The walls of Jay’s favorite coffee shop were teeming with local art. The talent on display was an eclectic collage of different styles, overwhelming to take in. The furniture sat in stark contrast: hard plastic chairs and small, circular glass tables. He took his plain black coffee from the barista, thanking her for her service. The awkward phrasing sunk in, but he was distracted by a voice at his ear.

“You always get the same boring old coffee.” Taylor Lynn tapped him on the shoulder, teasing as usual. For the past five years, she’d never passed up an opportunity to complain about his coffee choices.

She was dressed in black leather shorts, a little weird for an Indiana summer, and a bright green sleeveless top. Less strange for summer but striking paired with her long red hair.

“Taylor Lynn Grace,” Jay said louder than necessary. He could really throw his voice. He dramatically put his hand over his heart, like he was surprised to see her playing it up for their audience. “As I live and breathe. Fancy meeting you here.”

She punched him in the arm as all eyes in the room turned to see the show. As she dragged him away from other customers toward a seat, she sloshed coffee over the side of the cup. The scalding coffee landed partially on his hand. “Sorry, James Patrick Morris,” she said with the same flair, using his shirt to dab at the hot coffee.

He bit back his retorts as he focused on the novelty of seeing her here. They were sitting in the real world. People were living and breathing all around them. No one played video games except the lady in the corner playing puzzles on her phone.

After cleaning up, in her own way, Taylor Lynn continued in a normal voice, “So clumsy, much hurry. How is your sister?”

His heart sank immediately. Jay knew it was going to come up, it always did, but it was still a challenging topic. He took some deep breaths to steady himself and launched into an explanation. “I swear they’re making up tests to mess with Sarah and me. Each day is a new test. They haven’t diagnosed a cause, but the doctors keep talking about the risks of organ failure. It hasn’t happened. But it’s scary. She’s sad and lonely; she practically begs to leave. I’m a wreck, but I’m trying to not let her see that. I still visit her every day before work. Still paying for everything I can.”

“Organ failure?” She looked horrified. “That’s… a new one, isn’t it?”

He took a sip of coffee to give himself time to collect his feelings, worrying the edge of the lid with his thumb. “I think so. They’ve never mentioned it before, and Sarah’s always full of energy whenever I see her. I guess it could have been an act for my benefit.”

“She’s okay right now?”

Jay choked on his inner turmoil, so he just nodded in confirmation. He knew he needed to change the topic for his own sanity. He couldn’t change the reality of what was happening to Sarah, but he needed to maintain his strength to visit her.

His coffee companion, thankfully, sensed how upset he was. Taylor Lynn had always had good insight. The only place it failed her was when it came to teasing; she could never figure out when to let him off the hook.

“Why do you always get plain black coffee, anyways?” she asked, mercifully offering him a new direction but lashed together with further teasing.

“Someone once told me that men don’t drink coffee with cookie sprinkles,” he teased.

“Who would do that? They sound like they suck; I love cookie sprinkles.”

A laugh escaped his throat, which he tried to turn into a cough. He didn’t push the truth because Taylor Lynn obviously didn’t remember saying the words to him six years ago in another coffee shop. The shop hadn’t been all that different from where they currently sat.

“Who cares? I hardly even remember.” He was lying, but the pathetic truth was he remembered every detail of that moment. He even remembered the shirt she’d been wearing, referencing an old game he’d never heard of. Not that she’d have any reason to remember any of that. Before she knew his name, he’d fallen for her hard in their freshman year of college.

“What’s on your mind?” Taylor Lynn asked, breaking through memory lane.

“I was just thinking about how glad I am that you caught me playing Nations of Amael in the school library,” Jay replied quickly. The game caused her to realize he existed, a change he appreciated.

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“Indeed,” she said. A smile split across her face and widened to cheesy levels. “A moment in time where you found your dutiful friend and former priestess. And then, after all that, you abandoned our adventures. And me, a woman that you regard dearly. Obviously. Don’t you miss getting beat up while I heal you?” She leaned into the dramatics, even as her words stopped, somehow finding a way to fake swoon in a chair. She either didn’t know or didn’t care about all the eyes on them again. She leaned forward suddenly, serious as nightshade.

“Speaking of missing the old days: perfect segue to why I’ve summoned you to your favorite coffee shop. I have a mission for you. Should you choose to accept this mission, you and I will embark upon an epic quest through Tumultua to save villagers from evil monsters. We will rescue maidens from towers. We will rescue animals from vicious poachers. If we’re feeling frisky, we might even destroy the villagers we saved.”

