Chapter - 19
"Hey Ryan, do you mind if I sat here for this class?" Emily asked Ryan. Ryan was Rick's bench-mate, but Emily hoped that she could sit with Rick and clear the misunderstanding from yesterday. It was the last class of the day.
She had hoped that Rick would tell her why he ditched her last evening on their way to college, but Rick never brought it up. And that made Emily even more restless.
She had hoped to play it hard, when Rick would make excuses, but to her surprise, it looked like Rick didn't care to give her an explanation. And that bothered her the most. Every other time, Rick would try to pacify her even if it was her in the wrong. And though she felt about it, the thought that she was the most important in his eyes, outweighed the guilt.
But not this time, and she had to ask.
"Sure, I will let you two lovebirds enjoy some 'alone' time," Ryan sneakily winked at Rick when he said that.
And Rick could only smile to that. He knew what Ryan was trying to do. And before yesterday, he might have been dancing inside, thanking Ryan and even his ancestors. But things have changed. He had the omnipotent system, gorgeous Amanda, and he had lost his virginity. He was an experienced man now.
Emily nervously cleared her throat before speaking, "Rick... about yesterday..."
But before she could finish, Rick quickly interjected, his voice a bit stern, "Emily, I... I don't want to make any excuses, okay?" Rick cleared.
When Emily heard Rick, her heart was pounding in her chest, and worry filled her thoughts. She feared that whatever Rick was about to say would only confirm her worst fears – that she was not as important to him as she had hoped.
Rick looked taken aback by the expression on Emily's face, his brows furrowing with concern. "Emily, it's not what you think," Rick tried to explain.
"No, Rick, please," Emily pleaded, her eyes welling up with tears. "I don't want to know if it's because of someone else, someone more important to you, that you forgot about me."
Her vulnerability lay bare, and Emily felt a knot forming in her stomach.
Rick frowned when he saw the tears in Emily's eyes. Somehow, instead of getting affected by them, he felt a tinge of irritation growing inside him.
Still, he had some basic decency. He reached out to hold her hand gently, trying to reassure her, "Emily, It's not about anyone else."
But Emily pulled her hand away, not wanting to be comforted just yet. She needed to understand, to be sure that her feelings were not misplaced.
"Then why didn't you come yesterday?" Emily asked, her voice tinged with a mix of hurt and worry.
Rick sighed, looking regretful, "I got caught up with something unexpected, and I couldn't make it in time. I should have called or messaged you. But my phone... I lost my phone as well."
Emily felt conflicted. On one hand, she wanted to believe him, but on the other, doubt still lingered in her mind. "Something unexpected? Like what?" She asked, unable to hide the insecurity in her voice.
Rick hesitated for a moment, then sighed again, "It's kinda hard to believe and a bit complicated."
He then leaned closer to Emily and took a deep breath before speaking, "Em, I know it sounds crazy, but I swear it's true. I got struck by lightning yesterday!"
Emily raised an eyebrow, looking at him skeptically. "Come on, Rick, you expect me to believe that? Struck by lightning? Seriously?" she said, trying to hide the small flicker of concern in her eyes.
"I know, I know, it sounds insane," Rick replied, throwing his arms. Even he found the events from yesterday unbelievable.
"But it really happened! I was walking back from the store with beer, and then suddenly, BAAM! Lightning struck me!" Rick told Emily. He skipped the all about meeting with the old, homeless man.
When she heard Rick, Emily squinted her eyes, glaring at Rick. Rick could easily guess what she was thinking.
[
1. Say sorry, and apologize to Emily. (Temptation +10)
2. Say you don't care if she believes you or not. (Temptation -10)
]
At this moment the prompt showed up again with two choices. Rick looked at the choices and almost shook his head. Because of the system, the choices he made were so different now.
"No... I don't think you are a fool. And I am not trying to make up a lie. Every word I said is true," Rick spoke without Emily saying anything, "If you don't want to believe, you don't have to. It doesn't matter to me anyway."
