▲ Everything went black as Catharina logged out from the virtual reality world, one she had been using more and more often now she felt familiar with the vivid realm of endless possibilities. Sighing she put the glasses and stared at the broken white ceiling. Her hand falling lifelessly back on the blanket. She felt oddly empty, the colors of her own reality felt liked her washed out gray paint shirt. Used, ugly and boring. Catharina curled herself into a ball. Mindlessly watching her blond hair splayed over her striped blue blanket. Blond, not cheerful purple, she thought idly as she stared off at the wall. She had things to do. So many things, homework that had to be done, chores to fix, probably try to socialize to kill time and then go for a long, long run. Aimlessly, Cath rolled back on her back as she listened to the passing seconds. Almost eight, Dad would be home at nine. If he didn’t stay out for drinks after work, that is. She closed her eyes and listened to her own heartbeat, five more seconds. Five more seconds and she would stand up, do things. Five, four, the ticking sound of her clock was maddening. One, Catharina opened her eyes and stood up. Her bare feet walking over her carpet as she looked outside her window. The streets were already lit for the night, but no one passed by. She didn’t know anybody from the neighborhood anyway, even if she was sure a few of her classmates lived nearby. ‘’Whatever.’’ Heading to the fridge, she took out a big jug of iced tea and seated herself firmly behind her desk. She lightened her room and took out her stationery and books. Focussing herself on her history and math but her mind soon drifted off from the subject. Yet her hands didn’t stop making notes, highlighting texts and underlining important sentences. Terrasphere had been horribly addicting, she had known the risk. Internet was full of love about the latest games. Terra was probably one of the best, most interactive, real game ever. She had already met a few people, ones she wouldn’t have talked to if she met them on the street. Or they didn’t want to talk to her, that also happened often enough. A bitter smile formed on her lips as she jammed the right calculations down her calculator. One with actual buttons, she enjoyed the clicking sounds. The time she had spend with @Troy Marshal had been incredibly fun. She hadn’t thought she had seen someone so extraordinary in her life before. She probably hadn’t laughed like that for ages. Not real ones. Drifting off the topic, X was the variable in this quotation. Whereas N stood for fixed numbers of the solution. Hmm, this looked way too complex, she should be able to write it shorter, easier. The clock ticked, on and on. Time was infinite, it bothered her. The world outside her window had become darker. By the time she had killed an hour with finishing her last homework she could hear her Dad shuffle through the hallway. Her room had been closed, her Dad had no idea that she had started a gaming habit. Too much trouble, he would not understand. He wouldn’t dare to knock on her door and walk into her room, however he wasn’t decent enough to not peek into her room when he passed it to get to his own. Catharina held her breath as she intently listened to his shuffle, with a solid bang the door of her father’s bedroom closed. Definitely drunk something before coming home, she thought grim. Well, it would knock him out for the night. His drinking wasn’t necessarily a problem, he didn’t do it too often that she felt the need to call some help line. He was a sad drunk, the one that cried sometimes in his bedroom and then slept for twelve hours straight. It was utterly disgusting. Catharina looked longingly to her game set. No, she had school tomorrow. After that she would have to cram for the upcoming tests and she couldn’t skip her running sessions. The fridge was almost empty, toilet paper was getting low too. She had priorities in a list in her head, endless tasks that needed her attention. Needy friends who needed a text. Catharina took her phone and checked the several notifications. ‘’Like you care if I come to the party.’’ She muttered as she walked to the kitchen and put herself on the counter. Opening a bag of chips she started to reply, even made a few selfies for her social media. Ugly, double chin, cute enough. Staring through the dark apartment, it looked like a catalogue showroom. ‘’Hm, why not. He won’t notice anyway.’’ She took her bag chips and walked back to her room. Ready to find the skimpiest skirt in her closet. (Probably a Solo unless someone wants to join for a party)
