I awoke to the sound of my smartphone ringing. I discovered that I had fallen asleep at my desk. With half-opened eyes, I fumbled around with my hands for my device. When I found it, I belatedly opened my eyes and connected the call. "Hello?"
"Hi, Lawrence. It's Cindy, your book editor," the voice said on the line.
I immediately jolted awake at her name. I looked at the computer screen and checked the date and time. I was amazed to learn that I had returned to the same day that the Gamemaster brought me to Earth 2. I immediately clicked on my word processor; my latest chapter was on display. The word count indicated that I was already at 80% toward completion of my weekly assignment. "Hi! I was going to call you," I replied.
"Oh," she sounded hesitant. "I need to take a sabbatical because I broke my foot and I'm at the emergency room right now. A colleague has graciously agreed to take over as your new editor temporarily. She will meet you on my behalf today at the usual time and place. Now is almost 8 o'clock. She'll meet you in two hours. Please bring a printed copy of your manuscript, along with another copy of your latest chapter, with you," Cindy requested. "Now, what did you want to call me about?"
"Oh, I was going to ask for a delay in emailing you the latest chapter. I'm still working on it right now. But I should be finished within two hours," I replied.
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"Well, how about this instead? Let's turn your meeting with my colleague into a working lunch. Meet her at noon. You get two more hours to finish your work, but you'll pay for her lunch. Sounds good?" she asked.
"Yes!" I accepted her proposal immediately. We usually meet at a cheap, local diner, and I wasn't worried about the bill.
"I know we haven't gotten along very well. I hope you will have a better relationship with your new editor. Good luck!" Cindy hung up the call.
I slapped my cheeks with my hands and waited. However, no in-game message appeared. I was indeed back on Earth 1! I took a deep breath to calm myself. Since my former editor gave me extra time, I wrote like a madman to finish my weekly chapter.
***
I stared at my half-eaten roast beef sandwich. It was on a cheap, old plate on the table in front of me. I checked the time on my smartphone and saw that it was already a quarter past noon. What happened to my new editor?
Suddenly, a woman with long blonde hair joined my table and sat directly across from me.
When I looked up, I saw an angelic face! My heart froze, and I couldn't breathe!
"Hi! I'm Amelica Kingsbury, your new editor!" the lovely woman gave me a knowing look and offered her usual, dazzling smile.
I jumped out of my seat and hugged her. "How is this possible?" I asked in bewilderment.
"The Gods answered my prayers, my darling, and brought me to your world."
"But why?"
"I'm here to rescue you." And then she kissed me.
THE END