Alter Ego: His Sultry Lover

"Whoa. Don't worry. I was just kidding." Katherine made a note to herself to talk about this in detail with him later on. Right now, she needed to placate him. Later on, they could slowly talk about it and overcome the fears together. Didn't he say it once? They would prove their love and commitment to one another over the years.

That seemed to be the best method of attack.

There was a moment of silence as both mulled over their thoughts.

"I am glad that evil alarm clock didn't wake me up. I panic every time it rings. I think I have been traumatized by it!" he exclaimed. Katherine snickered because she knew what he had put as his alarm tone. It was the sound of mysterious music followed by a jumpscare that could resurrect the dead.

"I need this wake up call in person. Wish you were in bed with me right now." She could imagine him pout and felt a squeal bubbling in her throat. Too cute. Too adorable for words.

"I would love that, but neither of us would get any work done, remember?" 𝒇𝘳ℯℯ𝚠𝙚𝑏𝗻𝑜ѵ𝑒𝙡.co𝑚

"Yes, yes. We have had this conversation. But it doesn't change what I want. Imagine this, leaving you to go to work would definitely be hard. But in the evening when I come home, you'll be there."

Like a child who had revealed his dreams, he spoke about this future life. She wanted it, too. But more for his sake than anything else.

"You come back to a dark house." Cage must have felt so lonely. She had never really felt that way because she had lived with roommates since she moved out of home. But he had spent most of his a.d.u.l.t life alone, traveling to different parts of the world to shoot and promote, no track of time or the faces that he passed by. Just living. "How did you live like this for so long?" she asked, feeling a surge of sadness for him.

"I love my job but sometimes it feels like a chore. Like I did something really bad in my last life and that was the reason why I was not allowed to live as I pleased, take some time off or have a relationship with someone. It felt like hell, waking up every day knowing I was living a life that I didn't want. I make a living pretending to be someone else and selling the character. I understand why some people have a hard time distinguishing themselves from their character. Why some people lose their identity." He sounded sorrowful. She could barely handle it anymore.

"I promise you won't come back to an empty house," she professed finally. "I promise that the lights will be turned on and there will be home cooked food. There will be music and someone to lean on. Moreover, there will be someone who is completely yours and holds your hands as you revisit who you are as a person." The promises that she made where not light. She meant them and she would put her life on the line to keep them.

"These days, I am happy," he said with a satisfied sigh. "I might just have saved the universe in my last life." He chuckled, a bit of sadness from his previous thoughts still lingering in his voice. Katherine rubbed her hand over her heart to ease the needles of pain.

"I am glad you know that." Just like that, the minutes passed. They spoke about things inconsequential and teased one another until both of them had to go. The hour had ticked by and they had work to complete.

Katherine hung up the phone and started to work. She had enough content to post for a week thanks to the collaboration with Laurence. He had wanted to post their editing video after she posted the series they had played, so she had taken to posting twice a day. The footage would run out that day. She would have to film while she was playing the championship and post live from her social media. She would have to pack her bag for the trip and then take a cab to City O. That would cost her less than a plane and cut down on the security checking time at the airport.

Surprisingly, she finished work by one in the afternoon and had made her videos by nine in the evening, editing and all finished and calendar reminders made for when each video will go up. Satisfied with herself, she called over Lily and Angelina to her room.

"What do you think I should take to the championship?" Katherine asked as she looked over her closet. She had enough clothes for all sorts of situations but a gaming championship was one of them.

"They took your size for clothes and shoes, so you will probably be wearing team t-shirts and trackpants while you are competing. Other than that, you should take clothes for casual wearing, going out to restaurants and fancy clothes for any parties that might pop up," Angelina suggested. The three girls stood shoulder to shoulder as they shuffled through clothes that would suit each situation.

"Why restaurants?" Katherine frowned.

"Someone may ask you out to dinner or something. Socializing at these events will do you a lot of good," Lily interjected before Angelina could say anything. "Also, be prepared. There is going to be a lot of gossip and the other players will try to bring you down." Angelina looked over at Lily with surprise.

"I can tell you for sure that competitors get petty. To make you lose the game, they will use any method possible. Don't listen to their crap and stay strong." Angelina had been to pageants and the like before when she was younger, so she knew all about how gnarly these people could get.

"You're scaring me," Katherine spoke in a small voice.

"Don't be," Lily said with a shrug. "They have nothing on you. I've checked the social media of all the other participants and they are way behind you."