The Gamer Book Novels & Stories

“Hey… about what you saw earlier.” She jumped, clutching the book to her chest. “I—I didn’t see anything. I swear. I won’t tell anyone.” I smiled softly and stepped even closer, backing her gently against the shelves. “Relax. Professor Harlan and I… we have an understanding. But I saw how you looked at us. You didn’t run away because you were scared. You ran because it turned you on, didn’t it?” Her cheeks burned brighter. She shook her head quickly. “No… that’s not… I’m not—”

The text under the image scrolled like captions: ROUND 3: CARNIVAL. AUTHOR STRAIN: MODERATE. PLAYER LOSS: ACCEPTABLE. I snapped the book shut. The image folded in on itself and vanished. “These are… logs,” I said. “Narratives, the way *it* tells them.” “Correction,” SML said, pulling a volume labeled GAME CITY – MINI-GAMES from the shelf and flipping it open. “It’s fanfic. Bad fanfic. Look at this.” We leaned in.

His presence was unnerving, yet oddly calming, as if he belonged to a realm she had no comprehension of. "Someone finally noticed me?" she whispered, her voice barely audible. The man offered a faint smile, one that didn’t quite reach his eyes. "Oh, I noticed you the moment you stepped into this place," he said, his voice smooth and laced with an otherworldly cadence. "Who… who are you?" Alessia stammered, taking a step back. Her instincts told her to run, but her feet refused to move. The man tilted his head slightly, observing her as though she were a puzzle he was piecing together. "I am what you might call a timekeeper. A guide of sorts for souls like yours, lost between realms."