Aftermath and a Bold Offer
Once Samantha had calmed down, she headed back to Sophia's apartment. When Sophia opened the door, her jaw dropped, seeing Samantha's blood-soaked clothes and the lingering red tinge on her forehead from the shot, even after the nurse had cleaned it.
"What happened?! Get in, quick!" Sophia urged, pulling Samantha inside.
She immediately sat Samantha on the sofa, then dashed into the bedroom to grab a change of clothes. Soon after, Sophia returned with a fresh outfit and a towel, offering Samantha to use her bathroom for a shower.
"Where's Emma, Sis?" Samantha asked.
"She's asleep. She's been playing non-stop, so she must be exhausted. You go shower first, then tell me everything," Sophia said, her voice laced with worry.
"Okay, Sis. Thanks for letting me use your bathroom," Samantha replied.
After Samantha went into the bathroom, Sophia quietly checked on Emma, peeking in to see her still sound asleep in bed. She gently closed the door, then headed to the kitchen for snacks and drinks.
A little while later, Samantha emerged from the bathroom, dressed in fresh clothes and drying her hair. She sat down across from Sophia.
"Now, tell me what happened downstairs," Sophia pressed.
Samantha recounted the incident at the convenience store across the street, careful not to go into too much detail about her own actions there. When she finished,
"Sophia, can I ask you for a favor?" Samantha asked.
"What kind of favor? I'll definitely help if I can," Sophia replied.
"I want you and Emma to move out of here and come live with me in my new house," Samantha stated.
Sophia paused, observing Samantha's face, which now looked incredibly serious. She opened her mouth, but no words came out, and she eventually closed it again.
"My house is huge, five bedrooms in the suburbs. It's way safer there than here, and it's too big for me to live in all alone," Samantha explained.
"I see, but as I said, I don't want to bother—"
"I'm insisting," Samantha cut Sophia off.
Sophia fell silent again. She could see Samantha was genuinely serious, her eyes glistening, seemingly unwilling to accept a refusal.
"But why do you want to invite me? We just met. You don't know what kind of person I am. What if I'm a bad person?" Sophia questioned.
"Just look at your place—it's neat and clean. The condition of someone's home reflects their personality. Besides, I've heard a lot about you from Samuel," Samantha said, trying to persuade her.
"But if it's in the suburbs, Emma would have to change schools, wouldn't she?" Sophia countered.
"No problem. I can cover Emma's expenses all the way through college," Samantha firmly replied.
"I'm sorry, but if that's the case, I don't want to. I've always been independent and never asked for help from anyone," Sophia stated.
"True, I did hear that from Samuel. But this time it's different, Sis. This time, I'm the one asking you to live with me. The reason is, I don't want to be alone," Samantha said, her sincerity evident.
"You're asking for help?" Sophia questioned.
Samantha nodded in response to Sophia's question, and Sophia's face became serious.
"This is a big decision. I need to talk to Emma first. Can I have a day or two to decide?" Sophia asked.
"Of course, Sis. Sorry if I'm pushing you. What happened today just shows that this neighborhood is a bit dangerous for you and Emma (hmm, actually it's not really, but it's fine to say that to convince her, right? And more importantly, I'm the one who actually needs her and Emma. After having a panic attack and my body shaking non-stop, I'm genuinely scared to be alone)," Samantha replied.
"Alright, I'll let you know," Sophia said with a smile.
"Let's swap numbers first, Sis. We can text or call," Samantha replied.
Sophia handed over her smartphone, and Samantha immediately scanned the QR code. After that, she tried sending a message to Sophia, who read it instantly and replied right away. Samantha stood up.
"I'm gonna go check next door for a bit, okay, Sis? Can I borrow the keys?" Samantha asked.
"Oh, okay, just a sec, I'll get them," Sophia replied, standing up.
Sophia walked into her and Emma's bedroom. Samantha waited calmly in the living room.
"Hey, System," Samantha said in her head.
[How may I assist you, sir?]
"Do all quests require dying?" Samantha asked.
[No, but each quest does have its own level of danger and difficulty. That first quest was just a warm-up.]
"So you mean, even if I don't have to die, there's a big chance I could die?" Samantha asked.
[Of course. As I said, I push you towards death so that you can find happiness, not to avoid it.]
"Please don't give me quests so often. Once a month is enough, or even once a week is still okay," Samantha pleaded.
[Understood, sir. Although your recovery will take longer?]
"Yes, I don't want to get rid of my allergy to women only to get PTSD as a new illness that's currently in line, got it?" Samantha asked.
[I understand, sir.]
"Good, as long as you understand," Samantha replied.
*****
Soon after, Sophia came out of the room and handed the keys to Samantha.
"Alright, I'll be next door for a bit, okay, Sis?" Samantha said with a smile.
"Yeah, you just hold onto those keys. Is that okay?" Sophia asked.
"Oh, really? Okay then, I'll hold onto this set of keys," Samantha replied.
Samantha walked out of Sophia's unit and over to the unit next door—her own. She took a deep breath, then exhaled as she stood in front of her door. "Click," she unlocked it, and "creak," she opened the door.
"I'm home... Of course, no one's answering, and if anyone did, I'd run," she muttered, stepping inside.
After closing the door, she could still see that everything was arranged exactly as she'd left it. She picked up Samuel's important papers and the apartment ownership certificate. She also grabbed her bag, which was still lying on the sofa from yesterday, her laptop, and her gaming console. Whether it would all fit or not, she shoved everything into her backpack.
Samantha went into her bedroom, the room where she used to sleep in his bed as Samuel. Then she walked to the closet and opened it. Inside, there were still a lot of Samuel's clothes, both expensive-looking and genuinely expensive.
"Hmm, I should probably donate these clothes. I'm not wearing them anymore since I'm different now," Samantha murmured.
She started packing her clothes, then grabbed a large suitcase from on top of the closet and opened it. She began putting all her clothes into the large suitcase, which looked like it could fit an adult if they could be folded in half. There was a sense of calm each time she put a piece of clothing into the suitcase, and it helped her relax. "Knock, knock," her bedroom door was tapped. Samantha turned to see Emma, who seemed to have just woken up, standing at the door.
"Can I help, Sis?" Emma asked, still rubbing her eyes.
"Okay, come help me," Samantha replied. Then they working together to packing Sam's belonging.