False Start
Just as quickly as I see her, she’s gone. She’s passed the visible area granted by the windows at the front of the store. There’s absolutely no way I can just let her go. If I do, I may never see her again.
My mother is talking with a worker, seemingly embroiled in a very engaging conversation. I hate to interrupt, but this is kind of important.
I tap her shoulder, “Mom? I’m gonna go check something out, I’ll be right back.”
She distractedly says, “Just don’t wander too far. I don’t want you getting lost.”
I decide to not comment on how embarrassing that is and make my way out of the store. I catch a glimpse of that same blonde hair rounding a corner, taking her deeper into the mall. I follow at a brisk pace. I have no real plan on what to do, nor any idea who exactly it is that I’m tailing. It’s been a grand stroke of fortune that I’ve found my target this early, but I’ve had zero time to prepare, and suddenly throwing myself into this without any idea of who I’m pursuing seems like a poor idea.
Wait... isn’t that just what people do normally?
Whatever.
I don’t know what following her is going to accomplish the more that I think about it, but I just can’t stop myself.
I round the corner and the short stack once again enters my field of vision, giving me a chance to look at her a bit more closely.
My initial description was about right, but she’s definitely shorter than 5 feet. She’s being dwarfed by nearly everyone around her. I still stand by my assertion that her frame is absolutely absurd. Now that I’m behind her I have a better view of her backside and it’s all I can do to not lean back and say, “Dayuuummm!”
She’s wearing a tight, white dress that highlights all of her curves wonderfully, and is cut just low enough to make you wonder if you’re seeing a bit of areola.
She walks with a sense of purpose, headed to a specific place at the center of the mall. Maybe that could serve as an icebreaker? I think I’m really grasping at straws here. Eh, maybe I just need to be a bit more confident and introduce myself?
Either way, it’s better to just follow for now.
She enters the main plaza located at the center of the mall, where the ceiling opens up and reveals the floors above, as well as offering seating and a pleasant view of a large marble fountain. This is where people will often come to either meet up or eat.
Looks like she’s here to do the former.
A tall, lean, handsome man with similarly striking features as Sofia’s, stands up from a bench located next to the fountain. He looks like a model, and other people have also taken notice of him. Sofia sees him and picks up the pace, seemingly a bit more excited than before. When they meet she throws her arms around him and he returns the hug tightly. These 2 are glad to see each other.
Damn it.
So she has a boyfriend and a damn good-looking one at that. That’s a little bit of a problem, but I’ve had to work around a partner before. Who knows, maybe if worst comes to worst I’ll need to use the theft potion? I don’t really want to, as I still have my reservations, morally and otherwise, but I also want to see how the potions work.
They break their hug and spend a moment talking before Sofia reaches out her hand, which he grabs, and they start walking. The man takes a quick glance around the plaza, and settles into wal… wait, no. His eyes glance at me, lazily drift past me, then return to me with a shocked jolt. Suddenly, I feel a chill run up my spine and realization dawns on me. He’s a player as well.
His eyes lock onto mine, then glance at Sofia. I look away.
Fuck. There’s no way he knows, right?
My eyes return to his and his face has changed. For a moment he wears a smirk, then turns and walks away, with his hand held firmly in my target’s.
He totally knows.
Well… this fucking sucks. I got my target about 2 hours ago, and in that time another player weaseled his way in? How the hell?
It looked like they’d known each other for a while, so there’s no way that they met less than 2 hours ago, right? According to the rules everyone receives their target at the same time, so maybe they knew each other from even before the game started?
How the hell is that fair?
Maybe she’s not his target? Maybe they just… happen to know each other? Fuck, man. This has suddenly turned into a huge issue. There’s absolutely no way that I can get any further today, so I turn around and head back to my mom. I get there just in time for her to spend 30 more minutes talking to the same store worker about inane things, then we leave.
There’s still plenty of time left in the day, maybe I can do some digging on Sofia, or maybe I can… fuck, I really don’t want to do this.
They’re boyfriend and girlfriend, right? And they seem happy together, so maybe I should just leave it be? Breaking up 2 people who seem so happy together is-
Necessary to win
A thought, as quick and ephemeral as lightning, interrupts my train of thought. It was completely intrusive and didn’t follow my line of thinking at all.
But, once again, it was right. I need to at least try. They may well not be as happy as they appear. Hell, they might not even be romantically involved. What did I see them do? Hug and hold hands? He might just be a close friend. There’s no reason to shut down before I’ve even started.
I'm a tiny bit worried about ever seeing her again, but I'm not too afraid. Through a combination of Val and my mediocre investigational skills, I'm confident I can find her again.
Now... let's get started.