My heart was racing. The adrenaline in my veins was rushing, and my mind was moving at 100 mph.
There were so many thoughts, so many things I wanted to say, but I didn't know if it would be right; my heart felt like it was going to explode.
She was right there, we were finally alone, her face looked so red.
In the end…All I could do was…
Smooch
She was practically the love of my life, and I could still taste her lips even after. I felt like the luckiest man to ever live. Our future together, I could already picture it.
Noah was grinning ear to ear; he had the face of a true victor. It had been a day, but recalling that moment still made him the happiest man to ever live.
Dingding. 'Huh, what the hell is this? That lottery I entered on a whim; it seems like I actually won?
…
…
"I actually won!?"
Noah started to get weird stares on the street, but he couldn't possibly be worried about that.
'No way those things are supposed to be scams, people don't actually win in reality, right? Hehe? I mean, there is no way, right?
We are talking about over a billion dollars in cash. I might seriously be the luckiest person to ever exist in all of history.'
The idea of a billion dollars was completely surreal to Noah. In perspective, that amount of money at once could satisfy the needs of him, his family, and any future generations of his family to come. He could completely give up on any hard, burdensome tasks and just live the rest of his days in complete luxury.
'If this is true, which, as hard as it is to believe. Argh, I have to be real. This is the official website; I made sure of that when I put my money into it, and I really can't lie to myself and say I don't want to believe this.
So the next step would be to figure out how I am going to finance all of this. I don't really know much, as it never occurred to me that at eighteen I would become a billionaire or even be making money this soon. I prioritized school during this time.
Also, I definitely can't tell anyone about this because if they were to find out, then other people would find out, and eventually all of this could land in the wrong ears and lead to me being coerced by some gang or mafia for my absurd amount of money.'
Noah's mind worked hard and fast to go over all of the potential scenarios and situations that all of this money could mean. It got to a point where Noah found himself almost bumping into someone while walking.
"Hey!" The man growled.
I recognized that voice immediately.
"Huh?"
"Wait, Noah, is that you? I was going to text you, but you're already here…"
I was forced to snap out of my thoughts at this moment and saw a stocky, pale-skinned man in front of me.
I was currently just walking around the park near my neighborhood.
This man was Rowan, aka Horizon; he was my best friend, and he was also my duo in Ultra Zero. If we actually win, which I am starting to believe we will with the luck I've been getting, we were going to be world champions very soon. Of course, our skills are what give me the most faith; it's been a long time coming.
'Should I tell him about what's happened?' Noah contemplated this briefly.
"Yeah, I was just taking a bit of fresh air this morning. You'd better be on tonight, though, so that we can practice."
Rowan sucked his teeth.
Stomp
It all happened too quickly. The next thing I knew, he was grabbing me.
"Hey! What do you think you're doing?" I exclaimed
"Don't tell me what to do, I already know what's tomorrow, do you think I was just gonna sit on my ass all day, huh?" Rowan said angrily
"Well, technically, we are gonna just be sitting on our asses anyhow, since that's what you do when you play video games. I know that we supposedly live in the future, but they still can't figure out how to make virtual games completely immersive safely. The last experiment led to that one guy's brain becoming completely fried. Now he has to live with permanent brain damage…
Noah continued to talk with a sense of urgency while trying to get Rowan to stop attacking him.
This was Noah's life. He lived in a suburban neighborhood, went to a decent school, finally kissed his crush, won the lottery for over a billion dollars, and had a brother for a friend.
I wasn't going to rush redeeming that lottery money for now; I still wanted to focus on winning this tournament, then I would really do some deep reflection.
If he wins that world tournament, his life could truly not get any better.
…
"He's one shot, on the left, Blade, you have to clutch this out, we've come so far!" A voice came into my ears clearly.
My mind could be likened to a whirlwind in this current moment.
"Alright," I responded to Horizon briefly.
The current situation was a 1v1 between me and 'Pixy1012', it was the final match in the world tournament. This was it, we had been practicing so hard the day before and the day before that, all the way for years. Ultra Zero was my and Rowan's favorite game; we bonded over it so much and went through so many battles together as the ultimate duo, and now the world could finally recognize all of the effort we put into this.
I glanced at my resources in half a second: [Health: 20/100] [Mana: 10/50] [1/4 Special Items]
On a small monitor, in the most realistic graphics technologically possible, I took it all in. Rowan's downed character, A scholarly magician, with round glasses, 'totally unlike the hot-headed Rowan I know in real life'. Pixies' pink fairy-like character, on the left, just as Horizon said. Finally, my own knighted, dark swordsman of a character in the middle, ready to take on the inputs that I put down into my keyboard.
'So many hours spent getting enough currency to buy that skin.'
This was Ultra Zero, a multiplayer arena fighter.
Subconsciously, I took a deep breath through my nose.
Clickclack, my fingers moved with trained movements, the tech I've practiced thousands of times, it was perfect for all onlookers to witness.
Whoosh, fairy dust heads in my direction, but I dodge with only the slightest frame of distance. I knew this game like the back of my hand, and I knew when I would be invulnerable and when I wouldn't.
"He's on the attack, but what's this? Blade maneuvers and dodges, and if you look closely, it seems like he's throwing a revive to Horizon!" The announcers say at the same time.
Horizon gets up and says gratefully, "Thanks, Blade."
[Special Items: 0/4]
Pixie tries to hit the blade again, but the attack misses. She continues the pressure even after the revival to even the odds again, and eventually she hits Blade slightly.
Horizon immediately tries to get back to Blade, but they were too far ahead for him to do anything at that moment.
"Dammit," Rowan said angrily.
"How much health do you still have?"
"I'm at 1HP, we've got to stay focused."
"It seems Pixie is readying her ultimate!!" An announcer yells.
Blade and Horizon both take advantage of the window of opportunity within her attack
WHOOSH, a huge gust of deadly smoke hits both Horizon and Blade.
They both fall to the ground.
"Is this the end, folks?" A high-pitched voice exclaims.
Silence falls in the arena.
Through the dust, Pixies' character is also on the ground. In what seems to be a draw, the victors are displayed across the screen.
[WINNER: Blade11 and Horizon_]
Without making much of a reaction, I take off my headset and shake the opposing team's hand.
All of this was starting to feel really suspicious and was making me paranoid.
The arena erupts into cheers.
It all seemed utterly insane, not even real. I felt amazing, I felt terrible, my heart was still beating really fast, but that was essentially a draw, and the victory could be attributed to sheer luck if anything.
'Truly amazing players, however, I just can't shake this heavy feeling in my heart.'
'What the hell is going on? Now that I've actually processed the reality of winning the lottery and even this, my luck, this isn't normal. Have I been blessed or something? How could this even be happening?'
Noah's face scrunches up, and despite the lively cheers, he couldn't help but be suspicious
Rowan notices Noah's face.
'What the hell is his problem?'
"HEY! We won, you could at least smile for godsakes." Rowan says this to Noah closely
This was such a momentous occasion; however, he didn't have the time to really think about what could be making Noah so upset.
Rowan felt a sort of bad feeling, but he pushed it down quickly to let himself bask in this once-in-a-lifetime happiness. These moments were rare for him.
Sigh, "I suppose you are right."
They both go up to claim their trophy.
At the moment when good feelings were highest, and they would receive their award, everything seemed perfect…
Then everything turned dark.
ssssss
"AHHHH"
It was simultaneously the most painful but also freeing feeling I had ever experienced.