The Game

Chapter Twenty Three - Time

“How long have you been here?” she asked.

“A while.” Nate answered, kissing her forehead.

“What time is it?”

“It’s early. I couldn’t sleep. Didn’t find the need to.”

Arm in arm, they walked silently to the living room, which, lacked any evidence of events that unfolded the previous day. The room had reset itself overnight. They sat down on the large leather couch located in front of the empty fireplace. Their bodies wrapping each other in a comfortable position, they lay down, and just stared at the empty fireplace.

“I should congratulate you.” Claire joked. “You’re a father now.”

Nate sighed. “It appears so.”

“What are you going to do?” she asked.

“What can I do?”

Claire shrugged.

“I can’t leave the program.” Nate continued. “It would end up with me dying, and that’s not what we want right now. I can’t bring her into all this, because the machine is still new, and we don’t allow children in it, even with parental permission. Let’s not mention the fact that the person in charge of what happens in this program hates my father and therefore hates everyone connected to him with a burning passion.”

“He isn’t the only one.” Claire commented.

“I know. I swear, that man has more enemies than friends.”

“Rose wants revenge.”

“I can understand, though that wouldn’t be the smartest thing right now.”

“She doesn’t care about smart at the moment.”

“That’s Rose, always impulsive. I doubt Robert had anything with Jake’s death though.”

She sighed and gazed up at Nate, who looked down at her and smiled.

“When did everything get so fucked up?” she asked, without expecting an answer.

“We tried to play god.”

“We managed to.”

Then it was silent.

 

--

 

Three knocks at his door was enough to wake Jeremy up. He quickly checked the game time and it was just after seven in the morning. “What do you want?” he shouted at the knocker.

“It’s me.” the knocker replied. “Greg?”

“My question still stands, what do you want?”

“Um.. I know it’s early but someone is here for you.”

Jeremy sighed and started towards the door as Greg knocked again. “I’m coming!” he sighed and then muttered “...unlike your girlfriend.”

He opened the door and there was only Greg there, outside, waiting for him. Jeremy looked behind him, then at both sides. “Where is this ‘someone’?” Jeremy hissed at him.

“In your office.” Greg replied. “He has been there for a while now.”

“So, ‘it’ is a ‘he’, good to know.” Jeremy commented. He entered his room once again, and touched one of the walls. Instantly the wall became a mirror and he could see his reflection. Touching his reflection’s hair, he started fixing it, and so did his began to take the shape he wanted. Then, swiping his chest his reflection began changing attire. “I’m feeling casual.. What do you think?” Jeremy asked Greg who was still standing by his door.