Disclaimer: I enjoyed the Ready Player One movie, but I nowhere near own it.
Story: Life outside the Oasis was horrible and no one knows that better than Wade. So if she found solace in a jerk like Nolan Sorrento, that's her luck. Nolan just finds himself caught up on her, even if it may come time to choose between her and IOI.
Set as an AU genderbending fic.
Spoilers: Yes, definitely for the movie, but I have started to slip in stuff from the book.
Warnings: Age disparity, cursing and violence for now…hm, just in case since I'm usually writing it, bit of crazy humor, perverted humor, morbid or sarcastic humor, and maybe some sexual situations…
Pairings: Nolan Sorrento/Wade Watts

Trigger Warning: Mentions of past physical assault, forced alcohol and drug use.

The Cigarette Duet
Chapter Nine: Don't You Love Me?

"When the night was full of terrors
And your eyes were filled with tears
When you had not touched me yet
Oh, take me back to the night we met~"

Nolan's avatar was taller than her, but she felt happy and safe, rather than smothered. Swaying to this song, looking into his eyes, Wade could honestly say…

"I'll never regret meeting you."

The soft refrain of the song was playing and Wade slowly opened her eyes. She groaned and slowly sat up, only for large hands to hold onto her arms.

"Steady there. Are you okay, Wade?"

Her eyes (at the unfamiliar but concerned voice) moved and she lightly gasped.

Nolan Sorrento, in his actual body, stood there in front of her.

His soft baby blues were looking worriedly at her, but he was there in person. He was as handsome in real life as he was in all the public appearances she'd managed to glimpse him from.

"Y-You're here," she said hesitantly. "You're really here."

She had called whoever had come up first, but she'd only had two contacts on her IM —Nolan's and Lacero's.

Wade had honestly expected Lacero to be the one to come. He was her friend (albeit, one who has been steadily and heavily flirting with her since their face to face meeting in the OASIS) and she was comfortable and relaxed with him. Not that she wasn't with Nolan. She was, but they hadn't been completely personal with each other in the same way she was with Lacero, and only had recently begun being close enough like that.

Hence why she was inwardly wishing it had been the other man at the moment, and that she wasn't actually confronting and meeting Nolan in real life.

Especially given that he was the one she'd been having sex with for the better part of some months now.

Still…that Nolan had come to her aid, had come when she'd just randomly called and barely said anything other than to ask for help…and so soon after he'd only just given her his contact information…

Wade unwittingly let out a sob and slumped towards him, leaning her forehead against his arm.

"Thank you for coming for me," she gasped out.

She didn't think she'd even be alive at this point, if he hadn't of come.

Nolan brought her closer, amazed that Wade was actually really in front of him and that he was holding her. Even if it seemed surreal, she was solid and real in his arms. But she also felt fragile and like he could break her in his arms if he wasn't careful. It scared him.

"You don't have to thank me," he softly rebutted, firming his hold around her. "You asked for help. Of course I'd come for you."

When he'd answered her call, he'd been terrified at hearing her gasping for help. He had practically flown off of his chair, uncaring how uncomposed he'd look as he rushed out of his office. He hadn't cared how harried he'd looked as he left the building in a hurry and drove his car recklessly towards where he knew her home was, grateful that he had ended up being a creepy fuck and researched her address.

It hadn't taken him long to find all the shortcuts he'd previously mapped out to her Stacks, and he'd jumped out of his car and activated the tracker he admitted he'd hid in her IM Interface before he'd given it to her, while moving towards the general area he knew is where her particular trailer tower was located. Just as he was getting closer, the tracker veered off a little and he stumbled upon her.

He'd nearly had a full on panic attack at seeing her passed out on the ground, body shaking a little and vomit near her. He almost had flashbacks, remembering his sister and going back to that day he found her dead in her haptic unit.

Nolan wasn't going to lose someone again, not in this way.

He'd determinedly picked her up slightly and turned her over, faced down while reluctantly jabbing a finger into her mouth and down her throat. Once she'd started gagging, he'd moved his finger out and let her continue to vomit out everything. Whatever drug that had gotten into her would hopefully continue to make its way out of her.

Once he was certain that she had nothing else to throw up, he'd picked her up fully and carried her back to his car, buckling her in right next to him. He drove back to the IOI building, emptied now that it was nighttime and work hours were over. He'd taken her to the building's infirmary, where the noc shift doctor was in and helped him with her. After she'd been stabilized, Nolan had been left alone with her.

