Chapter 2 No.2

"No, wait, " Mike snapped. "That's wrong!"

"How's it wrong?" Bootsy howled.

"That chair's blue, so you can't grab the blue book."

"No, " James mediated. "That chair's purple, so he got the right piece."

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Mike lamented. "It looks blue to me."

"Look, just keep playing. It's my turn, " James said. He drew a white mouse leaning against a red book, so Mike went for the ghost piece. "See? Isn't it fun? Don't you guys like playing a game?"

Mike and Bootsy traded a tiresome look. "This game sucks, James, " Mike said.

"Yeah, " Bootsy agreed. "Let's play something else."

Frowning a monstrous glare, James's expression instilled fear in the hearts of the men surrounding the game. They looked from him to each other, their faces pallid, and slowly made to get up.

"No one leaves until the game is finished, " James admonished. "That's the rule. That's always been the rule...we can't leave a game unfinished...right, " he asked slowly, carefully.

"Uh, yeah, " Bootsy stammered. "Wha-whatever you say, James."

"Yeah, we don't want any trouble, " Mike agreed.

Chapter Two

It was a beautiful, two story house in Philly. Allen stood with his fists on his hips, taking in the sight of white walls, the oaks growing up on either side of the home, the green yard. He turned to look at his new bride, a petite blonde with a round ass.

"I think this is the one, Sharon, " he said.

Smiling, she looked back at him, her new husband; the horror writer. He was nerdy, but he was a good guy, and always upbeat and excitable.

"Let's wait for the realtor and get a look inside before we make a choice, " Sharon replied. "We just moved here, and I still need to find a job, plus we probably want to be close to a school...right?"

"Oh, yeah...right, but hey, don't worry about the job just yet; something will turn up, and my latest release is bringing in plenty."

"Well, hello, you two!" a cheery voice called. The newly weds turned around to see Gabby, their realtor. Having pulled up in her Prius, they hadn't heard her approach. The woman, an aging brunette with a plump figure, grinned. "Well, good morning, folks."

"Hey, great to see you, " they said to her.

"So, you found this place all right, " Gabby asked.

A gust of wind brought with it the fall of yellow, orange, and brown leaves. Gabby tugged at her blazer while Allen pushed his hair back.

"Wasn't too hard, " Sharon said. "Show us inside? This one's about to wet himself...."

"I just think it's neat, " Allen chuckled.

Gabby marched up to the door, unlocked it, and motioned them inside. The interior was spacious with soft carpeting. Stairs led up to the second floor. During the modest tour, Allen found himself instantly swarmed by childhood memories.

"I can remember playing games with friends, " he said. The two women looked at him. "This house, it...it just brings up great memories. I had this friend, who loved board games so much, he used to make up his own, and then forced us to play them, " he chuckled.

"You never told me that, " Sharon looked a bit shaken up, but then she smiled.

He smiled back, "Oh, yeah...well...you know, I, uh–"

"You didn't keep in touch with any of those guys?"

Allen furrowed his brow in wonder. He recalled flashes and images of young boys sitting on the hard, basement floor. They surrounded boxes of games, game pieces; he recalled the echoing clamor of dice striking the ground. Lost in the image, blurred faces passed him by.

"I said, you don't talk to them anymore, " she asked, again.

"Huh? Oh, no. I think something happened; someone moved away or something, and then there was high school, when I met you, so, you know, I was pretty much smitten by then."

"You two are so cute, " Gabby interrupted. "I think you'll really like it here. It's a great city, and this is a great neighborhood."

"I'm surprised this house is even for sale, " Sharon remarked.

"Truthfully, so am I, " Gabby said. "It's been on the market for, oh, almost twenty years."

"How come it's so hard to sell, " Sharon asked.

As the girls gabbed, Allen walked off to the kitchen. The women followed behind, but he was oblivious to their presence; something about the house had lulled him into a state of mental distress. He was unable to recall what did happen to his school chums.

"I can't even remember their names, " he whispered to himself.

"What's that, " Sharon touched his arm.

He looked back to her. "Nothing, " he said and took a breath, scrutinizing the room. "Everything looks good to me, " he mumbled.

"I think I like it, too, " she nodded.

"Well, if everything's to your liking, we can pull out the paperwork, " Gabby said.