Rasko's Modern Life 19

	After a couple minutes of cursing out loud and getting quite a few awkward stares from passerbys, you decide that the nerdy lizard has probably ditched you to head to the arcade.  From what you saw, the mall had a pretty big one, no doubt with all the newest hot games and the oldest classics.  Personally, you'd never pass up a nice squirming meal for a video game, but it's going to take a while to break Jeremy of that loser habit.
	The crowds are getting worse by the minute and you start to get worried that you won't be able to find Jeremy even if you locate where he's run off to.  As you pass by the video game store, you take a quick peek and notice a bored looking frog girl that would have made a great meal.  With a sigh, you keep heading towards the arcade.  
	Eventually, you make it to the arcade.  You've been shoved and pushed around, but finally you're here.  The place isn't packed as badly as you were expecting, but there's still a large number of kids and college students that wouldn't look out of place hanging with Jeremy.  You're in such a bad mood now that if any of the students decide to shove you like the people outside, you're going to give them a quick trip to your gut, regardless of who's watching.
	You make a quick lap around the arcade, checking out some of the games and glancing over the groups of gamers to see if you can spot your scalie blue friend.  At one point, you pass a cabinet with some old school game about fighting dinosaurs and monkies.  The High Score screen comes up and every name is "SHA".   Apparently someone had way too much of an obsession or fanatical following to this game and probably needs to get a life.  
	Finally, with an exasperated sigh, you give up and walk over to a person that looks to be about Jeremy's age playing at the air hockey table.  He's a medium-height gray feathered avian wearing a pair of glasses that are thicker than your newly formed fingers.  "Hey, kid, I'm looking for someone.  You think you can help?"
	The bird looks you up and down before taking a huge gulp.  No doubt he expects you to beat the tar out of him for some stupid reason like his shoe being untied.  "Y-y-yeah, what do you want, s-s-sir?"
	"Calm down, I'm not going to pound you."  You watch the kid breath a sigh of relief and offer him a smile.  "I'm lokoing for a friend of mine that I think came in here.  He's a blue scaled lizard wearing a hoodie, probably smells like a pizzaria."
	"Oh, you mean Jeremy?"  Holy cow, do all nerds know each other?  The bird smiles and nods his head eagerly.  "He came in here for a couple minutes not long ago.  Wasn't here every long."
	You sigh and rub your forehead.  Great, you just missed the kid.   "Well, where did he go?"
	"He left here with some guy.  Really scary looking dragon, I haven't seen him around here before.  Honestly, he doesn't seem like the type Jeremy would normally hang around with, but then again, neither do you."  
	You pause for a moment, trying to figure out if that's a compliment or an insult.  Deciding that it means you're too cool (you totally don't have an ego), you give the bird a nod.  "What did the guy look like?  I don't feel like looking for a 'guy' when it's this crowded without more details."
	"Well, he had light brown scales, really messy brown hair, and these scary red eyes.  He honestly reminded me a little bit of you, I wouldn't want to mess with him."  Rubbing his chin, the bird pauses.  "He was asking Jeremy about some other dragon..."  Slowly, something seems to dawn on the avian and he takes a few steps backwards.
	A little bolt of panic starts to shoot through you and you start to worry about Jeremy, fearing you may have gotten him into some kind of trouble.  You thank the grey feathered nerd and take off.  You look around, scanning the crowd for the figure that the bird described and begin to feel overwhelmed.  Maybe it would be better to search a likely location, rather than looking for them in this crowd.
	If you were grabbing someone to possibly eat, where would you go?  It would have to be somewhere with some privacy.  There are several back hallways for employees that are probably pretty empty right about now.  There might also be some quiet places outside of the mall near a maintenence area or dumpsters.    Then again, if the guy was asking Jeremy about another dragon, possibly you, what if Jeremy is just the bait?   You need to be careful but probably need to find them as quickly as possible... 
	 The phone in your pocket randomly vibrates and you nearly jump out of your skin.  Once you calm down, you realize you might could call Jeremy, although that could possibly make things worse for him.  Hmmm...  

Voting Time
>> Check the employee hallways
>> Check outside by the dumpsters
>> Try calling Jeremy