Chapter 5

Mat closed the door to his room, killing the voice of his parents arguing about the government. It didn't take long for the topic to turn like this when he told them about the bank loan. As the door closed and the room embraced him, he felt relief. He never felt it, even after exams. But for some reason, the warm feeling his room gave him calmed him down.

Not quite enough. Confusion and powerlessness overcome him as soon as he moved away from the door and sits on the bed. His fingers were cold and sweaty. His eyes were watery but he wasn't crying. Not yet. He was simply overwhelmed by everything. From the very first argument, he saw his parents having, to the fact he had to go talk before thousands and thousands of people.

His workshop helped him a little to not focus on all the problems, but on the other hand, pushed all those feelings away and release them just moments later.

Looking around his room, it was nothing out of the ordinary. There was barely any decoration and everything was organized in cabinets near the walls, leaving most of the space for a giant bed. He opened one of the cabinets near his bed, showing it was a small fridge, and took a drink.

"300 000 credits! If I get my full allowance ...it would take me years to get this much money!" he laid down on his bed looking at the white empty ceiling. He had no more need to talk out loud, but his mind raced to solve this issue. However, instead of focusing on the possible ways to get the money, he was thinking about what the punishment for not paying would be. Prison? Would they take his stuff?

Gazing on the ceiling he was deep in thought. No wonder it took several minutes for Anya to knock to get noticed.

"What?" he yelled annoyed.

"Open up!" her soft muffled voice was barely heard.

"Why?"

"You promised to help me with my school work,"

"Not now!"

"But I have an exam tomorrow! You promised!"

"I am in the middle of something! Leave!" he yelled. For a second it looked like it worked, but then her voice could be heard again.

"You promised! Should I tell mom you broke our promise?" she asked through the door. He didn't respond, she was cheating. It made him angry and so he sprung from the bed and opened the door. His sister was smaller than him, petite only 13 years of age. Her long brown hair was curling in a pretty none messy way and she proudly held a writing tablet.

Before Mat could unleash his emotion upon her she held the tablet to his face.

"You promised," she said again now not muffled by the door, her soft voice had a hint of sadness. Mat was stopped in his tracks because the reason he shut his door reappeared and the voices of his parents reached his ears again. He looked at his sister's teary eyes, facing the other way, he let her inside without a word.

She quietly did on the edge of the bed and silently turned on the tablet.

"Sorry about that," he said to her, but she shook her head.

"It is okay you have a lot of stuff going on," she said kindly. He felt horrible for being so angry at her, even though she had nothing to do with his mood. He climbed on the bed and leaned on the wall.

"Come sit next to me, so you can lean back and tell me what you need,"

"We are learning about drugs and dangerous addiction,"

"Oh, that...isn't that just memorization?"

"But I don't understand some stuff,"

"You don't understand it? You?" he asked her playfully since she was on top of her class in science.

"Yes, the chemical drugs I understand, but why are people addicted to virtual reality?"

"Well, they like it more than real reality,"

"But they know it is fake! It is illegal for a VR to make the users forget the real world,"

"Sometimes people like fake stuff more than real,"

"Okay, people are dumb, but why addiction and not stupidity?"

"I don't know, maybe they cannot stop! It is psychological!"

"Aghhh... I hate that..." she puffed her cheeks and started to scroll on the tablet.

"Everything else makes sense?"

"Well no, gambling is the same. Why would anybody be addicted to losing money,"

"They like the game,"

"Sometimes it is just pure luck, not really a game," she looked at him with a raised eyebrow.

"What? Do you think I am a gambler?"

"No, you only did it once!"

"Good, because I am not,"

"So are you saying that people are stupid and get addicted to something none physical?"

"I thought that being happy is physical, like dopamine and other stuff,"

"You are right! I see! They are addicted to dopamine!"

"Come on, you would figure that out yourself!"

"Maybe...but I like it when we talk," she said with slightly red cheeks.

"You can just say I am smarter than you, don't be shy!"

"I won't," she laughed and looked at him.

"If you need help, I can help!" she said kindly.

"Thanks, but I will figure something out. Since I am smarter than you,"

"Hey!" she nudged him in the arm.

"So what else do you have for me?" he gestured by his head at the tablet.