Taste | Changbin

Chapter Sixteen

Lennon timidly followed behind the band. They instantly knew where to go and what to do. She watched them with curiosity. 

"Did you guys have these cards in America too?" Han's voice came from behind her. 

"The reloadable ones? Yeah. Sometimes you go places and they give you actual coins to use instead. They're usually in some of the older establishments that have decided not to upgrade their systems. I thought this place was just an arcade." 

"Really? We've always had reloadable cards for as long as I can remember. Technically, it's called an entertainment center. They have arcade games and a variety of other things. One of my favorite things to play is air hockey, I'm pretty good at it."

Lee Know and Chan stood in front of a machine talking to each other. Lennon couldn't hear them over the sound of music and talking. The arcade had just opened a few minutes ago, but people must have had the same idea. If they got there earlier, there was a chance not many people would be there. That idea backfired on everyone. 

There were a few families already scurrying around the area. Lennon had already spotted two different groups of teenagers. She stuck her hands in her sweatpants pockets. She could feel herself starting to slightly panic. The arcade was set up where you could go up to a machine and purchase a re-loadable card. You could put so many points on it and scan it at the games. Every game took a different set of points. 

Chan turned around from the machine with a stash of cards. "Okay, everyone gets a card. We'll meet at the bumper cars at one. We can play a round of bumper cars and then we can go off to eat. Does that sound good?" 

A murmur of replies responded. 

"If you run out of points on your card, you're paying to refill them. Chan and I aren't buying you any more points. Got it?" 

Han squealed in excitement from Lennon's side. He reached over and placed his hands on her shoulders and shook. Lennon squeezed her eyes shut. His thumb dug into the bruise on her shoulder. "Aren't you excited?" 

"Han, get your hands off her!" Lee Know barked. "Keep your hands to yourself!" 

"Sorry," Han instantly let go. 

Lennon's shoulders dropped in relief. She reached up and rubbed the bruise. It still ached and Han had accidentally made it worse. Lee Know held a card out in front of her. She raised an eyebrow at him. 

"Take it, it's for you." 

"Are you sure? Because I was going to buy my own card." 

Lee Know shook his head, "no need." 

"I'll pay you back on Monday." 

"Nope. No take backs. Just take it and enjoy it." 

"But I-" 

Before Lennon could say anything else, Han grabbed her hand, and pulled her away. Lee Know chuckled and spun around to find Chan. Annoyed, Lennon let Han pull her through the maze of games.  

"Where are we going?" 

"To the air hockey tables! They're in the back corner and I know anxiety when I see it. Don't worry, I struggle with anxiety too. Usually, people aren't around them because they think it's dumb. They think they're too cool for air hockey." 

While walking, she tried to glance at games in the area. The building was darkened. A variety of colorful neon lights were everywhere. They sporadically flashed on top of and around the games. Small rectangular devices glowed white on the bottom of them. A screen with a number of points appeared inside of it. All they had to do was scan their card to start the game.