That little blue display at the corner of Nevan's side was really distracting. He felt Keisuke's full weight on himself as soon as he ran towards the one who had scored the goal.
Was he imagining things? Going crazy because he hadn't eaten the food he usually had at his mansion? Oh, god. By the time he could get back home, he would probably be going completely crazy. After all, it hadn't even been a full day since he'd been away from home.
"Man, why don't you just pursue a career in soccer? Like me? Then we would be the best buddies!" Keisuke exclaimed. It seemed like his friend was really over the moon because of the victory.
Meanwhile, despite being slapped on the back like this, Nevan seemed distracted. His gaze wandered to the blue floating screen. What was this? That display from earlier had disappeared now. Instead there was a question there.
[Choose the sport "Soccer" as profession?]
Was this thing somehow displaying his thoughts? No. It didn't seem like this. Nevan's gaze slowly turned to Keisuke.
"Are you okay, Nevan? You look pale." The crimson red eyebrows furrowed as a hint of concern tugged at the almost perfect features of his face.
Nevan's mouth felt dry. "Yes." That was all he said. Yes, he was okay. There was a small pause. "Just.. overwhelmed. From the win, you know. Didn't think, I would make it."
[Okay. Selecting "Soccer" as the pursued profession.]
The words faded as soon as they fully appeared. The feeling of something relates to panic started to bubble up in Nevan. No. His eyes widened slightly but he calmed down soon. Another words appeared.
[Downloading update . . .]
"Nevan!" His body was shook in a rather aggressive way. As if he was a mere puppet. Keisuke's warm hands grabbed his shoulders.
He suddenly snapped out of the trance, he had been captured in. "Bro, what the heck are you doing?!" Nevan blurted out, his eyebrows twitching.
"I thought, you were possessed! Where are you looking at? There is nothing!"
A scoff. Then a sigh. "I am just tired. It was too much today."
Keisuke's frustration disappeared and gave way to sympathy. "Oh, right. Don't worry, man. We will find a way. Maybe, we should really pursue the career as soccer players together? We can support each other."
They started to walk out of the field now. "Great win, man!" Someone shouted towards Nevan. They were given a small package of chocolate as a gift for winning the match.
Nereo rushed towards Nevan. "Woah, you scored such a nice goal!" He placed an arm around Nevan's shoulder. It was especially easy since they had the same height. "On second thought, if you would have passed, we would have a draw, probably. You completely caught that guy off guard." Nereo let out a choked laugh.
Nevan just grinned and shrugged. He was starting to feel in the present again. For now, he tried to ignore the display. The words had changed again.
[Update availiable in 5 hrs 58 mins 29 secs]
The time was going down. It was probably just a bad dream. It was weird but it would be the best to assume, it would fade away by the time he woke up in the morning.
"I guess, my guts were right this time." Nevan replied and saw how Nereo eagerly nodded. Then he excused himself and disappeared somewhere in the crowd.
"So, I guess we should go home now." Keisuke said. They both made their way to the locker room. It was really just a routine when they entered Athlete Zone. Nevan had taken a quick shower before changing into his normal clothes.
As they both exited the skyscraper, the sky was already painted in a pale blue color that was typical after the sun had set. The temperature had sunken. This whole time, Nevan really just tried to ignore this unusual display in his sight. What even was this?
The two friends walked on the busy streets. Why did it seem like, the streets were even more lively now? The people just seemed to multiply and the whole attitude of those people hadn't changed. They were still all going about their own day, their own thoughts and their own things.
Nevan and Keisuke bid a brief farewell, knowing fully well, they would probably meet up tomorrow as well. He had to think how to get back his privileged life.
"Well, I will think about my career as a soccer athlete. I need to start somewhere, you know? The longer I wait, the more it will take."
Keisuke's face lightened up immediately. The whole walk had been awkward, Nevan had been acting weirdly. This was even more weird, that his friend was actually going to think about it. But it was welcomed. Soccer buddies. That was Keisuke's dream and it seemed to slowly become a reality.
