10. Exploring
10
Exploring
In the darkened mall, True Tech glowed with the unnatural flair of a secret lair. So much white furniture. So many shining screens. I rubbed my eyes under my glasses. At least I turned the brightness all the way down on all my PCs. There wasn’t much to clean up for closing. I’d made all the notes, fixed some code, and prepared that phone for pickup tomorrow.
My GameUp messages pinged.
Sal: So, how do you want to do this? [eyes emoji]
I grabbed the Tupperware full of rice and stood. “Hey, Ash? I’m going to dump this out in the mall garbage can. Pretty sure it’s a health code violation waiting to happen.”
“Fair enough,” she said, flipping through her emails.
Good. She trusted me enough not to hover. God, I loved working with a woman for once.
I strode to the trash bin in front of the toy store. Sal looked up from his phone, his face aglow.
He chuckled, then uncrossed his ankles to saunter over. “What have you got there? Is that the rest of your lunch?”
“No. A customer brought it in.”
“For a snack? ”
“To save her phone from the bath,” I deadpanned.
He wound his neck back. “But it’s cooked.”
“Yes. Yes it is.” I flipped the Tupperware over and tapped the bottom so rice plopped into the trash.
He spun in full-360 and cackled. “That’s fantastic.”
“It’s pathetic. I did manage to save her phone, though.” I pushed up my glasses.
“Of course you did, slugger.” He smirked and stuck his hands in his pockets.
Was he being sarcastic? The fine hairs on my arms prickled, and I glanced over my shoulder at the smudged glass in front of True Tech. People wouldn’t notice the imperfections unless they were looking for them.
He flicked the bottom of his chin-scruff. “So, about Janice… Are you still in?”
I raised my chin. “Yes. I’ll do four items and two textures. I can make three minor modifications total, but beyond that, you’re on your own. It is your present. Your…girlfriend.” I huffed and adjusted my cap. Something about them grated me the wrong way.
Sal scoffed. “Of course. I’m not gonna have you build the whole thing yourself. I’ll learn alongside you, and make my own contributions, so hopefully, your stuff just fills in the gaps.”
“You want me to teach you how to mod?”
“Yeah. Well, to mod better.” He rolled his eyes playfully. “I’ll show you what I’ve got so far. When are you free?” He tapped his bright, ratty sneakers near my Converse.
“I…” We were going to meet? “I thought we were going to do all this remotely. ”
“Hey, I trust you, but I don’t give a password out on the first date.” He screwed up his posture and wagged his finger. “Uh, not that this would be a date.”
I tensed and pushed a few stray hairs behind my ear. “No. I’m not–”
“ I’m not. I mean, I’m happily taken.” He smoothed his shirt and rolled his lips together. “You can bring Ash, if you want.”
My boss couldn’t code for shit. But I did appreciate his offer to bring a friend. “I’ll think about it.”
“Okay. Catch you later, slugger.” He finger-gunned at me and backed away.
Chuckling, I shook my head. What was wrong with him?
He twisted around, muttering a repeat of our conversation to himself and gesturing to no one.
He was weird. But at least he knew not to take his phone into the bath—and not to put it in a cooked rice dish if he dropped it.
I helped lock up the store, then went home. The walls were mostly bare. White. Neutral. Janice would hate it here.
I smiled and flopped into my desk chair. She’d probably be jealous that I had a whole house to myself, though. Well, me and my brother, but he wasn’t around. I sent him a message.
Me: I was thinking of ordering pizza. You want in?
Victor: No thanks. I’m going to Kat’s tonight.
I sent him a thumbs-up emoji and sighed.
Yup. A whole house to myself. Nice and quiet.
I ordered some food, then queued up Craft Cove. Happy island music filtered through the room. My island teemed with color and life. Birds flitted through the fruit trees. Bugs buzzed over patches of wild grass. Random fish jumped out of the waterfall and babbling brooks. I lost myself in upkeep, then headed to my main house. Inside, orange walls welcomed sci-fi posters, movie spoofs my brother came up with to fit into his universe. Dark, sturdy wood made it easier to spot the tech projects scattered throughout the living room.
This wasn’t at all like my real house. I messaged Sal.
Me: What if Janice only wants that stuff she talked about in real life?
Sal: Nah, she’s always trying to get her avatar to look more like her. Why wouldn’t she want the same for her dream house?
I guessed he did know her better.
Sal: So, since we’re both on, you wanna explore some coves together? I’m collecting resources to build the dream house.
Me: Sure.
My food wasn’t scheduled to come for another fifteen minutes.
We toddled off to unknown shores for some beachcombing.
His avatar kept popping up with exclamation points near the water. Our avatars couldn’t chat in-game, so I used the GameUp messaging overlay.
Me: What?
Sal: Look at this scenery!
It was a very nice seascape. Gradient skies reflected on smooth waters.
Me: Gonna give Janice a room with a water view?
Sal: Only the best for my girlfriend [sparkly heart emoji]
I snorted. He was probably hoping she’d be so grateful that she’d jump him for birthday sex.
Sal: Thanks again for helping me. I couldn’t do all this without you
I went to tug my cap down only to realize I’d taken it off earlier, so I scratched my scalp.
Me: Save the sappy stuff for your girlfriend
Sal: Ok, asshole :P Let’s get some kelp and brainstorm for the bday gift!
I rolled my eyes and fought against a smile. Such a weirdo. It was easy enough to collect stuff alongside him, but we had to pause any time we wanted to message each other.
Sal: Can we switch to voice chat? I talk faster than I type
Me: Sure
I grabbed my directional mic and switched it on. “Hello?”
“Hey,” he said. “I’m still browsing Janice’s inspiration board and figuring out how to use this mod tool thing.”
“You’ll get the hang of it. Trust me, it’s a lot easier and less expensive than building something in real life. A lot less dangerous too.” My phone pinged with an alert from the motion sensors on the cameras. I tensed, even though I knew what it should be. The security gate would’ve already confirmed the delivery driver’s ID, but I quickly ran the car plates just in case. I didn’t recognize the listed owners as any relation to my former classmates.
“Hold on, my pizza’s here.” I switched to using my phone microphone instead of the laptop so he could keep me company…or be my backup, as needed.
“Oh, where’s it from?” Sal asked.
“Tony B’s.”
Something clattered on his end. “Nooooo. Zero, why? They don’t even use real cheese.”
Laughing, I put on my cap. “Doesn’t mean it’s not tasty.”
“You don’t know what you’re missing. Next time we hang out, I’m going to get us the good stuff.”
Next time? I skipped down the stairs. “Are you one of those pizza snobs who’s all weird about folding and thinks deep-dish is lasagna or something?”
“Hey, there is room for all types of pizza in my belly. Even pineapple toppings. ”
I chuckled and unlocked the door. “Wow, you have such an open mind. You should be studied.”
“Good taste is hard to find,” he bragged.
“Good friends,” I said, popping out to grab the pizza. The cool night air whipped past me, but I slammed the door closed quickly. “The phrase is: ‘good friends are hard to find.’”
“Are they?” he asked.
I rubbed my thumb across the warm, steamy cardboard. “Sometimes.”
For me.
But maybe my luck was changing.