PftA Book 2 - Chapter 7

Chapter 7 – Moving In

“You don’t have to help me move in, you know,” I said one last time as my brother exited his car in the nearly empty parking lot and headed toward me.

The new housing complex for students attending one of the many virtual universities in the Junction was located within walking distance of the Atlas office. It looked much more like the condos or luxury hotels lining the nearby beaches than apartments.

Then again, there really wasn’t that much of a difference between condos and apartments aside from ownership.

“I know, but I want to. It’s a big milestone. Besides—” Justin closed the lid of my small, hybrid car. “—I already took a couple of hours off. You ready?”

I sighed and nodded before leading the way to my new home. Between the two of us, we were able to empty my car in one trip. The amount I’d taken to college in the other timeline massively exceeded the duffle bags I’d openly brought this time. However, if I included all the equipment and items hidden in my ring, the scales tilted sharply in the other direction.

“I can’t believe this is all you brought,” Justin commented as I swiped the card I’d picked up from the front office on the door sensor. It looked like a hotel key, but I was pretty sure mana was involved somewhere instead of relying on purely mundane technology.

The building was built by Atlas – the front company for an alien alliance – after all.

“I shouldn’t need that much. I can always pick up more when I visit home,” I said casually as I opened the door. “If I really need something that I can’t get here, I’ll just send Mom the money to mail it to me.”

I stepped into the furnished residence, noting it looked a lot like a condo inside as well. The walls were plain white, with light-colored faux hardwood floors. Instead of sticking to the Atlas-neutral colors of white, tan, and black, the couch and loveseat were a nice, medium gray. Most of the provided furniture was still white or natural wood, which made the space look a bit stark.

Furnished didn’t necessarily mean decorated, it seemed. Luckily, it did include things like a flat-screen television, wireless router, and all the basic appliances (including a washer/dryer combo).

“Wow. Not bad. It’s too bad they don’t have family-friendly residences in the new complex. The rates are lower than my housing allowance, even for a furnished apartment.”

“That’s because I’m sharing an apartment with someone else. If you took both rooms, it would probably cost more,” I guessed.

A glance inside the rooms flanking the living room revealed both were similarly decorated bedrooms with an attached bathroom. I didn’t bother looking closely since everything looked pretty basic. There weren’t any obvious differences between the two rooms, so I picked the room on the right since it was the last one I checked and dropped my bags on the uncovered bed. My bedding was stored in my ring, so I ignored it for now.

Each bedroom held a single bed, a small desk, and a recessed alcove that served as a closet with a three-drawer dresser and a clothing rack. The attached bathroom was equally compressed and only held a sink, toilet, and showerhead.

I would have been confused about the setup if I had not lived overseas as a child. Finding the toilet paper holder still took a bit of searching since it was somewhat concealed to keep the thin paper from getting wet.

“Ha! This brings back memories!” Justin said from behind me.

“Yeah. Do you remember when we used to have water fights in the bathroom? Mom got so mad when we clogged the drain and flooded the hallway and part of your bedroom.”

“Yeah, I told you it would be like taking a bath,” he reminisced. We chuckled. It was a good memory. “Alright. I guess if that’s all you brought, I’ll head to the office. You’re lucky you don’t need to drive when you go in.”

He paused as he passed through the doorway between my bedroom and the living room, nearly causing me to run into his back.

“Oh, hello,” a female voice said hesitantly from the other room. “Do I have the wrong apartment?”

Recognizing the voice, I called out, “Bell?” and pushed my brother out of the way. In the kitchen was a young woman who looked a lot like my in-game friend, except instead of straight, silver hair and matching eyes, she had dark, curly hair and brown eyes.

“Duo? Or should I call you Emie since we’re out of the game?” the woman asked with a grin. She didn’t wait for an answer before nodding toward Justin. “Who’s your friend?”

“Either is fine. And he isn’t my friend. This is my brother, Justin,” I said before introducing them. Because we’d needed each other’s real names to sign a lease together, I already knew her name was Donna Jessup, but she insisted we call her Bell to make it easier.

I raised a brow at the change in my friend’s demeanor as she interacted with my brother. She knew he was single since she’d been present for more than one of my rants about my ex-sister-in-law. I wasn’t sure I liked the interested glint she had in her eyes as she shook his hand. It was like watching a foodie eyeing a sampling platter made by their favorite chef.

“Okay,” I said, breaking up the small talk that was beginning between the two of them. “Justin has to leave, or he’s going to be late for work.”

“I have some extra time. I took a couple of hours off,” he protested lightly.

“Nope!” I almost yelled over him. “You said you had to leave. No reason to be late. Bell’s a beta tester and my roommate. I’m sure you’ll see each other again.”

Justin rolled his eyes and took a step toward the door. “You want to trade Wednesday takeouts at my place?” he asked before glancing toward my friend. “Bell can come too if she wants. I’m sure Amie would like to see you more, too.”

“Sure. Wednesdays at your place. I’ll get the first set,” I said, pushing him slightly.

“That sounds great,” Bell said simultaneously as she stepped closer and squeezed between me and the wall to get a little closer.

I looked at my new roommate while she watched Justin leave. When the door closed behind him, she turned and said, “Your brother is hot!”

I shook my head. “Don’t play with him, Bell. Please? You know what he went through last year.”

“What? I’m not like that,” she gasped in denial. “But he’s hot. You never said he was so…spicy.”

