Chapter 16
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
the victory lap
BLAIR
The air’s crisp, the kind of chill that tells you summer’s slipping away, making room for something quieter, something slower.
Matty’s hands are stuffed deep in the front pocket of his hoodie as the two of us cross the parking lot toward Level Up, his shoulders hunched as if he’s trying to protect himself from the cold, and for a split second, it hits me– he’s not a shifter.
I’ve gotten so used to us being together, to the rhythm we’ve fallen into, that I sometimes forget he’s human.
It’s a strange little moment of realization, and I catch myself watching him more closely as he shivers.
Shit, is he always cold like this?
He catches me looking, darting me a sideways glance and flashing a cheesy grin. I smile back, and it’s the easiest thing in the world. I just like being with him.
A revolutionary concept, I know.
The neon lights of Level Up flicker ahead, casting a warm glow against the cool night. The place hums with the promise of fun, of games and laughter, and the closer we get to the doors, the more my excitement mounts.
“Almost done with the assignment,” I remark, making casual conversation.
Matty glances over at me, his eyes reflecting the glow of the arcade lights as we walk. “Feels weird, doesn’t it? Like we’ve been doing this forever, but we’re also just getting started.”
“No kidding,” I chuckle, picking up on the double meaning behind his comment.
About how far we’ve come; from me not trusting him to the two of us building something real.
Something solid. “We’ve done a good job of balancing things lately, though.
Work and life, I mean. We both used to be workaholics, but now it’s like we’re almost normal, huh? ”
Matty snorts a laugh. “Normal? I wouldn’t go that far. I’ve seen how you play Pac-Man, and no normal person can clear level 3 without dying.”
I give him a playful shove, my lips curving into a smirk. “You’re just jealous. You’ll catch up, eventually.”
Matty rolls his eyes, but that playful grin remains stretched across his lips.
I don’t think either of us expected things to feel this peaceful after what we’ve been through– him with the Guild, me with Dylan.
The grief, the bouts of insomnia, the shower meltdowns…
okay, that last one might just be me. But lately, it’s been different.
We’ve started to put the past behind us, to start looking to the future and actually making an effort at moving forward.
It feels like we’re living, instead of just surviving.
“So, what’s next for you?” I ask, the question slipping out before I can overthink it. “When this whole taskforce thing is done, I mean.”
Matty doesn’t immediately answer, his gaze shifting to the asphalt in front of us as if the ground holds some kind of answer.
He kicks a pebble with his foot, sending it skittering away into the darkness.
“I don’t know. I’ve thought about going to college, but it’s not.
.. it’s not really what I want anymore.”
“Yeah?” I ask, my pulse kicking up a notch. “What made you change your mind?”
“I guess I started thinking about what I actually want to do. Not what I should do, but what’s gonna make me happy.
” He pauses, glancing at me. “There’s you, of course.
But also… I’ve always been good with tech, right?
So, I’m thinking about taking some online courses to build on that.
Maybe Lo will hire me full-time to work in the IT hub. I don’t know. It just feels right.”
I feel a quiet relief settle over me as I nod along with his response.
I never really considered that Matty might leave until Cam said something about it the other day, and since then, it’s all I’ve been thinking about.
But hearing him talk about sticking around, about building a future here with something that makes him happy. ..
“I’m glad,” I say.
Matty looks over at me, lips curving into a slow smile. “Yeah? I wasn’t sure you’d want me to.”
“Shut up,” I laugh, giving him a playful shove.
He stops walking for a second, his hand brushing my arm in this small, quiet gesture.
He doesn’t say anything, but I can feel the weight of his gaze on me as if he’s measuring my sincerity.
I meet his eyes and there’s this moment– this quiet understanding between us that says everything we need to say without uttering a word.
Finally, he nods. “Then I’ll stay.”
The words feel like a promise, and I hold onto them as we continue walking, approaching the entrance. Matty ducks in front of me to grab the door handle before I reach for it, pulling it wide like a perfect gentleman and gesturing for me to go in ahead of him.
