Josh: High-Tops and Handcuffs

I awoke to find myself sprawled out on the ground in between a pair of giant metal spikes. Talk about weird.

Not only that, but there was a black high-top sitting on my forehead.

"What the..." I muttered to myself as I sat up and held the sneaker in my hands. Where the heck did this come from?

Wait a minute... Just where was I, anyway?

I looked around to discover myself surrounded by at least a hundred similar spikes jutting out from the ground. Even weirder, lying between a couple of spikes a few feet away, was none other than Michael. Out cold.

Opportunity.

"Hey, Michael!" I called out as I threw the shoe at him. "You awake?"

"Huh?" He snapped his eyes open and sprang up suddenly, causing the sneaker to smack against his forehead. "Ouch!"

I couldn't help but smirk. A direct hit.

"W-what are you doing here, Josh?" Michael asked as he rubbed the new footprint-shaped mark on his face.

"I was just about to ask you the same question," I said, walking over to where he was and holding out my hand to help him up.

"Are we..." He said, looking around before grabbing my hand. "In Guild?"

I was about to answer when another black high-top fell out of the air just as Michael was getting up. It landed right on the top of his head, knocking him back down onto the ground.

Heh. Poor kid.

"Where did these come from?" He asked, holding up the pair of sneakers and staring at them in bewilderment.

"Lemme see 'em," I said, grabbing for the sneakers. Michael simply handed me the shoes before rubbing the top of his head, as well as his forehead. He didn't bother to get up.

Holding the shoes, I realized that they were enormous. Size 12, 13, 14-ish, at least. Yikes. The soles were worn down, as if they were heavily used. Scribbled on the left heel in silver sharpie was a giant letter T, and on the right heel a giant K.

Just then, a pair of handcuffs fell from above us and hit Michael on the head with a "thwack". He simply groaned and flopped back down on the ground.

Wait a minute... High-tops, handcuffs, two familiar silver letters... That could only mean one thing.

I looked up towards the ceiling and saw a long, wide, horizontal beam between the two walls about fifty feet above us. And standing on the beam, leaning over us, was TK, a crazy grin on his face.

"Hey, TK!" I called up to him, waving the shoes in the air. "You drop these?"

He wordlessly disappeared over the ledge of the beam. After a few seconds, a rope sailed over the edge and down towards us. TK's head suddenly reappeared over the edge said as he gave us a thumbs-up from the ledge.

"Aw, TK," I grinned as I grabbed the rope. "You're the best, man!"

"Hey, Michael," I turned behind me to find him sprawled out on the ground, groaning as he rubbed his forehead. "Need a lift?" I tossed the end of the rope to him before tying the bit I had around my waist.

Michael wordlessly fastened the rope around himself in a similar fashion before giving me a thumbs-up, the reddish-purple tones of a bruise starting to form on his forehead.

"All right, TK!" I shouted up as I grabbed his shoes and handcuffs, and gave our new lifeline a tug. "We're ready!"

Before I could fully grasp what was happening, I was being pulled upward, watching the wall zoom by me as I rose up. I glanced down at Michael, and saw that his skinny waist was slipping out of the rope. He was now tightly clutching onto the cord for dear afterlife, his knuckles turning white from the pressure.

As we just about reached the top, we were greeted by a pair of neon-socked feet dangling over the edge. Attached to them was none other than TK, sitting on the ledge. I noticed that he was pulling the rope using nothing but his own strength.

When we made it to the top, he held out both of his hands to help us up.

"Thanks, TK," I said as I grabbed his hand, and Michael did the same. "We owe you one."

He simply yanked us up, causing Michael to stumble and nearly faceplant, but TK caught him before that happened.

Too bad. That would've been pretty funny.

"So, TK," I said as I handed him his fallen accessories. "What are you doing here, anyway?"

TK laced up his shoes, and refastened his handcuffs to their rightful place on the chain around his neck. He suddenly gave us that trademark grin of his, and opened his mouth to say something. However, he was interrupted as a voice from afar called out, "Hey, TK!"

We all turned toward the sound and saw three shadowy figures standing in the doorway. One of them wielded a halberd.

I'll bet I know who that is.

"Kyle?" I waved at them. "Is that you?"

"Josh?" Kyle practically screamed as he ran up to me. Beside him were Ryan and Lucas. "What are you doing here?"

"I should ask you the same thing," I said as I ran my fingers through my hair. "TK was kind enough to rescue Michael and I from the spiky pit of death. What about you guys?"

"I believe the correct phrase is, 'Michael and me', Josh," Lucas said as he straightened his glasses. "And we are actually on our way to Guild. Would you care to join us?"

"Ha!" Michael pumped his fist in the air. "I knew it! I knew we were in Guild!"

"Don't rub it in, Mikey," I said jokingly as I gave him a noogie. "I knew it all along."

"J-J-Josh!" Michael said through chattering teeth as he struggled against my hold on him.

"...So," Ryan awkwardly cleared his throat after a few seconds of watching me torment Michael. "You guys comin'?"

I chuckled as I released my hold on Michael and let him smooth down his hair. "Count us in."