Chapter 2: Changes

This encounter didn't manage to cause the two parallel lines of me and her to intersect, let alone merge, and I continued to go out late in the evening and return early in the morning, still indulging in the virtual world of MMOs and hanging out with my real friends. My life didn't change because it wasn't enough to change my life, but something else did—the boss's words to be exact. 

One day late at night, after I inadvertently purchased a healing crystal bracelet mystery box from Eaioncol Jewelry, the merchant assured me it would bring me good luck. I was in the game, with my brothers leaping horse and sword, fighting hard, when I heard someone coming through the company gate. Our company uses card door locks, and each person has a card that also serves for attendance. Ordinary employees' door cards can only open the door during working hours, losing the ability to do so after hours. Only senior employees like me can open the door late at night.

However, when I looked at the face of the person who entered, I realized he wasn't one of our senior staff—he was my boss. Our company entrance leads into a big office, and my position is in the last row in a corner. Who called us senior employees, anyway? I had turned off all the lights in the office, making it pitch black, with only my computer screen emitting a dismal light, so the boss spotted me instantly.

"Scofield, still busy this late?" The boss walked over unsteadily, and from far away, I could smell the alcohol. Dare I say I met another drunkard, but this one wasn't beautiful.

"Yes, there's still some work I need to deal with." Feeling weak-hearted, I replied perfunctorily. If the boss knew that I never went to work on time in the morning and that I used the company's resources for my personal activities after hours, I didn't know if I could keep my senior position.

But the boss didn't seem to notice my unease. He didn't even look at my computer screen and continued to praise me, "Good, very good. If everyone in the company was as dedicated to their work as you, our company's development would be more rapid. With the company's success, I wouldn't treat you poorly. Unfortunately, not everyone understands this, which makes your dedication all the more valuable. You're good."

"Thank you, boss, for the compliment." Being complimented by the boss like this made me break out in a cold sweat.

"I'm going to seriously consider your potential. Your current position doesn't fully utilize your abilities. Tomorrow, yes, tomorrow, I'm going to reassign you, allowing you to better use your abilities and passion," the boss declared.

I didn't know if the boss was really drunk that night or if he genuinely recognized my work performance. But I started to be "used." My position was promoted, my salary increased, but my "private time" vanished. I was sent by the boss to the Guangzhou and Beijing branches to handle marketing work, and from then on, I began a career of constantly traveling between North, Shanghai, and Guangzhou.

To be honest, I had been a senior staff member for a while, but I had never flown. As someone afraid of heights, I didn't dare stand near the edge of a high-rise building. I had given up at least N (N>5) free travel opportunities organized by the company or friends because they required flying. But now, to keep my senior position, I had to sacrifice my fear and start using air travel, which is statistically the safest mode of transportation, despite having the highest fatality rate when accidents do occur.

The first time I went to the airport, I felt anxious. In addition to my fear of flying, I daydreamed about meeting beautiful flight attendants. I even thought about how I would greet her if I saw her on the plane. Unfortunately, after overcoming my fear of flying, I never met her. Furthermore, the beauty of the flight attendants greatly disappointed me. Perhaps the beautiful ones flew international routes.

Despite the disappointment, the overall quality of these high-altitude attendants was much higher than that of ordinary attendants. So, during each trip of a few hours, I didn’t sleep as I usually did while traveling but paid attention to see if there were any beautiful women, even among the passengers. Sometimes, sitting by the window and looking at the blank canvas outside, I felt like the lowest-quality person in the cabin, always thinking about beauty, and only staying in the stage of imagination.

My "home" in New york became frequently idle as I returned less and less. I didn't know if this was the reason, but since then, I never met her again. My fantasies about her slowly faded away.

Time always passes quickly when you're young. Unnoticed, three months went by while we were still heatedly debating what it means for a man over 25 to maintain a strong interest in gaming. Her image in my memory remained as "a beautiful woman who lived downstairs and spent one night with me." The significance of "a beautiful woman who lived on my floor and shared a room with me for one night" lingered in my mind.