I woke to the warmth of the sun on my face. I blinked a few times, and rubbed the sleep from my face. Stretching, I sat up and looked towards the recliner in my room. Jace sat there, sleeping soundly. I crossed my legs and rested my head in my hand, with a smile as I watched him snore lightly.
It was comforting to wake up to him near me. As I thought back to the day before, I closed my eyes, cringing at my behavior. Had I actually done that? Had he? I knew I loved being around him, but I had never acted like a lovestruck child around him before. Was it the body I had inhabited? I pushed the thoughts from my mind, and stood up to wake him.
“Jace,” I said, lightly, while gently pushing his shoulder. His eyes fluttered open. “Yeah?” He grunted, his voice still raspy from sleep.
“Breakfast,” I said. I reached my hand out, grasped his, and helped pull him to his feet. Still sleepy, he staggered into me somewhat, and I bowed under his weight. I nearly fell over before he caught himself, muttering, “Sorry…” in a groggy haze.
“Need more sleep?” I asked teasingly.
He grunted in reply and walked to the bathroom. I shrugged, and lumbered downstairs, drawn by the scent of freshly cooked bacon.
“Hey mom,” I said.
She was wearing an oversized t-shirt and sweatpants, with her hair tied up in a bun. My eyes widened at the spread of food on the table - a collection of my favorites. I hugged her, then walked past to grab a coffee mug. I set it in the coffee maker and hit the max button.
She smiled at me, plated the bacon, and asked, “How was your game? Did you guys win?”
I grabbed a piece of bacon before dropping it due to the temperature.
“Uhh, not really,” I said, wondering how to explain it to her. “We kinda crash-landed and our ship broke.”
“Already?” She asked with a raised eyebrow.
“Don’t make fun,” I retorted sourly, “There were very scary space pirates.”
“I’m sure they were terrifying, sweetheart.”
I glared at her, retrieved my coffee, and took a seat at the table. Hearing the sound of footsteps coming downstairs, I raised my voice slightly and yelled, “Tell her Jace! Space pirates!”
He rounded the corner, widened his eyes at the food selection, and smoothly replied, “Oh yeah, they were terrifying. Very scary.”
I nodded my head, bobbling like a chicken eating grains. Mom sat down next to me, and gave me a pitying look.
“Well, I’m sure you’ll get them today. Just don’t forget to clean the —”
“Yeah, bathroom, got it,” I said, interrupting.
“As long as you do it,” Mom said, evenly.
Jace grabbed what seemed to be half the food on the table, and began to stuff his mouth. I looked at him with mild irritation.
“How am I the one that’s fat?” I asked, scathingly.
“Because I’m the one that exercises.”
“Uggh, I need to go to the gym.” I said.
Jace raised an eyebrow at the collection of food on my plate. I ignored him as I began to eat.
After breakfast, Jace decided to go home to shower and change. I did the same, and the plan to reconvene in Starfall later that day was decided. I quickly freshened up, begrudgingly cleaned the restroom, and sat impatiently on my bed.
My eyes, ever unfaithful, kept glancing towards the VR headset that traitorously tempted me.
“I’m sure Jace won’t care if I log in ahead of him,” I said, sliding the VR goggles over my face. A moment later, my sensations were cut, and I found myself back in our ruined ship.
Thankfully any flames from the night before were extinguished. I stumbled to the breach in the ship and slid down, taking a glance at the scenery. The fresh smell of trees and morning dew brightened my mood considerably. The pile of wood we had collected the night before had yet to be fully used, so I simply grabbed a random log and dragged it next to the fire, albeit with considerable effort.
I sat on my makeshift bench, and felt the difference in my body. I felt my hair tickle the back of my neck, weight in places I wasn’t used to, and the thin stomach I hadn’t had in reality since childhood. I looked down, and moved my legs experimentally. My dexterity was significantly better. I smiled as I twisted my body, and found I could even do the splits. By the end, my face was somewhat red, and I felt happier than I’d been in years.
The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
My jubilation was stopped short by the sound of rustling bushes. The smile on my face froze, and I looked towards the sound. As I scrambled into a somewhat respectable position, a man slowly emerged from the bushes. He was tall and had a wide frame. His shoulder length hair seemed as if it had been professionally done, and blow dried mere moments before. My gaze lingered a moment on his well-defined body covered only by a light tank top and coat.
“Don’t stop on my account,” He called, chuckling slightly.
“Who are you?” I called back hesitantly, as my face flushed from shame.
“These bodies are great, aren’t they?” He replied, not answering my question. “No aches, no pains, it’s been years since my knees felt like this.”
He cast me a Cheshire like grin as he slowly walked towards me. Becoming somewhat uncomfortable, I covered my chest with my arms and stepped backwards.
His gaze glanced to inappropriate areas, but stopped moving within speaking distance.
“Are you alone?” He asked. His heated gaze made my skin crawl.
“N-no,” I said, not willing to tell him the truth. “My uh— my boyfriend is in the ship getting something.”
He smiled and replied, “Is that so.”
We stared at each other awkwardly, and I desperately wished he would walk back into the forest he emerged from.
Jace, come on where are you?
He stepped closer and said, “If you’re not with anyone, why not come with me? I can show you how to get your ship fixed. I can tell you’re new.”
“No thanks,” I replied, becoming ever more uncomfortable. “How did you know we crashed here?”
“You sure? Your ship looks in pretty rough condition. I know all about this game.”
He wasn’t looking me in the eyes anymore.
He was about to walk closer, when a deep voice called from behind me, “Syl, you ok?”
A frown fell across the long-haired man face as he looked towards Strevan.
