Bustling cars and people took over the small town as I walked home from a long day of work. My back felt like it had been snapped in twenty different places, and my eyes were ready to pop out of my head, I was so tired. I realized while at Hinobi that I or Pierce could have fixed my car good as new with a bit of Plixel tech, but of course, I was too caught up in my anger and he was too caught up in his "glory".
When I finally reached my shambles of an apartment, I relaxed in the single creaky yellow and metal chair that resided next to my small table in my "dining room". My home was nothing more than a small room with a kitchen and other room I like to call my living room. It's more like if you put a wall in the middle of the bedroom and called it two rooms; like splitting a treat to trick a dog it's getting two.
The size doesn't bother me, but the smell, oh the smell. Only when I couldn't pay for a good carpet cleaner or replacement that would fix this problem did I realize how broke I was. I wish I got this job sooner, then maybe I wouldn't be surviving off of scraps due to my poor financial planning skills.
I was never any good with math.
I got some money from my parents, sure, but I wasn't smart enough to get a real job until I hit my 20s, which was just a cashier at a fast-food spaghetti joint. Did I mention how bad I am at math? Yeah, that job did not last very long.
Eight angry overcharged customers and a fall into the gamer depression later, here I am. If it wasn't for this job offer I would be scraping the sides of dumpsters searching for my next meal by now.
My gauntlet bracelet buzzed, pulling me from my horrendous trip down memory lane. When I looked at the glowing blue screen on the side, I could see the +1 messages notification. I opened it up to see Pierce asking about my new pet.
" So, tired of being a lonely little grasshopper ey? Good on you for finally owning up to the fact that you need a little glitch to help you"
The messages began rolling in of him mocking my choice with words and pictures of crude drawings he had made of me and my glitch. He got the math skills, I got the art skills. That's at least something.
Grunting, I threw my bracelet to the table and went off to the bedroom, hoping a nap would ease my aching body. The light grazing my bed, however, didn't look all that appeasing at the moment. I really need to get some blinds. Just then, my bracelet buzzed again, moving a bit on the table.
" That's it, I'm blocking him for good this time." I brutishly grabbed the bracelet and was pleasantly surprised to see a different type of notification popped up on the small screen. It had an icon that resembled my new Centridom. When I opened it, a flash of light emitted as my gauntlet was unlocked to its full form, then another flash of light followed, bringing to life the creature I had purchased earlier in the day.
" CREAAWWWW!" It screeched, forcing me to cover my ears. I didn't even have to time to pull myself together as it began to sniff me vigorously. I attempted to push it away, but it's strength was much more than my meek body could hold back. I fell back, hitting my back against the table, stunning me for a second. When I reopened my eyes, I could see this giant monster's large, yellow eyes staring into mine.
" Jesus!" I tried to get up, but a hit to my head from the underside of the table was all I could manage.
The Centridom cawed again, but in a different tone, looking down at me with this look on its face. Almost like it was concerned. It pushed into my chest a bit, nuzzling it's boxy head into my body.
" Okay, okay, enough, gah." I pushed it off again, this time it seemed to listen. It backed up while I tried to get back on my feet, my head throbbing. As if today couldn't get any worse, I would hate to have to go to the hospital for a concussion.
Back on my feet and back in my right headspace, I took a breath. " Okay, you…Thing. What's your deal? I didn't know you could interact with my gauntlet from the inside. If you can do more than just sending me a little pop up, I don't want you anywhere near my XP or inventory, got it?"
The Centridom nodded with an affirming bug-like crow noise.
" Okay then. So, uh, get back in the gauntlet. Please." I held up the gauntlet and pointed it at the creature, but it just looked at me blankly. " Did ya hear me? Into the gauntlet. Go on." I shook the tech at it, but it continued to stare. " Are you glitching out or something? Can glitches glitch? What is your proble-," I couldn't finish that question before the Centridom turned around and began scouring my apartment.
" H-hey!"
I ran after it as it crawled along the walls and floors, looking around, sniffing anything it could, picking things up and setting them down. This thing wasn't listening to me.
" Put that do- wha- hey no! That's not for you! Get back in the gauntlet!" I lunged and grabbed at it, yet it wriggled away every time. You'd think I'd be able to snag something so large and bulky, but alas. A toddler would be able to catch this thing if it tried hard enough. Am I worse than a toddler? I couldn't finish that thought as I felt the Centridom slam into my side as it crawled speedily past me, sending me to the ground again. This time, I felt a stinging in my hands and knees. They appeared to have some rug burn. When i touched the wounded area, I flinched, gritting my teeth a bit. This caught the attention of the very beast that caused the injury.
It cawed and turned tail towards me at high speeds, stopping just before hitting my face, my arm shielding me from possible impact. When I brought my arm down, I saw it examine my hands and knees, sniffing cautiously. It cawed again before licking at my hands.
" Ow! Hey, stop that!" I pulled away, clenching my fists, only to feel nothing on my palms. I looked down to see the wound had healed completely, leaving no trace. My amazement went away as the Centridom licked my knees as well, soaking my pants with it's putrid saliva. It was disgusting, but underneath my pant legs, my knees were also fine now.
I looked up at the Centridom as it cawed. It seemed to be smiling, waiting for a response. " Uh..I didn't know you could heal." It cawed again, happier. It brought its face closer to my chest, then began to.." Are you purring?" I had only felt a cat purr once. It was the stray cat I would feed every morning and night when I lived with my family as a child. It trusted me the night before it disappeared, crawling into my lap, purring as I pet it's soft, creamy orange fur.
The purring felt like a dream, it was warm and soft, bringing me further away from reality. I felt my hands pull up, holding onto the thick scaling of the Centridom, moving along its back, petting it. It was cold, but the feeling was warm. The Centridom closed it's bright eyes and laid its head completely into my chest.
I wanted to move, yet I couldn't. I wanted to stop, but that felt wrong. I missed this feeling. What is it called? Love? Care for another creature? Do I care for this giant beast that could tear me limb from limb in a second if its programming decided on it? This isn't a living being. This isn't real. It cannot feel, it cannot love. So why does it feel so warm to hold to something so cold?
I missed this.
Author's note: Hey y'all, been a long time, so sorry. I missed this story, and wanted to bring it back. I saw a couple of new followers and decided, what the heck. I wanted to get back to it earlier but got busy and time just got away from me. Can't wait to update this further!