Zone stretched his limbs and glanced at the counter of the internet cafe. The store clerk was busy talking to a tall, bald guy.
The guy drew his attention for a while because he looked so intimidating with his tattoos and piercings.
He obviously wore that tank top to show off his physical assets. The clerk appeared to be agitated by something but Zone could not quite hear what they were talking about.
Grace, the clerk was gesturing with her arms towards the rest of the cafe.
Zone followed her gaze and looked at the mostly deserted cafe except for a few customers. They were all absorbed in whatever virtual world they are in right now.
These are all the rage now: VR games that offer almost anything and can take you to whatever place you wanted.
There are normal units that only have the simplest interface: the goggles and the tactile gloves but the most expensive ones are even tapped into your neural signals and have omnidirectional floors.
Games that utilize these technologies are insanely popular and so are the kinds that simulate intimate physical interactions. You can now VR call somebody and can interact with them as if they are really there.
He looked back at the two people at the counter but they are now nowhere to be seen.
He wanted coffee and maybe a sandwich. He has been playing for 5 hours now and his stomach feels like there is a war going on.
He imagined his stomach as a mini warzone and he giggled to himself.
He is really starving. He got up.
Maybe there is another clerk he can order from.
The server corner had no one. He tried peering over the counter.
Behind it was a small desk with some papers and pens and beside it is a VR machine. The top of the line.
He was tempted to go around and try it but that could definitely get him arrested.
Sure, he knows the store clerk/manager but not that well.
He saw a closed room near the counter. It said: 'private' and his curiosity got the better of him.
There are muffled sounds coming from there and he could make out one familiar voice.
He leaned towards the door to listen.
"We are still within acceptable numbers…" That was Grace, the clerk.
"Acceptable is not acceptable…" countered a gruff male voice. Must be 'Tattoos'.
He smiled at the absurdity of that last statement.
"There is no reason for us to unnecessarily push our sales, is there? These are 'hot' items and the police are always poking their noses," the female voice argued reasonably.
Zone got away from the door as if it suddenly grew hot.
'Police' is not a word he associates with fun times. Quite the opposite actually.
He slowly backed away and decided to look for the restroom.
He splashed water on his face and that refreshed him a lot. His hunger was still there but the lethargy within his mind is gone.
At least for a while.
He stared at his image on the mirror and grimaced as he saw the bloodshot eyes and the unkempt hair.
He tried to smoothen out the hair. He can't do anything about the eyes.
The game is new but he is already addicted. He sometimes spends more than 12 hours everyday just grinding away and admiring the scenery.
The game developers have really thrown everything in there except the kitchen sink. Or maybe even that.
The game is superb in any way. There are still a few wrinkles here and there but they are forgivable. The realness of the game is what blew him away even on the first time he tried it.
Tactile response is superb. He can even feel the individual blades of grass under his feet and he feels every drop of water beneath a waterfall.
The game even has smell simulators although there were times he wished there weren't.
Typical of MMORPGs, there are literally thousands of mini-quests aside from the grand quests and the main story line. It was the mini quests that are literally eating at his time.
What he liked most about it is that the game didn't force him to join clans or groups.
Heck, it didn't even force him to choose a class or job yet. It let him roam around and just waste the day away.
A life with no pressure is the bomb.
If only his real life is like that, he would gladly pay the price. More than what he pays to play the game, certainly.
His cellphone vibrated for like the 20th time today. He didn't even bother to look at it.
It's just home.
Not that he hates home. He hated the weight of responsibility that comes with it. Like they are forcing him to live their lives for them when he is having a hard time living his.
He sighed.
"Sorry, I wasn't there…" a melodious voice startled him.
For a moment, it felt surreal. He wanted to run out and look at the sign outside the restroom.
She laughed and said, "Don't worry, deep inside we are all alike."
He looked at her with horror.
She laughed harder this time.
"I didn't mean it like that, silly boy. This is a gender-neutral restroom. Welcome to the new age."
He let out a breath of relief.
"You are a strange one. I mean, I was supposed to be the one blushing." She walked closer and stood shoulder to shoulder with him.
She looked at the mirror and saw a strange pair. One is reed-thin and slightly darker, with kinky hair and round, albeit bloodshot eyes and one is like someone carved from alabaster; milky white complexion, long blond hair and gorgeous, deep-set eyes with long lashes.
She looked at his eyes in the mirror. He was mesmerized by how beautiful her eyes were.
She winked at him and applied powder on her cheeks.
"You saw tank-top?"
He was startled by the question and images of police sirens flashed in his mind.
"Y..yeah…" he stammered.
"Don't think too much of it. What did you hear, by the way?"
He considered lying but he remembered the security cameras everywhere. She must have checked before coming in here.
So that is why she came in. He wanted so much to run right there and then.
"I didn't hear much. I just wanted to order some food so I came looking for you. I heard voices so I wanted to check. When I heard you talking, I backed away ASAP. I didn't hear anything, I swear," he quickly explained.
"Don't worry about it. Just don't be a blabbermouth. I like you so I won't do anything but tank-top boy is another matter." Her eyes were unreadable.
"I didn't hear anything," he said more firmly this time.
"Good! You like the game?"
This conversation is too fast for him. He didn't know whether to feel alarmed or relaxed.
"The game?"
"Yeah, the server notifies me when you log-in. I know what everyone is playing. Even the naughty ones." She winked again.
"I don't play adult games…" he blushed again.
Damn it!
"Yeah, I was talking about the new game. I know you spend ten hours everyday on it. You must like it so much."
"It's nice…" He forced his voice to relax. This is a neutral topic.
Safe.
"Nice? You are talking about a technological breakthrough and all you can say is nice?"
She applied a lip balm on her naturally red lips.
He licked his own lips and swallowed hard.
"I mean, it is really amazing. The amount of attention to detail is unrivaled and I haven't gone that far yet." His heartbeat is becoming erratic. This girl is toying with him and he didn't even know what the hell she wanted.
He wanted to make an excuse to leave but he found that he couldn't.
"Relax. Zone, is it? At least that's your IGN. What's your real name? Mine's Grace Gospel."
She offered her hand. He hesitated but touched it briefly. He didn't want her to know that his palms were becoming sweaty.
She smiled sweetly and when she talked again, something changed in her and he relaxed immediately.
"I am just a normal person who is doing whatever she can to survive." She went off-topic again but this time, her eyes locked into his and he saw the sincerity and the vulnerability in them.
"Someday, if we can be friends, you will understand. I know you heard more than you let on but that's okay if you don't feel inclined to trust me yet. Say, what do you think if we party with each other?"
"Huh?"
This girl is clearly manipulating him by how fast she switched from topic to topic. His mind is agile enough but he can't quite keep up with the emotional fluctuations.
"I play the game too. I am not that high level yet but I can be a good support. What do you say?"
"Okay," he said limply.
"Friends?" She offered a fist bump.
He didn't know what to say to that but he bumped back.
"Zone, can you run fast?" she suddenly asked.
"What, like now?" He got ready to run.
"NOOO! Like in the game! I want to try something when we log in. There's this amazing mini-quest I found but it required a physical ability that I don't have. You up for it?"
If there was a specialty of his, it's running. Hell if he knew how Grace knew that but that got his blood racing.
"Yep, can run faster than the wind."
"I bet you do."
Her laughter is like a wind chime that echoed in the room as they walked out.