Chapter 3: Chapter 3 – Hugh: The fate of the planet

Natalie escorted me to the door and practically pushed me out. I wouldn't say that she slammed it behind me, but it definitely was closed with more force than was strictly necessary.

It was as bad as I feared; she realized that I was a disgusting pervert and wanted nothing more to do with me. Her reaction made me want to go back to my dorm room, crawl under my covers, and die.

Good plan.

First, though, I had to at least apologize. I turned back to her door and almost knocked. She surely had no desire to ever see me again, though. It was definitely better to text instead.

Yeah. That was what she would want. I wasn't avoiding facing her; I was being considerate. It wasn't that I was a total coward.

<Thank you so much for your help. I cannot adequately express how much it means to me. I'm so, so sorry that I upset you. Just thanks and I'm sorry.>

I didn't really expect a reply, but I still held my phone in my hand as I walked down two flights of stairs to the parking lot and got in my car. I had just pulled onto the street when my phone dinged.

My parents were pretty chill about most things, and I almost never got into any trouble. Not texting and driving, though, was one of those iron rules that had been integrated into the very core of my being. I quickly pulled over to the shoulder.

<I really am glad that I could help. You are obviously going through something that I can't even understand.>

Her message made me feel a lot better. Maybe she didn't think I was a totally unredeemable creep.

Hmm. What to reply?

<Thanks again. I have no idea what to do now, but at least I know that I don't have to check myself into a mental hospital. And, again, I'm so sorry that I upset you.>

<Not your fault that I'm not attractive enough for you to want to see me naked.>

I had no idea what I just read. School, especially math, didn't come easy to Natalie, but she wasn't stupid. How in the world had she interpreted anything that had happened between us just now to mean that?

Honestly, I really didn't want to touch any part of her message with a ten-foot pole. I mean, what was I supposed to say?

Obviously, she wasn't upset because she was disgusted with me; she was upset due to her own insecurities. I could totally relate.

Ugh. I couldn't let things stand like that, could I?

I turned the car around, parked, and headed back up to her apartment. On the third floor. Up two flights of stairs again. After I’d fully caught my breath from the climb, I still hesitated before knocking.

She soon answered. "What are you doing back?"

"No."

"Huh?"

"I said no. What you wrote in that last text message? No. Just no. Not true at all."

She closed her eyes momentarily, looking very nervous. "Maybe you should come in."

After I resumed my seat on her couch, I said, "You are not unattractive."

That maybe wasn't the best way to frame that statement. It was true, though. She was petite, maybe five two, five three? Not super curvy, but slender didn't turn me off at all. She was actually kind of cute in nerdy way. Made me think of Velma with the glasses - the sexy cosplay kind, not the cartoon version.

"You were more than clear that you had no desire for me to accept that invitation," she said. "What other conclusion is there?"

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"Really? Maybe that I was uncomfortable asking you to do anything like that? Do you think that it's easy for me to even talk about this stuff, much less make direct requests?"

She looked sheepish. "I guess that makes sense."

"I mean, are you willing to do this? Would you take off your clothes for me if I asked?"

"No! No way. Sorry. I want to help, but..."

"Exactly!"

We both just kind of sat there looking at each other for what seemed like forever.

"I'm sorry," I said eventually. "You've helped me already beyond my wildest expectations. I feel nothing but gratitude. I don't want you to feel obligated in any way to do anything else."

"No, I've literally done almost nothing. How many hours did you spend with me in the library, patiently watching me try to do problems?"

"I get your point, but anyone could have helped you with that. There was no one I could turn to for this. We are totally square."

"There's more to it than that." Natalie bit the inside of her cheek. "Look, I felt invisible in high school. Nobody noticed me and nobody cared even a little tiny bit about me besides my parents, and they don't count because it's kind of required that they care."

She paused. "I was sitting there in that library, my eyes getting wet as I struggled to understand the example and just couldn't. Then you sat down and just ... helped. Which was awesome and I needed that so much. But what I'm most thankful for is that you noticed me. You cared."

I didn't know how to respond to that. I'd simply seen someone struggling and stopped to offer assistance. It wasn't that big of a deal to me.

She sighed. "I'm really, really, really uncomfortable with the thought of taking off my clothes in any way, form, or fashion, but, if you need me, I think I have to help."

At least she returned the topic of conversation back to the matter at hand. I was a little bit more at ease with that subject. "A big, big part of the reason that I told you not to accept the invite is that I don't really know the best way to proceed. I was a lot more focused on what happens if this was all a hallucination than what happens if it isn't."

"Oh."

"In the stories, a system initialization is usually the precursor to really bad stuff happening. Like the world ending. Crazy stuff."

She looked alarmed, and I really couldn't blame her. I wish I had better news for her.

"Given the subject matter of the actual system, it's tempting to just ignore it," I said, "but the whole purpose of the system in those stories is to make humanity strong enough to survive the tests that are coming. What if me being a coward now causes all of us to die? The literal fate of the entire planet might be resting totally in my hands right now."

"Basically what you're saying is that I and everyone else might die unless I take my clothes off for you."

"No! God no! I'm not saying that at all. This is on me, not you."

"I know you're not trying to pressure me, and I appreciate that," she said. "Now that I know about this, though, isn't what I said the truth? What's the old quote - ‘all that is necessary for evil to prevail in the world is for enough good men to do nothing.’?”

She kind of had a point but...

"I think I have to do this," she said.

A second later, a notification screen popped up.

 

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