“Hey mom! Did the package get home yet?!” I yelled, walking through my front door.

“No hi mom, how was your day?. No hey mom, nice to see you. ‘Did the package come yet?’ Spoilt brat,” my mom yelled back.

I rolled my eyes, yanking off my shoes as I stepped into the living room. Three grey sofas sat in a U-shape around the massive TV, some sappy romance movie playing on screen. My mom was sprawled across the middle sofa, feet up, a bowl of popcorn in her lap, forest-green eyes flicking toward me.

People always told me I was her spitting image. Same hard, green eyes. Same messy brown hair. Same small nose. Same thin lips. Same judgemental look that tended to keep people away. If I had been born a woman, I could have been her twin. The only difference between the both of us was that her personality leaned towards Jack. Which was probably why they both got along so well.

“There he is,” she said, laying the sarcasm off thick. “Would you like me to hold your bag for you, my king?”

Smirking, I walked over to her and gave her an uncomfortable hug to which she returned, giving me a little knock on the head for good measure.

“See, now was that so hard?” she said, tossing popcorn into her mouth.

“I’m sorry mom,” I huffed. “But I want to grab it and head over to Alex’s quickly. Everyone is in the game right now.”

“You’d be much better off watching this lovely movie with me than sleeping over at the Raymans’ to play a game.” She gestured to the chair beside her, holding out her popcorn as an offering. “Your dad can join us too when he gets home.”

“Mom,” I said, steeling my voice.

She waved her free hand in defeat. “Fine, fine, the box is on your bed. Don’t forget to pack everything you need for the weekend.”

“I won’t! Thanks mom!” I dashed towards my room, not stopping to listen to any other quirky remark she was going to add.

As I entered my room, I saw it. A box no bigger than a minifridge, wrapped in green and blue paper, with SageTech boldly stamped on the top. Grinning, I lifted the box to see how heavy it was, surprised to find out that it was as heavy as three laptops stacked on top of one another.

My fingers twitched as I imagined the headset inside. I wanted to rip it open and hop on Ascension immediately, but Jack had made us promise to open it together. At the time I imagined it would feel like a wholesome friendship moment. But right now? It was torture.

Sighing, I unzipped my bag, dumping all its contents on my bed hastily. I marched over to my cupboard, which was barely two steps to the right of my bed. I swung it open and scanned through, looking for clothes, I would change into tomorrow.  Reaching in, i grabbed two shirts and a pair of shorts, as well as two pairs of underwear, stuffing them into my bag one after the other.

I hastily made my way over to the bathroom, grabbing everything else I needed, assuming I did end up taking a shower. Satisfied, I grabbed the box off my bed and tucked it underneath my armpit. Swinging my bag over my shoulders, I walked back to the living room.

“So, you didn’t change your mind?” my mom pouted.

“I’ll see you tomorrow mom,” I replied, ignoring her. “I love you.”

“Love you too kiddo. Be back Sunday before eight.”

I gave her another awkward hug. She kissed me on the cheek and pushed me away.

“Off you go,” she said, chucking popcorn at me. “I’m busy here.”

Scoffing, I ducked and headed for the door. Even though it was just a weekend, a tiny pang of guilt tugged at my chest. The image of sitting with her, watching that ridiculous romance movie, flickered through my mind. But the guilt evaporated the second my phone buzzed.

[She’s So Annoying]: Where the hell are you dude? We’re waiting for you.

[Me]: Relax. I’m already on my way.

[She’s So Annoying]: Walk faster. You’re wasting time.

[Me]: Dude, will you calm down? All this just to die in a minute is crazy.

[She’s So Annoying]: You’re such a dick. Just hurry up.

Grinning triumphantly, I stuffed my phone back into my pocket and picked up the pace, thoughts of guilt forgotten in an instant.

I didn’t know then that it would be the last time I would see her in a while.