Chapter 425 - Day MDCCCXLIX, Part III

- Now it's my turn - she said, after finishing the first pizza slice. - How strong are you? I mean, compared to others from behind the portal.

- Not to brag - I replied after finishing mine - but I'm the strongest.

- You don't look that strong to me  - she said and reached for another piece.

- I don't care. My turn now. Two plus two multiplied by two?

- What? - she asked with a full mouth.

- Answer the question!

- Eight, and that's not how you play the game.

- Ha! Wrong! You lost!

- What? It's correct, and that's not how you play the game! - she shouted at me, almost spitting the half-chewed pizza. 

- It's six. You have to multiply first and then add, you dummy.

- What? Ok, maybe I was wrong, but who cares? This is not how you play the game, and we both know you wanted to play, just so I would tell you about my parents, and why I'm homeless.

- Ok. If you insist, you might tell me that.

She snorted.

- You are so stupid... My mom is dead if you have to know. And my dad is an asshole, who tried to sell me to his stupid friends as a whore, so I ran. Happy now?

- Nope. Still no. Why didn't you go to the authorities? And why the hell didn't the police still caught you?

- It's my turn now - she showed me her middle finger.

I rolled my eyes, and grabbed another pizza slice, to shove it in my mouth.

- I take the dare! Take me to the other side of the portal.

- Ok.

- Really?! - she stood from her void chair, completely taken aback.

- Yeah - I said and dropped one of my anchors on the roof, then I stood up.

- You are lying. You won't take me - she said and sat back down.

- No. I will - I said, and shadow walked to grab her by the shoulder, and then shadow walked again to my room in the barracks. - And here we are.

Since it was super early, the sun was barely peeking over the horizon in Ark, which led to only a bit of light outside. Enough to see the silhouettes of the buildings.

- What the fuck?! - she yelled, spun on her hill escaping my grasp, and then run to the window. - Where the hell are we?! Where did you take me?!

She turned to face me, leaning over at the window. She was scared.

I shadow walked closer to her and grabbed her again before she could react. We ended up on the cobblestone alley, and she finally could see the city.

- We are where you wanted to be. I took you behind the portal.

- Holy shit! We really are here... - she turned slowly around, with her mouth wide open, and slightly curved in a smile of awe.

- Yep we are. And now...

I didn't even finish the sentence. Instead, I grabbed her again, and shadow walked back to the roof.

- What the hell?! - she yelled again. - Why did you do that?!

- What did I do? You wanted to be taken behind the portal, so I did. I fulfilled my mission.

- Fuck you!

- You are too young for that - I said to her and went back to sit on my throne.

She got speechless. She stomped with her leg two times, growled at me, and eventually just sat back on the void chair.

- I think it's my turn now - I stated.

- I'm not talking with you - she responded while grabbing another slice of pizza.

She would probably leave me already if not for the food. I really pissed her off.

- Why not? Because I found a hole in your little dare? I did what you asked me to do, didn't I? There was nothing about not taking you back. So... You want to keep playing or not?

- Fine! Let's play.

She straightened herself on the chair. I knew exactly what she is gonna try to get on her turn.

- I pick dare. I want you to turn yourself in, to the authorities.

- Fuck you! I'm not doing that.

- Then I'm not taking you behind the portal anymore. Do you still want to play, or not?

She squinted her eyes, as her lips twitched a lot, as she probably went to many insults in her head, but in the end, she didn't call me any names.

- Fine.

- Truth. How did your mother die?

- She drunk herself to death. She was an alcoholic.

- Dare. Give me a hundred dollars.

I grabbed a bit from the void and gave it to her. She actually didn't expect me to do that completely casually.

- Dare. Tell me your life story.

She sighed and grabbed another slice of pizza, and started talking while nibbling on the food.

She was an only child in a poor and dysfunctional family. Both her father and mother were heavy drinkers, but somehow they managed to function well enough to not get their child taken from them.

Her father always hated her, since he didn't really want to have a kid. Accidents happen though, and condoms break, so she was born. Thanks to her mother she lived for fifteen years, attended school, and everything. Everything hanged after her death.

I knew the rest of the story, except the fact that she was on her own only for a month.

- Dare. Give me a thousand dollars.

I sighed, and pulled the cash from the vault, then gave it to her, as her eyes got wide. She really thought I would say no.

- You are loaded, arent you? - she asked.

- No, and since you did both dares and asked the question, I have a double turn now.

- That's... Argh!

I laughed shortly, then asked:

- What's your name? I never got it from you...

- Tihana.

- That's... A name. Yep, a name...

- Fuck you.

- I told you already. You are too young for this stuff. Ask me in few years, then we can talk.

- Your jokes are not funny.

- For me they are - I argued with a big smile on my face.

The game continued throughout the whole night. She tried to get more money from me, but I just kept asking her to return it, so we came to a conclusion, that she will end up having that eleven hundred she got in the first place. This led to her trying to get to know me better, and I did tell her few things. All the shit that happened in the beginning, as I landed in Ark.

I on the other hand started asking her about simple stuff, like her favorite food, or color. The music she liked, and what she wanted to be as an adult. First, she said she didn't have any dreams, but then she said she actually wanted to be a movie director.

It was kinda funny since she didn't know that many movies.