The Gamer's Guide to Getting the Girl Read online

  I want to get a part-time job, but my parents don’t really want me to. They’re super focused on my grades and on my getting into whatever university program I want. I’m not clear yet on my path, but my grades are pretty good and chances are when the time comes, I’ll be able to apply for medicine, dentistry — whatever I want. My dad is hoping I’ll eventually go to med school. Certain things fascinate me about medicine, especially the finely tuned aspects of surgery, but I’m not sure I want to spend all the gruelling hours required to become a surgeon, not to mention do the work itself.

  Cooper’s parents are both lawyers, and they’ve been grooming him for law school since he was about four years old. I don’t think he’s ever contemplated anything else for his career. He doesn’t have a job either; his parents are also hyper-focused on his grades. Luckily, school comes pretty easily to both of us.

  – – Storm’s getting bad. We’ll pick you up. [6:15 p.m.]

  It’s Cooper’s dad. Cooper texts back.

  – – Zach is here too, can’t get to my car, water main break. [6:16 p.m.]

  – – We’ll take him home. Reservations are for 7. Be ready. South doors. [6:16 p.m.]

  “They’re coming?”

  “Yup. We gotta go down to the south doors.”

  We step back from the crowd and then turn quickly to shuffle past them and head for the south side of the mall. We go as fast as we can so George doesn’t spot us, but no one seems to pay us any attention. George is too busy between talking on his radio and trying to calm the crowd around him.

  We don’t encounter anyone on our way. It’s eerie to be in this darkened building and not see anyone.

  “Oh my God, look at it outside …” I can’t believe my eyes. The rain is coming down so hard that you can’t even see the sidewalk ten feet away. The newer spindly trees planted around the perimeter of the mall are bent almost completely sideways from the wind. The busy road that surrounds the mall could be deserted for all we know because we can’t see behind the curtain of grey that masks the world outside.

  “That’s insane!” Cooper says, wide-eyed.

  “Wow,” I whisper. I push on the door to step outside, but it’s locked. “What?!” I push harder. It’s sealed tight.

  “Do you need some help?” Cooper teases. He lines up beside me and gives the door a good shove. It doesn’t budge. “Are you kidding me? We’re locked in?!”

  It doesn’t seem possible. We both stand there, stunned. Then Cooper points. “It looks like there’s a stairwell here!” A big grey metal door marked “mall staff only” is tucked into a small corridor. “I’m taking the stairs.” He flings open the door and starts down the stairs. I’m frozen on the spot. It says it’s for staff only. I don’t want to get in trouble.

  “You coming or what?” Cooper calls up to me from the first landing just before the door swings shut.

  If we can just get downstairs and get to the car, we can get out of here right away and none of our parents would need to come. He’s right; it’s the best option. I take a deep breath and follow him. Hopefully this staircase will lead to the underground parking lot.

  We turn to go down the final flight and freeze in our tracks.

  “Uh, I don’t think we should go down there,” I stammer. Water is rushing into the stairwell from underneath the metal door at the bottom. The water is rising and has already covered the bottom stair.

  “What is going on?!” Cooper moves down closer. “Help me open this door.”

  “Is this a good idea?” I ask. “Maybe we should just go back and wait with the others.”

  “Okay, you sissy, and then maybe we’ll be here all night. C’mon, I’m sure we’ll get through here.”

  We have to step right into the water in order to pry open the door. I look down at my shoes and start to kick them off.

  “Are you kidding me?” Cooper says, shaking his head.

  “At least let me roll up my jeans then,” I say. He laughs and waits for me to roll up my jeans. We step into the water. It’s icy cold.

  Right away the water feels like daggers on my feet and shins. “Could this water be any colder?”

  “Will you just help me get this open?” Cooper says. He’s tugging on the door without much success.

  I grab the top part of the handle while he takes the bottom and we pull as hard as we can. It starts to give, a gush of water rushes in, and then the door sucks back to a closed position before we can get around it.

  “On three,” I say. We count and try again and more water rushes through. Now the second stair is covered and the water is up well past our ankles.

  “Where is all of this water coming from?” I say.

  We’re both panting from pulling so hard.

  “Once more?” Cooper asks and I nod.

  This time, we pry the door open enough for Cooper to get his shoulder through before the door starts to pull closed again.

  “Zach!” he cries out. I pull as hard as I can, my whole body bent back toward the stairs.

  “I don’t want you to get crushed!” I say, pulling. My heart is racing.

  “I’m in. C’mon!” He slips around the door and digs his feet into the ground to push the door open with his back. Water continues to pour in.

  I make it around the door just as Cooper loses his footing and the door slams shut behind us.

  “Whew — that was close!” I pant. But nothing could have prepared me for what’s next. The entire underground parking lot is flooded. Icy water laps at our kneecaps. It’s about a foot high, and the tires of all the cars are half-submerged. There’s no way anyone will be leaving in their car.

  “Zach!” Cooper yells, pointing to the other side of the lot.

  Cars are floating at the far end. Literally bouncing on the water and tapping into each other like bumper cars.

  “This is not good,” I say softly.

  “We have to go back upstairs,” Cooper says. “We can tell them what we’ve seen.”

