Several weeks later
"Lucy…? Where are you?" She finally picked up her phone. Lili was already on a way to Brno to enjoy their weekend. But she was nowhere to be heard from.
"Hey… Lili… I'm so sorry, but I got stuck in Korea. They had me interpret some business between a narcissistic, stuck-up-in-his-ass, wannabe-idol guy, and your father's company. I will arrive tomorrow." Lili groaned.
Yeah, thank god she can't speak Korean, otherwise, her father would use her a lot. His company made cosmetics, and they always needed some 'stars' to represent them. And k-pop idols were a hit nowadays.
"So, you want to say that I have to enjoy myself alone?" It wasn't that hard. They planned to go to Animefest. Play games, see some speeches and buy a load of stuff.
"Yeah, I'm afraid you have to. Maybe you can write to Adam. He loved to talk to you about games and anime in college. And he lives and works in Brno for what I know." Lili hissed when she heard Lucy say that name again. As if she was trying to force them to date.
"Not a chance, you know. He is now Mr. Doctor. And I'm afraid he always studied games the night before he saw me. Because he was like an encyclopedia. No fun at all," she said and sighed.
Adam was a nice friend. He was the only one that kept in touch with her since she left medical school. Others looked down upon her.
But she tried exams only because her parents wanted her to. She had intentions to fail. But somehow, she had more luck than the brain and she passed.
"I'm sorry. You have to put up with him or be alone. Or maybe you will meet someone else, you know. I have to go. This little idiot is making it hard for me again. He is deliberately saying things faster and leaves out some parts. I'm going to behead him soon," Lucy said through her teeth, and Lili laughed. The nightmare for an interpreter.
They said bye to each other and Lili arrived at the hotel. She settled herself in, showered, and changed her clothes. Then she walked to the expo place.
Lili loved the atmosphere there. Colorful costumes on cosplayers, noise, merchandisers, food, and drinks from Asia.
She walked into the biggest hall and made her way upstairs to stand in the line to try out VR when she bumped into someone. Nothing unusual here. It was a place full of people.
"Sorry," Lili mumbled, but when she looked up, she was surprised. Lili couldn't say it was pleasant.
It was nice. He helped her when her great-nan died with a technical talk, which she needed. But still… she felt he changed. Into someone she didn't know that much.
"Oh, hello Adam," she greeted him, trying to sound cheerful, and saw a big smile on his face.
"Hey, Lili. What are you doing here? Where is Lucy?" He asked. Ugh. She looked around.
"She is somewhere." Lili just waved her hand around. Lucy was somewhere. Somewhere in Korea.
"Oh, you are on the way to the gaming center, right? I'm going the same way. I will go with you," he said and took her hand, and went up the stairs.
Did he think she was that stupid? She bumped into him when he was on the way down. But Lili did not want to offend him or insult his feelings. So, she went with him.
***
"That was simply awesome." Lili was jumping with excitement. Good thing she does not have this VR at home. She wouldn't have done any work. It was so good and funny.
They let her try to ride on a rollercoaster, which was such fun. She was literally balancing the chair and moving where she was riding. Even though she knew it was only virtual reality.
Then they let her try an archery game, which was even more fun. She stood at the center of the map and had like three or four positions she could defend her castle before the ogres. They sometimes threw an ax at her.
She was so good at it. Lili was starting the sixth round or so. But one ogre just threw the ax at her, and at that moment she turned around and saw only that flying ax.
Her genuine reaction to the throw made everyone laugh because she behaved like a typical girl. She screamed and squatted down.
It helped, actually, and she continued, but she was laughing so hard that she missed a load of ogres and had a game over.
But… she was praised for playing it well. Which made her so happy she was now jumping with excitement and a wide smile from ear to ear.
Lili noticed there was a tournament going on. She loitered around for a bit, but it was a game that she had no interest in so she continued.
But she was stopped by Adam. He grabbed her hand quite strongly. And it was her left hand. And he grabbed her by not that much-healed scar. Lili uttered some pretty, not friendly words and hissed at him.
"You know… I have a wound there. That hurt so much." He released her arm, but he did not look not even a tiny bit guilty.
"What you wanted?" she asked him. He was still following her. Lili felt guilty for not talking to him, but she had a great time and he was silent too.
She just smiled around at everybody, hoping to see some known faces and join them. Adam was behaving like an obsessive friend.
"I want to watch this game," he said, and she was relieved inside, not shoving it on her face. That they will separate.
"It's okay. Stay here. I will be going around, probably grabbing some food." Lili was ready to set off, but was grabbed once again by him. And again, on her left arm.
Her immediate reaction was smacking him over his hand. Because that hurt a lot more. Her nerves were probably coming back to their senses, so she was sensitive.
"Don't ever grab me again. That hurts so effing much..." Lili hissed, pissed.
"You need to stay here with me. I stayed with you too. We are here together," he said, and Lili looked at him, shocked.
"Adam. I'm here with Lucy. And I thought you wanted to try VR too, not that you are waiting for me. I'm here to enjoy whatever I want. Not to enjoy what you want." Her mood was now ruined. Her arm was throbbing with pain, despite not being in pain for like three weeks already.
Adam looked pissed, too. She did not know why. But luckily, his phone rang. He took it, saying it was a hospital.
Lili looked around and saw that tomorrow there will be the SoL tournament. She quickly ran to sign up. She spent some time playing with one of the best teams on the planet. Maybe she learned something.
Adam stood behind her.
"I need to go. One patient needs an operation. We will discuss this matter later," he said, turned around, and walked away.
'Heck, no. We won't discuss anything,' she thought, pissed with a painfully throbbing arm and a spoiled mood.
These bossy types, hurting you, were best to avoid. She did not know what happened to him. Yes, he was narcissistic and possessive even before, but this was a whole new level.
With her ruined mood, she bought some snacks and drinks and went to the hotel to have a rest. Her arm was in pain, so she was useless. What a pity. She was enjoying today's playtime.