Frustrated from losing a match in her favorite online game she'd poured thousands of hours into, Laila punched her monitor in a fit of rage. She closed her eyes hoping the screen would be intact(impossible), but a flickering sound filled up her small room. The screen flickered ominously, a crack spiderwebbing across the glass as if mirroring the turmoil within her. The air around her shimmered, and a low hum filled the room, vibrating through the floor and into her bones. Confused, Laila opened her eyes, her heart racing as she watched the monitor glow brighter, the colors swirling in a mesmerizing dance.
Laila was your typical NEET shut-in. She'd thought once she got into university, her life would change. Gone would be the days like high- school, where she'd be lonely and eat lunch all alone. Instead, she found herself more isolated than ever, trapped in a cycle of loneliness and frustration. With dreams of romance and adventure slipping further away, she spent her days immersed in her online forums sharing her struggles as a self-proclaimed femcel. Little did she know that her life was about to take a fantastical turn.