"STRIKE!" The machine roared.
"God dammit," I muttered and stood up to take my turn.
Dominic walked by me, and he looked smug as f**k.
Bastard.
I walked over to the bowling balls and selected a purple one; I had to hold it with both hands because it was a little heavy.
"You can do this," I said to myself as I stepped forward to the lane.
I glanced to my right just as a little kid three lanes away rolled his ball down the lane and knocked all his pins down.
Every. Single. Pin.
He couldn't have been older than nine, ten at the most.
If he could do this, so could I.
I nodded my head and swung my arm backwards, but I screeched when the ball fell out of my hand. I quickly turned and scrambled after it.
"It's okay; it's okay. Nothin' was broken I have it under control. Nothin' to see here folks," I called out to the staff members who stared at me and shook their heads.
I looked to Dominic, who took up two seats because he fell to his side from laughing so hard.
"Shut the f**k up, you're makin' a scene."
"The scene," Dominic laughed, "Was made when you decided to throw a bowling ball in the air."
I huffed.
"It slipped out of me hand... and nothin' was broken so give it a rest."
He continued to laugh. "I wish I recorded that."
Fucking f**kface.
I angrily turned and stepped up to our lane; I gripped the ball tightly swung my arm back then forward and realised it, but the same thing happened it went up into the f**king air then landed back down on the ground with a thud.
"Oh please, stop. I can't breathe."
I'd cut that hyena's breathing off for good if he kept laughing at me.
I jumped backwards from the ball then in annoyance I put my foot behind the ball and pushed as hard as I could. It worked; the ball went gliding down the lane, and I jumped up and down with excitement.
It crashed into the pins and knocked a few of them down.
I turned and punched the air.
"Yes."
Dominic shook his head at me. "That's cheating."
Oh, Mr. Proper.
"Whatever, how many did I knock down?"
"Six pins."
I did a little hip thrust dance. "Yeah boy."
Dominic shook his head at me as he stood up.
"Let me show you how it's done."
I rolled my eyes. "You're pickin' things I've never done before for these birthday dates. The only one I've been good at so far is eatin' chicken at our picnic."
Dominic tilted his head at me. "You've never gone bowling before?"
I deadpanned. "Did you not see my first two attempts at tryin' to roll the ball down the lane?"
"Yeah, but I thought that was just because you sucked."
Oh.
"Thanks very bloody much!"
Dominic held up his hands. "Just telling you the truth."
I narrowed my eyes and said, "Game on, f**kface."
I turned and walked to the control centre thing for our game and watched the screen.
Dominic raised eyebrows at me then turned, got his red ball from the ball machine then walked to our lane. He rolled then down the lane, and he got another strike.
Fuck.
He walked back and sat next to me, a grin tugged at his lips.
I grunted as I stood up. "Don't smile just yet."
He turned his head from me as I rolled my neck on my shoulders and shook out my hands. I was going to roll a ball down that f**king lane even if it killed me.
"Okay," I breathed.
I got my purple ball from the ball machine and walked up to the line that separated me from the lane.
"Be at one with the ball," I said.
Dominic cracked up behind me. "You okay there, Yoda?"
I was going to harm him badly if he didn't close his mouth.
"I'm concentratin'!"
"Sorry."
He wasn't sorry.
I shook off Dominic and focused.
You can do this.
I went old school and spread my legs, bent down and rolled the ball from between my legs onto the lane. It didn't have as much powerm but it was rolling down the lane instead of possibly flying at a person's face and that to me was a sucess.
"To the right," I mumbled and motioned the ball to go to the right with my hands.
"That's it, use the air to push the ball in the right direction."
I gave Dominic the finger.
"Yes!" I jumped when the ball knocked into the pins.
I quickly walked back to Dominic.
"How many was that?" I asked.
"Two pins."
Two.
Fucking two?
"That's bollocks."
Maybe I should just kick all the balls down the lane; I knocked a lot of pins down the first time I did that.
I sighed and looked at Dominic. The level of smugness on that lad's face was unreal. He thought he was so bloody cool beating a girl at a game.
"Pussy," I mumbled.
"What was that?" Dominic asked.
"I called you a pu**y. A p-u-s-s-y. Pussy."
Dominic's jaw dropped. "How am I a pu**y?"
I shrugged. "Your smugness is annoyin' me, you think you're all that and packet of Tayto crisps 'cause you're winnin' me at bowlin’. Let's go home and play chess, I'd f**kin' destroy you at chess."
Dominic pretended to be scared. "Not chess, anything but chess."
"You know what? I'm not dealin' with your sarcastic self today; it's my birthday bitch, I'm twenty-one. It's my day, not yours so screw you."
I would have loved if my hair were down so I could flip it, it was a perfect f**k you hair-flip moment.
"Ohhh, this really is an ‘it's my birthday and I'll cry if I want to’ type of day you're havin'. I'll take you in a mood with me over crying though."
I reached forward and shoved Dominic in the chest.
"I can't help it if I'm soft hearted and cry easily, okay? If I were hard-hearted, I would have never dated your stupid Yank arse."
Dominic smirked. "You aren't insulting me."
Damn it.
"I'm never comin' here with you again, I hope you know that."
Dominic shrugged. "I won't be bringin' you back here again; you suck even worse than Branna does, and she is a complete girl when it comes to sports."