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Chapter Thirty Three

"And you called for us to the living room for what now?" Papa asked, slightly confused.

I was sitting on the couch, my hands in my lap as I sat up straight at my parents' presence entering the room. After dinner, I asked for the two to come to the living room for a special announcement after they were done with other necessities. I smiled lightly, waving a hand at them and gesturing for them to sit down.

"It's something important, I promise," I assured him. As they settled themselves in the seats before me, I said, "So, both of you helped me control my Dream Factory attribute, as you know." Mom nodded. "And, recently, I found something that didn't quite surprise me, but it's.. startling to think about."

"What? What is it?" Mom asked worriedly, suddenly leaning over. "Are you receiving any signs from the effects of late attribute development? Should we take you to the doctor?"

I shook my head vigorously, waving my hands in a negative manner. "No, Mom. It's more of a revelation of sorts from the attribute." Inhaling softly, the two knew a long explanation was about to occur. "After Miss Lynn suggested gaming as a sort of vent for me, I met a guy and befriended him. You guys know him as Lukas. A while ago, we discovered that we live in different worlds, where he's living in a world from the early 2000s, and we are the futuristic realm with powers and such. I thought about something for some time, and I tried it out.

"Apparently, not only can the Dream Factory attribute connect you to spiritual worlds and the creative mind of a person, but, it can connect you to parallel realms." Before they could interfere, I put my finger up, startling them as they hushed themselves. My eyes gleamed brightly towards my parents. "However, that would mean the game Parallel, where I befriended Lukas, is also connected to parallel worlds somehow. And if I'm judging this situation correctly, I'd say it has something to do with the Dream Factory attribute as well, because it's the only attribute available when it comes to crossing parallel worlds."

Mom blinked at me from her seat on the chair, stunned by my long explanation. Papa was staring at the ceiling, processing the information I had given them with a bewildered expression on his face.

"So," Mom said, breaking the silence as she closed her eyes and put her hand to her temple, "The Dream Factory attribute may or may not play a role in the development of the game Parallel, that connects people to other beings from different dimensions and parallel worlds."

Papa sat up, his arms crossed as he looked at me. "You concluded all of that in how much time?"

"A week," I replied nonchalantly, a slight chirp to my voice as I stated the period of time confidently.

Grinning proudly, Papa said, "Atta girl. I didn't expect anything more."

I smiled brightly at him.

Mom huffed lightly, a slight frown on her face. "There you go again, Tristan. Our daughter just made a revolutionary discovery, and all you can focus on are her analytical skills." She turned to Papa with a deeper frown, but it didn't keep her from a leveled appearance. "Where's your sense of responsibility gone?"

Papa put a hand on Mom's head, patting her gently, "You're not the tiniest bit proud of how little time she took to theorize all of this?"

"It's not that," Mom protested, "but there are more important things at hand, don't you think?"

Before they could continue, I cleared my throat, catching their eyes. I let out a soft laugh and suggested, "Why don't we talk about the situation at hand instead of arguing amongst each other, okay?"

~~~

"He kissed you~!" Julia squealed in a teasing voice, hugging me tightly. My face flushed, and I tried to shake her off of me, refusing to let her feel the satisfaction of my embarrassment.

Leo laughed at Julia's words, sitting on my bed. "Leave the poor girl alone, Julia. She's probably already too flustered to function anymore!"

Julia's pretty eyes shined in Leo's direction, and I noticed him flinch slightly at her stare. "B-But she's growing up so fast..!" Julia exclaimed, a bright smile on her face. Her cheek squished against mine as she hugged me a little more, squealing excitedly. "Awh, I can't wait until you become an adult~! You'll look so elegant and beautiful and mature!"

"J-Julia," I stuttered out, struggling to breathe. Immediately, Leo snapped and her presence disappeared, only to reappear beside him.

Her hands rested on her lap, and she smiled. "You're growing up!"

"I suppose so," I replied, a hand to my heart as I inhaled softly. I didn't know her grip could be so tight, even as a spiritual being. A nervous smile was on my face as I sat down in front of my computer, spinning in the swivel chair. "But, I'm not looking forward to all the responsibilities."

Leo waved a hand at me, as if brushing it off. "You'll be fine. Adult life isn't that bad."

"But you never truly experienced adulthood because—" I said, cutting myself off. I gestured to the couple, and continued, "—you passed away at a young age before adulthood."

"Enough about growing up in that way," Julia suggested. Her eyes glowed brightly, and she asked, "So you and that Lukas fellow are a thing?"

"N-No!" I exclaimed, blushing furiously at her question. She giggled softly at my defensiveness, and I sighed heavily, my cheeks red. "I-I mean, it's a little unusual for the both of us." Throwing my hands up, I added, "We're both hermits in our own shells. We aren't used to really connecting with anyone. This is the first time for the both of us."

"Sooo.. you're both pretty much roadkill at romance?" Leo asked, trying to clarify with an eyebrow raised questionably at me.

I nodded, hesitating. "W-Well, I guess yes? I don't really know."

"But, most importantly," Julia interrupted, hugging into Leo's sleeve, "You two kissed~!"

Both Leo and I let out heavy sighs at Julia, who continued to go on a long ramble about Lukas and me.

A/N

Shit's boutta get REAL spicy soon