Vummmm
The light displayed on the digitalized headgear slowly faded, and Mark regained consciousness. He tapped the switch beside the plush chair of the VR pod, and the transparent lid slid up, giving way for him to exit.
"Hah, I did it," he muttered, then added, "I'm rich.... I'M RICH!"
Mark laughed and collapsed on the bed just adjacent to his console. This was his apartment, a one room self contain. It had the much needed amenities, though they were a little rundown, so to speak. A bathroom he could barely fit into, a kitchen (or what he made out from some used curtain and a bamboo stick), and yes, water. If a slightly greenish sticky liquid that smelled so much like feces could be considered water, then yes, he had water.
Bam
"Oh, right on time too," Mark halted his celebration as his attention was snagged by the door, which was suddenly slammed from outside.
"I know you're in there, Mark! Don't make me break down the door to get you, cause if I do, you're gonna pay for it," a loud noise pierced through the door and reached his ears.
"And he brought goons too, interesting," he mused with a smile, approaching the door. He suddenly halted. He quickly retraced his steps and tiptoed to a smashed-looking laptop by his stool, which had mercury splattered all over its screen.
"Let's see," he muttered, switching on the mini camera he painstakingly purchased a few months ago and mounted just outside his apartment. It was what helped him for the past few months. With this he could tell if his landlord was on his way there, then escape through the window and avoid a direct confrontation with the fat asshole.
"Shit!" he cursed, staring at the barely visible screen of the laptop. "It seems he was serious about selling my kidney to get his four years worth of rent."
Mark clicked his tongue, gazing at the large number of goons waiting outside his apartment. It was staggering.
"Ha, seems there's no other way," he smirked.
He originally planned on settling his debts before moving out, but with that much rage he could see in the landlord's eyes, only his kidney could solve this issue. He wasn't ready to live with one kidney just yet. He quickly shuffled to the console and wiped his savings and password off its history.
Bang-Bang
At this point the door was barely holding on, and he could sense the fury the hands that struck it carried. He shoved his hoodie, t-shirts, and a few pants into his backpack, as much as it could carry.
He then ran to the window and gave one last stare at the apartment.
"Wait, don't break the door, give me a few minutes to put something on!" he yelled, then leaped from the window.
It was two stories high but he lived on the second floor, so this much had become a part of his daily life.
"Darn it! I think he just jumped through the window! Let's go!" The landlord, already used to his antics, quickly understood the underlying meaning behind his words.
Mark struck a landing at the backyard of the building. He then ran towards the fence and to his greatest surprise, he actually ran over it like he would in the game. Well, that was weird, considering he had just taken the awakening exams last two weeks and was still branded unawakened.
On scaling the fence, he landed in a densely populated street, and a deep sense of deja vu hit him like a truck on high speed. This was the slums, and a place he lived his whole life. He quickly shook off his trance and ran through the sidewalk, making sure not to knock over the staggering numbers of beggars littered about.
He took a quick detour through Meg street and ran down a few blocks before weaving through a plethora of alleyways. This was the reason he couldn't carry his console with him. Like, just how the heck would he be able to perform such high-risk stunts with something so back-breaking.
With time, he was finally here. Astonville. A sort of boundary between the slum dwellers and the considerably well to do. He could see high rise buildings at every turn, a more curtailed number of people walking through the streets, slick-looking vehicles that oozed opulence, and the laden-free air, which seemed a lot easier to breathe.
"Finally, next up, Transville," he smirked, making his way for the train station.