**Edited on 9/8/18**

Darren kept his head down as he sat at the computer in the library of his high school. He wanted to be as small and as insignificant as possible. All around him, students buzzed about projects and research. They sat in groups around tables with books, tablets, and computers in front of them. They laughed and chatted about weekend plans and parties.

But not Darren. He was the only one sitting on the school computer. But that was fine. For this research, he wanted to be alone.

He was researching Rimnir.

In front of Darren, mostly covered with his arms and other books, was the notebook that he kept on Rimnir. It held everything: quickly drawn sketches of the various zones, conversion charts for aethys, a very crudely drawn path through Black's Forest that would keep him off of the main road, and most importantly, detailed notes on herbs for alchemy. Any recipe that he would need would be found in the alchemy book that he was given by Dante, but the herbs were up to him to find.

And he wanted a leg up on everyone else.

Darren looked down at his notebook and the treasure trove of information that he had been collecting. Darren's notes were hastily scribbled and he had drawn fast sketches in the margins of each of the different plants. He had a plan, and he thought it was a good one. There were so many herbs that could be found in the starting zone alone.

First thing's first, he needed to head to the plains zone of Taltik. There were two herbs there that he desperately wanted to get his hands on. And one only bloomed when the sun was high above.

But there was also the seascape of Adryen's Port on the eastern side of Zashtol Basin. It would be easier to travel there since the road from Veneah to the port was a well-traveled one. He may even be able to hire a coach to take him from Veneah to the port... If he had the aethys, of course.

But, he knew how to do things safely. He was going to log on late at night again. Rimnir time moved with real-world time, so in the middle of the night for him was the same in the game. And when he was with Shockulous at midnight the night before, there was hardly any other player online. No one to kill him or take his things, no one to challenge him to battle. Night time was the perfect time to play. And he could scavenge for herbs in peace. And then, he would make potions and sell them during the day.

It was perfect. The perfect plan.

"You play?"

A light voice behind Darren startled him. His arms reflexively covered his notebook and his whole body stiffened. His heart began to race wildly and he slowly turned to see who had noticed what he was doing.

Standing behind him, looking curious was Kari Maynard. He knew her. They had been in school together since he transferred into the private school system in the sixth grade. She was kind, or at least, she always seemed kind. Darren thought hard and he did not think that the two of them had ever spoken before.

Kari cocked her head and smiled down at Darren like she found him amusing. He looked over the girl most well known for being a softball and volleyball star. She was short and fit and strong, with brown hair that always seemed to be tied back in a long braid that ran down her back. Her eyes were blue and sharp. Very sharp.

After all, she had seen his notebook.

"You play? Rimnir?" Kari repeated, her fists balled up and on her hips.

"Uh...." Darren swallowed hard. His mind raced as he tried to think of something to say. "Yeah."

"Cool." Kari smiled again. Something deep inside of Darren turned inside out.

What was that?

"You?"

"Sometimes." Kari shrugged and looked away.

Wow, her eyes are pretty.

A strange, awkward silence fell between them for just a moment. Darren wanted to ask her which magics she chose. He wanted to ask her if she wanted to play with him sometime. Or hell, what was her character name. Was she still in Black's Forest or had she moved on to a different zone? What level was she?

Kari spoke first.

"We should play tog--" Kari was interrupted by a quick voice behind her.

"Kari?" a girl from the jock table called out loudly, drawing the attention of both teens, "Is Brokeski bothering you?"

Darren looked over at one of the nearby tables. It was filled with jocks, boys and girls alike, all fit and muscular and glaring in his direction, as though he was not good enough to speak to their friend. Darren looked away and faced the computer again while tucking his notebook farther under his arm.

"No, he's not bothering me," Kari said. Darren looked up at her and she was staring at him, her back still to her friends.

"Come on, then," a friend from the table hissed.

Darren's eyes met Kari's blue ones for just a moment. She opened her mouth as if she wanted to say something, but she stopped just short of speaking. The girl looked torn, her face contorted ever so slightly.

"Uh... bye..." Kari said before turning away.

"Cya," Darren said weakly, watching her walk as he spoke.

Kari joined her friends at their table, and when she sat, she put her back to Darren. But for just a moment, before she turned to face away from him, her eyes lingered for a fraction of a moment.

The boy turned away and back toward his computer screen. He tried to read the article on the best strategies for trading in the game, but his eyes looked right through the words. His mind was off in a place where he did not know it could go, off thinking about things that were not in the game.

She plays? That is awesome, Darren thought to himself. She must have been looking down at his notebook and saw what he was writing.

