Chapter 21

The moment Kazzi laid eyes on Paige Bueckers, she internally laughed at herself for thinking she could ever move on.

Seeing her was like getting steamrolled in the best way possible, Kazzi having avoided any type of social media in the past two weeks in fear of accidentally stumbling upon a post about the blonde. She was afraid that once she was reminded how hot Paige Bueckers was, she was going to do something stupid again. She was just a girl.

When Kazzi finally saw her again, her mind blanked, unable to think of anything but 'oh'.

There she was – in all her glory – golden strands falling to frame her face, half lidded eyes partially hiding piercing blue pupils, dressed in a tank top and sweats that did nothing to hide her figure. Kazzi was going to die.

Paige's expression morphed into one of shock upon locking eyes with Kazzi, clearly surprised at the sudden development. Kazzi's inner turmoil was unbeknownst to Bea, who loudly called her friend over.

"Kaz! You made it!"

Bea enveloped Kazzi in a hug, to which the other reluctantly returned, head swimming with nothing but Paige Paige Paige. She could feel the blonde's stare burning into the side of her head, and it took everything within her not to look.

"Bea," Kazzi's voice sounded strained, even to her own ears, "It's nice to see you. We haven't hung out in a while."

"Right?" Bea agreed, nodding her head as she jutted her thumb at a random guy Kazzi has never seen before, "This is Liam, he's the one with the four-person escape room coupon. Today's events are sponsored by him."

Kazzi offered a grateful smile, about to verbally thank him when Bea yanked on her arm, cutting her off and pulling her closer as she quietly squealed, "He brought Paige! Bueckers! I can't believe it! I'm so geeked–"

Kazzi tried to smoothly maneuver her hand to cup Bea's mouth, she needed Bea to shut her mouth this instant. Paige raised an amused eyebrow at the struggling. Kazzi refused to acknowledge the blonde, managing to bring Bea into a headlock as the other squirmed in her hold.

Liam pointed and laughed at Bea's flailing, and Kazzi's heart stuttered when Paige quietly chuckled along. Someone better bury her now. Liam flicked his wrist to check his watch, looking up to address the whole group, "We better head in now, we're a little bit late."

Kazzi finally released Bea, who started choking dramatically and clutching her chest as if she's having a heart attack. Kazzi rolled her eyes, "Okay, let's go."

As Kazzi entered a room with gorey blood splatters and ominous writing smeared on the concrete walls, she vowed to always ask Bea for details whenever the other invites her out.

Kazzi has never had problems watching a little bit of horror, but actually experiencing this type of stuff was – and never will be – Kazzi's strong suit. Kazzi felt shivers run down her spine when she spotted a fake (or she hoped) decapitated head resting in the corner, and shuffled closer to the person nearest to her.

That person happened to be Paige Bueckers, but as Kazzi laid eyes on a creepy cupboard in the other corner with a cracked hole in it, she found that she didn't particularly care for embarrassment right now.

Bea swiveled her head back and forth, scanning the small room for clues, before proceeding to stomp over to the decapitated head and poke at it. Kazzi's heart dropped when it flopped over, smacking against the floor with a wet sound. Kazzi internally gagged.

"That's lovely," Liam commented, eyeing the scene with a grimace on his face. Kazzi let out a shaky breath, panic spiking when Paige stepped away from her side and towards the tiny box right in front of them. Kazzi didn't even notice that.

"I think we need a number code for this," Paige hummed, crouching down to inspect the box, "There's a keypad...It should be four numbers."

"Four..." Bea echoed, glancing down at the head at her feet, "Any chance this thing will spit out a code for us?"

"Fuck no," Kazzi choked out, feet moving on their own accord towards Paige, who was still fiddling with the box. Despite the past events, Kazzi readily admits that she feels safest next to the blonde, and tries to be unsuspecting in keeping close to Paige.

The blonde stood, almost bumping into Kazzi in the process. Paige seemed to notice their close proximity, eyes twinkling with amusement as Kazzi reluctantly took a step back.

Bea bounded over to the only other object in the room – the one Kazzi feared the most – the cupboard.

Kazzi watched with bated breath as Bea stepped closer to the object, half-expecting something to fly out of the hole and make Kazzi piss her pants. That didn't happen, instead, a loud crackling noise made Kazzi jump out of her skin, then the lights started flickering on and off, and Kazzi stumbled behind Paige, cowering in fear.

It was only when Bea staggered back did the special effects stop, and Kazzi abruptly realized she was holding onto Paige's arm in an iron grip. The tall blonde looked back at her, and Kazzi immediately jerked away as if she'd been burnt. She missed the flash of disappointment in Paige's eyes, only hearing the player joke, "Using me as a meat shield?"

Kazzi swallowed down a 'what else would I use you for?', and opted to just nod awkwardly. Whatever the blonde was going to say next was interrupted by more crackling noises and flashing lights, making Kazzi let out a strangled noise and fling her arms out, clinging onto Paige for dear life.

The effects stopped barely two seconds later, and Kazzi was about to yell at Bea to give a warning next time when Paige wheezed out in between her arms, "Can't breathe...Kaz..."

