WILL POV-

Mike watched as Will and Robin moved over to the 'Donkey-Kong' arcade cabinet; the blue-eyed girl proclaiming she was the best at retro games. Mike would have debated her, but he was watching El still play (and failing) at Pac-Man, she wasn't bad at arcade games, she just wasn't the best at 'Pac-Man' and refused to move on.

Robin hunched over the cabinet of 'Donkey-Kong' completing each stage with ease, memorising the moves on screen; she's lived in this town forever and played this game multiple times when she was merely a young child; advancing to high levels even then. Will was determined to get back at Robin for his previous loss, leaning in and whispering something funny in an attempt to get her to lose focus,

"You know when I was little, I had a crush on 'Buzz' from 'Toy Story'," he divulged a very true story about himself, wanting to get some sort of reaction and make her lose attention from the screen.

However, Robin was unfazed, chuckling at the thought but honestly, she could tell that the brunette would have had that crush. She continued playing with precision, pressing buttons and flicking the joystick to move her way around the screen. But when Will saw how good she was, asked, "Holy moly! I thought you said you didn't go to the arcade often?"

"Yeah, I don't!" she answered, taking a quick breath, repeatedly clicking the jump button, "'Donkey Kong' was my favourite as a kid!" she paused, "That and 'Mortal Combat'." she shrugged.

Will watched intently, attempting to visually memorise her moves so he could be as good next time he played; mentally stealing her move sets so he could get to her level.

Yet as she played, the rest of the party except for El and Mike who were still playing Pac-man huddled around Robin. Max placed a hand on her back, unable to hide her excitement as she cheered, "Holy shit! You got this!" she said, telling the blue-eyed girl when to jump and move despite Robin happily doing fine on her own.

Suzie joined in with the encouragement, "You're on fire girl!" trying to match the redhead's way of talking.

Dustin enthusiastically chimed in, a genuine smile spreading across his face, "You're like the queen of 'Donkey Kong'; you might even beat Mike's record!"

Amongst the shouting of cheers, Lucas placed an arm over Will with a bright grin, "Will, dude! You chose a good first girlfriend. She's passing the first test!"

"There's tests she has to pass now?" The small boy sarcastically quipped.

"Of course!" the athletic boy pondered for a mere moment, "We only need the best for our Will."

"Oh, is that right?" The brunette laughed.

Lucas nodded, pausing for a second before chiming with a whisper, "If your girlfriend was 'bitchy', Max said she was ready to throw hands with her." he chuckled.

El finally gave up on 'Pac-Man', dragging Mike with her to the rest of the party to see the source of all the commotion that she could hear while she was playing.

Will's smile broadened for multiple reasons, satisfied that his plan to fake-date Robin was working seamlessly. They all seemed to like her and get along easily; if she was a year younger, she may have fit perfectly into the party.

Mike's shoulder grazed against Will's, their elbows touching without even noticing it. A few second pass as the blue-eyed girl completed yet another stage, the ravenette struggle to hold back his bitterness, "Well, I'm still better at this game. I have the top score."

At his remark, Max rolled her eyes at the ravenette's competitive nature and chimed in, "It looks like Robin might even beat your record, Wheeler!"

The tall boy still wrestled with his emotions, feeling unable to contain his bitterness, muttering, "She won't." he said, his annoyance palpable, continuing to complain, "I will always be in the lead."

"Oh, is that so?" the redhead valiantly challenged, "It seems like she's already beating you!"

"What?" Mike rushed over, his anger flaring as that was 'his game' the one he was the best at. He couldn't hold his frustration any longer as he pushed Will aside to reach the cabinet to see for himself.

The small boy tumbled to the floor unexpectedly as Lucas and El extended their hands helping him back to his feet.

That hurt.

He couldn't resist being sarcastic, "Damn Mike, with those moves you should try for the wrestling team!"

Mike, already simmering with frustration, couldn't let the comment slide and retorted increasingly angry from his losing position on the 'Donkey Kong' leaderboard. "Whatever, let's just go back to my place, I'm getting bored out here; it's too warm." he said, stomping out the arcade without another word,

"Damn!" Dustin remarked, seeing the ravenette leave.

The group just stared at one another, exchanging glances, the commotion even making Robin lose focus and mess up, leading to a game over; if that's what Mike was aiming for, he definitely succeeded.

"Did I do something wrong? It's just I don't have a strong grasp of social skills and if I did something wrong, I'd like to know." The blue-eyed girl rambled, overexplaining her point.

"You didn't do anything." Max cut off, "He's just dramatic someone got a better score then him."

"I mean he has been trying to keep his score the highest on 'Donkey Kong'," Lucas continued the conversation.

"That's the only game he is good at." Dustin remarked in a jocular tone, yet no one laughed knowing how Mike was feeling at this particular moment in time; Max had a monopoly of high scores, only leaving a few untouched, one of those ironically being the most famous of arcade games: 'Donkey Kong'.

El was the first to provide a solution as she turned to the group, "Should I go talk to Mike?"

But before anyone could respond, Will took charge of the situation, firmly declaring, "No, I'll talk to him. I'm the one who made him angry... I'll try and apologise and stuff."

Without another word the brunette walked outside the arcade looking both ways, spotting Mike struggle to unlock his bike. He approached his friend, the tension from earlier lingering in the air.

"Mike..." Will began, "Where are you going?"

"Home! You lot can come if you want, I don't care!" He huffed in reply.

