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Jade sits next to me, crossing her legs at the ankles. She looks super uncomfortable hanging out in a teenage boy’s bedroom, as she should be. This room smells like a mixture of dirty clothes, cum, and old food. Now I feel bad for asking her to stay. If it’s bothering her, she doesn’t let on and doesn’t say a word.
She’s used to country clubs and mansions not rowhouses on tiny streets in South Philly. Our lives couldn’t be more different, and yet somehow, we click in a way I don’t understand. I never thought I could make a connection with someone like Jade, but then there’s Jamie. He had the same kind of childhood as Jade, and he’s one of the most down-to-earth people I’ve ever met.
It only goes to show how wrong stereotypes can be. Just like I’m sure they had me pegged a certain way. When people find out I’m into gaming and programming, they’re usually confused. I race cars for money and break the laws more than I follow them. In that regard, I live up to what people would think of me given my upbringing. But I plan to eradicate all of that bad behavior and replace it, hopefully, with a whole new life.
Finn flicks on the flat screen hung on the wall across from his bed. Game Over flashes across the screen in red letters, and when he looks at it, he mutters something under his breath while rolling his eyes.
He lifts a nacho from the plate and then glances over at me. “Wanna play on the same team?”
“Yeah. But just one game. We can’t stay all night.”
One game could last hours, even days, but I can’t make Jade stay here that long. She’ll be bored with this shit within the first five minutes, let alone an hour.
“I got the Sword of Balthazar last night.” Finn’s face glows for a second, before his expression darkens. “But I lost it. I was up all night trying to get it back.”
“Did you get any sleep?”
He shakes his head, clicking buttons on the controller. “Nope. I was up until my alarm clock went off.”
I blow out a puff of air, annoyed. “You gotta stop doing that.”
It’s not his fault. How can I yell at him? He has no real parental supervision, no one to make him accountable. I should stay in the house with him. But I decided years ago that I have to live my life on my own terms and rolling out of bed late and then having to rush over to school wasn’t working for me.
I almost failed out of two classes my first semester because I was late all of the time. I realized back then that spending the money to live on campus was worth it to me. It gives me more of a buffer when I’m out all night with my crew or traveling late with my team.
“Do I have to move back into the house?” I’m joking, and Finn knows it.
“No,” he growls. “I don’t need you here all the time to babysit me. I’m fine on my own, thank you very much.” A few minutes pass in silence, nothing but the sounds of our fingers hitting the buttons, before Finn yells, “Fucking mages. Stop stealing my artifacts, you stupid bastards.”
“To the left,” I tell Finn as our characters navigate a hidden passageway in the dark castle. “The Sword of Balthazar is this way. Go upstairs.”
Ten minutes pass where we have to kill mages and demons who are guarding the Sword of Balthazar. As we reach the bell tower where the sword is suspended in the air, a glimmer of elven magic surrounding it, my cell phone dings. I know without looking that it’s Chase. I’ve been expecting a message from him all day. The buyer in Italy was happy with our last score and wants us to work for him again. My tuition balance for my final semester is already past due, so whether Jade likes it or not, I have to do this one last time.
“Reach into my pocket,” I say to Jade, moving my arm so she can retrieve my cell phone. “See what he wants.”
It’s weird how much I trust her in such a short time. I’m not used to allowing anyone into my world. Only a handful of my teammates even know about my mom and all of her problems. Because I needed help years ago and didn’t know where to look, I brought Jamie into the fold, and he’s never said a word. None of the members of my crew know how sometimes I go to Jamie for help. He knows too much. Chase, Rome, and Nate would consider him a liability. I often feel like I live multiple lives and find myself wishing I could merge those two worlds together.
