Life's Not a Fairy Tale (No Matter How Much I Want It To Be) Ch.4 (Patreon)

“So… what happened, Romeo?” Gloria asked.

She’d purposefully stayed quiet during the ride back to the depot and only now that we were in her car did she talk. I know she did it for privacy’s sake, but that silence had the unintended effect of letting me stew in my anxiety. I waged a war within myself over how much to reveal to Gloria. On one hand, there was only so much she needed to know. On the other, I liked Gloria. Her work ethic and caring nature despite how much the world beat her down reminded me of my mother. I couldn’t tell her about The Company, but I could at least give her something to work with, right?

I took a deep breath before answering her with a question, “Would you believe me if I said it’s just cyberware?”

“Maybe…” Gloria hummed. “But that’s some military-grade chrome, chico. How’d a bennie like you get your hands on something like that?”

“I have… Patrons. Powerful Patrons. Patrons with access to a lot of shiny toys. What they’ve given me isn’t even the tip of the iceberg, to be honest…”

Gloria processed that for a moment, both what I said and what I didn’t say, “… If your ‘Patrons’ are so powerful, why don’t you have a place to stay tonight? Why are you bumming it as a paramedic of all things? Shouldn’t you be cozied up with a bunch of corpo goons right now?”

“I wish…” I scoffed. “No, my Patrons aren’t very hands-on. They don’t really believe in things like ‘supervision’ or ‘assistance’. All they care about is their fickle, momentary whims, that I pay back my loan, and that they get the toys they want. Hell, I’m not even working for them because I want to. I was sort of just press-ganged into service. It’s almost an interesting paradox. I have as much control over my fate as a free man and a slave at the same time.”

Gloria worried at her lip with her eye focused on the road, “That doesn’t sound like a very good situation, chico.”

I shrugged, “Sure, but what am I supposed to do about it? They literally have me by the balls. The only road to my happy ending is paying off my debt and even then, they’ll haunt me for the rest of my life.”

It was honestly kind of scary how well my current situation fits into the wider setting of the Cyberpunk world. To Gloria, I was just another debtor who owes his soul to a Megacorp. And she wasn’t even wrong, really. My Megacorp just wasn’t limited to this one world and, admittedly, had a much more neutral, callous business model. I was still stuck in a zero-sum game and I would be until I got enough clout or made enough profit for The Company and the Fae to decide I was better off doing my own thing.

We fell into a somewhat uncomfortable silence. Gloria was probably thinking about what would happen if David was in my place. Was she unintentionally putting her son in a similar situation by sending him to a corpo school? I mean the ideal result was him getting a job at a Megacorp, right? But wouldn’t he just be selling his soul to the corpo machine? Trading a prison of poverty for a prison of wealth?

It was a hard pill to swallow, admitting that what you wanted for your son, your own flesh and blood, might be more detrimental than beneficial. That everything came with a cost and that cost might be more than you were willing to pay. Even I was still coming to terms with my situation. The chance for my happily ever after was paid for by something vital my mom had given me. Something so instrumental to my being that losing it undoubtedly changed who I was. I knew any good mother would happily pay that price for her child, but could they accept their child paying that price in their place?

We got to Gloria’s apartment not long after that. The Megabuilding was a bit of a sight for me just for the sheer scale of the place. I could totally see how people could live their entire lives inside one of these and never see the light of day. David must have been asleep because we didn’t run into him when we stepped inside. Gloria told me I could take the couch and we both turned in for the night.

I had a dream that night. One that was not quite lucid but impossibly vivid all the same. One that felt real in an indescribable way even as I rode passenger in my body. And even as my mind transcended the physical world, I could just barely feel parts of my Cybermorph heritage reaching out into the net. My dreamscape merged with the virtual world that danced through the aether of Night City.

I was climbing an immense beanstalk all the way into the clouds. Below me was an endless expanse of blue sky. I couldn’t even see the ground. Sprites disguised as mist and vapor drifted around and through me as I ascended toward a solid layer of clouds. Whispers of code and data were carried by the wind.

I breached the cloud cover and kept climbing. The beanstalk continued up and up, twisting over and around the walls of a castle in the sky. Everything else about the dream fell away as I approached a balcony. Even as the background faded into a hazy blur, my focus sharpened. My body moved as if it already knew my part. For my name was no longer Jack. I was Romeo now.

