Sanctuary
Struggle
" 'Struggle Tournament'?" I asked.
"Yeah, haven't you heard of it?" Hayner asked, leaning against the wall beside the small worn sofa that Pence and Olette sat on, myself sitting on the armrest.
"No," I asked, glancing at Pence and Olette. They nodded as if they already knew.
"It's a tournament where you take a bat and try to defeat your opponent!" he grinned. Sounded like his kind of game.
"Well, how do you beat them?" I asked. Hayner wasn't the best at explaining things.
"It depends. I think this year, people have been saying that the hosts will supply you with a helmet and armor that have Velcro covering them. They attach several round Velcro balls and you have to knock away your opponent's with the bat before they can detach all of yours," Pence explained. I nodded, thinking I understood well enough.
"So obviously, Hayner wants to enter again this year," Olette said, turning away from Hayner to roll her eyes. I grinned.
"Yeah, and I'm finally gonna' beat the crap out of Seifer!" Hayner cheered, posing dramatically by placing his foot on the spare armrest, hands on his hips. Pence and Olette tried to smother a laugh when I spoke up, silencing them.
"Who's Seifer?"
"… Are you kidding!" Hayner said, so shocked he almost fell backwards from his pose, only to catch himself just in time. "Seifer and his gang are-" he cut off his sentence to growl, clenching his fist. I could have sworn I saw fire flare up in his eyes.
"Seifer, Rai and Fuu are just a gang of bullies," Olette huffed, crossing her arms.
"They're tough and mean and- well, just not good company to be around," Pence laughed nervously.
"So… You want to get even with him by beating him at a game?" I asked, realizing how stupid it sounded.
"Yeah!" Hayner cried, resuming his dramatic pose. I couldn't hold back a laugh.
Somehow he was able to convince me to join with him. Oh, that's right- he informed me about the prize money.
Hayner and I agreed that (as Hayner put it) 'when' one of us won, that person would keep the trophy. The we'd split the prize money between our gang of friends. We'd each buy a train ticket so that we'd get to go to the beach and then, of course, keep what was left over.
It sounded like a good plan to me. I had never been to the beach before. I wanted to go.
I heard seven chimes which indicated seven o'clock from the clock tower - our second hangout. We didn't go there often, but when we did, I always felt a bit empty inside. Like I was forgetting something important- really important. I disregarded these feelings, considering how they went away soon after I left.
The group dispersed at seven each night, going to each of our houses. I opened my door, snatching up a snack to finish off before bed. I finished it as I walked up a set of stairs in my fairly empty house and into my crowded room. The floor was cluttered with ice cream sticks, none of which said 'Winner'. I kicked them into a pile, grabbing them all in one hand and tossing them into the small white trash can across the room. I gathered up the clothes I had piled on my bed, tucking them neatly into my closet- I hated when my room got messy. I yawned, adding my top layers of clothes to the closet.
Throwing my sheets into the air, I rolled into my bed, my blanket falling over me. I wasn't sure why, but I was incredibly tired that day. Maybe from the excitement and anticipation of the Struggle Tournament. I slept deeply that night, dreaming again of me and my 'friends'. I was startled awake by a loud, nearby scream.
"Roxas!"