“A far cry from the priestess of old,” Jay laughed. He wouldn’t admit it to her, but he enjoyed the theatrics. “What’s different from the last three games you wanted me to play?”

Taylor Lynn looked so sad he almost caved on the spot. “The difference is I’ll have you with me. Come on. For one night only. That’s all I’m asking; take me back to the old days.”

He drummed his fingers on the table as he thought. The habit was loud and annoying, but the sounds helped drown out the noise in his head.

“Why this game?” he asked. “What’s so special about it?”

Her eyes lit up like he had just asked her the perfect question. “Oh my gosh, where do I start? There’s a partnership with a bunch of different companies. There are both normal and full-dive virtual capabilities. The class system has so many options it might as well be dynamic. No one will even give a number. And the class choices are totally random. But more than that, the game incorporates full player-run systems spanning economics and politics. It’s amazing, Jay.” Her gestures became more and more animated the longer she talked.

“You certainly sound like you’ve done your research.”

Taylor Lynn chewed her own lip. “I may have paid to try out the beta when I heard there was an option for the old VR system. I still can’t afford the new full dive apparatus.”

Jay perked up at that detail, despite himself. “It’ll work on old gear?”

“Absolutely. No need to upgrade. I even have an extra copy of the game. I’ll help us stay on track and teach you what you need to know.” She was speaking faster, carried forward by her enthusiasm. When he hesitated, she blasted on. “I don’t understand why you are avoiding gaming, anyway. We used to have so much fun.”

His brain bounced around, looking for a good excuse. Many people had acted like Jay needed to grow up, which he could tell her, but it wasn’t the most noteworthy reason. It was true that it was hard to concentrate on games when he knew he could be looking for odd jobs and extra income. Sarah needed the money, and his little sister was dear to him. But the biggest reason Jay had walked away from gaming was that he had fallen in love with Taylor Lynn – the gamer. It was easier to see her as a real person when he could see her face.

But he obviously couldn’t tell her any of that. So he went with the money answer, even though it would bring them back to Sarah. “I always get to thinking about how I could be making extra money. It feels like a waste of time when I could wash cars or windows or fix mowers to make a little cash. For Sarah.”

Taylor Lynn fell silent for several beats. A feat only notable due to its rarity. All of her boisterous nature fell away, and she spoke soft and sweet. “Sarah would want you to have a little fun, you know. I’m sure she worries for you, too. Even if you remember the little kid in pajamas, she’s a young adult woman. I bet she’d love to hear you took a little time for yourself.”

“I know, but the big siblings are supposed to care for the little ones.”

She started in again more forcefully. “Yeah, you’re supposed to take care of her. Like, sneak her ice cream when the doctors say no. Listen when she needs to talk, and smile as often as you can. Make a stupid joke for no reason. Just to see her laugh. Not give up the rest of your life.”

Jay leaned back as if the power of her words had struck him right across the face. A punch far worse than anything Taylor Lynn had thrown at his shoulders. He knew she was probably right. Jay could recall that Sarah once said she was an ‘adult person who didn’t need him to give up the rest of his life.’ He let out a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding.

“One night only? You’ll respect my decision if I don’t want to keep playing?”

“I, Taylor Lynn Grace, solemnly swear that I ask you to commit to one night only. Any further time will be played at your sole discretion,” she said, hand over her heart. When he didn’t dispute her promise, she continued with the ultimate question: “When are you free?”

Jay smiled, knowing she had already won the battle. “I happen to be off tonight. I just need to visit Sarah. I’ll have the rest of the day free to play.”

She looked incredibly self-satisfied, but it was also the happiest he’d seen her in a while. “This is perfect! I’ll start preparing. Now listen – this part is very important. It’s the first day of the real game, so things will be crazy. Make sure you create an Elf. There are different starting regions, so we need to ensure we’re in the same one. We want to be Elves, got it?”

Instead of teasing her about how he’d choose for himself, Jay said, “We want to be Elves. Got it.” He stood up, pushing his chair in, as is polite. He needed to see Sarah before the adventures could begin. Taylor Lynn sprung out of her own chair.

“It’s been awesome,” Jay said, trailing off to drink the rest of his coffee.

“But you’re going to go visit Sarah. No problem, I’ll get you the rest of the night. Tell her I said hey.” She stepped in to hug him excitedly as they parted ways, leaving him dazzled in her wake. Taylor Lynn Grace was a force.