disgust.
"Nah, you're doing too much," Ash commented.
"What about Sabrina?" Malakai swiftly asked, pointing at her.
Naomi glanced at Sabrina. She didn't say anything.
"Ooouuuu," Ash hyped up.
"She didn't say no," Malakai said, smirking at Ash
"Holdup," Ash paused everything. "Sabrina, would you kiss Naomi?"
Sabrina tilted her head to Naomi with her lips slightly curving,
"I meaaannn…"
"Ooouuuuuu!" Malakai and Ash both hyped up, lightly hitting each other.
Sabrina didn't even say anything. She might've insinuated something, but Malakai and Ash blew it out of proportion, finding it funny.
"Aye Ash, what did Drake say?"
"GIRLS WANT GIRLS WHERE I'M FROM!"
They both burst out laughing at the stupid joke they made, clinging to each other.
None of them could see it, but Naomi was biting the inside of her cheek, attempting to stop her smile. A small smile still broke through under the mask.
Sabrina covered her mouth as she giggled at them, "You two are silly."
Other teams weren't having it as easily as the red team.
"This isn't a good start," David said with his arms folded.
"How did that many people get infected?" William asked, hearing the concerned conversations around the room. "We don't have enough vaccines."
"Our team spread out a lot last round," David replied. "And a lot of people were in that jungle gym. In there, it would be so easy for a carrier to infect people."
"We didn't even get to find the others," William said, annoyed.
"This place is massive," David replied. "We weren't going to find them in the first round. Those guys were probably having fun themselves"
"I still wanna hang out with them," William said. "It would be so fun."
"We need to focus on the challenge," David reminded him.
"That can wait," William waved off casually. "We can have a little bit of fun first."
David raised a hand to his forehead, rubbing it with visible concern, "I have a feeling Mally has said the same thing."
From one person with their hand on their forehead to another. Ryan smoothly slipped away from the rest of his teammates and went over to their team's carrier. Stopping in front of him.
"How many people did you infect?"
"Zero," Adam replied with a straight face.
"What?!" Ryan said, just about keeping a lid on his tone. "What have you been doing?"
Adam barely reacted. "I was exploring the area," he replied, monotone as ever.
"The whole round?" Ryan asked, bewildered in both tone and expression.
"It's the first round," Adam flatly told him. "Do you want me to try infecting people and get caught straight away?"
Ryan looked back towards the rest of their team before returning his attention to Adam. "Look at how many people are infected on our team," he said, his voice quiet but stern.
"Only three people are infected," Adam said.
Ryan's jaw tightened slightly. "Eight people were infected. We've got no more vaccines," he replied. "We've used the five we were given in the first round."
"You said our team was strong," Adam said, unfazed. "Why are you so worried?"
"Did you listen to the rules?" Ryan asked, frustration leaking through his little hand gestures. "The team with the most people at the end wins. We're struggling in the first round."
Adam's body didn't flinch. "Other teams will have people infected too."
"Not as much as ours," Ryan replied immediately, trying to get through to Adam. "Especially with you not playing your part."
"I am playing my part."
"By strolling around?"
"Yes."
That simple response only irritated Ryan more. Adam wasn't giving anything away.
"Don't forget," Adam continued. "The reason I'm the carrier is because you convinced everyone to choose me."
"Because I know you're good," Ryan replied, emphasising every word, trying to butter him up.
"That's only half true," Adam said, not letting his response breathe. "You're testing me to see if I am good. Right now you're fifty-fifty."
Ryan let out a wry smile, "You're good enough to figure that out."
"Trying to pressure me isn't going to work," Adam told him with his straight face.
Ryan stepped closer to him. "If this isn't pressure to you, then fucking handle it," he quietly told him, his breath so close to his ear.
The two held eye contact for a brief second before Ryan brushed past him and walked away.
Adam watched him leave in silence, "He is desperate."
William drifted away from David as he started talking to some people he didn't know. Around him, the room was still loud and energetic with everyone talking to everyone about the last round.
While aimlessly walking, William slowed slightly, noticing something. Two guys sitting against the padded wall, laughing quietly to themselves, looking like they were having the best time.
Curious, William made his way to them.
"What are you guys doing?" he casually asked.
One of them slowly lifted their head to him.
"Hehe... nothing," Caleb answered with a dopey grin, laughing halfway through.
William knew Caleb as he was in 1-C. He had dirty blond flat hair with boring brown eyes. That was one of the reasons he approached them. They weren't friends, but they spoke a few times.
Caleb continued to stare at William with his wide grin.
William looked at the guy next to Caleb to get away from his weird stare. The guy looked far more composed than Caleb. He had short brown hair and sharper facial features. He looked relaxed, just like Caleb.
William stared between the two of them for a second, feeling something odd from them.
Then it clicked.
"Wait..." he said slowly. "Are you guys high?"
