Love In The Game

“Slow down, beautiful! We just want to walk you home! " cried a bunch of drunken men.

Water splashing as Claire Hopkins' feet stepped on a puddle, staining her blue jeans with mud. The road was wet because of the rain earlier that night. Claire didn't care that her jeans were getting dirty, she quickened her pace to avoid the horde of drunken men who were chasing her.

Claire looked around, no one else was still hanging around this late. Claire cursed silently. It's all because of her boyfriend, Robin. If only that man hadn't made her leave the house this late. Claire wanted to know what the man was doing behind her back. After Claire's best friend - Amanda - told her that he is cheating, Claire decided to see for herself. She purposely went out in the middle of the night to prove Amanda's words were true. Claire still feels her eyes sting and her nose is runny after seeing with her own eyes that Robin and a woman making love in a cheap hotel room.

Now, Claire was in even bigger trouble. Her flat was still a few blocks from here and she wasn't sure she'd made it safely now. Claire is running now, because the drunken men are close. Even though they were stumbling, they were quickly able to grab the small backpack that Claire was wearing on her back.

"Let me go!" exclaimed Claire in a voice as loud as possible, but the crowd of men laughed instead.

One of them pushed Claire towards his friend, then the others caught her. They laughed while touching Claire's beautiful body. Even though she was covered in a loose T-shirt and long jeans, Claire still looked very attractive. Her glistening skin, her long hair that sparkled like the colour of the sun, and her eyes that were navy blue, always attracted attention.

"Let go!" exclaimed Claire. The strong smell of alcohol filled Claire's sense of smell as the men took turns teasing her. She bit the arm of the drunken men who was clutching her arms and rubbed her body from behind. The man shouted and suddenly let go of her arms. Claire took the opportunity to run as fast as she could.

"God damn it! Chase her! " exclaimed the man.

Claire's eyes searched for places to escape or hide in the darkness. There was no way she could run that fast back to her flat which was still quite a distance away. Unfortunately, there are no taxis along the way. Claire finally finds an empty old house which she usually calls a haunted house. The old house was so dark. The trees and grass is fulfilling it’s porch. No lights there.

The house already looks quite creepy during the day, it is creepier at night. Claire doesn't have much choice. She looked back and saw the men still chasing her and getting closer. She doesn’t know where did the courage came from, Claire turned and ran into the old house without hesitations.

As Claire expected, the front door of the house was unlocked, it was even slightly ajar. Without thinking, Claire went inside and closed the thick dusty door tightly. The men realized what Claire was doing, they turned around and started to enter the porch of the house. Claire frantically fumbled for the key which was fortunately still stuck to the door. She locked it quickly, leaving the drunken men banging in vain on the door.

Claire coughed because the dust that clung to the door was in the air when the door was beaten from outside. She stepped away from the door and peeked through the dirty window next to the door. With her fingers, she cleaned a small part of the window so she could see clearly outside. The dust on the window pane was very thick. This house must have been abandoned for a long time.

The men cursed and kicked the pebbles in anger for not getting to Claire. They left screaming angrily. The empty drink bottles that were still in their hands were thrown onto the street, making the sound of shattered glass. Claire breathed a sigh of relief, at least she was safe for now.

“You won't last long there, blonde girl! We'll be waiting for you to come out!” exclaimed the men, sitting on the side of the road.

"Damn blonde girl!" exclaimed one more person.

"Shit!" whispered Claire. Now she wouldn't be able to get out of the house, at least until the morning. She exhaled roughly, while looking around her. It's so dark and creepy in here, what if there are ghosts? Claire shuddered at her own thoughts. She reached into the back pocket of her jeans and took out her cell phone. Quickly, the girl turned on the flashlight.

When the flashlight flashed, Claire was surprised that the house was much dustier than she had imagined. The ceiling was already covered with cobwebs mixed with dust. Messy things here and there. Looks like the house was abandoned in a hurry.

Claire dared to step further into the house. There is a wooden ladder that still looks solid if cleaned. Claire walked again and found an abandoned kitchen, there was even still a bowl of cereal on the table. Claire walked further and found a study room with neatly arranged bookshelves. A laptop is still open on the table.

Claire took a quick look into it, then she decided to left the room to find a bedroom that maybe she could stay in for the night. However, her leg accidentally tripped over something on the floor. Claire pointed her flashlight at the floor and found something sticking out of the carpet. Her curiosity made Claire uncover the fur carpet and see what lay beneath it.

The girl's navy-blue eyes widened when she saw the wooden floor choked up in that area. Apparently, that was what made Claire stumble. However, that wasn't what surprised Claire, but it was a boxy part, as if it could be lifted. Maybe something is laying underneath. Claire thought it might be treasure. She smiled because of her own thoughts.

Slowly, Claire tried to lift the chipped piece of wood. Luckily, whoever it is, doesn't close it properly before leaving the house. With ease, Claire was able to open it and found there was a black box inside. Claire then lifted it up to see what was in it.

When the box was opened, Claire found that it was a game play set that looked quite sophisticated. Claire blew the dust on top of the box, then began to read the writing on it.

“The Myth. Complete each mission as the god or goddess of Greek mythology of your choice. Completed with face and body scans. Feel the sensation of being in the game with your own face and body,” said Claire reading the text.

"Wow, that's interesting. So, my face and body will become the character of my choice in the game?” she muttered again. She then smiled faintly. Maybe playing games would make her forget her predicament for a while, she thought.