  “A water main break can do all of this?” I wonder.

  “Well, look, it’s raining like crazy, too …”

  It’s been raining all day. It just seems so strange to me that cars are actually floating.

  “I hope we can get that door open again.” We use all of our might and the door comes open enough for both of us to shove our way through before it slams shut again.

  We run up the stairs, splattering water everywhere. The rubber on our wet shoes makes loud, squeaky sounds and water squirts out of them like sponges being squeezed with every step.

  The mall is still dark. Cooper’s phone dings with a text.

  – – We can’t get there. The bridge has been washed out! We’ll try going around the city. [6:45 p.m.]

  Coop shows me his phone as he types.

  – – What?? [6:45 p.m.]

  – – There’s flooding. It washed out the bridge. [6:46 p.m.]

  It doesn’t seem possible. I mean, we knew there were going to be thunderstorms today, but no one expected flooding. Gateway Bridge is the main access point to this mall since it’s one of the first buildings in a new commercial development. There’s a grid road nearby that takes you out to one of the main highways, but it’ll take a lot of time to get around the city and link up to it.

  “So, now what? We’re stuck?!” The two of us just stare at each other.

  “Stuck in the mall?” Cooper says. “I suppose there are worse things.”

  “Well, it’d be better with lights on,” I say. “Might as well go back to the group.”

  We trudge back to the group. By now, many people are sitting on the ground. Some are pacing. The energy in the crowd is heightened, but not in a good way. Everyone looks agitated and anxious.

  “Do you know what’s going on down there?” Cooper calls out to George, who’s still standing watch. “It’s completely flooded, with at least a foot of water. No one’s going home by car today.”

  The man in the business suit runs up to George and lines up with hi
m nose-to-nose. “If that’s true, it looks like you’re going to have a car to pay for,” he spits.

  “Sir, I need you to take a step back and wait patiently while this is sorted out.” George is calm and unruffled by the man in the suit, who turns and stomps over to us.

  “How do you know this?” he demands.

  “We found another stairwell. We saw it for ourselves,” Cooper says.

  “Take me there,” the man says.

  “I don’t think it’s a good idea,” I say. “We could barely get through there with all the water. It’s rushing in pretty quickly.”

  “Water is rushing in? What do you mean?” a woman asks. The group buzzes with comments and questions.

  “I don’t think it’s just a water main break,” Cooper says. “I mean, look at it outside. And my parents texted; they said that there’s flooding and the bridge has been washed out.”

  “He’s right,” a middle-aged woman says. “It’s breaking news.” She holds up her phone to confirm it. Others start scrolling through their phones to read up on what’s happening outside. Soon, most of the faces are lit up by the blue screens.

  Gasps and a few cries of terror make the hair on my arms stand up. Suddenly I feel like the welfare of all of these people might be at stake, and the idea of harm coming to any of them makes me sick. As if on cue, the baby in the stroller starts to cry. It starts as a soft mew, but then it builds until it’s a full-blown wail. The mother picks up the baby and tries rocking him, but nothing quiets him.

  “He’s hungry,” she says. “I’m still nursing but he’s been on solids for a while now and I didn’t bring any extra food. I figured we’d be home long ago.”

  “Does anyone have any food they can give the baby?” George calls out to the crowd.

  People rummage in their bags. Except for a ripe banana in the elderly woman’s purse, there’s nothing in the assortment of snacks they produce that the baby can eat. George takes the banana and makes a motion to throw it to me so that I can give it to her. I hold out my hands and hope for the best. I don’t want to be responsible for starving this baby. The banana sails right into my outstretched hands and I pass it over to the woman.

  “Thank you!” the mother says gratefully. I hold the stroller in place while she sets down the writhing, angry child. His face is almost purple from crying. He does not want to sit in his stroller. “Do you mind?” the woman asks as she peels the banana.

  “What? You want me to hold him?” My eyes pop wide.

  “Just for a sec?” she asks.

  I do not want to be responsible for an injured baby and, truth be told, I don’t have a clue how to hold a baby or what to do. I’m not sure this woman has thought things through. I scoop him up awkwardly and he stops crying for a moment to study me.

  “You’re just as surprised as I am, aren’t you, little guy?” I talk to him. He blinks, his gaze never moving from my face. At least he isn’t screaming at me.

  “Who’s got you? Who’s got you now?” I say in a high voice I reserve for baby animals, and now, apparently, human babies. He coos at me for a moment and then breaks into a smile.

  “You’re a natural,” comes a pretty voice. I look to my right and there she is. The goddess gamer. I tense up so tight I fear I’ll drop the baby. She is casually scrolling through her phone.

  “I have no idea what I’m doing,” I admit. But for some reason, the baby keeps cooing and smiling at me.

  “He seems to think you do,” the girl says. The light illuminating her face allows me to see her perfectly aligned teeth. I want to keep making her smile just so I can see them over and over again.

  “Thanks for making me look good!” I want to whisper to the kid. “You didn’t make it out of the mall, eh?” I ask her.

  “My car is downstairs. I guess according to you guys, it’s more of a boat now?”

  Cooper steps in. “Hi, I’m Cooper,” he says, holding out his hand.

