Chapter 64: Chapter 64
Ray scratched the back of his neck, his mind spiraling into panic. He remembered the lie he’d fed Sonya about that "big programming project" like it was yesterday. Now she was circling back to it, and he had no choice but to double down.
"Uh... about that..." he started, voice tight. He kept his eyes on the road so she wouldn’t catch how nervous he was. "The project got delayed, and since I’m working from home full-time anyway, I figured I might as well start streaming. It’s not like I’m on for hours straight — my body can’t handle that. This is kinda my dream, y’know? I’ve been wanting to see what it’s actually like to be a real streamer."
Sonya glanced over. A thin smile curved her glossy lips — the kind that said both "poor thing" and "do whatever you want."
"Well, just go for it then," she said quietly, tone flat but not angry. "If that’s what you want, do it. Who knows? Maybe it’ll work out."
Ray felt a rush of relief mixed with satisfaction. ’Nice. Didn’t make things worse.’ He’d played the sympathy card perfectly.
"By the way, we still far?" he asked, glancing at the dashboard clock.
"Yeah," Sonya replied shortly. "Thirty, maybe forty minutes. Depends on traffic."
The car moved slowly through the thickening evening traffic. Sonya’s sweet perfume mixed with the warm scent of her skin filled the cabin. Ray couldn’t stop his eyes from drifting — to the smooth bare skin of her arms, the slow rise and fall of her chest with each breath, the way her thighs parted slightly beneath the slit of her black dress.
Then Sonya spoke again, voice curious.
"By the way... back when that weird ghost mucus sprayed all over me and Lena’s faces — did you feel dizzy too?"
Ray went quiet for a beat, mind racing. Instead of panicking that she might realize
he was the one who’d actually came on their faces, he leaned into the confusion. He nodded slowly, making his voice sound uncertain.
"Yeah... I got pretty dizzy. Head felt heavy, vision went blurry for a bit. And now that I’m thinking about it... what if we actually did something? Like oral sex? But we just... forgot?"
Sonya turned sharply, eyebrows lifting. "Huh?"
Ray kept going, scratching his head like he was genuinely puzzled.
"The dizzy feeling was way too similar to that mall thing."
Sonya fell silent. Her smile disappeared. She stared ahead, but her grip on the steering wheel tightened.
"Ray..." she said softly. "Are you serious right now?"
He shrugged, playing innocent. "I don’t know, it just... felt really similar."
Sonya bit her lower lip, voice dropping.
"I... never even considered it went that far."
Inside, Ray grinned. ’Got her.’
On the outside he kept the worriedpression.
"Sorry if that was weird," he said quickly. "I was just really out of it back then. Thinking about it now, it doesn’t make sense."
The car went quiet except for the low hum of the engine and distant horns. Sonya didn’t answer right away. Every so often she glanced at him from the corner of her eye, like she was trying to read whether he was genuinely confused or messing with her.
Ray stayed silent, but he felt a quiet thrill. He’d shifted the topic *and* tested how much her memory had been altered by the system core. More importantly, he’d planted the seed.
Sonya finally exhaled.
"We’re almost there," she said, voice normal again but cooler. "Don’t overthink it. Let’s eat first. Then you can tell me more about this streaming thing."
Ray nodded. "Okay."
The car turned onto a quieter street. Restaurant lights glowed up ahead.
They finally pulled up in front of Lumina Restaurant & Lounge. It was much fancier than Ray had expected. Warm golden lights illuminated the entrance, sharply dressed waiters stood by the large glass doors, and several luxury cars were parked out front.
Ray swallowed.
’Shit... this place looks expensive.’
He looked down at himself — wrinkled black hoodie, faded jeans, beat-up white sneakers. Everyone else going in looked like they belonged: tailored shirts, cocktail dresses, expensive watches. He felt like a broke student who’d taken a wrong turn.
"This place... isn’t cheap, is it?" he muttered, voice awkward. He rubbed the back of his neck. "Sonya, you sure? We can go somewhere more casual—"
Sonya turned off the engine and looked at him. Her thin smile returned, but there was a hint of warmth in her eyes this time.
"Relax. I’m treating."
Ray blinked. He wasn’t used to a woman — especially not a woman who looked like Sonya — saying that so casually.
