He sat on the bench, staring down at his feet. He kicked at one of the balls of wispy, white fluff that littered the ground. He didn’t have to look up to know he was no longer alone. He could sense his friend’s energy settling onto the bench next to him.
“So what’s with you?” His friend asked.
“What are you talking about?”
“Oh please. You’re sitting here brooding and your best friend isn’t supposed to notice? Spill it. What’s eating you?”
“It’s nothing. Really.”
He could feel his friend staring at him.
“It’s just that… Doesn’t this place ever get to you?” He finally continued.
“What? Of course not. We have absolutely everything we could ever want here. If there’s something we want that isn’t here, all we have to do is ask the man and we get it. This place is perfect.”
“That’s the problem. It’s too perfect. Everyone’s always so damned polite and happy all the time. And god, if I hear one more rendition of In The Garden Of Eden played on the harp, I’m going to punch one of those flying babies in the face!”
“Woah. Calm down. That kind of talk could get you kicked out of here.” His friend said, looking around nervously.
“I wasn’t serious.”
They sat in silence for a long time.
“You’re thinking about going back into the game. Aren’t you?” His friend said, finally.
“What if I am?”
“Nothing. I think it’s a great idea. I mean, that’s what the game was designed for, wasn’t it? So where were you thinking about going this time?”
He didn’t have to answer.
“Seriously? Again? Why are you so obsessed with that little blue marble? Why don’t you shake things up and try someplace else? I hear there’s even a new one.”
“Yeah. I looked at that one just out of curiosity. The only avatar you can choose is an amoeba.”
“So Earth, huh?”
He nodded.
“Well, it sounds like your mind’s made up. So what’s stopping you?”
He hung his head. He didn’t want to admit why he was hesitant. His friend waited patiently.
“I kind of used up all my karma points last time.” He admitted finally.
“Oh no. What did you do?”
“Well, before the game started, I used some of my points to choose the rich advantage. I figured I could earn them back by using my money for good while I was in game.”
“But it didn’t work out that way.” His friend said.
“No.”
“It rarely does.”
“I used up the rest of my points in game by being a general asshole. With no starting perks this time around, who knows what I’ll end up as?”
“Well, hey. You could always be a dog. They earn tons of KPs. It’s a much shorter game too.”
“Yeah.” He said. “Well, I guess I should go accept my fate. I’ll see you in a hundred years or so. Unless you want to come too.”
“No thanks. I think I’m going to stay here and enjoy having my every desire fulfilled. You have fun.”
He waved to his friend and made his way to the arcade.