Grateful, I took a few steps back, closing the distance between myself and Strevan, who had just slid down the breach ramp. He walked up next to me and glanced curiously at the long-haired man, before asking, “Are you alright?” In a light whisper.
“This guy is creeping me out,” I replied, under my breath.
The long haired guy called out, “Nice to meet you, I’m Alan,” to Strevan.
“I saw your ship from town, and figured you might need some help.”
Strevan, noticing my discomfort, called out in return, “No, we’re good. We’ll figure it out.”
Raising an eyebrow, Alan asked, “I can help you two, are you sure?”
His increasingly pushy tone rubbed me the wrong way.
“I said we’re fine,” Strevan said, firmly. “Please leave.”
Alan raised his hand in surrender, saying, “Sure, sure, whatever you say big man.”
He looked at me again, scanning my body, before turning around and walking back into the woods.
“What the fuck,” I said.
I sat down and noticed my hands were shaking somewhat. I had never been this creeped out.
Strevan sat next to me and asked, “Are you ok? What did that guy do before I got here?”
“He just -” I began, before sputtering out. I shook my head, and gathered myself.
“He was so pushy,” I began, “And he kept looking at my…”
I looked to the side, uncomfortable and embarrassed. I forced a smile to my face and looked at Strevan, saying, “It’s a good thing you were here, I might’ve been kidnapped!”
He said nothing, but looked at me with a mix of concern and anger. I couldn’t hold the smile on my face for long, and looked down at my feet.
“Thank you,” I said.
“For what?”
“Just…being there. I’ve never had that happen.”
We sat there for a while, appreciating each other’s company. Two birds flittered to the ground, poking around for grains. One had a brilliant blue coat, and the other a mix of dark grey. The bluebird excitedly hopped around, looking for food.
Strevan laughed, making the first sound either of us had in some time.
“What?” I asked, curiously.
“That one looks just like you,” He said, pointing at the bluebird.
I looked at him incredulously, before pointing towards the far less energetic and darker colored bird.
“That one looks just like you, too.” I retorted.
Strevan laughed, before leaning back into a more comfortable position.
“Birdwatching, filling out paperwork. Rather than a space adventure game, aren’t we just old?” He said, grinning somewhat.
I nodded seriously. “You’re right, do you think we’ll have to deal with insurance claims on the ship too? Would they make us do that in this game?”
“Oh, naturally,” Strevan replied. “We’ll spend more time arguing about our insurance premium than fighting space pirates.”
“I think I’m beginning to see the appeal to this game,” I said, jokingly.
Strevan was about to say something when the rumbling sound of a stomach rolled through the clearing, emanating from me. The birds flew away from the disturbance.
“I just ate,” I complained, trying to ignore the flush creeping across my face.
“In real life,” Strevan replied, standing up, “But not in game. I think I have some rations, hold on.”
I leaned forward, somewhat excited. I hoped that the space food in the game would be better than astronaut food in real life.
It wasn’t.
I stared at a foil-wrapped slab of jerky in my hand. Tears nearly streaked from my eyes as I said, “How is it this bad? What kind of monster codes this on purpose?”
Strevan shrugged, and replied, “I guess it’s so we hunt or something. Maybe they created the entire hunter-gatherer system before realizing most gamers would rather eat protein slurry so they can grind more.”
“That’s only you,” I replied. “You’re the only one I know that spends more time watching video tutorials than actually playing your games.”
I deepened my voice and scrunched my eyebrows together, attempting my best impersonation, before saying, “Ah yes, another 3 hour deep dive build video in my card game rogue like!”
Strevan laughed and nodded, acknowledging defeat.
“It’ still better than you,” He retorted scathingly. He widened his eyes and put both hands up to his mouth and said in a light voice, “Oh dear, another anime inspired, open world RPG with real time action combat! I’ve never seen this before!”
“That is not me,” I said, laughing.
“Wrong. That’s more you than you’re you.”
I nudged him with an elbow, eliciting a laugh from him. We sat quietly for a few more moments, until I couldn’t take it anymore.
“I need some real food.”
Strevan looked over at me and nodded.
“Yes ma’am.”
My eyes widened at his response.
He stopped and quickly looked at me in a panic saying, “Oh er— sorry is that ok…?”
Slowly I nodded.
“I…think I like it, actually.”
“Ma’am it is,” Strevan said, smiling.
He abruptly stood up, and dusted bark off his backside.
“Where you going?” I asked.
“To get some real food,” He replied calmly.
He turned towards me and pulled out a gun — a laser gun from the looks of it.
“You’re going to kill an animal with a plasma gun?” I asked incredulously.
“It’s a two for one bargain. It kills and it cooks,” He said, grinning. He looked towards something that moved nearby.
Following his gaze, I gasped as I realized his intentions. Hurriedly, I reached out and pulled the gun back down using both of my hands.
It was somewhat chubby, with stuffed cheeks and the bushiest tail I’d ever seen. It could have been the mascot for a children’s movie.
“You are not killing a squirrel!” I squeaked.
“No,” He said, “I’m hunting you dinner.”
A brief image passed through my head — the squirrel stuck on a skewer with two X’s for eyes, tongue lolling out.
“Absolutely not,” I reaffirmed.
He sighed and scratched the back of his head. He looked at me curiously before saying, “What’s the plan then? Hoping for a flying combo meal to fall into your lap?”
“Anything but the squirrel,” I answered.
As if on queue, the most adorable looking rabbit I’d ever seen in my life hopped out from a nearby bush. As if it could sense the target on its head, it looked towards us, its nose twitching cutely.
Strevan looked at me, smirking, twirling the gun around on his finger.
“You know,” I said, leaning down to pick the foil-covered cardboard from the ground, “These rations are actually quite tasty.”
Strevan laughed.
