How did this come about?
Rolling for Love’s first draft was 175,000 words. Way too many words. I ended up cutting out 50,000 words for the final draft. However, some of the stuff I cut out, I loved and I spent a lot of time on. Others of it really, really needed to go and never be read again =P
I am turning a few of the chapters into short stories. This is the Scythe board game played the first time Sandy, Dillon, and Joe go to Tetreazy.
Where are we in the book?
Where are we romantically? Ohh the drama, Joe has firmly set his sights on Sandy, who has been reminded that people don’t change, even your oldest best friends hurt you in the end. Dillon, falling ever more in love with Sandy, has been thoroughly friend zoned, though he doesn’t know it. And Sandy…she isn’t sure what she wants, friends? More? Why does her mind and body yearn for people and connections that always betray her in the end?
Dillon Dempsy
Tetreazy is a place within a place. A world within a world. You must be brave on a Saturday night to make it through the long rave like, front room. A dance floor that is lit in green and purple looks like a landing strip down the long center. The walls are decorated in vintage and ultraviolet cartoon art that glows amidst a small army of black lights affixed the ceiling. The bar bustles with activity as brightly colored drinks are shaken, mixed, and poured into fancy glasses that sparkle with their unnatural colors.
On the back wall a narrow archway is outlined in glowing Tetris blocks. Too neatly put together to be a real game, they lead directly into a second smaller room. Opposite the front room in every way, this room is well lit, decorated with a few signed posters, and full of shelves of board games for rent. An assortment of tables fill the center with no rhyme or reason to their placement. The sound of music and dancing filters in along with the steady rumble of the subwoofers.
Despite there being only three of us, I had usurped the biggest table in the middle of the room, and three hours later, there we still are. Our tasty, very beautiful, and very overpriced food had been eaten, and although we had all enjoyed our first brightly colored drink, our focus had quickly changed as our competitive sides came out.
Our black, yellow, and red pieces are now spread thinly over the industrial-themed Scythe game-board. Mechs, resources, and workers alike have struggled and battled to defend their homes and expand. Sandy has five stars, six will end the game, and Joe and I each have four. Joe and Sandy have been bitterly battling it out, their controlled hexes scattered over the playing field. On Sandy’s turn, her delicate pale fingers move her main piece. A grin breaks across her face as she immediately reveals her secret objective. I feel her smile make my own lips turn up.
“I don’t think that’s legal,” Joe says skeptically. I can’t remember the exact rule of revealing personal objectives as the timing doesn’t affect my own. This is a complicated game and I focus on the rules that fit my yellow Crimea faction best. I assume Joe and Sandy are doing the same. Sandy’s strategy has been much like her, straight-forward and to the point. She is playing the red pieces, the Rusviet faction, intended to give advantages in movement, it looks like she has been using those advantages. Though Joe has been fighting her at every opportunity.
Joe’s black pieces, the Saxony, even sound evil, and give him military bonuses. I see him as the evil one in our trio. He is our Dungeon Master, yes, but also an evil overlord trying to kill the party. With his looks, he could pick up anyone from the main room, he doesn’t need to go after Sandy. Both of us have expressed interest in her, and Joe just acts faster than I do. I hear his quick words attempting to sway Sandy to his side, but it won’t work. Just like it won’t work in our Scythe game tonight.
Joe’s stars came on fast in the beginning. He was the first to four, but has now stalled, his early push for power leaving his lands low on resources and his popularity tracker (notated with a heart meeple) at zero. The heart meeples show how happy your people are, happier people equals more victory points at the end. The irony makes me chuckle. On the other hand, I have mostly ignored battles and focused on feeding my people and making them happy. My next turn will be my final turn and I can get two stars in one go bringing me to the coveted six.
“Why would it not be legal?” Sandy responds to Joe.
“It just can’t be. That move is super over-powered. There has to be a rule about when you can reveal secret objectives,” Joe said. I stay quiet, happy to see Sandy and Joe going at it again. They have been verbally assaulting each other all night. It would be annoying if it didn’t give me hope that they would never get along.
“Page twenty-six, second sentence,” Sandy answers. “You may reveal your objective card during your turn.”
“What?” Joe asks. He looks at Sandy like she is crazy.
“I am quoting the rule book,” Sandy shoves it toward him.
“I can’t decide if that is really hot, or really annoying,” Joe whistles as he thumbs through the book. I see Sandy blush and look for something to busy her hands.
“One more drink for the end of the game?” I ask her.
“Yes please,” She answers happily. I can’t stop my chuckle. I have no idea what has gotten into Sandy, but she is in a phenomenal mood tonight. I flag down one of the servers.
“Wow, you quoted it exactly,” Joe exclaims. He looks up at our server. “And I’ll have whatever you have on nitro tap please.”
“I know I did,” Sandy states as she wrinkles her nose.
“But there’s no way you can play that right now. It has to be an error in the rule book,” Joe demands.
“To Google, in search of an errata!” I say happily, holding up my phone like it is a goblet. Sandy laughs as we pull out our phones. Our drinks arrive with all three of us furiously searching, though I am looking up more games and planning another game night with Sandy. Sans Joe. I bet Blake would join us, maybe he could bring the girl he has now told me about twice. Becky, or Belinda, or something.
“On Stonemaier Games website,” Joe triumphantly reads. “Completing Objective Cards: There was some ambiguity in the original rules about exactly when on your turn you could complete an objective. We have clarified the timing as follows: You may reveal a completed objective card during your own turn before or after you complete a top- or bottom- row action. Basically, you can’t do what you wanted to. Sorry Sandy.”
“Yeah, I just found it too,” Sandy says, disappointed. She sticks her tongue out at Joe and turns her objective card over. “I am still just one turn away from winning.”
“I will find a way to block you,” Joe says confidently. I stay quiet. No need to interrupt their squabbles.
“You think so, huh?” Sandy shoots back. Joe winks at her and turns to me.
“Dillon, you are up,” Joe states. I smile at each of them in turn, move my pieces, and quietly put my last two stars on the victory track.
“I don’t think either of you need to do anything,” I say. Joe and Sandy both blink at me.
“I didn’t even notice how high up you got on the heart track,” Sandy says after a few heart beats. She eyes the board for a few minutes, probably adding my final score in her head. I take a moment to give Joe a winning smile. Joe narrows his eyes before shrugging and taking a sip of his beer.
“Nice, really well played,” She says. Her blue eyes meet mine and I feel my cheeks heat. The room around me blurs, everything seems to slow down. Even Joe vanishes from my focus as he starts exchanging pieces for coin. All that is left is Sandy and this moment. She is so beautiful, so smart. She both compliments me and challenges me at the same time. I want to be more than just her friend. I need to say something. Something really cheesy, using the heart track to pull it all together. Or I could compliment her on her strategy. Say something Dillon!
“Stop flirting, you two,” Joe says with a laugh. Time speeds back up at Joe’s words. Sandy slowly turns away from me, her eyes linger like she was hoping I would say something too. But my mouth still doesn’t open and her attention wanders back to Joe, as it has been for most of the night. I sigh knowing the moment has passed. There will be more moments, I will make sure of it.