Emily couldn't help but frown when she heard Rick. That was not he talked to her in the past. She could feel something was wrong this time.
"You are telling the truth?" Emily asked.
"Why should I lie to you?"
"Okay, Mr. Lightning Magnet, what happened next?" Emily asked, crossing her arms.
Rick sighed, relieved that she was at least engaging in the conversation, "Well, I woke up in the hospital.
"Hospital?" Emily asked, softening a little.
"Yeah, though I am fine now," Rick nodded.
Just as Rick wanted to tell more Emily more, the class suddenly went silent. A beautiful young woman had just walked into the room. It was Megan Woods.
"Good afternoon, class. I hope you're all ready for today's lesson," Miss Woods greeted the class with a stern look on her face.
Rick and Emily exchange a quick glance before returning their attention to the teacher. The story had to wait for now.
Soon, Miss Words turned her back towards the students and started writing on the board.
"So, what happened after the lightning strike? You said you woke up in the hospital?" Apparently, Emily could not wait any longer.
"Yeah, I woke up in the hospital. But luckily the lightening did not strike me directly. I was knocked out by the impact of it," Rick whispered back.
"That's good... You got lucky. Otherwise..."
"Is there something you'd like to share with the class, Rick and Emily?" Miss Woods saw the two of them whispering, and called them out.
"That..."
"Both of you out of my class," Miss Woods didn't even listen to them and threw them out.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"She is scary," walking through the corridors, Rick mentioned.
"Maybe she is in a bad mood," Emily shrugged, "Are you going to the apartment?"
"I need to stop at a store and get a new phone. The thing is, when the lightning struck, I kinda lost my phone," Rubbing the back of his neck, Rick told Emily.
"Are you sure you can afford a new phone right now?" Emily asked, worried.
"Ah, don't worry about that. I'll manage somehow." Rick waved his hand dismissively.
"No, I want to help. After all, it's all because of me. I can pitch in some money, you know," Emily insisted.
"I appreciate the offer, but I can't let you pay for my phone. It's not like I'm broke or anything," Rick refused to take money from Emily.
"Are you sure about that?" Emily teased Rick.
"Just don't ask me to buy beer for you... I will already save a fortune on that," Rick laughed.
"Seriously, you want to bring that up?" Emily rolled her eyes.
"Alright, alright, if it makes you feel better, you can come with me to buy the phone. But no giving me money, okay? I'll manage." Rick said, grinning.
"Cool. So, where are we going?" Emily asked.
"There's a store just a few blocks away. They have some good deals on phones, and I can check out what options they have."
"Sounds like a plan. Let's go!" Emily agreed.
As they walked towards the tech store, Rick and Emily bantered playfully, sharing inside jokes and teasing each other like old friends often do. Emily's heart swelled with happiness, grateful that Rick was by her side despite their recent misunderstandings.
As they reached the store, Rick took his time browsing through the various phone options, and Emily accompanied him, offering her opinions and suggestions. They laughed and playfully debated over which phone would suit Rick best.
[
Quest: Flirt with Emily.
Time Duration: 10 Minutes.
Rewards: Temptation: +5; Cash: $5,000
]
Rick looked at the Quest and sighed. Not that the rewards were bad. They were good, but Rick was hoping to get a Experience rewards. He was just 100 points away from, from reaching the max level. But the last two quests gave him no Experience points.
'Well...'
"Hey, look at this one! It has a super cool camera. You could take amazing photos with it," Emily showed a phone to Rick.
"That does look pretty sweet. But you know I'm not much of a photographer," Rick said, and whispered, "But with you Em. I'd love to capture every moment with you."
Emily froze when she heard Rick. Her face flustered. This was the second time today Rick managed to make her heart skip a beat. She quickly averted eye contact with Rick and turned around to look at other phones.
As she looked around, trying to avoid Rick, Emily suddenly stopped. Her eyes fixed on something.
* * * * *