Gamer Girl by Mari Mancusi Page A

him. "I'll log off in a minute." Dad
got up to go drag Emily to bed and I turned back to the computer.
    93
    [Allora] (It's late. Dad says I have to go to bed.)
    [SirLeo] (Yeah. Wow. I didn't even realize it was midnight.)
    [Allora] (I know. Time flies when you're having fun.)
    Sir Leo
smiles.
    [SirLeo] (I had a LOT of fun. You're great to play with.)
    Allora
blushes.
    [Allora] (Thanks. © You're fun to play with yourself.)
    There was a
pause in conversation and at first I thought Sir Leo had left the
computer. Then another instant message dinged.
    [SirLeo] (Uh, sorry. I was just...)
    [Allora] (??)
    [SirLeo] (Well, it's weird to play with you so much and not know anything
about you. I mean, I know you probably live on the East Coast,
because we're in the same time zone. But besides that...)
    [Allora] (Yeah. It is weird. I feel like I know you really, really well, and
yet not at all.)
    [SirLeo] (Yes! It's crazy. At least tell me where you live.)
    I swallowed
hard, my hands hovering over the keys, not sure what to do. Dad had
just warned me about this. And I'd laughed him off, saying I'd never
do it. And yet here I was, a few hours later, totally tempted.
    [Allora] (Um, I'm not supposed to say. Dad's rules, remember?)
    94
    Argh. Even as I
typed it, I realized how stupid I sounded. How babyish. Sir Leo was
going to think I was a total loser. Either that or I was completely
uninterested in him, which was so not the case. Heck, if there was
any way in the known universe to meet him in real life, I would in a
heartbeat.
    [SirLeo] (Oh. Right. Yeah, that makes sense. Your dad's smart. I mean, you
never know. Not that I would do anything, obviously. But how would
you know that?)
    [Allora] (Right. I mean, I don't know you. Well, not the real you, you know?)
    Wow, this was
awkward and I wasn't explaining myself very well. The last thing I
wanted was for him to think I didn't trust him.
    [SirLeo] (Sorry, I shouldn't have even asked. My bad.)
    [Allora] (It's okay. Don't worry about it.)
    [SirLeo] (It's just... well, I think you're really cool. And I know you
probably still live a thousand miles away and would never want to
anyway, but I just can't help thinking how awesome it'd be to meet
you in real life.)
    I stared at the
computer, too dumbfounded to type a reply. He wanted to meet me? In
real life? I suddenly felt faint and my stomach started flip-flopping
as I imagined the scene playing out. Sir Leo, stepping into the room,
handsome and breathtaking. Breaking into a big smile as his eyes fell
on me.
    95
    Me, grinning
back at him, my heart beating a mile a minute. Him, sweeping me up
into a tender embrace and kissing me senseless.
    I shook my
head. Fantasize much, Maddy?
    Before I could
type a reply, Dad burst back into the room. "Did you say your
good nights?" he asked, walking over to the computer. Quickly, I
minimized the game screen, red-faced, not wanting him to read our
conversation. Seeing a guy online say he wanted to meet me in real
life was so going to set off the parental warning bells.
    "Um,
yeah," I stammered. "I'm just going to check my e-mail and
go to bed."
    Dad kissed the
top of my forehead. "Okay, sweetie," he said. "I'm
going to brush my teeth and hit the hay. See you in the morning."
He exited the room.
    Once alone, I
maximized the game screen again. In my absence, Sir Leo had continued
typing, probably assuming I was too shocked to answer him. I scanned
the chat screen, cringing at what I'd missed.
    [SirLeo] (Um, I can't believe I just typed that. Never mind. Forget I said
anything.)
    [SirLeo] (This is stupid. You're probably not even a real girl or something.)
    [SirLeo] (I mean, not that I don't believe you or anything.
    Sorry, that
came out wrong.)
    [SirLeo] (Um, hello? Are you there?)
    [SirLeo] (Great. I probably scared you off. I'm sorry.)
    96
    Sir Leo
sighs.
    [SirLeo] (Well, good night. It was fun playing with you. Sweet dreams.)
    Sir Leo logs
off.
    I banged my
head on the desk in frustration. What had I just