When we step inside Level Up, and the noise hits us immediately– people laughing, the whir of arcade machines, and the occasional clink of tokens being dropped into slots.
It’s this odd little sanctuary, a place where time seems to slow down and the weight of everything else doesn’t matter. I love it here.
It also holds a special place in my heart because it’s ours, mine and Matty’s. This is where we had our first date. We’ve had so many here since that we’re practically regulars.
We grab drinks and tokens from the bar, then start our usual routine– wandering around looking for something to play, suggesting different games to each other before winding up at the Pac-Man table anyways. He’s been trying to get better, but I’m still the reigning champ.
I slide the tokens in the slot, and the second the game starts, I’m in my element, eyes glued to the screen as I dodge ghosts and eat pellets. Matty curses under his breath as he tries to beat me to a piece of fruit, but he never quite makes it.
I lean back with a satisfied grin on my face as he fumes. “Told you. One of these days, you’ll catch up.”
“Yeah, well, you better watch out,” he mutters, swiping at his hair in frustration. “Next round’s mine.”
I laugh, shaking my head as he plugs in another token. I kick his butt in the next two rounds, then we step away from the Pac-Man machine to move onto something else, wandering aimlessly around the barcade in search of our next place to land.
“We need to pick something I can beat you at,” Matty grumbles, though the corners of his mouth twitch like he’s trying not to smile.
“Maybe I’m just naturally better at everything than you,” I tease, winking at him.
He snorts a laugh. “Wow, modest and deadly. What a combo.”
“It’s part of my charm,” I snicker, nudging him with my shoulder as we drift back toward the bar. “You’re lucky to be in my orbit, Isaac Matthews.”
“Oh, is that what we’re calling it now?” he asks, eyebrows raised.
“What would you call it?”
He pretends to think for a moment, then says, “A gravitational pull toward chaos and poor decisions.”
I gasp, pressing a palm to my chest and feigning offense. “Excuse you. I’m at least sixty percent good decisions.”
“You did decide to date me, so I guess I’ll give you that one,” he drawls, winking.
“Keep talking, Matthews, and I’m gonna destroy you at air hockey next.”
“Oh, bring it. But just so you know, when I win, I’m taking a victory lap around this place. Possibly shirtless.”
I sink my teeth into my lower lip, batting my lashes. “Ooh, don’t tempt me with a good time.”
He actually does manage to kick my ass in air hockey, then we move onto more games, laughing and teasing. We’re so damn comfortable with one another now, so sickeningly in sync. We’ve become one of those couples I used to make fun of, but honestly, I don’t even care. I’m just… happy.
We’re halfway through a ridiculous co-op zombie shooting game when Matty decides to abandon strategy altogether.
“Cover me,” he yells, charging straight into a horde with reckless abandon.
“Why would I do that?” I ask, calmly taking out enemies from the edge of the screen. “You're the one running around like you’ve got a death wish.”
“Because we’re partners. In love and in zombie warfare.”
“Oh my god,” I mutter, but I’m laughing as I toss a virtual grenade just in time to clear a path for him. “I can’t believe I’m spending my Friday night saving your pixelated ass.”
He grins over at me, not even looking at the screen. “You love it.”
“What, rescuing you constantly?” I snort, picking off a zombie that’s headed straight for him.
“No, being here. With me.”
I glance over at him, the warm glow of the screen lighting up his face, softening the sharp line of his jaw. “Maybe a little,” I tease, a smirk curling my lips.
“A little?” he scoffs, pretending to be wounded. “I took you to our spot, let you beat me at Pac-Man.”
“You also just ran into a corner and got eaten by a zombie,” I point out, nodding at the screen where his character is dramatically pixelated and dead. “So I don’t know if I can trust your decision-making.”
He shrugs, grinning like an idiot. “Maybe I just wanted to watch you save the world solo. It’s kinda hot.”
I roll my eyes, heat creeping up my neck anyway. “You’re the worst. And also, you never let me beat you.”
