Chapter 41: Chapter 41 – Julia: All these blue panels

Did I feel like I was being conned somehow? Yes. Did I feel like an idiot? Yes.

The blue panels that defied explanation threw me, though, as did Nat's involvement. I refused to believe that she was intentionally misleading me, but that meant that this guy somehow convinced her that her eyes were now 20/20? That made no sense.

I wasn't lying about this being a welcome distraction, however, and the fact that it would give me a chance to learn more about this guy who was suddenly such a major part of my friend's life was a big plus as well. If I could somehow extract her from a bad situation before she got hurt, I would consider that a legacy worth leaving.

"So what now?" I asked.

"Obviously," Hugh said, "we have something of a time crunch. The sooner we get you levels so you can increase your constitution and hopefully gain relevant skills, the better."

"Alright. You want me to flash my bra? I could do it right here."

"I'd prefer not to.” He gestured at all the people around us. “Besides, my skill tells me you flashing your bra to this entire room would only be worth 5 XP. That’s a really low amount of points given the circumstances, and I’d much rather your first quest give you at least 10."

"Well, it is only my bra. If not for the fact that my parents know the manager of this place and that I don't want them finding out about any of this, I'd do it in a heartbeat with no problem."

Actually, come to think of it, I had done exactly that in a restaurant before. It was after a football game back in high school. Had it been a dare? A reward for one of the guys making a good play on the field? I couldn't remember. I didn't see it as any different than walking around in a bikini top, really.

"We're trying to avoid attracting attention," he said, "given that we've got access to a system that lets us do supernatural things. We'd prefer not to be taken away to a black site somewhere and dissected."

The dissection part didn't faze me all that much as I was facing a similar fate anyway, but I got his point. If this wasn't all a big con, it would be logical to want to avoid getting on the government's radar. Of course, keeping a low profile also helped when scamming people. Best not to draw the attention of the police, after all.

I’d play along for now.

"How about I go to the restroom and send you a selfie?" I asked.

That would both be private and should be worth some points. Problem solved.

He frowned.

"What?" I asked.

"I was afraid of this. The fact that you're less body conscious than Nat is problematic. By texting her - remember the rules and do not send me any shots of your body - a picture of you flashing your underwear isn't worth any points." He paused, staring off into space. "Flashing your breasts for the camera is worth only five? Really? We really need something worth ten." He paused again. "There we go, two choices, both worth only ten exactly. Either send Nat a selfie of you flashing with your top up and bottom down or a pic flashing only your breasts but in the men's room."

Nat looked from him to me and back again several times. She looked shocked. She always had been much more shy than me. I always wondered what would have happened if we could have went to high school together. Could I have brought her out of her shell?

Then again, this Hugh guy seemed to be doing just that, and I was thinking it was a bad thing. Double standard much? I'd have to consider that more when I had a chance to think.

"Men's room," I said, partly to shock Nat a little more and partly just because that seemed like a better distraction.

Immediately, a different blue panel popped up, and I took a second to read it.

That was another impossibility. He and I had literally just finished deciding on the quest, yet this popped up immediately. I didn't see him typing on anything or making any suspicious motions at all, really. He wasn't even holding his phone, which was right there face down on the table right by Nat's. She didn't do anything that made it obvious that she was somehow sending instructions to a projector, either. Was there an accomplice nearby? Obviously, Hugh had both the options he steered me to prepared in advance, but he had to somehow select which one to send me in that instant.

None of it made any sense.

That panel, like the others, went away the moment I focused on wanting it to, and it was replaced by a new one.

"What's with this second quest?" I asked.

After I read it to him, Hugh said, "I was hoping the system would give you that. Nat got it, too. It's huge bonus to be able to do a single small task and jump immediately to Level 2."

Since I was more than a little skeptical about this whole system thing in the first place, my attitude was pretty much, "Whatever."

"Well, best get to doing that bathroom quest, then," I said.

As I got up to go do that, Hugh did as well.

"I thought you and I were not supposed to do quests together, and you're breaking that rule with the first one?"

"I am going with you so that I can check the bathroom first to make sure no one is inside and then stand outside while you take your picture so that I can be sure you're safe."

Oh.

Nat looked like she was going to get up to join us, but, at just a glance from him, she settled back into her seat. I frowned. How much of a hold did this guy have over her?

I followed him silently toward the bathrooms, and he stopped just before getting to the men's.

"I think we both want the same thing," he said.

I wasn't sure about that, and my disagreement must have shown on my face because he responded to my unspoken statement.

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"We both want what is best for Natalie," he said.

I could get behind that, but I just wasn't sure if he and I would agree with what that meant.