She'd finally woken up after an hour of sleep and now in the present, he was just relieved she was okay now.

"Are you okay?" he asked again. "Nauseous?"

She pulled away from him a bit, wiping away her tears with the back of her hand. "I feel okay…"

Her stomach growled though and he mentally sighed at himself. Of course she was hungry. She hadn't eaten in a while and he had forced her to throw up whatever else she had left in her stomach, along with what that drug had made her throw up.

"I'll be back with food," he promised and left to find food. Since she had thrown up forcibly through the drug and then him and hadn't been nauseous and still wasn't, he thought maybe foods with a little richer in taste would be fine and help clear the taste of vomit she probably could still taste in her mouth. He'd probably stick with ice cold water though…

Coming back after getting a plate of fruit, dry toast and if she could handle it, a turkey sandwich and vanilla pudding, for a moment he watched her stare off dazedly. She looked forlorn and almost like that sad girl in the midst of a pathway in the OASIS…

He had sworn he'd do anything to get her to smile and not make her sad. Nothing had changed and had in fact strengthened.

"It's not much, but if you can handle a bit more, I'll cook you up something later," he said, drawing her attention.

She gave him another grateful look as he sat down and put the plate down in front of her. For a moment, he let her eat before he said anything.

"What happened?" he asked, dreading hearing she'd taken drugs.

Wade made a face, looking away with her jade green eyes that he admired behind her thick eyeglasses. It was fascinating to see her real eye color in real life, knowing how her preferred avatar had blue eyes. Even seeing her school-issued avatar didn't compare since the colors were muted and augmented, as was the usual in the VR school.

"Rick happened," she said bitterly and alarm flashed through him. He recognized that name from the very few times Wade's aunt's boyfriend had been brought up. It was always brief and unhappy, and with a negative connotation.

She sniffled. "Every once and a while, the Stacks throw a party. It's a shitty party with shitty people. Sometimes Rick hosts it or prods it along, but no matter what, he'll always attend. This time, I know he was involved. I should've never entered my trailer."

Nolan's hand shot out to grab one of hers and squeeze it. She was startled, looking at him through teary eyes. She grimaced.

"There were strangers everywhere and they were all loud, disgusting, and drunk or high. Or both. But Rick had dragged me into the place and I couldn't run away, except when I was inside the trailer and rushing to my room to escape everything. But people were in there and having sex and oh my god, there's no way I can go back there and sleep on my bed knowing that."

Wade buried her face into her hands and Nolan clenched his jaw as he got up and held her again. That was outrageous! What was wrong with those people? How could they do that to her and subject her to be around that?

"But then that was the least of my problems," Wade muttered before she told him what happened after.

He was fucking horrified. They'd forced alcohol into her and then drugged her. That was just…To do that and even practically sexually harass her, saying all those degrading things to his sweet Wade…

Nolan was tempted to blow up that entire place, and target that specific Stack of trailers.

While relieved she hadn't willingly taken drugs, he also almost wished she had than to know someone had been this cruel to her.

She looked at him then, wonderment in her eyes and vulnerability on her face, and her hand trembled as she reached out and touched his face. She took a deep breath that he found himself echoing.

"But you found me. Somehow you found me and you saved me."

Even if he had done so doing using less than savory methods, he didn't regret a thing —not when he could've been late or not been able to reach her at all.

"You should sleep," Nolan reluctantly said. "I'll have the doctor come check on you, but he's certain the drug's left your system and that you should just keep hydrated and rested."

He'd stood up, but her hand quickly grabbed onto his before he could step away from her.

"Don't leave me," she pleaded and he could read the hurt all over her. Tonight had been hard on her.

"Okay," he said and sat back down, squeezing her hand in reassurance.

She was hurting so much, so the least he could do was hurt with her tonight.

Wade had woken up early, the sounds of people around her making her confused and wary until she fully was aware and remembered what had happened. She saw Nolan then, still in the seat that he'd sat in by her side, and knowing he'd be uncomfortable and yet had stayed for her…

After dealing with her aunt and Rick yesterday, her body and mind felt battered. She was feeling nothing but hurt, and then this man had tossed her a lifeline that she never thought she'd get.

Wade thought she'd die all alone for a moment, lying on the ground and feeling like her whole world was upended.

Nolan had been there. Was still here for her.

Another rush of gratitude filled her and she was sitting up, leaning towards him.

"Ah, you're awake!"

She straightened up in alarm and both the doctor who'd entered and her reaction had caused Nolan to startle awake. He glanced at her and then the doctor, before he stood up.

