Dinner was quiet.

The crunch of toasted bread, metal spoons against ceramic bowls, and the occasional slurp were the only sounds to break the silence. The meal was simple: grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup, perfect nutrition for an ailing teenager. Brenda watched her son as they ate, but John was too lost in his own thoughts to notice her staring.

Meanwhile, the gamer was focused on his plan developing for the next day. ’After Mom goes to work, I’ll have my tea so I don’t lose control, jump on the bus, ride downtown, and go to the occult shop on my way to the herbal shop.’ He kept repeating the plan, running through any possible hiccups in his mind. ’I think I can do this…’

“What’s got you thinking so hard?” Brenda asked, tired of the silence.

“Hmm?” John blinked and looked up at her. ’How long was she just staring at me?’

“Something bothering you, honey?” She set down her spoon, sitting back to watch him.

“No, not really.” Again, he found himself searching for a way to explain his dilemma without giving away too much. ’What can I tell her without putting her in danger, too? What is she even allowed to know?’ He worried his lip before settling on an idea that could side-step the truth but still give him a way to talk about his concerns. “There’s a new game I got that I’m not sure I want to play.”

“Oh?” His mother’s eyebrows raised in genuine surprise. “Why not?”

“It’s a lot harder than I expected it to be,” he lamented, feeling a bit sorry for himself.

Brenda snorted, “That’s never stopped you before.” She shook her head and leaned forward, turning her focus back to the food. This gave John a perfect window into the tight cleavage of his mother's chest. Her blouse was practically straining to keep her breasts in place. “I’ve only heard you complain when a game is too easy, never too hard. What’s really going on?”

He shifted in his seat, adjusting the sudden bulge that tightened his pants, utterly failing to keep from staring. ’She’s right, I usually increase the difficulty on games, grinding my way through them with skill and determination, but the risks are a shit ton higher when it’s my actual life I’m playing with…’ “There’s a...mechanic… One I haven’t had to deal with before.”

“So? That sounds like a good thing, doesn’t it?” The MILF looked at her son while munching on her grilled cheese, a few crumbs landing on the magnificent shelf of flesh and making her reach into her cleavage to fetch the sharp bits out. The movement exposed a hint of light pink under the edge of the cloth.

“Well,” he struggled to keep his focus on their conversation, “I like how unique it is, but it does raise the stakes a bit.” The longer they talked about his life like a game, the more sure of himself John felt. “If my character dies, I lose everything. Even my account would be erased.”

“That seems a little harsh.” Brenda’s brow furrowed, trying to understand.

He sighed. “Yeah. That’s probably a good half of my headache.”

“Oookay,” she hummed, chewing on her plump bottom lip in thought. “What about not playing for a couple days so you can rest and look at it with fresh eyes when you’re feeling better?”

“Won’t work,” John grunted. “Game’s online.”

His answer was short, but his mom nodded in slight understanding. “That means it doesn’t pause, right?”

He blinked, nodding in response, quieted by shock. ’I didn’t think she paid attention to that.’

“So?” she continued. “It’s not like you have to stay constantly logged in, right?”

“Well, no…” the gamer scrambled for an explanation, “but my character, my base, is just kinda standing there defenceless if I don’t do anything about it.”

“How the hell are you supposed to protect yourself if you’re not even online?” Brenda was incredulous. “Do they not understand that people have lives?”

“I think you’re supposed to join or build a team, but it does make it a lot harder than a normal game.” He sighed again, draining the last of his soup before standing to clear the table.

“Sounds to me like they’re trying to build a community or something,” the lycan’s mother offered hopefully as she stood, moving to help him clean up after their meal.

They gathered their dishes, bringing them to the sink together. John’s cock twitched indelicately when her scent wrapped around him again. “Yeah,” he cleared his throat to refocus, mentally trying to **** his boner down, “that’s the hope.” The noise of loading the dishwasher caused a minor pause in conversation he used to calm himself as she wiped the table. The strong smell of dish soap helped clear his head before he turned back to her. “The struggle with that is finding people to play with that I can actually trust. There are a lot of jerks out there that will take advantage of a new player.”

Brenda hummed non-commitally in response, likely unsure how to continue the conversation. “Just don’t focus on it too hard,” she chided, settling on a minor motherly lecture. “You have school and your health to worry about.”

“Yes, nurse,” he grumbled, glancing at her ass before he made himself walk past her to lay back on the couch. Though, as he passed, her milk-and-honey scent broke down his resolve and he watched his fingers lightly brush her thigh. Her suddenly pink cheeks had him smirking to himself. ’I wonder what else would make her blush like that…’ He took his seat with a satisfied groan, actually feeling almost normal without the pounding headache or the weight of his new powers hanging over him. The teen pressed himself back into the cushions of the couch, deciding to blankly stare at the tv as he listened to his mother cleaning up the kitchen. The white noise of the dishwasher lightly tugged at John’s sensitive head, but the sound was more soothing than bothersome with how reliably normal it was.

He didn’t bother turning up the volume of the show, it’s not like he was really paying attention to it. The gamer just let his mind wander, absorbing the conversation over dinner with Brenda. ’I wonder how easy it would be for me to join a group that won’t take advantage of me or **** me to stay with them…’ He looked down at his hands, reminded of the bloodstains he’d washed off them just hours earlier. ’Dakota was right, though. I’m too dangerous to be out on my own like this.’ Letting his head fall back with a sigh, he looked up at the ceiling, the textured surface giving him something to focus on. ’I wonder if that guild invitation is still there…’

On cue, the window appeared in front of him. ’Do I honestly care if a bunch of murderers like the Purifiers think less of me?’ John scoffed, nose wrinkling in disgust at the idea of caring about their opinion. ’I still can’t get past the idea of needing to live with them…’ He struggled to list pros and cons in his mind, watching the window move around when he tilted his head. ’I’d get plenty of time with Tala, someone to actually train me, maybe some protection.’ The new lycan ran his hands through his hair in frustration. ’Mom would be on her own. I doubt she actually needs me around, but I can’t just disappear on her.’ The image of the pop-up felt like it was burning into his eyes like it would a screen and he groaned to himself before he tapped “Accept”. ’I need the help more than I need my Mom.’

Achievement Unlocked -
Join a guild either for protection or work.
I think that should be its own reward.
Fine, +92xp
+1 Charisma

’Nice, free xp.’ He checked the experience bar in his character sheet. ’Oof, the grind is real. Hopefully, that’s something I can figure out soon. I get the feeling waiting to level is not the safest thing to do.’

’Well,’ the gamer shut his eyes again, ’if I can come up with a reasonable explanation for Mom to let me go, I think I can get away with joining them fully.’