Chapter 4: A Familiar Face
Meanwhile, Adam, Emily, and Tommy were in the lobby.
"So, what do you kids want to do?" Tommy asked.
"Why don't go to the 2nd floor? I heard that they have an arcade." Emily asked.
"That's not a bad idea. Let's go." Adam said.
Adam, Emily, and Tommy walked over to the elevator. Tommy reached his arm out and pushed the button for the elevator. The doors opened and they stepped inside. The doors then closed, and Emily pushed the button for the 2nd floor. Once on the 2nd floor, they stepped out as a family of seven people walked into the elevator. Adam, Emily, and Tommy walked away from the elevators and walked around the 2nd floor until they came across the arcade, which was called LipschitzQuest.
"There's the arcade right over there!" Emily said, pointing over to it.
Tommy reached into his pocket and pulled out three green cards that they had been handed to use in the arcade. He handed two of the cards to his son and niece, while he held onto the third card. They then walked inside the arcade, which they found out had a lobby. Emily gasped upon seeing it.
"Wow, look at this place. It's huge!" Emily said in disbelief.
The lobby was a huge circular area that had a ceiling leading all the way up to the top level of the Lipschitz Cruise, allowing guests to catch a glimpse of every level of the ship. Around the perimeter of the lobby were the entrances to four 'Zones' of LipschitzQuest: Explore Zone, Score Zone, Create Zone, and Replay Zone. They decided to go into Score Zone, where they started to play the games. Adam immediately noticed the game Hero's Duty in an actual replica of the game's cabinet from Litwak's Arcade.
"Hey, look at that. It's Hero's Duty." Adam muttered in surprise.
Adam swiped his card in the reader, pushed the play button, and chose the space gun to the left. Adam began to play, and while he did, Emily played a pinball game that had a police theme to it, while Tommy stood nearby and watched them. Emily was great at launching the ball upwards, and she won points at a really fast pace. Just as Emily's last ball went down the tunnel, Adam's game on Hero's Duty ended with him losing as his chosen screen character was eaten by one of the Cy-Bugs. He then walked over to a dome game called Wheel of Fortune, and he swiped his card in the reader and pushed the Play button. The game started up as a blue light rushed all around the numbered lights. Adam placed his hand over the Stop Spinning button, hoping to land the blue light on Spin Zone, so he could spin the wheel in the middle. He hit the button right on time, and the wheel in the middle began to spin around at a fast speed. It eventually stopped as the arrow kicked in, and it landed on a triangle with the number 10,000 on it.
"YES! I DID IT! YES! YES, I WON!" Adam yelled happily.
"Yeah, I noticed. That's pretty cool!" a voice said.
Adam, Emily, and Tommy looked over to see who just spoke. It was a woman around Tommy's age with pale skin, long brown hair, and brown eyes, and she wore an orange shirt, a dark green skirt, and black high heels. Tommy saw that she looked vaguely familiar to him, and after a few seconds, his eyes grew with recognition.
"Rachel?" Tommy asked.
Rachel looked over at him, and her eyes widened.
"Tommy?" Rachel asked.
Emily frowned.
"Uh, you two know each other?" Emily asked.
Rachel nodded.
"Yes, I'm Rachel Ann Wyatt Alcroft, an old friend of his from twenty one years ago." Rachel replied.
"Oh, I see." Megan said.
Tommy was lost in thought at that point, as he had flashbacks back to the year 2014, which was when he was in middle school and went out with Rachel before she moved away. But now, here she was again, twenty one years later on his son's 12th birthday vacation.
"Rachel, how are you? What are you doing here on the ship?" Tommy asked.
Rachel smiled.
"I'm fine, thank you. I'm just here on vacation for a few days. It was really nice to run into you like this." Rachel said. She then looked at Adam and Emily, and she said "I don't believe I've ever seen you two before. What are your names?".
"I'm Adam Pickles." Adam replied. He then pointed to Emily and said "And she's Emily Pickles, my cousin.".
Rachel smiled.
"It's nice to meet you, Adam and Emily." Rachel said. She then looked back at Tommy and said "Congratulations with the new family.".
Tommy smiled.
"Thanks. Do you want to join in on our fun?" Tommy asked politely.
"That's nice of you to offer that, but I already have other plans. Still, maybe I'll see you later or something." Rachel replied.
Tommy nodded.
"So, is anyone else here with you?" Tommy asked.
Rachel nodded.
"Yes, I am. Do you remember Timmy McNulty?" Rachel asked.
Tommy nodded.
"Well, we got married and had a daughter named Denise. She wasn't that enthusiastic about coming here, but she's here... texting her friends back in the room." Rachel replied.
Emily frowned.
"That's too bad. She has no idea on what she's missing in this ship." Emily said.
"Good point there." Rachel said. She then started walking away and said "Well, I have to go. Me and Timmy are taking Denise to the eatery for breakfast. I'll see you guys later.".
"Bye, Rachel!" Adam and Emily said in unison, smiling and waving to her.
Rachel smiled, waved back, and walked out of the arcade.