A short story I am working on lately, it was conceived a while ago when the local arcade plaza in the local mall closed down. How I'll miss you Warringah Mall Galaxy World.
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He sat silently on the stoop of the upstairs shopping centre. A tear trickled down his cheek. His sanctuary, his escape from the torment of everyday life was now a boarded up memory. His closed his eyes and remembered the joy…
X Months / Years ago
His alarm rang differently on Saturday’s; it was a more pleasant welcoming tone… 10 in the morning and the sun was out, as usual. He sat up abruptly and eagerly jumped out of bed.
His Saturday mornings were always the same, a big smile on his face as he got dressed, ate breakfast and picked up the small black bag in the back of his closet. He had perfected his Saturday morning routine to the point where he was out of bed and out the door in 10 minutes.
Traffic was particularly light today and he rolled into his usual spot earlier than usual; he was 3 quarters of the way through his Saturday morning play list but he sat in the car in the parking lot to enjoy the rest to ensure that it was exactly 10:35 sharp when he stepped out of his car. He had a routine to follow; he could not deviate from the course.
He meandered through the food court and ordered the usual at the Café, Mark the same Barista that greeted him every Saturday morning already had his Usual Extra Large Hot Chocolate ready and waiting on the counter. He smiled with satisfaction and generously tipped the Barista. Mark discretely collected the tip and gave a smile and a nod of approval back; this had become a weekly ceremony for him and had established a speechless interaction with Mark at the Café. Mark never asked for his name, he just knew him as a busy man with far too much on his mind.
He boarded the escalator leading to the upstairs part of the shopping centre, his body floated with a burning feeling of anticipation. The Hot Chocolate tasted particularly sweet today as the flashing lights of ‘Galaxy World’ came into view. He closed his eyes as he stepped off the escalator and guided himself through the busy Arcade. He walked past the buzzing noises and whaling prize sirens, past the scream of joy and surprise from the children, past the button mashing carnage of the Tekken and Capcom fighting games and the drumming of gunfire from Time Crisis. He knew it all too well, like the back of his hands and then he stopped walking. He opened his eyes and there she was…
Daytona USA, the Greatest Arcade Game in existence. The flashing excitement of track demos flashing across the screen. The rocking whaling theme to the surprisingly comfortable driver seats, he was in Heaven. He reached into his Black Bag and pulled out a small black blanket, he delicately laid it over the seat and He sat down in his usual number 3 driver stall. He sat there for a long time and just let ran his hands down and around the steering wheel.
As he broke from his mediative state he was awaken with a rude surprise. He had been religiously playing Daytona for months now and had seemingly mastered the game but today everything changed… There was a different name at the top of the Ranking Board. JLB, his track time sat in second position on the Intermediate Track Record list… Behind a new name, MOE with a track time 7 full seconds better than his own. A strange wave of confusion and anger washed over him as he sat wide eyed in disbelief.
END OF PART 1
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