Lenqui sat back in her chair languidly as though with no care in the world, her expression one of satisfaction.
Until a gentle crease lined her eyebrows.
Something was missing.
Having just finished reading her favourite book, "Haven's Heaven", a steamy fictional historical romance novel, for the 8th time, her heart ached to feel the way she had when she'd read it for the first time.
To feel anew, everything more... intensely, oh what she wouldn't give!
With that thought, she picked up her phone, popping out the bunny click in the back, she set it on the table beside her, as she waited impatiently for the people on the other end of the call to pick up, she stared aimlessly at the ceiling.
Until-
"Quin-ah?"
"Sycelia Waghmarr!"
She heard a heavy thud on the other side of the phone before the sleepy voice on the phone rang out once again-
"What happened, hun?
You sound mad, what did I do?"
"I need your help. I-I'm stuck in this predicament, now only you can get me out."
"... I'm listening."
She explained her situation, on the brink of tears by the end. Silence ensued, with both parties lost in their own thoughts until CeCe began once again-
"How long has it been since you've worked on the game?"
Lenqui seriously thought about it, counting clumsily on her fingers, before replying-
"28 months."
"And how long do you think it'll take to finish if you start working now? "
Lenqui didn't even hesitate before replying, as though by her second nature-
"2 months."
"Why exactly are you stalling then?"
Lenqui frowned, her chubby face scrunched up in offence-
She suddenly sat up, ended the call on an irritated CeCe and turned on her laptop, sitting next to her plopped-up phone and closed, barely dog-eared, book on the table.
The laptop whirred to life under her expert fingers, until she finally began developing her game again, taking breaks to precisely read the book, line-to-line, word-for-word, until her neck, back and shoulders ached, and eyes had to squint forcibly to read any other code or word.
Then she got up, stretched, put on her 'dopamine' playlist, queued her 'endorphins' playlist, and started performing her daily exercise routine to each joint until she felt exhausted and sweaty.
She next went into the kitchen, and prepared some food for herself, which she left to continue to cook on the lightest simmer, while she went in for a quick shower, clad herself in blue pyjamas, and ate her slightly burnt dinner, before going to sleep.
She repeated this cycle, with major changes on most days, for over 4 months. As I've mentioned, major changes...
One day, she sat, in front of her laptop, "Haven's Heaven" now a fully developed game, and finally took it for testing.
This testing wasn't the first, nor would it surely be the last, but it still somehow felt... different.
As though, every time the stoic male lead looked at the female lead, her, with adoration, she could feel butterflies in her stomach, and her heart jumped out of her chest.
She'd just reached the part where in a surprising turn of events, the male lead banishes the jealous female villain who'd been trying to tear the main couple apart for 14 consecutive chapters, when suddenly, Quin seemed to encounter a bug.
The perspective of the game was to be played from the eyes of the female lead, instead, now she saw everything from the eyes of Devyne, the jealous female villain…?