Chương 50: Ch. 44 - Next Time

"A draw?" asked Caddie.

"A zero sum game? The plan was sound." I couldn't help the smile on my face. I did it. It wasn't a win mind you. I knew I should've been more frustrated than ever. But neither of us won. That felt like a victory… somehow. But then the logistics of it all hit. She was at a handicap. If we were using identical Frames and equipment. She'd win, every time. I shook the negativity away. Regardless of the scenario, it was still a draw. I didn't ask for the handicap, but it was awesome to be even in the same breath as her.

"AND WE HAVE OUR WINNER!" said the PA announcement.

"Ania clutched victory from the jaws of defeat!" A thunderous applause rang through the audience and I deflated.

"What?!" exclaimed Caddie.

"How?" My screen flashed to the final moments from a third person perspective. It was slowed down to see what happened. Ania's Frame was battered to all heck. It didn't even look like a Frame. Holes were plucked from her mech like swiss cheese. But the cockpit, where she would've been, was still mostly in one piece. They replayed the final moments. The salvo fired, sending the rockets at her. My jaw dropped when I saw that she activated her club at the same time the rockets took flight.

They scattered in all directions, detonating before they could hit her. It was the debris that fired like projectiles that did the most damage to her. She did technically win, but her Frame was completely incapacitated. In the real world, out there- I stopped myself. It didn't matter. She won, fair and square. Same rules as always in the sim. I was locked in the sim for a long moment, staring at the blank screen.

The audience was cheering for Ania while the announcer proclaimed her victory with a shower of compliments.

"So close that time," I said under my breath. The headrest caught my weight and I closed my eyes, picturing firing the salve just a fraction of a second faster. The door to my pod swung open and Ania was the door, beaming the biggest smile I had ever seen from her.

"That was so much fun!" she said.

"Are you here to gloat?" I asked, hitting the headrest with the back of my head.

"Are you kidding me? Yes!" she yelled.

"You were so close that time! So freaking close. My heart is still pounding! I haven't had to get that serious in a long time! Oh man! What a rush!"

"You're making fun of me, aren't you?"

"What? No way! You did so well! Genuinely! I thought it was dumb to pick the missiles, but when you fired them, I was so sure I was cooked. I didn't even have time to see to think. I just… I don't know. Reacted."

"So what? You still won," I grumbled.

"I don't think you realize how much of a win this is for you," she said, calming down.

"I… Look, you have gotten so much better. I'm honestly jealous." I was aghast and my face reflected it.

"Um… What? You are jealous of me? You realize I haven't beaten you." She pushed herself onto the seat, ignoring my personal space. She was so close and she smelled like lavender.

"Stefano. I mean this from the bottom of heart. Dueling you. I don't know. Its just so much fun. I didn't tell you this when we were here, but facing you was the closest I ever got to struggling. Like for anything." She cricked her neck to the side as if thinking.

"Almost anything. I'm really not good at cooking. Or drawing." The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

"Why are you so close to me?" My waist was pressed to the metal. She grinned and bumped shoulders with me.

"Thank you for the match. Rival," she said. My hands reached my face with an absurd speed it was a miracle it wasn't a hard slap. My cheeks burned red with embarrassment.

"How do you know about that? I said that to Jeromy being funny."

"I don't know. Its nice to have a rival who pushes you. In our case, its me to you, but hey, its nice to be thought about." ◆ ◆ ◆ After some light moping on my way home, I managed to catch mom as she was leaving for work.

"Hey, mijo," she said.

"Food is in the fridge. I'll be home late. DOn't go for a 'vuelo' without saying goodbye."

"Before you go, Mom," I said, pulling the rose colored hair tie from my pocket.

"I know I should've wrapped this, but I figured you could use it now. Before work." A smile bloomed on her face as her eyes glazed over.

"You know you didn't have to," she said, not yet taking it.

"I know. But this is step one of like ten. I'm making credits now. It's not a lot yet, but it is progress. My hope is that I will move us to Z-Block. You know." She took the hair tie and wrapped it around to a ponytail.

"I don't need that," she said, the hair tie securing her curly hair.

"If you want to move to Z-Block, that's on you, Mijo. But I am happy here. I will take that spa day, though."

"I'm surprised," I said.

"I thought you wanted to move to Z-Block. I made that promise to you and I figured…"

"Mijo, I lived in Z-Block before. With your Dad. It wasn't for me and your dad moved with me here. Where we could do the most good. But you haven't lived there and I don't want to influence the decisions you make. You are your own man and the time will come when you have to leave the nest. Not that I mind." She placed a hand on my shoulder and kissed my cheek.

"I have to og. We can talk later." I had known about her living in Z-Block. And ever since I was little I promised I'd get her back there. In all that time, I didn't know she didn't actually want to go back. Or that maybe it was that I wasn't paying attention. Was leaving B-Block the only way I could think of helping? I sat down on the couch and just reflected. Thought of how dumb it was to not take her wishes into account. She wanted the spa day. It was what she asked for on my first Delve.

If that is what she wanted, then that would be what she got.

"Caddie, can you schedule a day for mom. A spa day?" I asked.

"Of course. I have gone ahead and transferred five hundred and fifty credits for the day plus gratuity. Your credit balance sits at a comfortable 110, 000 credits. Might I suggest we go to an equipment broker to better prepare you for the Dungeon and its perils? There are also the notable home improvements that can be made.

"Sure. Run me through some options."

"Since you are not moving, I believe better furniture and creature comforts would go a long way towards improving your overall wellness."

"How much are you thinking?"

"Perhaps another 10, 000 credits." I sighed. He was probably right. If we weren't going to move out, making this place nicer would be a good compromise. A knock on the door startled me.

"Were you expecting visitors?" I asked.

"Of course not, Stefano. I communicate with Luna through messaging."

"Cool. Alright then." I got up and the door knocked again. Louder this time. Before me was a black suit and he sized me up for a minute.

"Stefano?" he asked.

"Yeah," I said, raising an eyebrow.

"I need you to come to security with me."

"What's up? Did my complaint against the two that tried to kill me finally bring you to me to ask questions about it?"

"Something like that." I closed the door behind me as I followed him all the way to the interrogation room. His eyes were planted on me like I had committed a crime. But it wasn't me. He left me in the room alone for a while.

"Caddie. What's going on?"

"I believe you are being processed for a crime."

"What!? I didn't do anything."

"Calm yourself, Stefano. Anger will only serve against your own goals."

"Like getting out? Caddie, I didn't do anything. Do you know something I don't?"

"It's from the noises behind the glass window. I can hear them and I don't believe they anticipated I could. There. The conversations have stopped and one is approaching the room now. The same black suit that brought me here took a seat. He dropped a bundle of pages atop the table and didn't say a word for a long time.

"Mr. Reyes," he said.

"My name is Detective Lamprey. And I'm here to tell you, you're in deep trouble. But the sooner you tell us the truth, the sooner you can leave and go about your day." He took a seat and crossed his arms on the table.

"What are you talking about?" I asked. I felt the weight of the world crushing down on me. Like was I was going through a fog in the dark. He shrugged and sighed.

"Alright. Looks like we'll be here all day. Lucky for me, I cleared my calendar."