Chapter 1: A Whole New World
I skimmed the non-disclosure agreement, noting any possible loopholes that would allow me to write about the game. As far as NDAs go, this one was short and to the point…
Non-disclosure, shmon-disclosure. Beta-testers always had to agree to one, but I was sure I could cleverly skirt the letter of the law enough to intrigue my readers. Okay, so it forbade me from discussing game mechanics, in-game items, or divulging details about quests. Details, details.
After electronically signing and submitting the document, I reread the last bit of my most recent blog post, made a few tweaks and then hit “post” on my blog. It wasn’t easy producing new daily content, but it was paying off. My readership was increasing by the day—even more so since I’d started blogging about Dragon Epoch.
I wasn’t the only person out there excited about this game!
My gaze lit on my textbook sitting neglected on the far side of my desk. All this blogging about gaming wasn’t interfering with my schoolwork—yet. But the new game, on top of the hospital job I’d just started last month, worried me. What time dilation effect would Dragon Epoch have? Would it suck hours of my life away in the blink of an eye? Danger, Will Robinson!
Good thing I had no social life whatsoever. I did have acquaintances from a pre-med student study group, but when we were together, we talked medical terminology, commiserated over the impending MCAT, and strategized about how best to pad our résumés for med school.
Right after posting to the blog, my computer screen flipped out—lines and waves covered the screen. I reached over and thumped the blocky monitor on its side. Damn it! It couldn’t break now. Not with this delicious new game on the horizon.
And now that my blog revenue was increasing—apparently, regular content will do that—this was like a second job. It could pay off. Someday. Though I suspected that if I sat down and calculated how much I actually made, it would end up paying pennies per hour. Not much less than the nurse’s assistant job, in point of fact.
But I did it for my love of writing and chatting about my favorite hobby—gaming!
At least the blogging was fun. For now. I’d work on a plan for later.
Just as I was pounding on my keyboard, the front door opened and slammed a second later. My roomie entered in time to witness the end of my temper tantrum. His eyes narrowed as he took in the scene.
“What’s good, Mia?” He threw his backpack onto the couch—from where I’d have to remove it in a few hours, most likely. My roommate, Heath Bowman, was not the tidiest of people. In truth, he was a slob. But as he was also my brother-from-another-mother, I tolerated it. And just as any good sister would do, I bitched at him about it. Often.
“You need a new monitor,” he said. “Hell, you need a completely new box, but that’s beside the point.”
“Wow, that’s some amazing deduction work, Sherlock.” I leaned back in my chair, folding my arms across my chest and gave him the once-over. Heath was as tall, powerfully built and blond as an ancient Viking. A handsome guy—though I had never thought about him in that way. Good thing, since he also happened to be as gay as I was straight. “What do you do for an encore, shit your pants?”
His brows rose. “Aren’t you a grouchy one today?”
I rubbed at the crick in the back of my neck. “I didn’t sleep very well last night, and I fell asleep in my Lit class this morning. The teacher called me out. It was embarrassing.”
He frowned. “What’s with this sudden bout of insomnia? That’s like the third time in the last two weeks.”
I shrugged. “I have no idea. Just MCAT nerves, I guess.” Yeah, the dreaded MCAT... I was trying to play it cool. Trying to get in a minimum of an hour of study time every day, but as the test date approached, my anxiety seemed to be creeping up the angst scale.
Meditation. I needed to take up meditation in my copious amounts of spare time. Since medication didn’t seem to be a viable option, anyway.
“You’re stressing out over nothing. You have months to get ready for it. And you learn by osmosis.”
I quirked my mouth. “Jealous.”
He shrugged. Heath had never been one for school. Especially tests. Which is why he’d gone to community college—and finished up already—while I attended the neighboring university, Chapman. After that, he’d landed himself a nice job in web design. One that often allowed him to work from home.
Heath nodded at my troublesome computer monitor. “I just got a bonus for finishing a redesign on that Harrison and Sons website a month early. I’m going to use it to buy myself a kickass new monitor and video card, so I can enjoy Dragon Epoch in all its glory. I’ll give you my old one. Besides, no one uses those clunky CRT things anymore. They’re shitty and they take up way too much room. That computer is straight out of the Jurassic era.”
I popped out of my seat and hooked my arms around his neck, kissing him on the cheek. He made the requisite sour lemon face, as per usual and also expected. Heath, my dear friend, never changed. And hadn’t changed much in the almost-decade that I’d known him.