"Dr. Maryland informed me of Ms. Watts' condition and her entry last night," the doctor smiled at them. "I'll be taking over. Hello, Ms. Watts. I'm Dr. Lane and I'll check on you before seeing your release."

Dr. Lane was kind and chattered about her condition cheerfully, making Wade feel less awkward and tense about being in an IOI medical facility. It also allowed her to keep a discreet watch on Nolan, who stayed quiet, though his eyes were firmly on Wade the entire time.

"Alright! Your bloodwork seems good to go and your vitals are great," Dr. Lane noted. "You should be free to go, Ms. Watts. If you're feeling unwell though, come back in and we'll keep an eye on you to see if there was anything we missed. Goodbye, Ms. Watts, Mr. Sorrento," she added, turning toward her boss at the end.

She left them and then it was just Wade and Nolan again.

"Are you hungry?" he asked her, moving to help her off of the hospital bed.

"Yeah, I am," she replied, feeling her stomach ache for food.

"Would you come with me?" he asked hesitantly and she almost just stared at him. In person and knowing who he was, it was strange to see him hesitant. The idea of Nolan Sorrento being hesitant was absurd to anyone, and here he was being hesitant because of her.

"Thank you," she whispered, slipping off of the hospital bed and taking his offered hand.

He led her out of the medical facility and Wade felt how warm and large his hand was on hers, calluses rounding his fingers and rubbing against her softer skin. This felt dreamlike and she was almost sure she was dreaming.

Mentally shaking her head, she looked around and felt uneasy and strange as she realized she was inside IOI's headquarters, and very much where Nolan himself worked. She didn't know how she felt about that, considering how she (like most everyone) felt about IOI.

"Are you okay?" Nolan asked and she saw him watching her carefully.

"Physically, better than earlier," she said. But she admitted, "I'm a little weirded out to be inside IOI though. But there's you, so I'm not…I'm just a little uneasy."

He squeezed her hand. "I'm here, like you said. You'll be fine," he promised.

She gave him a tired smile and automatically moved closer to tuck herself into his side, before remembering where she was. She started to move away, but he just held her tightly against himself.

She felt comforted in a way she didn't think she'd needed. But after what happened, she thought maybe she did need this comfort and affection, though it was probably surprising to others to have it come from a man like Nolan.

They reached an elevator and she was quiet as he picked a higher floor, where he then headed with her to double doors that she realized led to a large office.

His office.

"Go ahead and sit down and I'll order up some food," he told her. "Nothing's open outside of the building, but the cafeteria here should have something. Or the food court. Anything specific you'd like?"

Wade shook her head. "I'm not really picky," she said softly. "I've…never really had much choice or variety in what I ate."

He pursed his lips and she couldn't read his face. She wondered what was going on in his head.

"Hold on a bit," he said and picked up his phone, speaking into it.

Too curious for her own good, she decided to look around his office. A part of her really just wanted to get to know this man who had become so close to her so quickly…

Plus, she was just a tiny bit nosy about him.

Nolan had ordered a light but filling breakfast on the phone, though he never took his eyes off of her. She was such a slight figure, looking like a small breeze could fly her off. He worried a bit, tempted to put some more weight on her, but knowing he couldn't just shove food on her and hope she'd be a little healthier than she was.

He also remembered her comment about her lack of choice in food and wanted to spoil her with food that would make her tastebuds sing. He wanted to spoil her in everything.

Watching her poke and prod around his things curiously, he continued to look over her. She had these huge round glasses that crowded her adorable face, hiding her beautiful jade green eyes that seemed almost magnified by those glasses. There was a rosy tint to her cheeks and her plump lips were slightly parted as she looked around in awe.

Her quiet gasp as she reached his bay windows overlooking the city made him smile, and he watched her travel towards the glass and lean up against it, gazing out of the windows in wonder.

"It's beautiful," he said, hanging up and walking towards her.

She glanced at him with a brief grin before looking back out. "It is," she remarked wistfully. "In the Stacks, everything is just crowded with junk and trash, and there's always someone looking to do something to someone."

"Like you?" he asked, frowning.

Wade quieted and moved away from the window, turning to him. Her eyes searched him wearily.

"The Stacks aren't a nice place," she declared and he knew that. Had always vaguely known that, even though he hadn't really known or cared until Wade was a presence in his life and he knew she'd lived there. "People get harassed around there for all sorts of reasons."

