It Never Ends.

I watched the random people walk by and heard many noises bounce off of the walls and into my ears. There were sounds of victory, sounds of loss, and many voices shouting, "Die!" at the screen in front of them. Yes, you guessed it, I was at an old arcade.

I was sitting at a small, gum-infested table in the corner of the large arcade. It was technically the arcade's "cafe", but it was more like an area where all of the people lucky enough to have significant others told their boyfriends or girlfriends to wait while they lost themselves in the brain rotting video games they held so dear.

But for me, I was not a significant other. I did not have a boyfriend or girlfriend wasting their life away on some stupid machine that took their money. No, I was far less lucky. I was here with my parents, the biggest "gamers" I know.

Now, I know what you're most likely thinking. Why was I here if I didn't want to be? I mean, I am a responsible eighteen year old male with a drivers licence. So, why didn't I just leave? Well, I have an answer to that question. My parents were always disappointed with the fact that I didn't like video games. When I was young enough for Halloween, they'd always dress me up like Link from Zelda, their favorite game. They even named me Lincoln, just so they could nickname me Link.

So, they bring me to arcades whenever possible, hoping that I'd find a game that I found interesting and start playing it. They always want me to be into video games as much as they are, but I just don't find them to be very entertaining. My parents tell me that I at least have to stay in the arcade until they're done, or else I'll get my car taken away for a while. Such great parents, huh?

I continued looking around at all of the people at their preferred arcade games. There were many males, their ages probably ranging from thirteen to sixty-five. There weren't as many females, but there was still a high number of them. Most were tomboys or nerds, and their ages probably ranged from thirteen to maybe thirty-eight.

I took a sip of my coffee that I got from the little coffee shop over here in the cafe and almost gagged. Man, arcade coffee sucks. It was already cold. I'd kill for Starbucks right about now...

I sighed and stood up. I walked all the way across the arcade to the only trash can strategically placed right by the door. That way, you'd have to walk through the entire arcade in order to throw something from the cafe away. Not too bad of a plan, I must say. It made people see every game the arcade had and the owner's hopes were that one of the games would catch someone's eye.

Well, too bad for them that I didn't even want to be here.

I started walking back to my table, when I heard a screech of victory that came from none other than my own mother. I cringed and ducked my head, though no one would know we were related until we all left together.

I found out shortly that looking at the ground wasn't the best idea, because I suddenly collided with someone else. I heard a soft, "Oomph," and looked up just in time to see them fall to the ground.

"Oh, hey, I'm sorry." I held out my hand to a boy who looked to be around my age. He had really pretty brown eyes and was very thin. He took my hand lightly and I helped him up. He was actually kinda... cute.

I scratched the back of my head and let go of his hand. "Hey. Sorry for knocking you over; I wasn't watching where I was going. I'm Lincoln by the way, but I go by Link." I held out my hand for him to shake. He took it hesitantly.

"I'm Zeke." He said softly. I let go of his hand after I realized that I had been holding it for quite some time and tried to hide my slight blush.

"Well, uh, I'll let you get back to whatever you were doing. It was nice meeting you, Zeke." I said quickly. No one had ever made me feel like this before. Sure, I'd had crushes before, but never like this. I'd known for a while that I liked boys far more than I liked girls, but I'd never felt like this around a guy. Zeke made me feel... giddy.

"Bye." He said quietly before stalking away. I watched his retreating figure and then went back to my little table. I realized that my eyes would constantly drift back over to Zeke, wherever he was in the building. He looked like he was concentrating very hard on whatever game he was playing at the moment and it made him look almost hot.

My parents approached me about half an hour later, telling me that we could go now. I was grateful, but also a bit saddened at the thought of leaving Zeke. Who knows when I'd see him again? I sighed and looked at him one last time.

But this time, he met my gaze. I smiled a bit at him and, to my surprise, he smiled a small smile back. I lifted my hand and waved goodbye, and he did the same. Then, I left with his cute little smile etched into my brain.

Why was I so hung up on a boy I just met in an arcade? I shook my head and got into the car.

"So, sweetie, did you have a good time?" My mother asked as we started driving away. I met her eyes in the rear view mirror.

"You could say that." I looked out of the window and thought again of Zeke. I smiled slightly. I hoped we would meet again sometime soon. I felt in my heart that we would and I smiled a bit wider.

I couldn't wait.