A new email popped up on my computer and I flipped over to it. It was from the computer company that Lauren worked for. She had mentioned me to her boss, and now there was a job interview if I wanted it. When they said that winning this internship opened up doors, they weren't kidding.
I clicked on the offer and looked through it. The job was similar to what Lauren was doing now, but the pay was nowhere near what ZephTech was offering. However, the hours were way better and there was no talk of mandatory overtime or living proximity requirements.
A job with great hours, or a job with great pay? I was leaning toward a job with great pay until I thought of Jacob. Even if I was making a million dollars a month, if I didn't have a chance to see him, I would hate my job. If I couldn't spend any of that money on going out to see him or renting a hotel like this, the money the job gave me wouldn't be worth it.
“I can't believe I'm not going to take it,” I whispered to the empty room. It was so strange to consider. I had worked my whole college career for this job, but now that it was here, I didn't want it. At least not the way they were going to give it to me.
I wanted a life. Not a job. The job wasn't my end-all be-all any more. I wanted more than just a cool title and a big salary. I realized I would be far happier with a job like Lauren's where I could go home and see Jacob whenever I wanted than having to work all the time and be rich.
I opened an email to draft my response to ZephTech. And then I sat there, staring at the empty document. I couldn't think of the words to write. I knew that I would need to inform them of my decision, yet I was having difficulty actually saying that this was no longer my dream.
My phone chimed and there was a text from Jacob.
There's more paperwork than I thought. Go ahead and order lunch without me.
I let out a sharp breath. Food was still the last thing on my mind. Except maybe some more orange juice. That sounded good.
I closed the message and was about to set my phone down when I saw the icon for the Monster GO game. I hadn't played since my internship had started since I didn't have time for anything else.
I had heard that playing it in bigger cities was more fun as there were more people and things to do, so I started it up. It would at least be something to do to clear my head while I figured out how to turn down the job I had worked so hard to get.
There were several updates that needed to be approved and I wondered just how many new features to the game had been added since I had last played. It only took a moment. I scrolled down the list, feeling an odd sense of deja vu.
There was now the ability to battle individuals, a friends list, a nearby players list, custom monster tracking, gym notifications, friend notifications, and custom monster lures. I frowned slightly as I went through them. Those were all things that I had thought of to make the game better months ago when I had been playing.
“Wow, I was really on trend for this,” I said out loud. A bit of smug pride filled me and I considered texting Jacob to tell him my latest discovery. I had been right on the money for what the game needed. If only I could find a way to make a job out of that I would be set.
I played the game for a few minutes. The difference between playing at home and playing in a big city was night and day. I didn't even have to leave my bed to access a Monster Stop here, whereas at home I had to walk three blocks. Just due to the increased population density, I caught three monsters just in my hotel room.
Tommy would be so jealous.
I considered getting up and going for a walk. There was so much more to do in the game here than back home that I was really tempted. Except the bed was so comfortable and walking sounded like too much work.
When I had exhausted what I could do in the game from my hotel bed, I turned off the game and checked my email one more time. All that was there was a news alert. I had set up an alert to let me know if anything new came up about the Monster Go Billionaire App creator. Apparently, just in the last hour, three news sites had mentioned him. I thought back to the numerous articles I’d come across while browsing twitter and the many Monster GO pieces, all of which referenced a creator that had fled Silicon Valley.
I clicked on the link and froze.
It wasn’t the headline that was inducing sweat at the top of my forehead. It was the picture.
I reread the headline for a second time as my heart dropped into my stomach; “App Developer Back From Hiding” it said.
Below the headline was a picture of Jacob looking candidly into the distance.
Chapter 17
I sat in shock as I stared at the picture. It was most definitely Jacob. He was wearing the shirt he had left in and had the dark rimmed glasses that I thought made him look so smart on.
Slowly, I read the first article:
Reclusive Monster GO billionaire, Jacob Rigby, seen here exiting his new headquarters in Silicon Valley. After the sudden success of the game, the developer disappeared from Silicon Valley to regroup. Little to no information of the developer was available at that time.
Fans were afraid that without the designer at the helm, the game would stagnate. But, during the last six weeks, major game changes were put into play and offices were opened as the company went on a hiring spree. Mr. Rigby has been incredibly busy with his business.
Whatever Mr. Rigby did to regroup has worked well as the new updates to the game have fans joining in the highest numbers yet. The battle feature as well as the ability to see nearby friends has been lauded as “incredible” and “brilliant.”
Seen here, Rigby is leaving his new headquarters in Silicon Valley. This is the first time he has been seen in person at this location.
I couldn't believe what I