The Great Summer Playground Escape

Previously

…A collective nod. Carroms. The ultimate cool-down game. We headed towards the modest building that housed the game room, a place that always felt a little bit magical. The door creaked open, and we stepped inside, ready to find our favorite board. But something was wrong. The usual stacks of board games were there, the chess sets, the checkers, the well-worn decks of cards. But the Carroms board, our prized possession, the one with the smooth, polished surface and the satisfyingly heavy striker, was gone. Vanished. My stomach did a weird flip. This was not part of the plan. This was not how the best summer ever was supposed to start.