He dreamed he was home. He sat on his bed, alone, staring out the window. It was slightly ajar. Rain fell, and drops splashed into his room. He didn’t get up to close it. He let them flood the wall beneath the window a little. Emma walked in. She looked at the window and asked why it was open, but he didn’t answer. In the dream, he couldn’t speak. Or get up to close it. But how could he tell her? How could he convince her? Emma was mad at him. She marched to the window and tried to shut it. She couldn’t either. The drops kept it jammed. The room grew damper, wetter. Soon, the whole floor was underwater. He looked at Emma. She was crying. Her tears fell from her eyes, mixing with the water at her feet. And he sat dry on the bed.


    He woke up scared.


    He was still in the park Hugo Barnes had created, and it was raining outside. The window was indeed open, but aside from a few small drops, nothing else had come in. There was no wind. The smell of rain quenching the hot earth was pleasant. He loved that scent. He got up to close the window. He didn’t know what time it was. There were no clocks here. It had been hard to adjust to that at first, but now he didn’t care. From what he could tell, and what his gut suggested, the first rays of dawn would appear soon. The earliest rooster crows hinted at it too. A few dogs roamed below, sniffing around.


    He lay back on the bed, staring at the ceiling. Nothing stirred. The silence was so deafening it was almost frightening. He couldn’t remember if he’d fallen back asleep, but when his door opened and Jasper walked in, it was already light outside.


    “Bro?” Jasper was inside now. “I thought I’d catch you with the blonde.”


    “And that’s why you came in?”


    Jasper came over and sat by his feet.


    “Well, yeah. I live for the looks on people’s faces when I catch them together. I was hoping for something like that here.”


    “I’ve got a girl, Jas. I wouldn’t do it.”


    “Come on, man. This is a different world. Emma doesn’t exist here. And the blonde’s cool, bro.”


    “She’s not my type.”


    “Stop it, Daniel. We’re men—what types? Who even has time to be picky? You’re just making excuses.”


    “And you? What’d you do last night?”


    “Nothing, bro. Just stood outside smoking cigarettes.”


    “Did you hear something again?”


    “No, no. Nothing this time. But I was thinking about what you said. You’re right—I’ll play out my story. I’m thinking of finding Aria today, bro. I’ll tell her how I feel.”


    Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.


    “Feel?”


    “You know what I mean. We’re playing, right?”


    Daniel got up and started dressing. Jasper stayed in the room, lost in thought.


    “You know, it was really quiet today.”


    “I felt it too. If it weren’t for some dog outside, I probably wouldn’t have woken up. Other nights, it’s noisy late, and someone’s banging around early.”


    “Put on your cowboy pants, bro. We’re back on duty today.”


    “Who’s in the room next to yours?” Daniel asked, pulling them on.


    “That jerk, your rival for the blonde chick.”


    “He’s not my rival. They’re colleagues.”


    “I told you, that crap doesn’t fool me. Why do you think he’s not hanging with her anymore? He wanted to sleep with her, but she didn’t let him. I can spot these things. Trust me.”


    Was that why she’d kissed him in front of him?


    Daniel remembered her kiss. Her lips pressed against his. She smelled of beer, which usually wasn’t pleasant, but it was worth it coming from a beautiful woman. Then he saw Sam Hayes’s stare. He’d looked at him for a long time. Had Ava wanted that—to make him jealous? Then Jasper wouldn’t be right. If she didn’t care about Hayes, she wouldn’t bother making him jealous. The other option was she wanted to show him she’d be with anyone but him.


    “What’s on your mind, bro? The blonde? I told you—go get her. Do whatever you do here, then go back to your Emma after the park. Tell her you banged a robot, but it wasn’t a big deal.”


    “Ava’s her colleague.”


    “What?” Jasper tried to stay serious but couldn’t help laughing. “Sam Hayes is Emma’s boss? When did you figure that out?”


    “When Ava told me about their company, Sam Hayes, their work here—it clicked.”


    “Does Ava know?”


    “No.”


    “Good. But now it’s really risky. Man, you’ve got some luck…”


    “I wouldn’t have done anything anyway, Jas. I told you…”


    “Bro, this Emma…” Jasper waved it off.


    Daniel shot him a look. He knew Jasper didn’t like Emma, but he didn’t want it to ruin their friendship. His friend had a big mouth, but on this topic, he never spoke. And that was for the best. If he did, it might force Daniel to choose. And he didn’t want to make that choice.


    “Still,” Jasper went on, “bang her if you can. ‘Cause that’s what I’m planning with Aria.”


    “Want me to list the differences?”


    “No. Shut up. Don’t ruin it for me.”


    Daniel was ready. They left the room and headed down the corridor. No noise, no chatter came from anywhere. Jasper dramatically pressed his ear to the door where Ava was supposed to be, one room over from his. Daniel laughed at the joke, and they kept going.


    It was morning, and the bar downstairs was always emptier then. Now, too, there was almost no one. Or rather, there was truly no one down there.


    Jasper walked ahead, and when he stepped off the last stair, he turned.


    “Bro, where is everyone?”


    Daniel came down and passed him, looking around. No Phil, no Violet, none of her girls. No one with black gloves. Not even any guests were there.


    “This went from an action movie to a horror flick. Are they messing with us?”


    Daniel didn’t have an answer.