“I have cancer.”

Those were not the words Hal expected to hear from his father after a family meeting had been called. Everyone had gathered in the living room–his father, mother, sister, and him–to hear what news Mr. Stevens had. His father had not felt well the past few months–he had had stomach troubles–and had gone back and forth to his physician several times for tests. Hal, along with his mother and sister, had thought it was a stomach virus, but some scans and tests at the hospital confirmed the diagnosis. Hal didn’t know what to say. The family stood speechless momentarily as the morning sunlight peeked through the window, warming up the space.

Hal spoke up after a moment.

“What kind… of cancer?” he asked tentatively, still not sure if he believed what he had just heard.

“Stomach cancer." Mr. Stevens said. "That explains the pains and digestion issues I’ve had for a while.” Mr. Stevens sat on the sofa with his hands interlocked and his face aimed down at the hardwood floor. Hal’s mother, Joyce Stevens, struggled to hide the emotions inside her.

“Oh, Bob. What… did the doctor say about… treatment… the… the prognosis?”

“They caught it fairly early. They say the prognosis is good, but they’ll want to try chemotherapy initially. Surgery may be required depending on how the chemo goes.”

“Oh, no, Dad!” Kimberly, Hal’s sister, began to cry.

“Don’t worry, honey. We’ll get through this,” Mr. Stevens said. He stood up, his six-foot-three frame towering over the rest of the family. He hugged Kimberly and let her release her emotions. Joyce joined the embrace. Hal stood motionless, unsure how to feel at this moment. He should be sad, and perhaps he was, but right now, he felt numb.

“Yeah, we’ll get through this,” he muttered softly. It was all he could muster.

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Dinner mostly went by in silence. Though Mrs. Stevens' stir-fry was delicious, no one really had an appetite, least of all Mr. Stevens, whose appetite had been poor for some time. They finished what they could and cleared the table.

Hal had just finished his first-year college exams and, although he was not confident that his grades would be good, he was at least happy to be done for the summer. Now, however, the mood had completely changed.

"Sorry, man, I can't go on the trip right now," he said to his friend, Jeff, over the phone that afternoon.

"Oh, man that sucks. I don't know what to say. I hope everything turns out okay."

There was a silence.

"I'd stay behind for support, but Greg and I already bought the tickets for the festival and can't get refunds," Jeff added.

Hal was supposed to go on a summer road trip with his friends Jeff and Greg. They were supposed to leave in two days and drive from Murfreesboro, Tennessee to Los Angeles, California for sun, sand and music. Hal's ticket would have to be a sunk cost.

"Get lots of pictures for me. Maybe get me a T-shirt or something too."

"Will do."

After the call, Hal took a walk around his neighborhood. So many people had already left for summer vacation, the area felt empty. The quiet filled Hal with a sense of ennui. How would he spend his summer now? He didn't know. On top of that, he was still almost in disbelief from his father's cancer diagnosis.

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That night, Mr. Stevens explained the procedure for dealing with cancer. He would have to go to the cancer clinic for weekly chemotherapy treatments for a cycle of several weeks and see how his body responded to it. He would likely feel a lot worse before he felt better, but this was the course his doctors recommended. He would stay in the hospital at first to be monitored for side effects, but if all went according to plan, he could continue treatments at home. For now, the family would have to help him pack a bag for his stay. So–slowly, solemnly–that is what they did.

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The next couple of days flew by in a blur and now it was time to get Mr. Stevens to the hospital. Hal and Kim, united in their decision, chose to take a few days from college classes to help out with things around the house. While Hal had largely kept his father’s illness to himself. Kim found solace in the support of many of her friends, including her best friend Audrey.

“Oh, no, Kim, please tell me you’re joking. That’s awful. If there’s anything I can do,” said Audrey, her voice filled with genuine concern. Hal found her tone of voice to be deceptive. She often sounded insincere, but Hal and Kim knew her to be one of the most generous people they had ever met.

“We’re doing as well as can be expected,” Hal chimed in, his voice betraying a hint of nervousness. He had had a crush on Audrey as long as he could remember. He was enamored by her, though he could never bring himself to say anything. Moreover, since they were kids, having much of anything to do with Kim’s friends was a no-go, verboten. To Kim, Hal was her bratty younger brother. He was just two years younger, but that was enough to make him essentially a leper. He had recently turned eighteen and had just finished his first year of college, but their banter made it feel like they hadn’t changed much since they were twelve. In any case, Audrey was very popular and hadn’t shown even the slightest bit of interest in Hal, though she was always polite to him.

