Matthew had not stepped more than four steps before he was surrounded on either side by Monica and Willow, who promptly peeled him off of Risa, who for her part looked a little miffed but went on with the tour of the Glassglo district of trade, showing them shops with everything from guns to armor to ammo and melee weapons. Most of these shops were ran by players, and not by the few npcs that were found around the town. It would appear even the mayor of the town was an elected player who was voted on by the players themselves.

It was an interesting approach to building a town that felt like it was actually living and breathing. Matt was happy to simply take it in, but once Monica made a soft little squeal of delight he looked over to see what she was looking at.

At a stall run by a man who looked to be in his early forties with mousy brown hair that spilled down his face and framed it in a monastic fashion, long gangly limbs and his feet propped up on his own stand as he leaned back and read a book with a tattered cover. The cages around his store held a whole host of different animals, and there was also a board with drawings of the larger ones, which Matt would imagine did not fit into town.

Monica let go of his arm and practically sprinted over to a cage on the ground before kneeling before it and without any hesitation stuck her hands through the bars to touch whatever animal resided inside. Matt had to lean around her to just get a view into the cage seeing as she was crowding the front of it so much he couldn't see around her.

The creature that was in the cage was a small dog like creature, but it was not covered in fur, rather it had these sharp translucent greenish scales that rustled slightly as it moved around, if the large paws of the lizard-dog thing were anything to judge by it was a puppy or at least younger. She looked up, her eyes more puppy-like than even the puppy in the cage, she didn't even have to ask Matt knew exactly what she wanted.

“I don't know...” he said teasingly. “Owning a pet is a large responsibility, you have to feed it and-” Monica’s eyes narrowed at him, telling him she knew she was being toyed with and didn't really care for it at the moment. “Fine, fine.” he sighed with an exaggerated sound and purchased the small animal for her.

“Ritha hounds are excellent pets, they can scent out locations, are great guard animals, and will notify you anytime a person gets near if they are not part of the group,” Willow informed him, still attached to his arm.

“Indeed, fucking things are as annoying as shit, I cant tell you the number of times I have been about to take a shot when the thing spots me and alerts everyone, they really need to tone down the pathfinding and aggro range of those things, it's on the ridiculous side of things,” Risa said, popping up on the side Monica had just abandoned to go see the puppy. She was about to grab his hand when Monica came back holding the dog in her arms like it was a baby.

“Why are you even here?” Monica snapped looking at the woman who’s hand quickly disappeared behind her back.

“You make it sound like you don't like me,” Risa said with a smile, a soft wind blowing a lock of curly golden hair in front of her violet eyes.

“I don’t,” Monica snapped. “If you don't remember let me remind you, you shot and killed me, and I never even acted aggressively towards you.”

“Honey, I realize the only reason you are playing this game is because of Matt, but you really should have done more research before hopping in,” Risa said in a chiding voice. “This is a pvp game.”

“It is a sandbox game,” Monica replied back.

“Well it is that too, but when push comes to shove this game is all about the pvp, meaning I am going to pvp.” Risa said matter of factly.

“That was not pvp, that was simply attacking me!”

“Are you a player in this game?” she asked, and before Monica could answer she went on, “I am also a player, so when I attacked you it was player vs player, it is not my fault you sucked and died, that is wholly and entirely on you,” she said, and a wicked smile grew on her face as she watched Monica’s cheeks redden.

“What should we name the dog?” Matt asked, hoping to defuse the situation that could well blow up and hurt a few bystanders in the least.

“You name it,” Monica said, her eyes never leaving Risa’s as she glowered her resentment at the other woman, as though her eyes alone could kill.

“Stanly,” Matt said, naming it the first name that popped into his head.

“Its a girl,” Monica’s eyes turned to him, no longer glowering holes into Risa’s skull.

“Still Stanly,” Matt said a grin on his face, Willow walked up beside him and gave him a strange look. “What? ” he asked looking at the girl who stood before him.

“I am just glad you put more thought into my name, I can see it now if you had been put on the spot I might have been named Richard, or gods forbid Gary or something, despite my gender,” she said with a dry voice.

“Wait,” Monica had a strange look on her face, “You named her?” she asked, he really couldn't place the look in her normal range of emotions she showed.

“Well, yes,” Matt said, rubbing his hand over the back of his neck, he was now aware of the curious gaze that Risa was sending him, well not just him but him and Willow.

“Why Willow?” she asked softly.

“We were in a desert, and she looked like a flower, one that was pretty, but could also survive in the rough conditions.“ he spoke softly to Monica, who stiffened at his words, “It is just a name Monica,” he said, but she shook her head.

“It's not just a name Matt,” she spoke evenly but he could see that something was off with the way she held herself. “I uh, think I am going to call it a day,” she said, and before he could stop her she logged out.

“Shit,” he growled and with that he also logged out, willow leaving at the same time as him, leaving behind a Risa who was now more interested in Matt and his little group than ever.

By the time he got to her apartment she was already walking down the road and a good half block away, he spotted her by the color of her hair and the briskness of which she was moving. Parking his bike he hopped off and raced after her, and when he caught up with her he grabbed her by her elbow and swung her around. She refused to look at him, but he could easily see that her eyes were red and puffy from crying. “Monica talk to me,” he said, but she simply looked away from him and down at the concrete sidewalk. “Monica, please, you have to talk to me.” he was at the point of pleading with her.

“Do you love me?” she asked softly still not meeting his gaze, he used his other hand to angle her face up to face his own, before she could do anything he swept down descending on her, his lips pressed against her own, the need the hunger felt fully in her right then and there, he put everything he had into that kiss. Pulling back he looked at her lips again, and his eyes then went up to her face, he could see those dazzling blue eyes searching his own, a need in her expression that was not for something physical but something much much deeper.

“When she passed away,” he paused, drawing in a shaky breath, it had been so long since Taylor had passed away, but every time he spoke about her it still hurt, he doubted that would ever go away, pushing past the lump the size of a fist that had become lodged in his throat he began speaking, she needed this she needed to hear this, and he needed to say it out loud. “When she passed away she made me promise to not live alone, to find someone else, at the time it was a lie, a lie I agreed to make her passing easier, but here I am, we have only gone on one date, I have only been going out with you for what two days now?” he laughed and shook his head at the absurdity of it all.

So short a time.

“And part of it might be the fact that I have known you as a friend, known you for a long time, but I cannot even think of living without you, I don't know how you did it, but you turned the lie I told all those years ago into a truth, I agreed to Taylor’s request, and now, now I am holding good to my word.” a single tear ran ran down her face, cutting through the thin layer of makeup that she had applied, he leaned over and kissed it away, like he used to do with Taylor.

No, like he was now going to do with Monica.

And just like that the pain, the heartache that seemed these past few years had accompanied him, a constant companion, they all seemed to lift. Like the weight of her soul was no longer on his shoulders, like she finally could move on, because in that moment he had as well, wholly and truly, and all it would have taken to remove that weight, that pain was three words. “I love you,” he said, his voice thick, the words hard to make out amidst the emotion, the tears that fell from her eyes this time were of a different sort. She smiled as she buried her face in his chest, and he placed his chin atop her head. Looking up at the sky he whispered one last word to Taylor; “Goodbye.”