She shrugged, wrapping her arms around herself. "It's not the first time someone's called me a slut or made lewd comments about me," she admitted and he felt fury flare up in him. "I've been called worse. I've never had someone forced alcohol or any sort of drug into me though."

She looked vulnerable and scared, and all he wanted was to pull her closer and hold her. So he did and she buried her face against his chest, one hand trembling and reaching up, clutching onto his shoulder.

"That was terrifying. So, so goddamn terrifying," she sniffled. "If it hadn't been for you…"

He didn't want to think about that.

She took a step back, rubbing at her face harshly. "It's not like I haven't been treated like shit by Rick or Aunt Alice before. This was just another incident and another'll happen again," Wade said bitterly.

"You don't have to go back," he refuted, saying immediately. He couldn't let her go back into that-that-that despicable place! Absolutely not!

"I'm 17," she said in exhaustion, like that mattered.

"So?" his jaw clenched, looking at her incredulously.

She just gave him this sad little smile, like everything was hopeless and she was already resigned to it.

"I'm legally under Aunt Alice's 'guardianship,'" her shoulders slumped. "I can't leave her until I'm 18."

"That's bullshit," Nolan spat out. "The police —"

"Believe her and already know me, and just think I'm a liar and a troublemaker," she said, tone deadened. "I've run away before too, so they've got me marked down as a delinquent and a frequent runaway. If I run away again, they'll just find me and haul me back to her or to a juvenile center."

She held up her left arm, pointing to it. "They even placed a tracker. They do that these days, you know. If you're a known juvenile flight risk and in the foster system, they put trackers in you. If I don't come back in a day or two, play nice and cook them breakfast or dinner, Aunt Alice will probably call the police and have them track me down."

It was maddening as much as it was infuriating.

"It sounds like she doesn't even want you around!" he exclaimed, reaching out to grab her hand. "Why would your aunt care?"

"Wouldn't want to lose her extra vouchers," Wade said bitterly. "That's all I've ever been worth to her. Extra food vouchers."

"If I paid her —" he started, but Wade cut him off. "Don't!"

She squeezed his hand tightly, shaking her head. "God, don't. I know my aunt and Rick. They'll just exploit you and then keep taking more and more money from you. I refuse to ever let them know I know you."

He didn't want her to protect him. He wanted to be able to protect her.

"I can weather this," she insisted, looking him straight in the eyes. "I can. It won't be long until I'm 18 and I'm gone."

"But who knows what can happen in that time," Nolan didn't even want to imagine it.

"Can't be any worse than what happened," she sighed, stepping into his space again. He put an arm around her. "I can handle it. Alice's had more violent boyfriends. A few of them had horrible anger issues and I was always convenient for them to beat the shit out of."

He tensed at hearing that, but what was worse to him was the casual way she said it, like it didn't bother her or that it was normal.

"Rick's not the worse?" he asked and regretted it immediately.

For a moment, she was silent and he thought she wasn't going to answer.

"One time, one of Alice's old boyfriends was so angry he'd lost out to some tournament in the OASIS and I was unluckily in the path. Slapped me around, took a belt around my neck and started to choke me until I passed out."

That threw him off so bad that he jerked away from her, holding her at arm's length while examining her frantically, fingers snapping to her neck and tracing it.

"It's been some time and there's no leftover marks," she told him, but it wasn't assurance enough for him.

Nolan looked at her. "How bad has it been with Rick?" he asked firmly, not willing to let it go. He saw her hesitate and he ended up placing his hands on her shoulders, gripping tightly. "Wade."

"He's knocked me around some," she reluctantly said. She hesitated some more before he could see her visibly give up. "Do you…do you remember that night where I was really off and we ended up eating in the café and not having sex in the OASIS?"

He nodded, though he inwardly twitched at the reminder of the illicit affair he was having with her.

She licked her lips. "I was like that because earlier I had finally gone back to the trailer and Rick ambushed me. He was drunk and had tackled me to the ground, and he was hurting me and I tried fighting back, and it just —I mean, he managed to slam my head pretty hard on the floor a few times, so I admit I was kind of relieved we didn't have sex that night, what with my face still kind of aching even in the OASIS. And he was threatening to kill me and calling me names, but that's nothing new…It just made me feel horrible though and I tried so hard not to look like I did before meeting you, because I didn't want you to see me like that…"

Nolan felt fucking horrible. Yes, he'd noted her behavior and how she was feeling that night, and had adjusted their regular routine for something more comfortable for her…But now knowing why just made him want to go back in time and do his best to make her feel even better and then go after that bastard.

