“Mylo! Are you in there?” my dad called.
I swallowed a frustrated groan.Not now, please...
“I’m a little busy,” I called back.
“Doing what?”
I bit my lip. If I said I was beating a secret boss, my parents wouldn’t understand. And if I said I was playing a video game, they’d brush it off and ignore how important it was to me.
“I—uh—I’m masturbating!” I blurted out.
It was embarrassing, and not even true, but it was the only thing I could think of to get my parents to go away.
A loud sound effect blasted from the TV. In the time I wasn’t paying attention, the boss had crushed one of my party members.
“No!” I shrieked.
There was still time. I could salvage this. My healer still had mana, and if I was focused, I could still win the battle.
“Oh, for gods’ sake, he’s playing games,” my mom muttered. “Open the door.”
The door burst open. Light flooded in from the hall, hurting my eyes.
“Ack!” I covered my face too quickly and accidentally knocked my glasses off. “Oh, crap.”
I felt around for them. I was relieved to find them fast. My vision was terrible without their aid. By the time I put my glasses back on, my mom and dad stood in front of the TV, blocking my view. They looked disappointed.
I began, “Um, could you please—”
“Mylo, we need to talk,” Mom said.
Urgency gripped me. “I know, but I just need two seconds—”
“No, not two seconds. Right now.” Her tone made it seem like she was talking to a five-year-old, not her twenty-five-year-old adult son.
“I promise we can talk, but I really need to finish what I’m doing right now. It’s important to me,” I pleaded.
Mom glanced at the TV like it was a pile of garbage. “What, this? This is important?” She waved a hand at the screen. “These... fake characters with swords?”
My heart twisted. She didn’t understand. Those charactersdidmean a lot to me. Their stories touched me, and this boss battle was important to the plot. But I couldn’t explain it to my parents. They thought an adult man shouldn’t waste his time with video games.
“Yes, Mom,” I murmured.
She shot my dad an exasperated look, like I was being ridiculous.
“Mylo, forget the game for a second,” Dad said curtly. “We have something to tell you.”
I wondered if they were going to kick me out. That would be fine, actually. I only lived with my parents because they wanted me to. They thought an unmated omega was better kept safe at home, under their cautious watch, rather than... I don’t know, gallivanting in the streets?
“I’m listening,” I said, although I kept one ear on the TV. From the sound cues, it seemed like my party was still alive. I had a chance to see the battle through.
“He’s not listening,” Mom interjected. “Turn the TV off.”
“Wait—”
Dad clicked it off. The screen went black. At the same time, Mom turned the lights on in my room. I felt like an insignificant bug rooting around in the soil, and they’d unceremoniously removed my rock.
“I don’t think he understands how important this is,” Mom said to Dad. I never liked it when she talked about me like I wasn’t present. Looking down at me, she said, “You’re twenty-five, Mylo. You’re in the prime of your life. And what are you doing? Playing games in the dark alone? It’s just sad.”