Gasping, she released the blonde and floundered back, face flushed as shame coursed through her being. This was not how her day was supposed to go. Paige let out a weak chuckle, nursing her ribs as the muscles in her arms flexed. Kazzi tore her eyes away with sheer willpower – landing on a sheepishly smiling Bea.

"Bea! A warning next time please!" Kazzi shouted.

Liam was pressed against the far wall, eyes narrowed at a grinning Bea. "I hate you," He spat, and Bea blew a raspberry at him.

"I think the effects are triggered when we walk too close."

"Well no shit, Sherlock," Liam muttered, finally unsticking himself from the wall and cautiously walking over.

Paige took a step forward, and before Kazzi could think better of it, her arm shot out and grabbed the hem of Paige's shirt (she has separation anxiety). The blonde halted, and Kazzi braced herself for whatever teasing words were about to leave Paige's mouth next.

Paige didn't say anything, reaching behind her to take hold of Kazzi's hand and unhook it from her shirt. She then laced their fingers together, making Kazzi's breath hitch and heart rate speed up as the blonde tugged her along. Kazzi followed mindlessly.

"Try again," Paige nodded at Bea, "Ignore the effects and see what's up with the hole."

Kazzi was barely listening, mind occupied with nothing but the feeling of Paige's hand in hers. It was cold despite the warm weather, calluses rough from years of basketball. Kazzi relished in their point of contact, mind taking this inch and running a mile with it (Paige's hand was always cold, Kazzi's hand is always warm, they're basically meant to be). Kazzi wondered if she was still breathing, any and all previous fear completely eradicated by their interlocked hands.

Bea eyed the broken gap in the cupboard wearily. "I'm not too keen on looking into that," She admitted.

"Okay, Liam, you do it then."

Liam startled, and turned to glower at the blonde, "No, nope, nah, fuck no. I'm not doing that." He then pointed at Paige, "You do it."

Paige snorted, eyes traveling down to where Kazzi and her were connected, "I mean I would...but..." She trailed off, eyes trained on their interlaced fingers, before flickering upwards to catch Kazzi's eye, "I don't think Kaz would enjoy that very much."

Bea made a slight choking noise from behind, and Kazzi's eyes widened as she registered Paige's words. She then made a move to pull her hand away, stopped by Paige's grip tightening, preventing her from yanking her hand loose. Kazzi stared at her in confusion.

"We'll just go together," Paige concluded, practically dragging Kazzi along. Despite her struggles, Paige wouldn't let go of Kazzi's hand, and the latter gave up as they neared the cupboard. She wasn't startled this time when the special effects went off (Liam screamed), mentally prepared having already experienced it twice.

Kazzi gnawed her lip, trying to keep her eyes glued onto Paige who was appearing and disappearing from her vision under the flickering lights. The blonde cautiously approached the hole in the cupboard, lowering her upper body to peek into the hole. Kazzi briefly wondered if something was going to attack her, already preparing herself to yank Paige backwards if she caught the slightest of movements.

Paige then shouted over the loud crackling, "Guys! I think I have to reach in!"

Kazzi panicked, "Now why the fuck would you need to do that?!"

"It's telling me to!"

"...what" Kazzi murmured, curiosity getting the best of her as she leaned down to look into the hole. She blinked, eyes reading the neon green letters spelling out 'PUT YOUR HAND HERE'. It says that, so you should definitely not do it.

"Yeah, that's suspicious–"

Paige ignored her, reaching her free hand over to stick it into the gap. Kazzi grimaced, "Bueckers, I swear if your hand gets bitten off and you can't play basketball ever again–"

"Oh!" Paige exclaimed – delighted – cutting Kazzi off, "It's the code! Guys! Guys! Go to the box!"

Kazzi could hear rapid footsteps behind her stumbling towards said box, and she watched in bewilderment as Paige started shouting numbers at the pair behind them.

"2! 7! 4! 6!"

Not a second later, a loud beep echoed inside the room, accompanied with Bea and Liam's cheers. Kazzi pulled Paige back and away from the cupboard, the other following without complaint to successfully disable the now-irritating special effects.

Kazzi's hand was starting to get sweaty, and she tried to squirm out of Paige's grip, the other still refusing to release her. She gave up, stamping down the giddy feeling rising in her chest to refocus on the two circular coins Bea and Liam had retrieved from the box.

"The fuck are we supposed to do with these?" Bea remarked, turning over the gold coin in her palm.

"I think..." Liam started, not finishing his sentence as he walked over to the door next to the cupboard. He slipped the coin into the slot next to the door, face brightening when the door slid open, revealing the next room.

He turned back, grinning as he stepped over the threshold, "Guys! Come on–"

The door slid shut, sealing it with a click as Liam disappeared from view. Kazzi sharply inhaled, surprised.

"Liam!" Bea shouted, wasting no time in rushing over to slide her coin into the slot. As expected, the door opened, and Kazzi reached out to yell, "Wait! Bea–"

Bea hurried through, and Kazzi blinked in disbelief as the door clicked shut.

Paige finally let go of Kazzi's hand in favor of moving towards the box, hurriedly reaching in to try and see if there were any more coins or clues.

Paige cocked her head back, eyes unreadable as she said–

"It's empty."

Author's note:  btw this escape room is based on a true story and i deadass shat myself trying to escape ( 0/10 would not recommend)