"Go back long enough that your aunt gets her fucking vouchers and then come back to me," he said suddenly, thinking it over. "Stay there as little as possible, enough that she gets those things, and then stay with me."

It wasn't perfect and there was still enough time for her to get hurt over there, but if he could somehow get the majority of her time, then there was less of a possibility…

"Vouchers aren't enough," she mumbled. "She's been angry and I think she and Rick have gotten into a lot of debt. Or she just hates me. Either way, she's been pushing me to get a job as an escort and get money back to her quick. I don't know what to do. I've been looking for a job, but I don't know where to go or how to get hired. I don't want to do what she wants, but I don't think I have a choice."

"No," he shook his head. "…Work for me," he suddenly thought up. "Work for IOI."

She balked, giving him a look.

"I know IOI's reputation," he said in frustration. "I know you're one of those that would rather the whole company goes up in flames. But I want to make sure you don't have to do those awful things and I want to make things easier on you. For you."

"…What would I do?" she asked hesitantly.

"You can be my personal assistant," he said, mind continuing to just whirl with ideas, trying his best to come up with things to help her situation. "And no one will question why you're around me often."

She nibbled on her lower lip and he watched the action, wanting to take over and nibble at it himself. God, he was so fucking depraved. He was supposed to be helping her, but he wasn't able to just keep his mind clean of his want from her for just a damn second.

But he l —Fuck, but he fucking loved this girl.

Nolan was so fucked.

"I guess," she slowly said, agreeing with his offer. She smiled shyly at him, making his stomach twist into knots and heat to flush through him. "Yeah, I'd like that a lot. Are you really okay with it?"

"Yes," he breathed out and leaned in to kiss her dazedly, before he realized what he was going to do and stopped himself, redirecting to kiss the top of her head.

This wasn't the OASIS. There were no blurry lines regarding laws, no excuses to make about it happening only in the OASIS.

This was the real world and he had to keep his hands to himself, no matter how tempting she was to him.

God, he was so fucking fucked.

As they ate breakfast, mood less serious as they lightly talked about things they could do in the OASIS, Wade was happy to see that they had the same chemistry as they did there. Maybe even better. They get along so well in the OASIS, but she didn't know if they would in the real world. Now she could safely say that they did.

Still, she wasn't oblivious. She had seen the look in his eyes earlier, and the way he had moved in to kiss her. That he had stopped himself and kissed her safely on top of her head.

Part of her felt insecure and wondered if it was because he wasn't as attracted to her now, as he had been in the OASIS. That real life couldn't measure up. Then there was the logical part of her that understood and remembered Nolan was older than her and she wasn't legal yet.

That they were face to face in real life and he was actually afraid to touch her.

She'd told him once that he was handsome in real life and she meant it. Looking in front of her now, he was obviously older than her, but he had lips that looked soft and plump and blue, blue, blue eyes that looked luminescent and clear. His sandy blond hair was neatly made, if a little mussed from all his movement that morning. He was taller than her, so much so that every time she laid her head against his chest, she could hear, feel his heartbeat against her ear.

Wade was definitely still attracted to him.

But she always had been, even without his looks. It reminded her that she should tell him about Lacero, like Q had suggested. Let Nolan know how she felt about him, but also about this other man she couldn't have helped getting attached to after everything. It made her worry about Nolan's reaction, but she didn't want to lie or keep things from him, like she originally had.

As he excused himself to a phone call, she saw her IM Interface Lacero had gotten her and idly picked it up. She turned it on and was about to scroll through it, when it opened up to the last thing that had been on, before she'd passed out.

Her message history.

Her voice activated her interface into vocal mode and translated her words into a voice message, sending it to Nolan. Only…it wasn't to Nolan.

Because the message was sent out to Lacero.

Wade glanced at Nolan, biting down on her lip hard. Her hands twisted around the hem of her shirt, before she glanced back down at her IM.

Did…did the two know each other?

Started 4/9/19 — Completed 8/3/19

A/n: Wow, last chapter got a huge response XD This fic usually doesn't? Thanks a lot everyone! I'm super excited to keep working on this. I hope everyone liked this chapter as well! Please remember to review and feed my starving soul~

Anon Reviews:

1. Guest 1: Oops? Sorry for the cliffie, but it felt perfect to end right there. Then again, I seemed to have left it on another cliffhanger XD Glad you're sticking around though! I love, love, love this story. It's one of my favorites to write for! And thank you! The elements in that chapter were one of the original things that made me want to come up with this fic.

2. Guest 2: Thanks a lot!