  “Sam. Well, Samara,” the girl says shaking his hand. I watch as their hands touch and I feel my stomach knot. How come he got to touch her and I’m stuck holding the baby?

  The mother holds out a tiny piece of banana for the baby. I see that he has cute little baby teeth. He chomps down on the banana eagerly, drool cascading down his chin.

  “Do you mind holding him while he eats?” the mother asks. “It’s just you’re so good with Ira, aren’t you? You like him, don’t you, Ira?” The mother’s voice is melodic and soft and it makes Ira beam at her.

  “Hi, Ira,” I say. “I’m Zach.”

  “Thank you so much, Zach. I’m Valerie. I really appreciate your help. This is the last place I thought I’d be right now.”

  “No problem,” I say gently. Ira is pretty cute, but he doesn’t hold a candle to Samara, who’s talking with Cooper. As much as I love my best friend, I don’t want him to get to know Samara before I do.

  TIP #3

  Be a leader, not a follower

  “Attention, everyone!” George yells. “I’ve got an update.” Everybody stops talking and looks up at him expectantly. He clears his throat.

  “The city is now experiencing flash flooding in some areas. We’ve got a pretty intense storm over us at the moment. I’m told that access to the underground lot is strictly denied. In fact, all entrances are being locked for the foreseeable future as it is unsafe to venture out of the building at this time.”

  “What about the bridge?” someone asks.

  “It seems that the boys were right,” he says, making eye contact with Cooper and me. “The bridge has been washed out due to flash flooding. They’re saying that the only access point to this whole area is the grid road that heads north of the city. We’re working on getting some power back on and stabilizing the facility for our safety.”

  The crowd grows loud as the information is digested.

  “It’s okay, Ira,” Valerie soothes her son. “We’re going to be just fine.” She reaches out for Ira and I pass him over as gently as I can.

  “Thanks again, Zach,” she pats my arm. “I really appreciate it.”

  “Any time, right, little man?” I say to Ira. He smiles.

  Now that my arms are free, I want to be beside Samara. She and Cooper are talking about something, and she throws her head back in laughter. I feel my stomach sink.

  “Zach! Done babysitting?” Cooper asks.

  “A man’s gotta do what a man’s gotta do,” I say. “I’d say I saved the day there.”

  “Maybe we should call you the baby whisperer,” Cooper jokes.

  Samara smiles and touches me on the arm. “I thought it was very good of you to do that,” she says seriously. My insides do a tumbling act.

  “There’s no way out of this place?” Chris asks, catching up to us.

  “I’m afraid not,” I tell him. “The bridge has been washed out and there’s flash flooding. They’re keeping us in here.”

  “Oh God. I just heard from Ali. She thinks she’s in labour. I gotta find a way out of here.”

  “That sucks, man,” Cooper says. I nod. I can’t imagine being stuck in a building if my wife were in labour. I’d probably break a window and jump out.

  “There is that grid road,” I say.

  Chris smiles and pats me on the back. “That’s right! I forgot about that.”

  “Okay, everyone!” George calls out again. “I need all employees to make sure that their stores are secure, and that they have keys should we need them. Are there any employees from the food court here?”

  Two hands shoot up.

  “Where do you work?” George asks.

  “Taco Time,” a petite, greying woman answers. “My name’s Olivia.”

  “The Coffee Hut,” says a guy who looks to be twenty-five. “I’m Brandon.”

  “Let’s all move and get settled in the food court. We’ll find some drinks and see if we can’t get some food for ourselves. It looks like we might be here a while.” George makes sure the door to the stairwell is locked before motio
ning for us to walk.

  The crowd shuffles together in the dark to get to the food court.

  “How are we going to do this in the dark?” Olivia asks.

  “We’ve got some flashlights. And I bet everyone here has an iPhone.”

  She fumbles with her key to pull open the metal covering on the restaurant front.

  “Can you pull out all of the wraps and fresh veggies you have?” George asks.

  “Yes, but it’ll take a while,” Olivia says.

  “That’s okay. We’ve got time,” George says grimly. He shines his heavy-duty flashlight at the fridge. Cooper jumps over the counter. He helps her empty the industrial-sized fridge. The woman with the middle-schoolers joins in.

  “Nancy,” she says, holding out her hand to Cooper and Olivia. They quickly shake it and introduce themselves.

  “Do we want the beef and chicken?” Olivia asks.

  “Yes. It’ll keep us fuller longer. Who cares if it’s cold,” George replies.

  George calls some people in the crowd to come and form an assembly line with Olivia.

  “The rest of you can line up and we’ll get everyone fed,” George announces. “Can you go and check on Brandon?” he asks me.

  I nod. I head toward the Coffee Hut.

  I see Brandon standing at the counter but he’s frozen in place.

  “Hey, Brandon!” I exclaim as I approach. “Let’s get things going over here.”

  He meets my eyes. “I don’t really know what I’m doing here,” he says. “That’s a lot of people to take care of.”

  “It’s okay,” I say, calm. “You’ve got this. Just pretend it’s first thing Saturday morning. You’d take care of a crowd like this in fifteen minutes flat.”