"Listen, I'm sorry what happened in there. I get why you're upset. Losing your top spot on 'Donkey Kong' like that must have sucked." the small boy really was apologetic; he knew that was one of Mike's greatest achievements, loving that title of being the best.

The tall boy looked up from his bike, his tone enraged, "Yeah, it did! But it's not just about that."

Will furrowed his brows, confused as to what Mike was saying to him, "What?"

The ravenette sighed, his fingers losing grip on the bike handles, and for a moment, the anger in his eyes softened, "You didn't even tell me about Robin... I thought we were best friends."

Will shifted uncomfortably, nervously playing with his own fingers, "We are! We are best friends!" he emphasized.

"Then why didn't you tell me?" Mike repeated.

"Yeah, I guess I should have. It's just... things got complicated. I didn't want to make a big deal of it. It's all new to me." the small boy rambled in short sentences, going along for a backstory to his fake-dating lie.

Mike scrunched his face, not seeming entirely convinced, his annoyance mounting, "I thought we told each other everything Will. I wish you would have trusted me enough to share this with me."

The small boy offered a sheepish smile, realising it was better to agree then making another excuse, "You're right. I'll be more open with you in the future... sorry."

"It's fine." the tall boy simply stated.

"So, are you going to come back into the arcade?" Will followed up immediately.

"Actually, let's just go back to my house... I don't wanna be here anymore." he scoffed, yet a bit of a hopeful glint intercepted his eyes; he was happy to know he wasn't losing his best friend.

Will nodded his head, taken aback by the request; Mike loved the arcade, perhaps he was still salty over losing his top spot, finally responding with, "Alright Mike. If that's what you want, we'll go home." he said, quickly returning to the arcade, relaying the information to the rest of his friends. The group understood his mood, agreeing to the situation.

Once outside, the party crowded Mike forming a circle, Robin and Will standing beside one another in the circle while the rest of the group were talking, laughing and chatting amongst one another.

Lucas clapped Mike on the back with a grin, "Let's continue the party back at your house."

The tall boy's irritation settled taking sight of his friends, "Yeah that's sounds good; sorry for being bitchy."

"Naa, we're used to it." Max rolled her eyes playfully, "But we still like you,"

Dustin chimed in with his usual humour, "Besides we need to keep you around for D&D night! We need our paladin,"

"Oh, is that all I'm good for?" Mike chuckled, feeling grateful for his friends being able to be patient and humorous in this moment.

Suzie, who had been tentatively listening, peaked into the conversation with a smile, "I mean you do make a good dungeon master."

"Thanks guys, so should we go now?" the tall boy smiled, looking both ways, scanning the faces of his group of friends.

Immediately, Robin gave Will a nudge and a knowing look. An indication to execute the second part of their fake-dating plan; it was time for payback. The small boy turned to her with a mischievous grin and whispered just loud enough for everyone else to hear, "You know what, Robin? I think I'd rather go back to my place with you,"

The blue-eyed girl played the part perfectly, looking surprised and delighted, "Oh Will, that's a great idea." she said with a slight chuckle grabbing his arm to seem obnoxiously in love.

Will giggled, then raising his voice so the entire group could hear him, quickly addressing them all. "Hey guys? Robin and I are actually going to go!"

"What?" Mike grew increasingly annoyed again, looking the same he did in the arcade.

"Sorry man, curfew!" the small boy mocked, committed to the act, slightly pouting with a fake apologetic look.

The tall boy's annoyance quickly escalated into anger, unable to fathom why Will would choose to leave with Robin rather than hanging out with the group; he would have never done that before. He couldn't hold back his frustration, sp with an irritated tone, said, "Come on Will!" he protested, "I thought we were all going back to my house?"

"Sorry Mike... but Robin and I just wanted to spend some time together, alone. We'll catch up later." The brunette said, his voice feigning innocence, mocking the ravenette who would usually make such excuses.

"This is bullshit." the tall boy huffed, his anger reaching its peak and he couldn't believe what he was hearing; his cheeks flushing, "You promised."

El grabbed his arm, trying to calm down her boyfriend, "Mike, let them go."

"Yeah birdbrain; don't act like you haven't used that excuse before..." Max added.

Mike clenched his fists, finally declaring, "Fine, whatever! You two go make out or whatever you plan to do."

Will, although committed to the bit, felt slightly guilty for the way he was treating Mike, offering a sheepish smile, "We'll catch up with you later, okay?"

And without waiting for a response, the small boy grabbed his bike from the rack, gesturing Robin to hop on the back. With a roar, Will said, "Bye guys!"

"Yeah, I enjoyed meeting you." Robin added, patting the brunette on the back to speed off leaving the others in bewilderment in the parking lot of the arcade.

Mike followed them with his eyes, watching the pair, seething with anger. His frustration reached its boiling point, and he couldn't help but feel abandoned by his best friend... and for what, some girl?

"That's actually such bullshit! We all know she doesn't have a curfew." the ravenette argued, not realising he made the same excuse yesterday.

"Come on Mike, they are trying to be romantic." Max added in response,

"It's gross!" The tall boy bit back.

"I didn't hear you saying that yesterday!" Lucas quipped, supporting his girlfriend,

"Whatever!" Mike huffed, crossing his arms.

"Just let them have their alone time, let's not ruin the day." El added, smiling bright, tugging on his arm with a pout,

Despite their efforts, Mike grit is teeth, his anger persistent, unable to shake the feeling of being abandoned. He knew one thing was for sure:

He did not approve of this relationship! 

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2151 Words

Stay Safe <3