Suddenly, fear seized him as he thought about someone watching over his shoulder. Would Kari tell anyone else about him playing? Darren did not think so. Mark was the only one who really targeted Darren, and Kari's group of sports-playing friends never seemed to hang out with Mark's popular friends. Darren pulled his notebook out from its hiding place underneath his books and he scanned the open page quickly, looking for any sign of his toon's name.

Nothing. Thank god.

Darren breathed a sigh of relief that was short lived. The library door banged open and Mark, Chad, Tyler, and the rest of their sycophants marched into the library like they owned the place. Darren could feel himself shrinking in his chair as he quickly closed out all of the windows on the library computer that had anything to do with Rimnir before the group got within eyeshot.

Out of the corner of his eye, Darren watched as Mark pass his book bag off to one of the girls who flanked him.

"Here," Mark said with his usual handsome grin, "Go take care of this for me."

The gaggle of girls whispered excitedly to each other while they found a seat and began working diligently on Mark's work, all while looking up and sighing. Darren made a face before his eyes went back to his screen. He stared blankly at the words there, angry about people like Mark getting all of the breaks and such an easy life.

"Yo! Look!" Mark said loudly, his voice echoing through the library, "It's Brokeski!"

Something deep inside of Darren fell away and he cringed at the sound of his terrible nickname. He sank as low as he could in his chair, wishing desperately to just sink straight into the floor. Heavy footsteps drew near and Darren glanced over to see Mark coming near, a terrible grin on his handsome face.

"What are you doing, Brokeski, looking where to sell a kidney?" Mark's voice was laced with its usual venom.

Both Chad and Tyler broke into loud laughter, practically falling over themselves behind Mark. Darren could feel his cheeks redden with embarrassment as he fought hard to push his anger down. He kept his mouth shut, not wanting to draw their ire any more than he already had by existing. Darren would not dare to speak out of fear that they would recognize his voice.

Mark stopped laughing and he moved forward toward Darren.

"What is it Brokeski? Can't take a joke?" Mark said loudly, drawing the attention of almost everyone in the library.

Darren kept his eyes straightforward on the screen. In the reflection, he saw Kari looking over at him. He couldn't quite read the look on her face. Was it sadness? Amusement? Pity? He could stand anything but her pity.

"It seems that Brokeski's so poor he can't afford a good comeback," Mark said with a sneer.

As the blond walked by, he reached out and slapped Darren on the back of the head. The teen saw stars for a moment afterward as the blunt, blinding pain shot through him. The room seemed to go quiet for a moment as Mark walked away. Darren turned to see his face filled with triumph.

Darren glowered at the back of Mark's head. He hated him more than he ever hated a person in his entire life. All he wanted to do was to unsheath a sword and take Mark on in-game again. He was suddenly so angry at himself for running away and not fighting Mark head on. He should have struck down his character when he had the chance...

"What's this?"

Chad's voice brought Darren back to the library. The sandy-haired boy reached forward and pushed the other books away from Darren's notes on Rimnir.

"It's nothing!" Darren cried out, reaching for the book as Chad unveiled it. He grabbed the spine and wrenched it free, tucking it safely against his belly. "Leave it alone."

"Rimnir?" Chad asked incredulously, "You play Rimnir?"

Mark turned at the sound of Chad's voice. He looked curious but defiant.

"He doesn't play Rimnir," Mark said with a scoff, "Brokeski can't afford the system, you idiot."

Chad's face wrinkled with frustration. "What were you writing then, Poorski? Why were you writing about herbs in the game?"

Darren felt hot and angry as the eyes of everyone in the library looked to him. "What's it to you?"

Chad leaned forward, his eyes narrow and his cheeks reddening. But from behind Darren, Tyler came up and put his hands on Chad.

"Leave it," Tyler said with a low voice, "Brokeski isn’t worth it."

Mark looked over at Tyler incredulously. “You’re kidding, right? He doesn’t belong here.”

“So you’ve been saying for years,” Tyler responded with sarcasm in his voice, “I don’t know why that bothers you so much.”

“It should bother you more,” Mark hissed back.

Tyler didn’t respond. He just gave his friends a shove past Darren and into the library.

Chad and Mark glared for just a moment at Darren before walking off. Tyler glanced back at the teen in front of the computer before shuffling his friends off to the back of the library. Was that pity that Darren saw on his face?

Darren grabbed his books and his backpack and hurried to pack, desperate to get away from the eyes in the library. He felt like everyone in the room was watching him pack his things away in his ripped, old backpack. He glanced up and saw Kari staring again.

Why was she staring?