Then suddenly, a cyber-loli appeared on the balcony. Her skin was as pale as moonlight. The crimson sclera of her augmented eyes was dotted with yellow irises so full of life and energy. Pale green hair was tied up in a pair of twin tails that enhanced her youthful appearance. Her body was compact and curvy in a petite yet not childish way. ‘Those hips couldn’t be childish,’ an absent part of my consciousness mused. I recognized her, but I could only watch my dream body act out its role without control of the dream.

“But, soft! What light through yonder window breaks? It is the east and Juliet is the sun-”

Thankfully, Rebecca interrupted me before my dream could embarrass me any further, “Sup, choom! Nice setup you got here! Most realistic BD I’ve ever seen, that’s for sure! Digging the romantic vibe and all that. Real classy. You could spoil a girl with something like this.”

Like a switch was flipped, I gained control over my body and the dream, “Ah! Sorry about that. Sometimes the BD glitches and leaves me stuck like that.”

Rebecca seemed to take my bullshit at face value, nodding and never losing her perpetual smile, “It’s cool, bro. That’s how I got sucked into this junk? Your program shortcirced and pulled me off the net?”

“Uh… Yeah, probably… It’s still pretty new. Anyway, I’m Romeo. Thanks for being so cool about this little accident.”

“No problem, choom! I’m Rebecca but you can call me Becca! You a netrunner or something?”

“… Or something…”

“Nova! The crew is always looking for new blood! Come find me if you ever feel like dancing on the Edge!”

“Just like that? You don’t even know me…”

Becca shrugged, “Why not? First impressions are half the battle, right? You’re cute. ~I certainly wouldn’t mind being your input~ And as I said, Maine could always use some fresh blood.”

“… Thanks. I’ll keep that in mind if we ever meet in real life.”

“Don’t thank me yet, choom. You’ll still have to prove yourself. In the streets… and in between the sheets~”

“I think I’m up for the challenge,” I smirked, finally testing if I could use the dreamscape for more than just conversation.

A pair of moments captured in memory flashed before both of our unconscious minds. The first showed the junkie from earlier dead and bleeding out all over the dirt of a vacant lot. The second showed Eden sprawled out on a bed, insensate and covered in bodily fluids. Becca’s grin grew even wider.

“Damn, choom, that’s some preem shit. I swear I can even feel the adrenaline and the afterglow from just the screenshot. If you can make BDs like that, we might want you just for advertising purposes.”

“If you give me enough to work with, I’ll make one specially designed for you,” I offered.

“For real?! Hell yeah! After seeing what you did to that poor joytoy’s hole, I already know what I want it to be~”

“You want to make an erotic BD with me?” I asked somewhat incredulously. I wasn’t used to being propositioned so eagerly, but I guess that was just Becca’s personality.

“Why not, choom? It’d be nova! We could be stars! Great sex and a chance to make Eddies on the side? Sign me up!”

“Well… When you put it like that…”

I didn’t get the chance to finish my thought. A familiar, blood-chilling voice that I was sure I’d hear in many nightmares to come resonated through the dreamscape. The very fabric of non-reality shook with amused, impatient power. The gravel-gargling voice of the Fae pricked our ears with a thousand needles.

“Wake up, ____”

“What the fuck was that!?” Becca exclaimed, spinning around and trying to find the source of the voice in vain.

The voice of First came from beyond the dimension as well, “Hey, buddy, you might want to get a move on. I’m holding them back as best I can, but your Patrons aren’t big fans of dream sequences they aren’t a part of.”

“Wake up, ____”

“Shit,” I swore. “I, uh, guess this is goodbye for now Becca. I’ll catch you later?”

“Wait, wait, wait, what the fuck is going on?! You can’t just ignore the spooky elephant in the room!”

I winced, “I’m sorry about this. I promise I’ll explain if we ever meet in person…”

“Wake-…”

“… -Up, chico. Our shift starts in an hour,” Gloria said, shaking my shoulder lightly.

The sudden transition from dreamscape into reality was jarring. I could only hope Becca’s wasn’t as bad as mine. I seriously didn’t expect the Fae to cockblock me though. Especially not for such a petty reason like ‘not being included’. I guess I was still underestimating how fickle and alien the Fae’s mindset was. I should try and remember to thank First for giving me time to say goodbye though.