I narrowed my eyes. “He’s not food.”

“But he could be…” she sing-songed before pausing and shuddering. “Ewww, not like that…you know what I meant.”

Eager to change the subject, I said, “I put my stuff in the room on the right, but I haven’t unpacked anything yet. They seemed to be the same, so I don’t care which room I get.”

She waved a hand dismissively before picking up the plastic storage container she’d set on the counter. “Whatever is fine. I’ll take the one on the left. Can we see the ocean from here?”

“I don’t think so, but I didn’t go onto the balcony.”

I checked while she went to her room. The view was largely unimpressive. From our apartment, we looked down on the small park and pool area that took up the space between the two taller buildings, though we were far enough away not to be too bothered by the noise. I couldn’t see into the two-story gym and poolhouse behind the pool at our height. However, if I squinted, I was pretty sure I could see the ocean between the buildings in the distance.

We were on the tenth floor of a fifteen-story building. It wasn’t the best, but it was enough to provide a decent view of the surrounding area.

“I think I can see it,” I called out.

“Really?” Bell squeaked as she rushed out the open sliding glass door. “Oh, yeah. I think I see it, too! It’s too bad we aren’t closer. I love the ocean. I wonder if Deni or Kevin’s rooms have better views.”

“Kevin?”

“That’s Mesmer. He only likes being called that in the game. I’m not sure why, though. Mesmer is a cool name,” she added before filling me in on the others’ names. “You already know Deni’s name is Deni. Ger is Gerald, but he also goes by Ger in real life. That was his nickname before the game even started.”

Neither of us mentioned the missing original member of the party. Blaze had petitioned for a change in roommates after Deni got hired as a beta tester and had moved out of the room he’d shared with Mesmer as soon as the semester ended. Now that the others had moved to Florida, they would unlikely see him again.

I didn’t think Bell was very upset by that fact.

“Do you know what building and floor they’re on?” I asked.

Bell shook her head. “Deni and Ger are sharing a one-bedroom, so they are probably above us. Most of the one-bedroom options looked like they were on the higher floors. I think Kevin is in a double, but he may have gone with a quad. He was talking about saving money when he got here, and the quads are cheaper. I think most of the quads are on the backside of the building, so I doubt he has a good view if he went with that option.”

She pulled out her phone and started texting. I left her to it, going to my room and quickly removing my bedding before Bell had a chance to realize I had more stuff than could fit in my bags.

“Ugh, the bedrooms are like being in the dorms again. At least now I don’t have to share a room.” She peeked into my bathroom. “What’s with this setup? How are you supposed to shower in here? I have a tub in mine. It’s really small, though.”

I was surprised that the bathrooms were different, but I hadn’t looked into the other bathroom beyond a glance through the door. Once I saw the sink, I didn’t look any farther. A tub would be nice, but the complex had a pool and hot tub. I could always soak there if I felt the urge.

“You just shower like normal, except it isn’t enclosed. That’s why the bathroom is recessed by a few inches.”

“But won’t everything get wet?” she asked.

I shrugged and finished making my bed. “I don’t think so. I’ve used this style of bathroom before. It works okay as long as you don’t spray water all over the place.”

Bell’s phone chimed, and she said, “Deni and Ger won’t be here until lunch. Kevin hasn’t replied yet.” She slid her phone into her pocket and glanced at the pile of duffle bags on the floor. Her eyes caught on the new crystalline tablet sticking out of an open bag. “Oh, is that one of the fancy tablets they have at the Atlas offices? I saw an advertisement saying they were going to be released soon.”

“Yeah. Rhona called it a promotion gift.”

Bell looked at me oddly. “You got a promotion already? Didn’t you just start working as a programming assistant or something?”

I sighed. It sucked having to tell half-truths and lies, especially to my friends and family. “Yeah. It wasn’t a real promotion, just a little shift in responsibilities now that I’m local and can physically go to work instead of being a fully virtual employee. Technically, I got moved to the Research and Development department, and I’m not a beta tester anymore, but I still have access to the expansions being tested.”

“Jeez, we already hardly see you in-game. Now, with classes starting soon…”

“I’ll still have weekends off. That hasn’t changed. And I’m not taking any weekend classes with the academies, so I’ll still have time to hang out and delve with you guys,” I replied.

“Oh! That reminds me! I applied to the Enchanters’ Academy and took the test a few days ago. I meant to tell you earlier, but you were incognito this past week, and I forgot.”

We discussed the classes I’d already taken and some of her potential options while I helped her carry the rest of her possessions to the new apartment. I had little doubt she would get into the game’s academy. The admission requirements were much easier to meet than the secretive, elitist system used in reality.

After finishing our last trip, Bell looked over the stacks of boxes and totes she’d piled into her room. It contrasted starkly with the handful of duffle bags my belongings were in two rooms over.

“How did you pack so light?” she asked with a hint of embarrassment.

“I have some stuff being mailed,” I fibbed. “I don’t have much space in my car. It’s an Aegis, so there’s hardly any storage, so I was limited on what I could fit.” The second half of the statement was true, at least.

We separated to finish unpacking, and I surreptitiously incorporated items I’d carried in my ring as I organized my belongings. Even with the minimalist approach I’d taken with packing, there was still nowhere near enough storage for everything I brought. I wondered how Bell was going to manage all of her belongings.