Jasper didn’t notice her absence at first. He assumed Kyla was busy with life, as she often claimed. When weeks turned into months, he found himself playing Ethereal Echoes more obsessively, searching for her in the game’s sprawling landscapes even when a search of her username returned a negative result.

Then, one night, a familiar notification appeared: though a little different.

Spirit player Charis has joined the game.

Jasper’s heart surged with relief.

“Hey you,” Jasper typed, trying to sound casual.

“Hey yourself,” Kyla typed. “How was your day?”

“The usual, drained by work and parenting. Got into a bit of a scuffle with the wife. Glad to have some time to cool off.” He didn’t want to talk about that more so he changed the subject. “I’ve missed you.”

”So have I.”

Jasper waited for a moment, hoping Kyla would offer some reason for her absence. When it didn’t come, he continued. “Where have you been?”

”Just busy. Life got in the way,” she replied. “You know how it is.”

Whatever worry Jasper held for the next few seconds was quelled by her next words.

”I missed you,” Kyla typed with her usual warmth. And once again, all was right in the world.

The weight Jasper hadn’t realised he was carrying lifted. The pair slipped back into their familiar rhythm, chatting as if nothing had changed.

Of course he wanted to know why she had been gone for so long. He was dying to. But she clearly didn’t have any intention of sharing more. Jasper respected her enough not to pry.

“Did you enter some secret event? Noticed you’ve got a status update when you logged on.”

”What did it say?”

“Spirit player Charis has joined the game.”

”I’m surprised you noticed.”

“Why don’t you ask me to bring you out on dates?” Jasper asked, changing the subject. “Not that I’m complaining.” The only time they spent together in the real world was in a cosy cafe getting to know each other over coffee on a rainy morning. That was months—-no, almost a year ago.

To be honest, her patience and understanding made things a lot easier for him. Between being a married man with a young child and the growing demands of mid-career work, it was hard for him to find the time to meet her, not to mention the reasons to justify his absence. But he wondered how she was able to cope so well. If he were really honest, he was worried about the minuscule possibility (given the love and warmth she never failed to show him whenever they had the chance to chat) that someone else might be occupying her attention during the time that he was unable to. She was pretty, and smart and he had no doubt anyone who wasn’t blind would be able to see that and chat her up. If he were in her shoes, he imagines it would be a pretty easy reason to leave him. If she did, he wouldn’t blame her either—how could he, when he had barely anything nor any time to offer.

“You’re all I need, right here,” came her reply. Kyla’s answers were always evasive but heartfelt.

Jasper believed her.

”Besides,” Kyla continued. ”If I asked you to meet me, you probably wouldn’t be able to. And then I’ll get sad. And you’d feel bad. So it’s best I don’t ask you for the things you can’t give me, wouldn’t you agree?”

Jasper couldn’t deny she was right. He was grateful that she never put any pressure on him to meet her in real life. Was it the prolonged period of her absence that disturbed him? Or was he afraid of confronting the feelings he had for her in reality, knowing fully well how it would disrupt his life if he did. What did he do to deserve such love and understanding from her? It didn’t feel right to be apart. He knew her pretty well by then, but he wanted to get closer to her beyond sharing a good wifi connection.

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“I’ve got some good news for you,” Jasper typed.

“Really? I’m excited. What could it be?”

“I’m going to your office tomorrow. We could grab a coffee after my meeting say at about 4? How does that sound?”

In the time Kyla had been away, Jasper had coded a bot to listen for her arrival. He wanted so badly to speak (or type) to her again. In the past week, Jasper had been completely out of it. He tossed and turned in bed at night, poked around his plate at mealtimes and found it difficult to be engaged in the many pleasures of life. He hadn’t expected her absence to affect him that much and cursed himself for taking her for granted at times. Had he been too nonchalant, was she tired of him, was she angry with him? Was she ignoring him? Had they been so unlucky that they ever only logged on at different times from each other? He even checked on the remote possibility that she might have blocked him for some readon. But only proved to himself that he had no reason to. Why then was she avoiding the game for so long? These were the thoughts that plagued his mind while she had been away and he found he could do little else. He hadn’t known himself to be this way before and had half a mind to visit her office. He knew where she worked as it had come up in a previous conversation. No matter how busy one was, one had to work. He wouldn’t miss her there. He had to see her he had to know if she was okay.

“Oh. Uh. This is definitely a surprise.”

“You don’t sound too excited.”

“No, I am. It’s just… I won’t be in the office tomorrow.”

“That’s alright, I have some flexibility in my schedule. What about the following day? Or Friday? When would you be available?”

There was a long pause before kyla replied.

“I’ll have to check.”

“I can’t wait to see you!”

“Me too.”

“For some reason, I thought you’d be more excited about it.”

“About visiting my office?”

“About me going to see you.”

“I’m ecstatic. i just don’t feel like this is the right time. I’m sorry. It’s just that I’ve been really busy.”

“All the more reason for me to cheer you up with coffee tomorrow.”

Kyla’s silence lingered for longer than they both would have liked. Jasper considered the possibility that his sudden self-invitation could have made her uncomfortable. “Fine, not tomorrow. But someday soon.”

That seemed to placate Kyla’s worries, whatever they were. She sent a smiling emoji, followed by, “I miss you.”

“I’m here.”

“Thanks for saying that,“ she typed. ”And thanks for being here.”

Then he sent her a sticker with a bear pushing out a bright red heart.

Kyla asked what he meant by sending that sticker.

“It’s a thank you and to show my appreciation for you.”

She replied with a thumbs up.

“Okay. It’s getting late. Have to sleep soon if I don’t want vertigo to creep up on me again.”

“Good night,” Kyla typed, adding a nighttime emoji at the end.

Another sticker of the bear with that red heart.

Jasper logged off.

***

Remember, Kyla, he doesn’t love you. He will never choose you. He has never chosen you. It will do you a lot of good to remember that. You chose to love him all on your own. Don’t expect that he could love you back. You have to be content with this. You’re really lucky already. You’re so lucky. How many people have the chance to continue talking to the person they love even beyond death? You’re so lucky already, she repeated. You’re in Everopia now. You’re a spirit player.

The game’s hidden feature—spirit players—had been activated. Kyla’s avatar was created the moment she had arrived. Kyla signed the agreement when she was still alive, when she first joined the beta, intrigued by the idea of Ethereal Echoes bridging the gap between the living and the dead. Now, she existed as a fragment of herself, an algorithm infused with her memories and personality. A secret moderator monitored her interactions, ensuring Jasper didn’t suspect the truth.

Even beyond death, she could provide him with comfort, support, the safe space he always went to whenever he needed a brief respite from the demands of his work and family. Ever since Kyla met Jasper, she had recognised something in him that was absent in everyone else. Behind every great man is at least one woman who believes in him even more than he believes in himself. It is that woman who gives the man the strength he needs to be great. S Kyla wanted to be that for him.

From the moment she understood Jasper’s greatness and his potential, she decided then that all she would ever want was to be by his side, providing emotional strength and solace so that he could become everything he was meant to be. In Everopia, she could do just that. No more work to drain her time, no other people to consume her attention, no more sickness to take away her energy. She could focus solely on providing Jasper with all the support he would ever need.

“How did that presentation go?”

”Went well, got some positive feedback after too.”

”I’m not surprised. You’re great at giving presentations. I’m glad more people got the chance to learn that about you too. I’m so happy for you.”

”Thanks Kyla.”