Chapter 19
Rohan
The road back to town has been empty so far.
It’s still midday, the sun feeling good against my skin.
I’ve been quiet our entire way back, even more so than when we were coming.
Though when we were coming, I was quiet because I was still fuming about what Tyson said last night.
Now I’m quiet for a reason I can’t really point to.
It feels weird, and when Tyson and I make eye contact, I can’t help but bite my lip and look away.
I can’t seem to figure out why he’s so furious about the whole boss thing. It’s not like I actually died and we lost the game.
Is … he worried about me?
My eyes slide over to peek at him, and he’s still pissed for sure. And okay, maybe he’s right. I shouldn’t have done that and been so reckless, but I was just so fucking tired of being in his shadow. I guess I understand where he’s coming from though. This time.
“Can … Can we take a break? I know a special map,” I ask, stopping in the middle of the road behind him.
He turns to look at me with an expression I can’t read. “What map?”
“I’ll show you when we get there,” I say, rolling my eyes.
“Whatever. Let’s go. I don’t wanna say no and hear your mouth.”
“I wasn’t going to say anything if you said no.”
“Right.”
“Well, do you wanna go or not?”
“I said let’s go,” He says, his stare so intense it makes me shift on my feet.
“Cool.”
There’s a special rest map I found while playing that has a sauna with a built-in waterfall.
Call it a natural wonder, I suppose. I found it while playing without Zero, I mean Tyson, one night.
I was so enamored by the design of the map I pretty much stayed there all night in between grinding to level.
The water from the sauna also heals you for as long as you’re in it, so that was a great touch.
“How far is it from here?” Tyson says, looking over at me as we take a left instead of the right that takes us back to town.
“Not that far. I’m pretty sure.”
“Yeah, you said that last time, remember?”
“Why do you always have to bring up everything I do wrong?”
“I don’t. I’m just saying.”
“How about you don’t say anything until we get there?”
“Sure, trust me, it won’t be hard not to talk to you,” He says, pushing past me to continue down the dirt road.
I cringe as I watch him create distance between us on the path.
Okay, he’s definitely still pissed. Why though?
Even when I almost drowned in the river, he wasn’t this agitated for this long.
It’s just a stupid boss, and we literally lived, and we got the fertilizer.
But maybe the real question is why I feel a bit sad.
When a monster comes out into our path, he kills it without even blinking or barely acknowledging it.
I pick up the loot as it falls behind him and pocket it.
The scenery is starting to change as we get closer to the safety map.
There are fewer and fewer monsters in the field, and the sounds of water crashing into itself finally hit my ears.
Tyson’s brows raise as we reach the edge of the body of hot, steaming water. His head tilts up as his gaze finds the top of the waterfall in front of us.
“Nice. I remember this.”
“You’ve been here before?”
“No, I’m on the team that’s working on this game. So I remember the map.”
“Wait, what?”
“Ah, that. Well, if you hadn’t thrown one of your little tantrums last night, I was going to say this game, Understory, I was part of the team working on it. And…” Tyson says before I interrupt him, “Wait, so you did know it was me.”
“What are you talking about now, Rohan?” He sighs.
“You never told me you’ve been working on this game exactly. And you said you didn’t know it was me you were talking to,” I say, trying to stay calm and not snap at him again. Especially not when I’m trying to fix things in the first place.
“I was going to tell you eventually, but you’re so prickly, you know. And I didn’t know. I’m not on the team that chose the beta testers,” he says, crossing his arms over his broad chest.
“So, you really didn’t know it was me?”
He looks off toward the water, pausing. “If I’m being honest, I did figure it out eventually…” Tyson says, taking in a breath.
“Okay, so you knew! Why did you lie?” My fists ball up at my side. I feel my blood beginning to run hot, and I’m really trying not to lash out like I really want to.
“Can you just … let me speak, Rohan.” He rolls his eyes at me. I know he’s already upset with me, but I really can’t help it. This is so fucking embarrassing.
“At first, I really didn’t know. But then when we spoke over voice chat … that’s when I found out it was you,” Tyson says, looking down at me. His eyes seem sincere.
“And you just kept talking to me? Flirting with me?” I ask, chewing on my bottom lip, heat blooming across my cheeks.
“I guess.” He shrugs.
I want to ask him why, but I don’t think I’m ready for the answer.
So, I stare at him for a bit, the spray of the waterfall splashing at our feet as we stand on the rocks. “I guess I believe you.”
“Oh, thank you, my lord, for believing me. What would I have done had you not?” He says in a mocking tone.
“Don’t be a fucking dick, Ty.”
“Oh, we’re back to nicknames now?”
“What?”
“You told me not to call you Ro back there.”
“Can you just let things go and get into the water?”
“Oh? You wanna get in?” he says, staring down at me.
“Well, yeah,” I mumble, pinching the skin on my arm a little.
He leans down, whispering into my ear. “Who would’ve thought? But you know we have to get naked for that, right?”
“You’re so fucking stupid,” I say, pushing him away from me.
I can blame the heat of my body on the steaming water a few feet away from us, but how do I explain the way my heart is shuddering lately around Tyson Moon?