"If you see something that we're doing that concerns you, speak up," he said. "Even if she's unwilling to listen to you, I definitely will." He let out a frustrated sigh. "She's a very optimistic person. She thinks that everything the system does is for our benefit. She thinks that I know what I'm doing." He shook his head. "I'm making this all up as I go along. My main two goals are to be ready if bad stuff happens and to make sure that I don't do anything that truly hurts her. I think, I hope, that everything I've done so far has been really positive for the both of us, but where does my self interest start and end in thinking that? The only real positive for Nat and me that I see in bringing you into this thing is that we'll have someone who can tell us if it looks like we're going down a wrong path."

Now I didn't know what to think. Either this guy was completely sincere and a match made in heaven for the equally naïve Natalie or he was a complete conman of the highest order. I still suspected the latter, but I couldn't completely discount the possibility of the former.

"I can do that," I said. "Trust me that I will let you know the second I see you step out of line."

"Thanks," he said, sincerely for all that I could tell, and stepped into the men's room.

Literally, the threat that I'd heavily implied with my voice seemed to have went totally over his head. I was like, "I will end you if you mess with my girl." And he's like, "Great. Thanks."

I didn't know what to do with that.

A short time later, he came back out. "It's all clear, and I'll make sure no one bothers you."

So into the men's room I went, the undiscovered country. Definitely a new one for me. I had to admit that the unfamiliar surrounds made pulling up my shirt and bra more awkward than it would have been, and it was weird sending a picture like this to Nat. It would have felt a lot more natural to send it to Hugh.

Honestly, though, taking the picture just wasn't that big of a deal. It wasn't like I'd never sent a picture of my boobs to someone before. I quickly did what I had to do, made sure the shot was framed well, and hit send.

I wasn't in there long, and no one tried to enter. Hugh at least was being honest about that part. I did wonder if he'd try to steal a peek at Nat's phone at some point, but, knowing her, she'd delete the shot as soon as the text arrived at her phone.

As I was walking out of the men's room, three consecutive panels popped up. The first two were for each of the quest completions. The third was more interesting.

How was he doing this? Really. How?

I kept glancing around the room surreptitiously. If someone else was manipulating the projectors, they were damn fine actors. I'd lost count of the number of panels that had appeared at this point, and they were all so consistent with what was going on without any sign of who was doing it.

It was actually kind of flattering that someone would go through this much trouble just to see me naked.

I waited until we were back seated at the table to tell him about the level up, and I felt more than a little silly doing so. Why did I have to tell him? He was the one sending the messages in the first place!

He walked me through how to pull up my character sheet or status or whatever.

I read out some highlights at his request, and, surprise, they were exactly what he expected.

Of course they were! He was the one doing all this shit.

He walked me though how to assign my free attribute point, which I, of course, placed in constitution, and then how to figure out my choice of skills. Another blue panel popped up.

I read the skill title to him, and he made a big show of looking all thoughtful about it what meant.

"Since it's based on need and constitution," he said, "maybe it's related to getting rid of bad stuff in your body?"

He most carefully did not claim that this "skill" was supposed to somehow cleanse the cancer out of me, but it was heavily implied.

"Regardless," he said. "I recommend choosing it."

It wasn't like any of this was going to do anything anyway, so I did what he told me to.

"Alright," he said. "What do you want to do next? I doubt a single level is going to take care of the problem."

I sighed. "I have another appointment for yet another round of invasive, redundant tests set for Thursday, and treatment is supposed to start Friday."

I wished my parents would just let it go. All the treatment was going to do was make me feel sicker, make my final days more miserable. If I was lucky - for values of lucky - it would extend my life for a month or two. Woohoo. Just keep me on fucking pain meds and let me go. But I understood why they were trying to fight, and I couldn't disappoint them by seeming to give up.

"I can probably convince them to let me stay with Nat tomorrow night," I said, turning to her, "but you'd have to pick me up."

"That's no problem at all," Nat said, "but why don't you just drive?"

That was another point of contention between my parents and me.

"Not allowed," I said tightly. "Per the parents, it's too dangerous for all that I haven't had a seizure since they gave me the new prescription ten days ago, and the doctors said it's fine as long as I went at least a week. Mom and Dad, though, literally want me watched by someone twenty four seven. You'll be given instructions when you pick me up."

Plans made, Nat and I finished with a bit of obligatory small talk, and they were gracious enough to pay for the dying girl's meal.

They left, and I texted Mom that I was ready for her and Dad to pick me up.

Well, the dinner hadn't exactly been fun, but, at least, it hadn't been as boring as I'd been expecting. I just hoped tomorrow night would be just as entertaining.

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