“Well, I’m here for you,” Audrey said, her face lighting up in a smile. Her green eyes shone in the sun.

Audrey bid the Stevens family farewell as they pulled out of their driveway and made their way to the cancer treatment center.

At the center Mr. Stevens was led into a room where he could get settled in. The doctor explained how the stay would go, and once the doctor had finished speaking, Mr. Stevens sat on the bed and sighed while his family sat in the visitors’ chairs.

“Well, this place will be my home for the next few weeks.”

“You’ll be home before you know it,” said Mrs. Stevens, trying to hide the tremble in her voice.

“I brought your laptop,” said Hal. “You forgot to put it in your bag, but I figured you’d want that. You can video chat with us and finish that book you’ve been working on.”

“Oh, my goodness. Thanks. I want to have that nearby. Writing will help the days go by faster.”

Hal's father was an aspiring novelist. He had never published anything, but he loved to put words out into the world. His job as a procurement clerk for a construction company would pay the bills instead.

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After they had spent visitor hours with Mr. Stevens, everyone said good night and took their leave. They returned home that evening, having had a long, tiresome day. They had bounced back and forth between the doctor and nurses, asking a thousand questions to understand the process and how things would happen going forward. In this life-changing transition, the Stevens family found themselves without the household patriarch for the first time.

Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

Over the next few days, Hal, Kim and Mrs. Stevens spent several hours visiting Mr. Stevens. It was tricky to get time off work, so Kim and Hal especially had to return to their jobs, leaving Mr. Stevens with many hours to fill. For a few days, writing filled some time, but the nausea created by the chemotherapy drugs sapped much of his will to type words on a screen.

While he sat in his bed one night, Mr. Stevens opened and started his laptop. On his desktop background he had a photo of the whole family on a fishing trip. Fishing and sailing had been his favorite summer activities, but the last couple of years had fallen through and now this summer was a bust. He stared longingly at the photo. If only there were a way he could fish, he thought. Or was there? He opened a web browser and searched for "online fishing game". Millions of results appeared, but the top result was not one Mr. Stevens had heard of.

Seven Seas: A Swashbuckling MMORPG Experience!

Want to fish, swim or be a pirate? Join Seven Seas today!

Top Sea-faring gameplay!

His curiosity piqued, Mr. Stevens downloaded the installer and opened it up. Adventurous music began to play and a cinematic video of curiously designed characters fishing on piers and sailing on pirate ships.

With a few clicks he had signed up and the game began to install.

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After a three-week chemotherapy cycle, Mr. Stevens came home. It was difficult to say whether the treatment was working at this stage, but the family remained hopeful. Mr. Stevens, his energy low—a drastic change from his usual happy-go-lucky self—decided to work from home on a part-time basis. Fortunately, his job could be done remotely since it involved a lot of paperwork, and his boss was understanding of the situation.

Over the next week, Mr. Stevens’ condition seemed to worsen. The chemotherapy may have been working, but from the Stevens family’s perspective, it was tearing Mr. Stevens apart inside. His mood changed, and Hal saw even less of his father. Mr. Stevens locked himself away in his office, supposedly writing every free moment he could get, or so Hal thought. Mr. Stevens did not wish to be disturbed by his family, and his wife’s concern over her husband’s mental state grew.

One night, Hal knocked on his father’s office door, hoping to coax him out for dinner.

“Dad, dinner’s ready. Are you going to eat?”

There was a moment of silence, and then Mr. Stevens’ voice sounded through the door.

“Hal, come in for a moment.”

Hal opened the door and slowly stepped inside. Mr. Stevens sat at his desk, a weary look on his face. He gestured for Hal to sit, which he did, taking a chair on the opposite wall of the room.

“Hal, do you remember when we used to go fishing?”

“Yeah, I would get annoyed with the mosquitoes. I hated it.”

“Yeah, it was hard to get you interested, but those were some of our best times together. I want to think I’ve been a pretty good dad.”

“Of course you have. Don’t go getting all sentimental now. We’ll get through this.”

Mr. Stevens lightly smiled.

“Would you go fishing with me again?”