I slowly pushed myself upright, glad to be free of the usual grogginess that I used to feel in the morning. I’d never been a morning person, but Body Tuneup and my neural augments meant my brain was running at full capacity the instant I woke up. I didn’t even feel the need for my morning stimulant. Which was a good thing since I doubted you could find a good cup of coffee anywhere in this world that wasn’t a Megacorp penthouse.

The Kibble I was served for breakfast wasn’t nearly as bad as I thought it would be. It was kind of like dry cereal with a richer taste. It was honestly some pretty quality munching material, but I could see how people would grow tired of it pretty fast. It was more suited for snacking than being one of Cyberpunk’s main food sources.

With his arms stretched above his head, the protagonist of Cyberpunk Edgerunners walked into the room. He yawned and rubbed the sleep from his eyes. Gloria got an absent kiss on the cheek that spoke of routine and David sat down at the small table. Then I munched my Kibble a bit too loudly and he froze.

“W-W-What the fuck!? Who are you?!”

“Yo,” I greeted, sending a lazy handwave his direction. “I’m Romeo. I work with your mom.”

“O…kay… Why are you in our apartment?” David’s initial confusion quickly turned into an almost hostile growl.

“Behave, mijo,” Gloria said, lightly swatting David on the back of the head. “I offered him a place to stay last night. It was the least I could do after he saved my life.”

David’s focus switched from me to his mother the instant she mentioned last night’s near-death experience, “What? What happened? Are you okay? Why didn’t you tell me?!”

Gloria soothed David’s fear with a hug and calm tone, “It only happened last night. It wasn’t a big deal, just a dorphhead. I’m fine thanks to Romeo.”

I watched David’s body visibly relax in his mom’s arms, “Thank God…”

“So give him a chance, mijo. Romeo’s a good kid. I think the two of you would get along.”

“… Fine. If he stuck his neck out for you, I guess he can’t be that bad.”

I just kept munching my Kibble to hide the ache that was quickly forming in my heart from the mother-son scene. That kind of relationship was what I missed most after mom’s death. That simple sense of ease when talking to someone else. That unconditional love and selfless worry. That casual affection between family. I wasn’t even paying attention to their words. Just the vibe between them both was like a healing salve and a corrosive poison at the same time.

“So… what do you do?” David asked with the awkwardness only a teenager could have after he sat down across from me with his bowl of Kibble.

I snorted, “I’m an EMT like your mom. I just started yesterday though.”

“… Did you go to school for that or something?”

“Nah, I dropped out a while ago. Some… shit happened and I decided it wasn’t worth putting on a mask for society anymore,” I humored David. He was at least trying to make conversation.

David perked up at the mention of dropping out of school before deflating with a side glance at his very-hardworking mother, “Yeah… I get that…”

I gave David a knowing look, “Bit of advice: the face you put on for society is only as valuable as what you put into it. If you really aren’t feeling it or it’s an obvious dead end, give it up and try something different. Find your own path in life. And whatever you do, never sell your soul to the corps.”

David wasn’t the only one to wince at my words. I saw Gloria flinch as well out of the corner of my eye. Good. I hated to break a single mother like her down, but maybe now she’d start thinking about how much of a pipe dream it was for David to act as if he was a born-and-bred corpo. The Megacorps would never truly accept a poor kid from the gutter like him. They might act as they do — and even then only if he got results — but he’d be looked down on so much that he wouldn’t even get off the ground. The only people who didn’t discriminate wouldn’t even know he existed until his career was already dead.

“That’s just my advice though,” I said after the silence stretched a moment too long.

Gloria cleared her throat, “Mijo, you’ve got to get to school.”

“Yeah… right, mom…” David muttered, obviously still thinking about what I said. He quickly scarfed down the rest of his breakfast and got himself ready. Gloria had a somber look on her face as she watched her son leave the apartment.

“We should probably get going as well,” I said to Gloria.

“You’re right, chico,” she sighed. “I just got lost in thought.”

I just nodded and didn’t reply verbally. Hopefully, that was a good sign. Gloria had to start thinking about the reality of her dream for David before I could start to change her mind about it. I was firm in the belief that Gloria meant well, but David’s school was doing more harm than good. And that wasn’t only because he was getting bullied there, though that was a major part of it. Being a corpo just didn’t fit David’s fate or personality. If he became a Night City Legend once, he could do it again, hopefully without causing his death in the process. But to get started on that path, David needed a change in direction. That’s what I was here for…