come, but was in no hurry. Music was his passion, but, like everything else, it often remained in the shadows.
On the bookshelf, among textbooks on mathematics and astrophysics, a mythological encyclopedia and treatises by ancient military leaders peacefully coexisted. Max, as a true seeker of knowledge, believed that one day all these books would tell him something important, although for now they were just gathering dust, waiting for their time.
This whole room created an atmosphere of constant searching, where each passion became just a stop on the way to something more. Max knew that sooner or later he would find something that truly captivated him, and then his room would become a reflection of his true “self” – or, at least, would become a little more organized. But, as the classic said: “Everything comes in time for those who know how to wait.”
All this accumulation of objects left very little space for life, so the furniture in the room consisted only of a bed, a table, and a wardrobe.
Gifts, given personally and passed through mutual acquaintances, lay here in the corner of the room, unopened in factory packaging and bright ribbons:
– A new laptop from his mother.
– A book on psychology from Aunt Olga.
– A set of tools for soldering microcircuits from Uncle Vladislav. They had been friends with his father since school. And his father often said that if it weren’t for him and his talent for handling computer hardware, VR technology would have reached real implementation 10 years later, or maybe it wouldn’t have appeared at all, remaining at the level of an idea.
– Collectible figurines of characters from the game were brought by Artem.
Max never understood this fascination of almost adult and some completely adult people with collecting figurines of characters from films and games. But now he also became the owner of a figurine of the “Twilight King”, some witch in black flowing rags and a dragon.
– A watch was sent by the director and majority shareholder of the company DREAM Inc. – Alexander First. He owned the company, one of the founders of which was Max’s father.
The gift from Daria was unexpected. A package of condoms tied with a blue ribbon. “Condoms for a Condom” read the inscription in black marker on it. Next was a smiley face in the shape of a heart.
“Closer – further” – Daria was perfectly fluent in this game. All evening – icy silence, but then this gift…, the gift clearly hinted at a continuation. Or was it just a mockery? What did she mean by this?
He could have guessed about this for the rest of the evening, but now he was occupied by another mystery.
Max put the VR with the rest of the gifts. He took the augmented reality glasses from the floor and went to the news portal:
News Headlines 02/03/2050
– Globalization Isn’t What We Wanted for Breakfast! Antiglobalists gather for the largest rally of the decade. However, the protests promise to become not only an expression of discontent, but also the main cultural event of the year with performances by famous artists and an extensive entertainment program.
– Cinema: Virtual Reality Changes Perception of Films VR-technologies from the company “Dream” are changing the TV series industry – viewers do not just watch, but experience history. But how do you bring them back to the usual boring real world and send them to work in the office, after they have been heroes all weekend, saving the world from evil season after season?
– Breakthrough in Psychology: Scientists Developed a New Method of Treating Depression A new method of neurostimulation promises to relieve depression by reprogramming the brain. Will everyone finally be able to be happy just by pressing a button?
– Superheroes on Minimum Wage: How eSportsmen Save the World From Boredom eSports has been recognized as an official profession, allowing you to count on a minimum wage from the state. Now, teenagers who have not finished school become not only opinion leaders and idols of youth, influencing the minds of an entire generation, but also respected members of society whose work is finally officially appreciated.
– Personality for Rent: Who Owns Our Data? Experts raise the alarm: personal information is the new and most valuable asset. How to protect yourself in the digital ocean.
Quickly swiping away news about antiglobalist protests, cinema, scientific achievements, he went to the archival section.
He typed in the search engine: “Mikhail Gromov Dream tunnel accident.”
He reopened the articles about his father’s death, those that still made it to the web, despite attempts by the company to “hush up” the matter. He had reread them a hundred times before and had already promised himself not to do it again, but today he returned to them again.
Several years before his father disappeared, he had a falling out with his wife, Max’s mother, withdrew from work at the company, and moved to some backwater. Tatiana accused him of domestic violence and drunkenness, although Max was ready to vouch that nothing of the sort had happened. Rather the opposite. He remembered one quarrel, but it happened because Tatiana was communicating too closely with her yoga instructor. Then there was a conversation in raised tones and he and his mother moved out after that. His father bought a new house. In the course of the divorce, the company severed relations with the developer who had gained a bad reputation, which could cast a shadow on them as well. In the end, he also disappeared from the information field, telling those media outlets that were still willing to listen to him that he was working on some new project in the field of artificial intelligence. After that, his communication with the outside world ceased for many years.
After a while, he and Tatiana seemed to have even improved their relationship, and his father was supposed to come to their house for Max’s 10th birthday. Was supposed to, but didn’t.
The car was found 3 days later at the bottom of the bay, but the body was never found. For several years he was considered missing, then declared dead. His fortune, which mainly consisted of a package of shares in the company “Dream”, passed to Tatiana. As far as he knew, the additional listing of shares annually reduced her share in the company, but they were still not poor.
The bracelet on his hand vibrated. An icon of an incoming call from the contact “Uncle Vlad” was reflected in the augmented reality glasses, obscuring the printed material and a photo of the crashed SUV.
“Hello, Uncle Vladislav. Why didn’t you come today?”
After his mother’s divorce from his father, Vladislav was a frequent guest in their house for a while, as was Olga, but then, for some reason, his mother stopped wanting to see him, and their relationship became very strained.
“Hello Max, sorry I couldn’t make it, there was a big commotion at the company and for once they called me back again. So I called as soon as I was free. And I congratulate you, you are now of age. You can work, sign contracts… an important milestone in your life…”
“And what could have happened in the company that they pulled you off of your well-deserved retirement?”
“I’m still the best specialist in hardware, if you remember…”
“Of course, my father always said the same thing, so what’s the commotion about?”
“Is Tatiana far away?”
“Well, she’s home, but… she’s not nearby and definitely can’t hear.”
“In short, just don’t tell her, but someone logged into the game under your father’s account. And was even online for a minute and forty seconds today. Can you imagine?”
Max froze, his heart beating faster.
“And