2 Once Upon a Time, I Was...

South East Asia, Indonesia, Jakarta 5pm.

In one of the restaurants inside a mall that is bustling with people, there is a pair of men and women who are sitting together. They weren't eating or even dating, at least that was what the woman wanted. The man was 25 years old, 180cm tall, well-built body, clean skin with oval face, neat haircut. The woman was 25 years old, 170cm tall, lean and supple, smooth skin with hearth shape face, and shoulder length hair. You can say that they are match to be together, the man is handsome and woman is beautiful. But there is a contrast difference between them, the men wearing security guard uniform while women wearing high quality office lady suit.

They are staring each other but no one talking. The women cannot stand it any longer, so she first breaks the ice while her eyes glistened.

"Andre, you know this is not what I want… " she say with rather trembling sound.

"Yeah I know it Anna, but consider again, please. We have been together more than 7 years." He close his eyes while bow his head down.

"Andre, I was forced by my parents to decide between you and them. If I choose you and cancel my engagement then my parents will not recognize me as they daughter anymore. I don't want that happen because they were the ones who loved and raised me."

They were silent between them, again. After couple of minutes thinking Andre finally accept the reality in front of him. He felt disappointed, a little sad, because he know all of this was due to his inability to provide her a good future. She was from well off family, so he can understand her parent way of thinking. They simply don't want to see her only daughter live a hard life with him.

"Huuuu…I understand Anna, even this hurt for me but I will end this now. I hope you live a happy life with your family" he says with sad smile on his face.

"…Thank you, Andre. I hope you also find someone better than me…" She wiped her tears quickly and got up from the chair. She approached Andre then hugged him tightly and kissed him on the lips for the last time before she says goodbye and gone.

Andre who was still sitting there looking up blankly for couple of minutes before he close his eyes and muttering something.

"Why? why me? Why me who have to lose…in the end it's all about money, huh. Without money, I am nothing. With money you can be someone important, with money you can paint a happy life, with money you can make people jealous, with money you can nearly do everything you want, with money… money…money. No matter how much I try, his parent still doesn't want me with her. Hehehe, oh how pathetic, me."

Andre got up from his seat and walked out of the restaurant then headed toward Mall parking lot. Arriving at the parking lot, he headed towards the motorbike section and looked for his. After he found his motorbike, he immediately put on his helmet and turned motorbike on then left the parking lot headed towards his house.

When he got home, he found a package in front of his door. On the package there is his name and clear address.

"What is this? I clearly remember that I don't buy anything online…but, let's take inside first."

Andre then enter his house. His house is common 30 meter square size, he inherit it from his parents who died when he was in junior high school because of accident. When his parent died he doesn't have money for study to university, so he decide to work when he graduate from high school. He tried to work as store clerk but the payment is rather low. He need more money so he sign up security guard company and training for 6 months. After he graduate and got his license he work as security guard at local bank and get a pretty good salary.

He need good salary because he has lovely younger sister and want her to go to college. He NEED to and MUST to become a parent figure for his sister when his parent died. Now his younger sister is already in her final semester of medical major. He want her to get better future to become independent woman because he know, without money you will be nothing even you have pretty face. That's how he break up with his girlfriend even they have stable and good relationship.

Remembering his relationship that already end this evening, Andre sat down with tired face in his living room and slowly open the package. When the package opened he look at the item inside and stunned.

"What this? A helmet? With cable? Oh, there is a disk and letter here, let's open it and read."

When he open the letter and read it carefully, he finally understood what item in front of him is.

"Oh! apparently this is a VR Helmet from the ad-web that gave a questionnaire and claimed to be the developer of The Witcher 3 VR Game. I thought it was just a hoax"

"Let see, I must install the driver to the PC first and then update the game with this DVD? Reasonable enough. i need to take a bath first and then install it."

Andre bring the helmet to his own room and tidying up the remaining of the package in the living room. Done cleaning his living room, he immediately go to bathroom and take a bath. After he finished taking a bath, he come back to his room but did not install VR Helmet immediately, instead he browsing a web novel and checked for the latest updates on his favorite fan-fic novel. Besides reading web novels, he also likes watching anime, movies, manga, comics, and playing games. That was most happy moment in his life, happy moment when he don't need to "pretend" to be a parent figure, a reliable boyfriend, and strong security guard. He subconsciously make another "persona" himself when he playing a game and even at his social media account sometime. There, he become a happy go lucky and playful "middle school Andre" .

Finishing his surfing, Andre turn his attention to VR Helmet behind him and he want to start installing it.

"so, I just install the driver first and update The Witcher 3, right? alright let's do this" But before he pick DVD up his phone suddenly ringing. When he look at the caller name he know that is sister of his.

"Hi, what's the matter Shella?"

"Hello brother! I will come home late, because I want to consult with my mentor about the thesis material. So..I-i cannot make you dinner this time, so…I'm sorry…"

"…It's OK, don't be sorry. Just focus on your thesis so you can graduate with flying color, hehehe"

"B-but brother…"

"C'mon, don't worry, your brother is not a kid, he can cook…"

"Cook? What cook?! Brother, you can't even make fried eggs without burning!"

"…ehehehe, right, right, I will just boil an egg then, and don't point my weakness, please. Anyway, you just do your best there. I will be fine Shella."

"…Ok then…I will trust you this time. And brother…thank you, I-i will not make all your effort for me go to waste, bye!"

Shella just cut the connection before Andre reply to her sentence. He slightly smile hearing his sister antique while look his phone that already off.

"…That was silly sister for you hehehe. Effort huh…let's forget it. For now I will continue this install thing first…"

Andre pick up then insert disk to his DVD room and there is autorun popup windows about install agreement or what not.

"Classic, I will just check "I understand" and press agree to continue installing. I mean who in the world have time to read stupid agreement when you install a program, just click next, next, next, wait a couple minutes and puff, click finish. And voila! It's done."

After waiting 15 minutes straight, finally his install progress are finish. Andre immediately connect the cable in the VR Helmet to his PC. Without further ado he wear VR helmet and sit in most comfortable position.

"So, I just need close this visor and then move the cursor with mouse to open The Witcher 3 game, easy enough"

Andre proceed to close his visor and double click The Witcher 3 game icon, instead entering game main menu there was another popup windows about agreement again.

"Oh man, this agreement really annoying, just skip it will you?!"

He instantly click "I understand" and click proceed. When he enter The Witcher 3 main menu he hesitate for moment before choosing between [new game] or [continue] because he is feeling nostalgic about this game that he didn't play almost two years. So he choose [continue] to recall his familiarity about controlling movement and short cut button in this game.

"Ok lets choose [continue] the last save game first before I go to for [new game]. If I remember correctly the latest save game is…that, I am wondering here and there aimlessly, killing chickens, herd of sheep, cows, guards, even spawning all kind of monster, NPC and items randomly and sell it. How nostalgic, hahahaha! Let's roll again!"

Andre click [continue] and select the latest save game and the windows change to loading screen, but his eyes closing slowly without him realizing it and he enter a deep sleep.

Unbeknown to him a strange event began to occur outside his house. Just above his house, there were black clouds out of nowhere starting to gather and getting thicker and thicker until they made a vertex. Inside the cloud vertex there are lots of lightning flashed. Shortly after all lightning are gathered in the center and then strike down right to Andre's house. The lightning immediately penetrated and strike Andre who was wearing a VR helmet burning his brain and died on the spot instantly.

Neighbors around the house who saw this incident immediately contacted Shella and fire department. 10 minutes later they found Andre's body who are lifeless in his room. When his sister arrive at home she immediately crying and waling when she look at Andre's lifeless body, she lost in her sorrow.