multiply, sole, add, alley, tetra, tang, copy, fly, subtract, divide, gnat, lap, cool, wasp, moth, skate
Af and Ko were in a bowling alley. Ko watched as Af selected a ball from the rack, cradled it thoughtfully, stepped cooly to the line, and let fly. The ball skated down the lane, nearly tipping into the gutter, than arced smoothly away to knock down all the pins.
They turned to Ko, flushed with excitement, smirking.”That’s two of those in a row. Do you add those to my score or does it multiply?”
Ko slapped irritably at a gnat buzzing around their neck. SeecheeTri was taking the environmental verisimilitude a little too far these days. They tried to copy Af’s technique, the shift of weight from the sole to the ball of the foot, but their ball fell into the side channel almost immediately. “Mother–” they said waspishly, but bit back the tetragram that could have followed.
“Maybe we subtract that from your score,” Af teased. “Or divide it?”
Ko ran a hand through the tangle of their hair. “Pretty smug, aren’t you?”
Af’s lips, wide and sensuous today, curved playfully. “Insolent,” they suggested. “Truculent.”
“I’ve got half a mind to put you over my lap,” Ko whispered.
Af’s eyes sparkled, and they couldn’t keep their delight out of their tone. “Oh no,” they gasped.”Not that!”