SWEET DEFEAT

His father always told him never to stay in a state of defeat. Technically, when you're 'it', you're in a state of defeat. But in this case, the boy had a lot of incentive keeping the status quo.

It was easy to know where she has ran to. He just had to follow the sound of her laughter.

A moment more, and he finally caught up with her, the giggles she made turning into a pleasant sound of full waterfalls in his ears.

They weaved through trees, rocks, and bushes, most of which she gracefully evaded, while he stumbled about. A couple of times she was within reach, but he didn't tag her. That seemed counter to the whole point of the game, until one notices how her hair would swim behind her little head as she ran, encasing the wind with her scent of apples and cinnamon that tickled his noses in a lot of wonderful ways. In the many instances he was the chaser he found himself getting lost in it, consequently increasing her lead on him.

"Tag!" he said, not succumbing to her pleasant smell like he did countless of times before. The tip of his finger barely graced her back. But she knew she had been caught. And now she had to chase him.

But the momentum of their run was still there, and in that split second thought process she decided to play her card, pivot on her heals and did a quick, instantaneous turn from where she stood.

The boy hit the breaks, but wasn't able to stop the wind from pushing him towards the girl, who stood in that same smug manner, hands behind her back in an expectant gesture, a smile and a blush adorning the small features of her face, which she leaned forward as the helpless lad was pushed on to her before he could make his escape.

Their faces got closer and closer, until their noses finally touched.

She opened her eyes, and with her smile turning into a full grin, whispered to his face, "Tag!"

She bolted away laughing, and he was made to chase her again.

This time, his incentive for "defeat" just got bigger, and he secretly thanked the wind for the literal push.

The end.

One more to be added later tonight.