2

LEILA

I’m preparing to go to bed when my phone goes off. I glance at the screen. My sister, Nurliana, is calling.

“Hey,” I answer, the word sounding garbled by my toothbrush.

“Hey, what are you doing?”

Thinking about the stranger I met, that’s what. The man I’ll never see again other than in my dreams.

For fuck’s sake, I need to get a boyfriend.

“Not much.”

“Mhm… do you want to tell me why I got an email about a new product you bought?”

I nearly choke on the toothbrush. Oh, no. Did I forward the wrong email to her? The machine was supposed to be a secret, and it didn’t survive past the night.

“Uh…”

“Leila, you freak!” She laughs. “You got yourself a little sex toy, huh?”

I groan and finish brushing my teeth. “It’s not a sex toy, alright? I got it because I heard they have a server for petting animals. It can be therapeutic. Plus, I was hoping to make friends.”

“Why not go outside and pet a real dog and talk to real people? You’d be saving a ton of electricity by not using your tin foil hat.”

I roll my eyes, although she has a point. “You’re hilarious. I’m going to bed now, and I may or may not load a 3D model of you into the machine and slap it around. That counts as therapy too.”

She laughs. “Whatever. Have fun with your stupid machine. I hope you don’t meet any of your future coworkers in there.”

“No way.” I bite my lip and exhale, my breath shaky and minty. “We don’t remember anything that happens inside the machine when we wake up, so even if I met a coworker there, I wouldn’t remember them.”

Except that my machine glitched and I remembered every person I saw. But maybe that was just a one-time thing.

“You’re definitely going to use that thing to have freaky sex. Good night you weirdo. I love you.”

“Bye, say hi to mom for me.”

Nurliana lives with our mother, far from here. It took me a while to get used to the idea of living away from them, but when I got hired for this job, I couldn’t give it up.

After finishing in the bathroom, I go to bed and toss and until sleep has mercy on me and pulls me under. I wake up early and toss eggs and toast together. I watch out my window as I eat, enjoying the quiet neighborhood, and then I drop on my couch and pick up a book.

My thoughts shift to the man I met in the machine, and I read the same paragraph five times before giving up on it. I snap the book shut and go for a walk. Not many people are out since it’s work hours. Even the café I stop at has few customers.

I sit by the glass walls and scroll through my phone as I drink my coffee. I text a few friends back and linger for an hour before a wave of loneliness hits me hard. I move to a park bench where I spend a few more hours. Before I know it, it’s six, and my phone is dying.

I make it back to my apartment, and as I’m heating my frozen dinner, my eyes wander to my bedroom. Maybe I should load back into the machine to kill some time.

I finish eating dinner, and after a quick shower, I sit on the bed with the helmet on my lap. With a deep sigh, I slide it on my head, and lay back. It powers on, and within seconds, I’m immersed in another universe.

I load back to the same lobby full of people. My character is the same: beautiful, elegant, and blessed with assets that I don’t have in real life.

I approach the crowd, weaving past the people. They don’t give me a second look, likely used to seeing beautiful, fake characters all day.

My eyes lock on him, and I instantly recognize him. He’s talking to another guy in a dark suit, his lip lightly quirked like they were last night when I met him.

My feet hesitate to move forward. I’m not a very direct person in real life, but then I remind myself that in here, I can be anything. “Hi,” I speak up, smiling at both men.

Both stare at me blankly.

“Hello,” my heart-throb speaks. “What is your name?”

Seeing his interest, his friend respectfully dips his head and walks away.

“Laura,” I lie. It’s close enough to Leila.

“And you?”

It’s unsettling that he doesn’t remember me– a little sad, even. But that’s for the best. Hopefully, when I log out tonight, I won’t remember him either. We’re here to live freely. To do what we wouldn’t dream of outside.

He grins, flashing perfect teeth, and runs a hand through his hair. “Call me Henry. Do you want to get out of here?”

My heart jolts, as if he suggested returning to the real world together.

“Uh, where?” I ask, feeling cautious. Are virtual serial killers a thing? With that smile of his, he would be successful at seducing plenty of victims.

“Somewhere more private.”

I glance around us. The lobby is full of random characters that are chatting away. I wouldn’t mind being alone with him.

“Alright.”

He takes my hand, and the world transforms. The walls melt with color, and the people disappear. I watch with my mouth agape as the magic unfolds. My footing becomes wobbly, and I realize I’m now stepping on grass. I kick my heels off.

He brought us to a picnic. The sky is a vibrant blue, and although it’s just fake pixels in my imagination, it’s breathless.

Feeling a squeeze, I look down and realize that our hands are still clasped. I smile at him, and he leads me down, so we sit beside each other and enjoy the breeze.

This helmet is so worth the $1,200 I paid for it.

“Are you enjoying the machine?” he asks, shifting to pull his jacket off his shoulders.

“Yeah. I’ve only been here for two days. You’re the first person I met.”

“Yeah?” he smiles. “And why did you approach me?”

Because I can’t get you and your lips out of my head. Because I need more.

“Why do you think I did?”

“I don’t know, but your confidence was sexy as fuck.” He’s leaning in now, eyes on my lips and hand at my hip. Things are moving fast, but who cares? None of this is real. Not the way he looks at me, not our appearance, not his warm touch at my hip.

I wanted an experience before I started working at my dream company. To meet new people and grow my confidence. And what better way than to take my clothes off with a stranger?

My heart beats wildly in my chest. He hasn’t kissed me yet, but I’m already melting. There’s tension between my legs, and the frustration feels so real. I wonder if my real body that’s laying in bed is wriggling, if there’s a wet spot at my crotch; If I’ll remember any of this.

My sister is never going to let me live this down, but I’d take humiliation over never exploring this man.

Our lips meet, and he wastes no time in showing me how he likes things: hard, rough, and submissive. His tongue surges in, exploring me with a hunger I’ve never experienced before.

I moan into his mouth and follow his tongue, letting go of my reservations and touching his chest. I tug at his shirt, and he makes quick work of pulling it off before returning to my arms. I don’t know if these muscles are real, but I’m going to treat them like they are. Lick and touch until they’re engraved in my memory, so not even the helmet can make me forget them.

He palms my trembling breast, squeezing gently. It drives me wild, because my breasts have always been sensitive. Even here, some things don’t change. I wonder where he is sensitive?

His free hand begins to trail up my thigh, and I have no intention of stopping him.