Boy Meets Ai

Chapter 63

Chapter 63

By the time Seiko got back home, there was still about 3 hours until the tournament. As they walked up to the building, he noticed an ambulance parked out front with its lights flashing. They headed upstairs not giving it too much thought. As Seiko went to put his key in his lock, he was startled as a chilling scream rang out through the whole floor. The heart wrenching wailing that followed made his skin prickle. It sounded close, just a few doors down. Not only that, but the scream had also come from a woman.

Oh no...

He made his way down the hall to the source. The door to his friend Thomas' house was slightly ajar. Seiko was scared. He was both pulled away by his fear and compelled to move forward through the door. Gathering his courage, he peeked inside and could see people standing inside. They were medics. They were standing over something. Or someone. Seiko pushed through the door. He needed to know what was going on. He walked past the kitchen into the living room before anyone noticed him. It was there that he saw Ms. Reeder. She was draped over her son sitting in his wheelchair, sobbing deeply.

"Hey! You can't be here! You need to leave now!" A medic grabbed him by the arm and pushed him back towards the door. Seiko was shell shocked by the scene. Thomas' hands hung limply by his sides. His head lolled back as if he were in a deep sleep.

Oh my god. Is he...

The thought was terrible, but it crept its way into Seiko's mind like ice water.

With a final thrust, he was shoved out the door and it was closed and latched. Still stunned, the young man made his way back to his room in a confused daze. He didn't even close the door behind him. Seiko slid into his chair unable to process what he'd just seen. For an hour or so, he sat there in complete silence, listening to the sorrowful crying of Ms. Reeder as it bled through the walls. A million thoughts raced through his head at once. His best friend. What happened to him? Was he ok? He tried to think back to the scene. Was he wearing his headset? Yes, he was fairly certain he was. Did something happen in game? A fatal crash? Those were so extremely rare though.

"Oaklee. What are we going to do?" The tournament check-in was in an hour.

Oaklee's voice was shaky as she spoke "Gabriel and the others probably don't know what happened. We have to tell them." Seiko could tell she was distraught as well. He nodded in agreement with her and decided they would send a message to the organizer. By some coincidence though, right as he was about to hit send, a message popped up in his inbox.

Hello!

We are reaching out from the Soul and Steel Tournament. Your opponent for the grand finals has already checked in. We just need your confirmation as well. Please reach back out to us within the next 30 minutes to confirm!

"What in the hell?" Oaklee exclaimed as she read the message.

Seiko was equally disturbed by the revelation. Was Thomas actually ok now? Or was something else going on? He didn't know what to think. Either way, he had to get some answers. They needed to go to the Ether. Seiko slipped on his headset, transferring Oaklee over as well. He held out hope that his friend would be there to greet him when he logged in but the image of his limp, lifeless body stained his memory. The situation didn't make any sense at all, and a dark worry clouded Seiko as he went to launch the game.

"We're going. You ready?" Seiko asked.

Oaklee nodded.