"Hehe... is it that obvious?" Caleb asked, giggling, turning to look at the other guy, not even hiding it.
Back at the Halloween party, William couldn't tell who was high and who wasn't. He could only differentiate the extremes. William had never gotten high in his life, so he didn't know the ins and outs, but he could tell Caleb was high.
"How are you?.. William asked, curious, confused, stunned, everything. "What did you do?"
Caleb slowly raised his arm and dropped it onto the guy's shoulder like it weighed ten kilograms.
"Damien gave me some cookies."
"Cookies?" William asked, confused, raising a brow.
"Edibles," Damien spoke up. He didn't sound as high as Caleb. "I told him to only eat one. The dumbass had three."
"This is nothing to me. I can eat another one," Caleb confidently said, his smile not breaking.
"His brain is in space," Damien said, twirling his finger around his head. "Adding the fact that we're in a massive playground. He's probably having the craziest experience right now."
William stared at Caleb, intrigued. He had never touched drugs in his life and never smoked. Not even vape. He still had that small packet of cocaine that he took from the Halloween party stashed at the back of his drawer. He'd totally forgotten about it until now.
"How'd did you get that?" William asked, after remembering that, thinking Damien might've gotten them the same way.
"The edibles? It's easy man," Damien replied, grinning. "I know a guy, and he comes to campus and gives me them. Campus is open to anyone, so it's not that hard for him to drop it off to me."
"Damien, give him one," Caleb giggled, lazily raising his arm to point at William. "He needs to experience this."
Damien looked up at William, "Do you want one?"
William instantly froze. "I-" his response got stuck in his throat.
Damien, amused by the hesitation, went into his jacket pocket and brought out a colourful packet. The plastic crinkled softly as he lightly squeezed the top open.
"Here."
William instinctively leaned forward to look inside. A few small cookies sat in the packet. He was frozen, staring inside, unsure what to do. His brain expected something more. Something that looked like it would make you high. But it was just regular cookies.
William's mouth opened like he was about to say something, but nothing came out.
"Have you had an edible before?" Damien asked, already knowing the answer.
"No," William said, quickly shaking his head.
Damien smirked, entertained by how nervous William was.
"Just take one," Damien said carefree, lightly shaking the packet. "You don't have to eat it now. Save it for later. Eat it on the ride home."
"Eat it on the bus," Caleb goofily said.
William glanced over his shoulder to check on David. David was preoccupied, talking to others.
William looked inside the packet again. Then he looked at Damien's face. No one was pressuring him, but he felt the peer pressure.
"Am I supposed to take it like that? William asked awkwardly. "How am I supposed to carry it?"
"Put it in your pocket," Damien replied. "Don't you have a jacket?"
"No. I didn't need one," William said. "You can hold onto it for me until the challenge ends," he continued, trying to decline but not make it look like he was declining.
"Can't do that man," Damien said. "I know some people who want some in the next round. I'll guarantee they'll be gone by then."
The packet still waved in front of William, extended towards him.
"Will just take one," Caleb urged him.
William directly looked at Damien's face. Feeling the pressure. The judgment from his stare.
He didn't even know why he was still there. There were many opportunities to decline. He could decline right now.
But he didn't. He was too curious.
Before he could overthink, William hurriedly shoved his hand in the packet and grabbed one cookie. The movement was rushed and awkward. It made Damien surprised. When the cookie was in his palm, he immediately closed his hand before stuffing it into his jeans pocket. Once again, he looked over his shoulder to check on David. David was still distracted in conversation.
"Dude, you don't need to be so on edge," Damien said with a small laugh. "It's just an edible. You're not gonna get arrested."
"I know I'm not," William replied, flustered. "It's just weird,"
Damien smirked, putting the packet back in his pocket, "This is the least weird. People have done much worse here."
William could guess what he was talking about, but he couldn't wrap his head around it.
"Thanks… I guess," William awkwardly said, shuffling his feet, wanting to leave.
"No problem," Damien replied. "Next time, you might not get a freebie. Depends how I'm feeling."
"Yeah… sure," William nervously nodded, finally turning away to go back to David.
Damien and Caleb watched him, trying to act normal as he walked away.
"How much you wanna bet he doesn't eat it?" Damien chuckled.
"Oh, he's going to eat that cookie. One hundred per cent," Caleb replied, nodded, wide-eyed. "That guy likes to drink. I know he wants to have something new."
Damien focused on William, and his smirk widened, "Heh. Good to know it isn't going to waste."
William kept trying to move normally. He knew he'd been peer-pressured into taking one. He could feel the guilt in his pocket. This was different from the Halloween party. When he took the packet of cocaine, he took it on impulse because he was drunk. This time, he took the edible fully in control of his thoughts and actions.
William slid his hand back into his pocket and felt the cookie.
"Why did I take it?"