The Pre Game Game.

Every morning, the goal is to open your eyes before your brother. You can't use any alarms or wake up calls. Just the strategy you take down into your unconsciousness with you. It doesn't count if you wake up before 5. You're allowed to wake up before 5 if you want and wait for the clock to click past 4:59. But you can't make a move before . (Mom will hear you and awake very angry.) This has often led to the two of you waking at around 4:45 and then just snugly planing your execution for fifteen minutes, waiting to spring down the hall into action. Nowadays though, it's gotten so routine that you both sometimes sleep as late as 8 AM before one of you wakes up and runs off into the basement to game. You're both really busy too, so it's rare that a real match comes about. Usually, the one who wakes up late just lets himself take his time so he can get into the shower first (he has hid the controllers). Maybe once a month, you'll both put up a good fight, but both of you would say it's just for old time's sake. Anyway, today when you woke up, you saw that the clock said 7:12. You raced past your brothers room and toss the cat onto the center of an empty bed. An air born cat to the gut is the fastest way to announce your early morning gaming advantage to unconscious sibling. But your brother never came home last night. And he's still not home.

He fell in love. He's 38. Your 44.