I throw my head back on a dramatic groan as a zombie finally gets me, throwing a middle finger at the screen when ‘Game Over’ flashes across it.
“You know,” Matty drawls, watching my reaction with amusement, “For someone who lives in a swirling vortex of laundry and empty coffee cups, you’re surprisingly competitive about order in video games.”
I shoot him a look, one eyebrow raised. “Excuse you, my mess is strategic.”
“Oh yeah?” He crosses his arms, the smug look on his face daring me to back that up.
I smile back at him sweetly, flipping my hair over a shoulder. “Absolutely. I like to keep my environment as unpredictable as my personality.”
Matty laughs, low and warm. “Mission accomplished.”
I swat him with the back of my hand, and he catches it, tugging me a little closer. There’s something sweet about the way he doesn’t let go right away, his fingers lacing with mine without really thinking about it.
“Wanna hit the photo booth?” I ask, nodding toward the corner where it’s glowing with cheap neon charm.
Matty doesn’t answer– just grabs my hand and tugs me in that direction with a grin that already tells me I’m in trouble. We squeeze into the little booth, shoulder to shoulder, and yank the curtain closed behind us.
As soon as the countdown starts, he leans in with that ridiculous, heart-melting grin of his, looking every bit the charming bastard while I’m mid-silly-face.
The camera flashes again and again, capturing a blur of crooked smiles, kissy faces, and one particularly dramatic pose where I pretend to swoon in his arms.
When the strip of photos slides out, I grab it first, laughing as I look it over. He looks way too pretty next to me pulling silly faces, the two of us ridiculously mismatched.
“Here,” I say, handing it over to him with a smirk. “Maybe instead of posters, you should get a pin board for your wall. Put up photos, mementos… stuff that makes it feel more like home.”
“Well you’ve been staying over a lot, and having you there makes it homier,” he murmurs, tucking the photo carefully into his hoodie pocket like it’s something fragile.
I smile, shrugging one shoulder. “Yeah, well. We’ve already established that your room’s cleaner. Fewer death traps.”
He laughs. “I think your room has its own weather system.”
I roll my eyes. “There’s beauty in chaos, you know.”
“Oh, I know,” he says, a lazy grin spreading across his face. “Honestly, the mess doesn’t really bother me. It’s just gonna be a trip someday when we move in together.”
My heart skips a beat.
It’s not the first time the thought’s crossed my mind, but it’s the first time he’s said it out loud.
And now that it’s out there, hanging between us in the arcade’s buzzing light and warm air, I realize I’ve kind of already assumed it– counted on it, even.
I’ve slipped so easily into this life with him, falling asleep beside him, stealing his hoodies, teasing him about his obnoxiously organized bookshelf.
Somewhere along the way, I stopped wondering whether he’d stay
“I think,” I say slowly, “that living with you would mean I’d never lose another charger again.”
“That’s optimistic,” he laughs. “But hey, you’d never run out of coffee.”
I smirk. “Tempting offer.”
His hand finds mine, fingers curling between my own with an easy sort of certainty, like we’ve done it a thousand times and will do it a thousand more. He pivots so he’s facing me more fully, the overhead lights shining in his pretty blue eyes.
“I’m glad we found each other, Blair,” he says, his voice low and sincere. “No matter how weird or complicated it was. I’d do it all again.”
I swallow around the lump in my throat. “Yeah,” I murmur. “Me too. I never thought this would happen, but... now that it has?” I glance up at him, a soft smile curving my lips. “I wouldn’t change a thing.”
He leans in, and the kiss is soft– deeper than a peck but slower than a full-on make-out. It’s the kind of kiss that hums with something steady and real, the kind that makes you forget about the sounds and lights around you. Just for a second, it’s quiet. Just him. Just us.
When we finally pull apart, I’m breathless in the best way.
The future’s still waiting, but it doesn’t feel like pressure anymore. Just a path we’ll figure out together.
For the first time in a long time, I’m not running.
I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be.