They stepped out. The moment Ray stood up, Sonya slipped her arm through his, natural as anything. Her warm fingers rested against the bare skin of his forearm under the hoodie sleeve. Her perfume surrounded him instantly.
Ray’s brain short-circuited. ’What the hell...?’
Earlier in the car she’d been distant, almost cold after he brought up the oral sex thing. Now she was pressed up against his side, arm linked tightly with his, her full chest brushing his arm with every step.
He was completely thrown off.
’Why the sudden change?’
They walked toward the entrance. A waiter opened the heavy glass door for them. Inside, cool air conditioning washed over them. Crystal chandeliers sparkled overhead, dark wood tables glowed with small candles, and soft piano music drifted from somewhere in the back. The rich scent of seared steak, red wine, and truffle filled the air.
Ray felt even more self-conscious about his clothes. A few people glanced their way. He could feel the judgment.
Sonya didn’t seem to notice — or care. Her arm stayed looped through his, and her fingers even traced slow, soothing circles on his skin beneath the fabric.
Ray leaned in slightly, voice low.
"Sonya... why are you being like this all of a sudden?"
She smiled without looking at him.
"Like what?"
"All... clingy. You were normal before. Now it’s like we’re—"
Sonya let out a soft, low laugh, almost raspy.
"Ray... we’re on a date."
Ray went quiet. There was something off in her voice.
What he didn’t know was that inside Sonya’s mind, the thoughts were colder, more calculating:
’Younger guys are always easier to handle.’
Her eyes flicked sideways — briefly to his lips, then his neck, then lower, to the chest hidden under his hoodie.
They were led to a reserved corner table by the large window overlooking the garden. The waiter pulled out Sonya’s chair. Ray sat across from her, still tense.
Sonya placed her bag on the table, rested her chin on her hand, and looked at him with a new kind of smile. Slower. Deeper. Hungrier.
"Order anything you want," she said softly. "It’s on me tonight. Consider it a celebration for chasing your streamer dream."
Ray nodded, but the knot in his stomach only tightened.
----
They’d already ordered. Sonya got the medium-rare steak with red wine, while Ray stuck with seafood pasta and mineral water — he didn’t dare order anything expensive. The waiter brought their food out quickly and neatly. The smell of truffle and butter hit Ray’s nose the second the plates hit the table.
But Ray couldn’t enjoy a single bite.
From the moment they sat down, he’d felt eyes on their table. Not just a couple of glances — actual staring. Several couples nearby kept looking over, then leaning in to whisper. One guy at the far end of the room even lifted his phone toward them for a second before quickly dropping it.
Ray chewed his pasta slowly, throat dry.
’Why the fuck is everyone staring? Is it my lame-ass outfit? Or because Sonya looks too sexy sitting across from me? Or... shit, what if they recognized me from yesterday’s stream?’
He could catch pieces of the whispers drifting over:
"...is that her boyfriend or her son?"
"...seriously? With a girl that pretty..."
"...his face looks pretty average though..."
Ray’s shoulders and the back of his neck grew tighter with every second. He tried to focus on his plate, but it felt like the entire restaurant was talking about him. Even the waiters passing by were sneaking longer glances than they should.
Sonya, sitting across from him, looked completely unfazed. She cut her steak with elegant, precise movements, occasionally took a sip of wine, and every now and then glanced at Ray with that thin, unreadable smile.
Then, suddenly—
Footsteps approached their table.
A woman around twenty-five or twenty-seven stopped beside them. Short hair, casual but neat dress, and most noticeably, she was holding her phone up high, camera pointed straight at Ray with the flash on. She was clearly recording.
The woman stood right next to Ray’s chair, her voice slightly shaky with excitement.
"Uh... excuse me. You’re... Ray, right?"
The girl’s eyes widened the second Ray looked up. She clutched her phone tighter, voice jumping an octave higher with pure excitement.
"Oh my god... you’re really Ray! I knew it was you!"
She didn’t even wait for him to answer. Still holding her phone up and recording, she tilted her head and asked, completely serious, like this was the most normal thing in the world to ask someone in the middle of dinner.
"Do you feel it? Like... is there gonna be another supernatural phenomenon around here?"
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