4 YEARS AGO. VITALY

A dream... But I can feel it in my life. Warmth flowing all over my body from her embrace. Her hands like sparks leaving a burn, from palms to feet. Staring into the depths of their beautiful eyes. I know I'll be happy for the rest of my life.

Alarm clock.

Realizing I'm hugging a pillow and everything I saw wasn't real.

I'm only 15 years old, but I really want a girlfriend. I can't stop thinking about it. But fate has it so that I'm a strong introvert, and I'm not able to meet anyone. Moreover, I don't even know where to look for her. I'm in 9th grade, and I haven't met anyone at school that I could like. The only thing I can do is lie here like this and suffer.

12:30.

Third class was canceled. All the students stood in the hallway, waiting for the next one to start. Vitaly was also standing there, at the window sill, with his best friend Nicholas.

— Let's find something in Play Market, — he suggested me.

— Good idea! — I replied.

Nicholas opened the program and went to the top downloads section. Leafing through the list of games and checking some of them, he stopped on one.

— Soul Knight. What do you think? — He showed me the phone.

I leaned over and examined the description.

— Might as well give it a try.

Suddenly, my eyes fell on the list of recommended games below the reviews. And one of them caught my eye. I pointed to it.

— What's that?

— That?

— Yeah.

He clicked on the icon. The phone loaded the page, and Nicholas read the description aloud.

— Werewolf Online. An online social deductive werewolf game for up to 16 players. Each game has different teams, such as villagers or werewolves, fighting to be the last survivor. Use special abilities to unlock other players roles and convince your fellow guys to work with you.

That's when I realized: this was exactly what I needed.

— Listen, this one looks interesting. Let's download it!

But my friend didn't share my opinion. Nicholas wasn't the type of person who liked mind games.

— No, it doesn't make any sense. Let's play Soul Knight!

I was a little sad, but got over it and came up with a solution.

— I still want to play it. I think I'll download it. You can download yours.

— As you wish... — Nicholas replied with a look of displeasure.

I took my phone out of my pocket, opened Play Market and found Werewolf Online. Clicked on the download button, and while the process was going on, read more information about the game. I was very intrigued. When the game finally appeared on my device, I opened it. Selected my Google account, picked a nickname, and logged into my first game.

An hour later, Nicholas walked up to me.

— So, what do you think of Wolf Online, or whatever it's called?

I turned to him.

— Werewolf Online! I've played five games so far, and honestly, I really like it! It's like Mafia, only much, much more interesting!

— Mafia? Online? What's there to do?

— In brief, each player gets a different role belonging to a team such as villagers or werewolves, these are the basic ones. The goal of each team is to destroy the others. Every day, during the voting, the residents can lynch any player. In the chat, they can discuss their information and decisions about the killings. At night, only the werewolves chat among themselves and choose who to kill. Roles have abilities that allow you to reveal the roles of other players, or kill them. For example, a seer can check any player's role every night. The doctor can protect a player from a night attack. The gunner has two bullets that he can use to shoot any player during the day. There are very many roles in the game, almost a hundred.

— I see. But I'm not interested in that kind of thing.

— Pity.

The door to the classroom opened. Together with the rest of the group, Vitaly went inside, immersed in the game. And when the lesson began, he was still staring at the screen of the phone lying on his knee.

Day after day I played this game, gradually getting more and more familiar with it, understanding all its aspects. I gained XP, levels, roses, golds and suits. Tried different strategies, schemes to attract attention, deception. Studied articles on the subject of lying and its recognition. Watched and read detective thrillers. Absorbed all the techniques of investigation and human communication. I was becoming a professional.

You might think I was a bit obsessed with it. If that's the case, you're wrong. This game is a treasure trove for the introvert, where you can be yourself. Where you can bring out the beast in you. But it's not just that.

One thing sets me apart from most — no — almost all people in the world: my memory. I have a perfect memory. I can perfectly remember anything, information of any length and complexity, dozens of times faster and better than any other person. Psychologists didn't diagnose me with any disorder or syndrome. There was nothing genius about me. It's just that my brain has been like that since birth, and no one can tell me why.

My father used to tell me that because of my memory, I would be able to accomplish a lot. That I would be able to change the world.

All through high school, I was an honor student. But while everyone else spent whole days on such a result, I only had to read the materials once. When we were assigned to learn a poem, I recited it without stuttering in one reading. When we were given math assignments, I did them correctly in minutes, because just watching the video tutorials on the Internet gave me a full understanding of the algorithm. I never received a grade lower than a B. Because I, though lazy, could sacrifice half an hour a day for such nonsense.

But there's a big flaw in me. I'm very introverted. I have no friends at all. Except for Nicholas, who in turn is the complete opposite of me in this. It's easy for him to make new friends and participate in conversations. Despite this difference, we are a great couple because we complement each other. I help him with things that require memorization and he helps me with things that require interaction with people.

For me, easy memorization is common, so I can't say I'm happy. But I use it to the max. And in Werewolf Online, it comes in handy for me all the time. I keep every message, every claim, and every piece of information in my mind. This helps me efficiently figure out either evil players if I'm a villager, or the best players to kill if I'm a werewolf or a killer. If you see me on your team, you're very lucky. Considering all the games ruined by some gamethrowers, my win rate is 70%.

It's worth noting that this game has a whole friend system where you can text them, give them gifts, and invite them to games. It made me laugh at the fact that I don't need these features at all. After all, I don't have any friends. But what was my surprise when I realized that you can find friends right in the game. You can meet them, send a request, chat, and play together. The game has given me a lot, and I didn't think I would get more out of it. But my discovery shed light on another side of the game. Friends.

Where did it all start? I found my first friend.

This girl's appearance was so beautiful... I fell in love with her at first sight. I was attracted to her bio, which was cool, not meaningless like many. Her caring and active way of talking drew me in.

I couldn't resist trying to talk to her, and started with some simple questions about the game and profile. The dialog went far and we chatted without paying attention to anything. And I would never have guessed to suggest her to become friends. But, at the end of the game, she did it herself. Sent me a friend request and asked me to accept it.

My world turned upside down.