“You rock, my friend. Thank you.”
“Well, when you’re a rich and famous doctor, you can pay me back.”
I grinned. “I most certainly will. Free medical advice for life.”
He rolled his eyes. “Greaaaaat…” And with that, he disappeared into his room. The backpack, of course, was left behind and forgotten until I accidentally sat on it hours later.
Yep indeed. He never changed….
For example, he always kept his promises, which meant that, only days later, Heath brought home his new monitor. And just as quickly, he pulled my box apart to get the clunky old thing to work right.
“Christ, I feel like I’m at an archeological dig,” he huffed, rearranging the cards within. He picked up the can of compressed air and began blowing into the innards of—okay, I’d begrudgingly admit—my ancient box. When he blew the cold air into the box, huge clouds of dust rose everywhere.
Heath’s boyfriend, Brian, sat nearby and made a big show of waving his hand in front of his face and coughing. “Jeez. Someone needs to learn how to do housework better,” he chided while sending me a snotty look.
Though I felt the heat rise in my cheeks and forehead—scathing heat, as a matter of fact—I did what I always did and bit my tongue.
Were that expression literal instead of figurative, I would have bitten it in half by now!
“Everybody’s box gets dusty,” Heath retorted in my defense. “The archeological dig comment was about the ancient technology. Straight out of the Atlantean civilization of Stargate. I half expect it to open up a wormhole into another world.”
To emphasize the difference in my tolerance of Heath’s teasing over Brian’s snark, I laughed. “You love a challenge. Always have.”
“Always have,” Brian repeated with exaggerated air quotes and a nasty tone of voice. “You haven’t known each other long enough to make a statement like that.”
I chewed my lip. “I think knowing one another half our lives qualifies.”
Brian frowned. “That math is wrong.”
My face again burned. Heath, who had been buried in his task—or so I’d thought—looked up from his work. “What does it even matter?” he snapped.
Brian didn’t reply, only shrugged and rolled his eyes. He stood from where he’d been sitting on the arm of the couch and snatched up his book bag. “I’ve got to get going. See you.”
Heath stiffened when Brian headed straight to the door and left without a goodbye kiss or any kind words.
My brows shot up but I said nothing, and in minutes, Heath was back to work. I frowned as I watched him, wondering what was up with those two. Dare I bring up how much I disliked Brian’s general treatment of him?
Teeth marks on my tongue. That’s what I was going to get…
After ten more minutes, he straightened, dramatically wiping his brow with the back of his hand. “There you go… a miracle exhibition of my finest skills in Computer Paleontology.”
I clapped my hands together, excited. “Thank you!” He acknowledged my gratitude with a curt nod, obviously distracted. Perhaps thinking of Brian’s display of rudeness earlier. I cleared my throat. “So… we’re logging on to the new beta tonight, right?” I asked, an eyebrow arched.
Heath glanced at me out of the corner of his eye before pushing up and heading into the kitchen. From the smell of it, he’d brewed a new pot of coffee. I frowned, following him. Something was definitely up, easily visible from the tension in his shoulders and his stiff stance.
“Are you two not getting along?” I asked quietly.
He let out a long breath and shrugged, but kept his back to me as he continued to fix his cup of coffee.
More silence between us. I leaned back against the counter and folded my arms across my chest, trying to resist the urge to bash on the little twerp. Brian seemed to enjoy yanking my best friend around, and that just brought out the protective she-bear in me.
They’d been dating for about six months, and it had been rocky from the start. But as Brian was Heath’s first steady boyfriend after a long string of flings, I’d been thrilled for him… at first. Then I’d steadily had my doubts pile up with every diva-like demand that Brian put on Heath. They fought—a lot—but Heath was in love and determined to make it work.
I hated—hated—seeing my friend hurt. “What about this time?” I asked.
Heath shrugged, turning to face me. “He wants a bigger commitment.”
I let out a breath. “You’ve been seeing each other exclusively for months. What else could he want? Marriage?”
He gritted his teeth but did not reply.
I snorted. Maybe that was it. “Go for it, but you’re on your own, buddy. I’m never getting married.”
He held the pitcher of coffee up as if to ask me if I wanted any. I shook my head. “So you’ve said. You’re going to be a nun without the religion part of it.”
I made a face but didn’t say anything, waiting for him to answer the question. He ran a hand through his dark blond hair and sighed before responding.
“He wants us to live together.”
I waited a beat for him to continue. Two beats. We locked gazes. I shrugged. “Why don’t you invite him to move in, then?”
