“So, she just straight-up told you to get rid of me?” Alice asked around a mouthful of food.
She was sitting cross-legged on her bed, happily carving into a slab of meat that looked vaguely like an Earth steak—if an Earth steak were the size of a car wheel and completely drowned in a glowing, thick orange sauce.
“Yeah,” Sam said, pacing the floor of her room before sinking into a chair and rubbing his throbbing forehead.
“I honestly don’t understand how these so-called gods ever came to power. They’re supposed to be gods, yet they act like spoiled children.”
“And just to be absolutely clear…” Alice paused, pointing her fork at him with a mischievous, lopsided grin.
“You aren’t actually planning to stab me in the back later on, right?”
Sam managed a faint smile, the heavy weight in his chest lifting just a fraction.
“You and I both know it’s impossible for me to harm you.”
“That’s right, Sammy!” Alice cheered, triumphantly waving her fork in the air like a sword.
“Don’t you dare forget it!”
Sam couldn’t help but let out a genuine chuckle, the lingering tension from his encounter with Andromeda finally easing from his shoulders.
“Oh! Before I forget!” Alice chirped.
She carved off a massive chunk of the orange-drenched meat and thrust the fork directly toward Sam’s face, a few drops of the thick sauce threatening to splatter his shirt.
“Here! Have a bite!” she insisted, her eyes glimmering with chaotic energy.
“I’m good, seriously, thanks,” Sam said, his eyes widening as he nervously backed his chair away from the dripping, alien monstrosity.
“Aww, are you embarrassed about an indirect kiss?” she teased, her lips curling into a smug smirk.
Something so trivial was the least of his concerns.
The moment she said it, a shudder ran down Sam’s spine as he remembered the catastrophic, soul-crushing experience of trying her food during the first few days.
Just thinking about it made his tongue begin to tingle in self-defence.
“Don’t be shy, just try it!” Alice yelled.
Sam opened his mouth to shout a final refusal, but before he could utter a word, Alice blurred forward.
Capitalising on his momentary distraction, she closed the gap with terrifying speed and shoved the dripping fork straight into his open mouth.
That unbelievable, nuclear spice.
“ARGH!” Sam choked out, his eyes instantly watering.
It felt like he had just swallowed a handful of live coals.
It felt less like food and more like a chemical weapon.
“WATER!” he screamed, his voice cracking as he bolted past her and practically threw himself into her bathroom.
“Hey! Don’t you think it’s a little rude to invade a lady’s bathroom without her permission?” she called out after him, her voice oozing with satisfaction.
Sam completely ignored her.
Gasping for air, he cranked the tap on full blast and shoved his mouth beneath the rushing water, refusing to pull away until the chemical fire on his tongue finally dulled to a manageable throb.
Once he could breathe again, he snapped the tap shut and whipped around to curse her out.
He stopped short.
Alice was already leaning casually against the doorframe, completely doubled over as she burst into a loud, mocking laugh.
She had been watching the whole spectacle.
“I’ll kill you!” he screeched, lunging forward with a wildly uncoordinated swat.
Alice didn’t even blink.
With lightning-fast reflexes, she effortlessly dodged his reach, spun him around, and locked him tightly in a textbook chokehold.
“Remember what you said just a minute ago?” she whispered into his ear, her voice dripping with smug satisfaction.
“It’s impossible for you to harm me.”
“Okay! Okay! I yield! Release me!” Sam gasped out, frantically tapping his hand against her forearm in desperate surrender.
She immediately released him, laughing as Sam collapsed onto the bathroom tiles, rubbing his neck and drawing in huge gulps of air.
“Well, now that that’s settled,” Alice said, stepping over him into the bedroom, “I’m going to go for a walk to clear my head. Want to join me?”
“Fine,” Sam groaned, pushing himself up and dusting off his jeans.
“But don’t ever feed me your repulsive, toxic food ever again.”
They continued to bicker back and forth down the sterile hallway, their voices echoing.
Together, they wandered aimlessly through the quiet corridors until they eventually found themselves beneath the glowing leaderboard.
In the chaos of their return, neither of them had gotten a proper look at the final standings.
There, burning in bright holographic light at the very top of the list, were their names.
Rank 1: Sam Miller — 220 points
Rank 2: Alice Ashcroft — 215 points
“Looks like I’m catching up, Sam,” Alice joked, nudging his shoulder with her elbow.
“You better watch your back if you don’t want to lose your crown to me.”
“Hey, Alice,” Sam said quietly, his eyes locked onto the illuminating board.
“If it comes down to it… and you end up winning the whole thing… will you wish for the same thing I want?”
Andromeda’s venomous words from earlier were actively messing with his head, twisting his thoughts into knots.
He knew he could trust Alice with his life, but with the stakes this high, a desperate part of him just needed to hear the words out loud.
He needed an anchor.
Alice quieted down, her playful demeanour softening as she looked up at the glowing text.
“Well, there’s nothing I particularly want for myself,” she said softly, a look of quiet determination settling over her features.
“So ending the suffering caused by these games? Yeah. That definitely sounds like the right option.”
A wave of profound relief washed over Sam, immediately followed by a stab of shame.
He felt utterly disgusted with himself for letting a narcissistic god make him doubt his best friend, even for a second.
“Don’t worry!” Alice said, a fierce, brilliant smile breaking across her face as she extended her hand toward him.
“We’re going to end this horrible competition, Sam. Together.”
Sam didn’t hesitate.
The last lingering remnants of doubt vanished from his mind as he reached out, firmly gripping her hand in a resolute shake.
“Together,” he echoed, his voice steady and full of conviction.