"I thought it was just a nightmare," he quietly responded, "I didn't want to believe that it was real, but from what you have told me, it's a real world." He paused for a moment "I entered The Hack in my room, and saw some knuckle-busters floating on the table, but I never touched them..."
He doesn't think I'm was crazy! Although that might not be a good thing…… Alex realized as it meant it was all true. All of it.
"So if you're Anon, then these two people must be inside The Hack at the moment? and one of them is fighting one of those things?!?"
“I guess, ………” Alex started but was cut off by her father, who couldn’t hear their conversation, “Car’s ready!” Or something like that. With the bonnet slamming Alex flicked her head round looking at the source of the noise, seeing her father coming round the car towards them.
"I'm actually going straight home after this to re-enter The Hack," She looked at Akio, blinking, he wanted to go back in there? But he had a point, even if she wasn’t sure what that was yet, but it was comforting to know she wasn’t the only one in this predicament, even if the only way to contact them was by logging in. But she wasn’t going back there! Ever! Was she………? It was sooooo…… tempting. Terrifying, sure. Trouble, …duh! But oh so tempting. It wasn’t just because there was someone else, this feeling had been nagging for a while, but Alex had just shoved it aside, like so many things before it. But temptation wasn’t giving up on this, oh no. It liked the idea of her going back, and adventure agreed. Caution and fear were yelling not to, but who listens to them any way? Well Alex normally, …sometimes, ……occasionally. Okay, only when it suited her, or when she thought they might be right.
So lost in thought, Alex was paying no attention to her surroundings, not noticing what happened in the workshop. She wandered over to a small side door and slipped out, heading back to the house, to ponder more. Grabbing a hunk of cheese she headed upstairs, clambering up the ladder to the study, and switching on her laptop, checking things and fiddling, opening and closing the online math’s website, finishing up her cheese, scanning her latest art into the computer, opening it to edit, but closing it just as soon.
Her gaze kept drifting over to the Desktop, sitting in pride of place, and currently switched off.
No! I’m not going back! No, never! she thought, while idly wondering whether there was food in that world, or how things worked, like was there water? Nuh huh, I’m not going back! She told herself, sternly; I’m not going back! I’m not going back. I’m not goi………… I might just take a peek?