“I mean… yeah, I guess. Are you in any condition for that, though?” asked Hal.

“No way I’m going out into the wilderness. No. There’s this game I’ve come across. I’ve been playing it for the last few days, and I’ve been enjoying it. It’s a nice change of pace. It has some great fishing, too. It’s called Seven Seas,” Mr. Stevens said, suddenly becoming more animated as he spoke.

“I’ve heard of it. It’s an MMO, pirates, sailing, and other stuff like that. Not really my kind of game,” said Hal.

“Oh. So, you’re not up for joining me?”

“I mean, I would, but it requires a big time investment, and I’m more into FPS and racing games.”

“Oh, I understand. Never mind, then,” Mr. Stevens said, not hiding the disappointment very well.

“Maybe we could try some other games.”

“Hmm, yeah, maybe. Come on, let’s go eat before dinner gets cold.”

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“When we get back, we’ll all be able to hang out, catch some movies, and race some go-karts, okay?” Jeff said. Hal spoke to his friend once more the day they were leaving for California. Jeff and Greg stood in the driveway just down the street from Hal's house. Their bags were placed in the trunk of the car and they had music blaring on the music. They were clearly excited. Greg sat in the passenger's seat and bobbed his head to the beat.

Hal let out a sigh. "Yeah, enjoy your trip."

“Oh, hey, guess what?” Jeff asked excitedly.

“What?”

“Your sister’s cute friend Audrey will also be at the festival.”

“What?! How do you know this?”

“Your sister mentioned.”

“No way,” Hal cried in disbelief.

“So much for finally asking her out this summer, huh? You always put it off. You really ought to bite the bullet.”

“Yeah. I know. Kim would probably kill me though."

Hal paused, then continued. "No hitting on her, okay?”

"No worries. Maybe we'll put in a good word if we see her there, and we’ll make it up to you with some merch, okay?”

“Sounds good. See you when you get back.”

Hal's friends took off. Well, there went his summer plans. No friends for much of the summer. His sister would be spending a lot of time with her friends, and he would not get to hang out with any of them if she had any say in it.

Over the next two days, Hal contented himself with reality TV—or rather, he numbed himself with it. It was a Friday night, and he had no idea what to do with himself, so he called it a night much earlier than he usually would.

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That night, Hal struggled to sleep. His best friends were going on a summer-long road trip, and at some point, they would probably be meeting up with his long-time crush and possibly even flirting with her, all while he was stuck home.

Hal closed his eyes, and scenes of his friends having fun without him filled his head. Even more than that, Audrey being so far away, his opportunity to try to be closer to her was no longer a reality, and on top of everything else, his father was dealing with cancer. There was nothing Hal could do. Agh, he couldn’t stand it.

Hal tossed and turned in his bed. Life used to be so much simpler, he thought. He remembered what his father had said earlier about their fishing trips. Hal didn’t recall ever liking the wilderness trips, searching for a prime lake to cast a rod. He was never particularly good at it. Perhaps that’s why he didn’t enjoy it, he thought. If he had caught some fish, it may have been worthwhile. Hal stared at the ceiling for some time, then sighed as nature called.

He got up and strolled to the bathroom. The house was in complete darkness, save for a dim, flickering light coming from the gap at the bottom of the office door. He finished in the bathroom and made his way to the door, giving it a soft knock.

“Dad?”

“Come in,” his dad said.

“You’re still up?”

“Prime fishing time.”

“What? Seriously?”

Hal shuffled over to his father’s desk, where he had set up his laptop. Over Mr. Stevens’ face was a white VR headset, and he held a matching gamepad in his hands. Hal gazed at the laptop screen, which showed approximately what his father could see through the headset.

A sprawling ocean spread out before Mr. Stevens’ character as he stood on a sandy beach. Around him, many players and some NPCs strolled the beach, ate food, and drank various exotic drinks.

“I overheard your chat with your friends. Sounds like you’re not having the summer you’d hoped for.”

Hal shook his head.

“Remember the fishing trips you mentioned before? I don’t believe I disliked them as much as I thought,” he said.

"Cancer really puts things in perspective, huh?" his dad said. Mr. Stevens smiled. “Care to try it out?”

“Yeah, let’s give the game a try.”

“Fantastic. Grab your laptop, and let’s get you signed up.”