Jax stared at the empty goal, then looked up at Leo. He didn't yell. Instead, he reached across the cold, smooth surface and offered a handshake. "Nice spin, kid," Jax muttered. "Table's yours."
The neon lights of the Galaxy Arcade always felt like a second home, but tonight, the in the back corner was the only thing that mattered. It sat under a flickering fluorescent tube, its surface scarred by a thousand high-speed battles, humming with the steady drone of a tireless internal fan.
"Ready to lose your streak, kid?" Jax smirked, sliding the puck back and forth with a rhythmic clack-clack-clack . air hockey table
For ten minutes, the only sound was the frantic thump-zip-thump of the game. The score was tied at 6-6. Next point won the night.
Jax served—a lightning-fast bank shot that rattled off the side rails. Leo tracked it, his striker meeting the puck with a deafening crack . The puck didn't just slide; it soared, grazing the edge of the goal before Jax parried it away. Jax stared at the empty goal, then looked up at Leo
The digital scoreboard flashed red. The fan died down as the timer hit zero.
Leo didn't answer. He dropped into a crouch. The puck was a blur of black plastic, hovering on a thin cushion of air that turned the heavy table into a friction-less vacuum. "Nice spin, kid," Jax muttered
Jax went for his signature move: the "Slingshot." He drew the striker back and slammed the puck into the corner at an impossible angle. It zipped toward Leo’s goal like a heat-seeking missile.