Simulated Love (2024)

Chapter 3

Elijah

Maggie burst into my office, the door swinging open with a bang. Her face lit up with a radiant smile. "Guess what?" she exclaimed, her voice filled with anticipation.

I stopped typing on my keyboard, giving her my undivided attention. "What? And please don't tell me you got me another unwanted date tonight."

"No, it's not that," she continued, her voice growing more animated. "I just finished the interview for the Channel Manager position."

"That's exciting," I said, trying to match her enthusiasm. "You're definitely getting that position. It would be dumb if you don't because the YouTube channel was your idea, anyway."

"True." She let out a sigh, sinking into the plush couch nearby. As she settled in, the soft fabric seemed to embrace her, offering comfort and support. "It's about time we have a woman in charge of something around here. I'm tired of being just a social media lead."

"If this company was smart, they would know the importance of representation. Before us, this was an all-white male-dominated company."

"True. I remember how skeptical they were when they first hired me. They were amazed when they realized I had a better understanding of games than they did."

"Shit, now look at you. You're training two men how to run their pages."

"Period." Shifting the conversation, she asked, "How have things been going with you? I saw the announcement about you working with Hopeless Studios this year for the Global Game X competition."

"Yeah, I am. I have a meeting with this Chase guy in a minute. He's from Bangkok so it'll be interesting to see how this goes."

"Ohh, that's exciting."

"Not really. The studio I am working with is so unknown. Which is gonna make it harder for our popularity to spike. I don't know what Evan was thinking. He could've paired me up with any other studio, but he chose this random ass one. It's like he's trying to sabotage me."

"Don't say that. Remember this company used to not be so big. Maybe Evan sees potential."

"We don't need potential. We just need more views. The views Hopeless Studios is bringing in is from their family and friends."

"Try looking at the bright side. If you help them get popular then it'll look really good on us."

"I guess. I just hope he cooperates and lets me do whatever since we're giving his company a chance. Dean asked for a very specific kind of game, so I have to give it to him."

"Isn't the theme this year romance? Maybe you can finally do something with that story you wrote."

"No."

"Why not?"

"It's stupid and it isn't what Dean wants. Look, I'm not talking about it. I need to finish typing my ideas out before I get on this call in like ten minutes."

She sighed.

There was a knock at my opened door. It was Henry, the guy Maggie was training. He looked like he was in trouble, with worry written all over his face. His blonde hair clung to his forehead, damp with sweat. "Please come help me. I think I screwed up something."

"Henry, don't panic. You're making me nervous."

He immediately apologized, his words filled with remorse. "I'm sorry. I'm still learning. I didn't mean to bother you."

"It's okay, Henry. Take deep breaths. Remember what I told you. It isn't the end of the world."

He nodded, taking a deep breath to steady himself. Just then, Maggie walked up to my desk, her presence failing to intimidate me. Leaning in close, she whispered, "We aren't done here," as her mint breath brushed against my cheek.