"Great. Just let me know, I am sure, I can help you."
The two friends parted their way. It was getting late now and Nevan hurried to Dax's place. At first, he got lost there. Where was that building anyways? He ended up at the playground, he had overlooked earlier this day. How did he get here?
He had a small scowl on his face as he finally arrived at the apartment building. When he stood at the doorstep of Dax's apartment, his breath was labored by the literally breathtaking stairs.
Dax seemed to still be at his parttime job. The cramped apartment was just as quiet and lifeless as Nevan had left it. He slumped on the couch, cursing inwardly as it let out a painful creak. He just hoped, this thing would hold his weight because the sounds it gave were rather unconvincing.
Soon, exhaustion filled the boy's senses and he found himself falling asleep just like that. His gaze had wandered to the disturbing display in his sight as he slowly drifting into a peaceful sleep.
[Update availiable in 5 hrs 24 mins 17 secs]
It was surprising how deeply Nevan had slept. Not once had he woken up in the night. Not even when his friend had entered his place and made loud noises, desregarding Nevan completely. It was a dreamless sleep, one where he was really just knocked out.
His features twitched and he pinched his eyes together as he turned away from the open balcony door where a big portion of sunlight invaded the peaceful apartment. There were slightly distant noises coming from where it should be the kitchen.
After loitering on the couch for another twenty minutes, delaying waking up, he finally gathered enough courage to try getting up. His hand reached out to his right side, trying to get to the nightstand that should be there. He fell off the couch with a loud thud as he reached a bit too far.
There were hasty footsteps as Dax approached him. "Are you going to break your bones now?"
Nevan took his friends hand as he stood up. His clothes were wrinkled, his hair a mess. He looked still sleepy. "What?" What was Dax doing in his room? He looked around, realizing, he really wasn't in his room at his mansion. He had been sleeping on the couch of Dax's living room. Of course, the whole thing with his father.
After a big yawn, Nevan slumped back on the couch, reminding himself of the instability of it. It was surprising, it hadn't broken in two under his weight last night. It creaked but Nevan seemed to have slightly gotten used to the sensitivity of this thing.
For five full minutes, he waited until he had enough energy to stand up. Since his suitcase was opened, he found his towel and brush in an instance.
The bathroom was the size of a cupboard. The layout was something that would make you feel uneasy. It was long and narrow. The length of this bathroom was three times the width. On the left side there was a shower cabin where if you were to move, you would be stuck. In the middle there was a mirror and a sink, on the left a toilet seat with a window right above the head, providing some tiny bits of discretion.
And the sight of this window was being blocked by the same display. Now, the screen had changed. Nevan stopped in his tracks, the brush in his mouth and his mouth filled with foam. It hadn't disappeared? No. Instead, it looked like it was ready to be used.
[Welcome to the AllStars System.]
[Host has been chosen to use this system.]
[Host has chosen the career SOCCER.]
[Host has completed the quest INTRODUCTION TASK.]
[System has been updated. To navigate through the system, call out 'Start'.]
"Start." Nevan had forgotten that he had a brush in his mouth so that all that came out was a 'Shtach'.
The boy let out a sigh and just continued brushing. What was this thing, even? AllStars System? He was curious about this thing. A blue display that floated in his vision. Was that some kind of high-tech technology and he was the one to test it out?
After five minutes, he came out. His face and hair was wet and he still looked like he was walking in sleep. Nevan sat next to Dax.
"Wow, I didn't know you could cook, man."
Dax simply shove the second plate in his direction without replying to his comment while peacefully chewing. Nevan muttered a few words of gratitude before digging in. And almost instantly, he almost cried. He missed his cook's cooking. In any other situation, Nevan would have taken the liberty to invite Dax to come over to eat. Just not now. Now, he was just grateful, Dax was putting up with his spoiled ass.
"Oh, yeah." Dax suddenly spoke, as if remembering something. "I thought, your surname was 'Ayers'?" His friend shoved an ID card in front of him. "Why does it say 'Nevan Kimura'?"