“Alone. Just the two of us.”
Another beat, this one awkward and thick. I looked away. What should I say? Obviously it was his right to live with Brian—alone—if he wanted.
My hands held my arms just above the elbows as my grip tightened. I tried not to give away how much this hurt, but I couldn’t prevent myself from feeling it. I swallowed before speaking again. “Alrighty, then.”
As he sipped at his cup, his stance grew even more tense, possibly with remembered conflict. “I told him no way. I’m not throwing you out on the street. He pitched a fit and claimed that you mean more to me than he does.”
Well. That explained the extra dose of snark this afternoon.
I’d gotten the impression pretty quickly that Brian didn’t like me. I never claimed to be the most likeable person ever, but his behavior had seemed more on par with jealousy. Which was ridiculous. Neither Heath nor I had siblings—except what we were to each other. Heath was one-hundred percent gay and would never have any interest in me besides friendship, and I was one-hundred percent okay with that. But Brian was jealous of any amount of time Heath spent with me rather than him. I quietly wondered if the guy had other interests or hobbies outside of dating Heath. Apparently not.
Though there was a heavy weight in my stomach and a faint sting of betrayal that Heath was even considering this, I sucked it up and let him off the hook.
“Well, you don’t necessarily have to kick me out in the street, you know. I can find a place on my own if you want to share these digs with him.”
He shook his head vigorously and set the coffee cup back down. “No. You would stay here. I was thinking about buying a condo anyway. I’ve got the money saved up, and housing prices aren’t half bad right now.”
I read between the lines: Brian had not approved of our apartment as a livable place. My shoulders slumped at the thought of living here without Heath. We’d lived together since our sophomore year in high school.
At the age of fifteen, he’d come out to his parents, and his dad threw him out of the house. My mom extended welcoming arms, and he became a permanent guest at the family B&B. After graduation, we both moved to Orange County, and he’d been my roommate for the past three years.
I tried not to sound as hopeless and hollow as I felt. “I couldn’t afford to live here on my own, and I don’t know who I could ask to move in. You stay and I’ll find something. Maybe student housing close to the school.”
Heath’s lips pressed together so ferociously that they went white. “I really hate this.”
So did I… but there was no way I was going to make him choose between his boyfriend and me.
“I’m not going to be the reason that you are having problems with Brian, all right? I’m cool with it. All I ask is that you give me a little time to find something.” I tilted my head up at him, shifting my weight to lean against the counter. “Will he calm down if you tell him I’m looking and have a move-out date? Say one or two months from now?”
“No less than two months. And if you need more—”
I shook my head adamantly. “I won’t need more. I’ll be fine. Call him and let him know that we’re working on it.”
Heath nodded but didn’t look happy. And though I hated seeing my best friend in a rocky relationship, I couldn’t deny the certain amount of self-satisfaction I felt that, at the ripe old age of twenty-one, I had avoided the ins and outs of navigating romantic relationships. I’d learned the hard way at a very young age that dating was most certainly not for me!
Ugh. Time to change the subject.
“So about the beta for that new video game…” I said, waggling my eyebrows.
Heath grinned, visibly relieved. “Yeah? Looks badass, doesn’t it? The artwork. That game trailer… Uber dragons. Dynamic quests. I think I’ve died and gone to nerd heaven. Or I soon will.”
I concurred. “It looks like it could be addictive. Promise me that we’ll log on tonight? I think my computer has the bare minimum specs to run this if I turn off all the fancy effects.”
“Barely, sir,” he said, imitating Scotty’s accent from Star Trek. “The processors canna handle any more, Captain!”
“Well, it’s all I got. And since I’m your favorite kickass gamer girl—”
He grabbed the cup off the counter, sipping again. “You wouldn’t even be hooked on video games if it weren’t for me…”
“Pusher,” I said, poking a finger into his broad chest.
He smirked at me. “Junkie. I’m not the one who spent twenty-four hours straight on Dragon Age. That was all you, dollface.”
I sighed dreamily in fond memory of that beloved game. “Oh, Alistair…”
Heath put down his coffee cup and picked up his phone. With a deep breath, he started to, I assumed, text Brian. “Okay, it’s a date. You and me, tonight. Brian will be appeased, and he’s working tonight anyway.”
“Mmm. Good to know,” I said, turning to leave the kitchen. I managed to fight rolling my eyes over the hot mess that was Brian until my back was turned.
Barely, sir…