7. Vas

7

VAS

I was surprisingly nervous as I approached Jenna's desk at the end of our final class. I had no reason to be concerned about my grade, but I was anxious about her response to my proposition.

Inviting her to share an adventure with me at the Perfect Match Virtual Studios was a daring move, but I had faith that she would answer in the affirmative.

Everyone wanted to try the incredibly immersive virtual experience, but it was costly, and Jenna couldn't afford it on her professor's salary. If I presented the offer the right way, she would accept the invitation out of sheer curiosity to experience the service everyone was talking about.

The truth was that I was curious as well. Despite the endless commercials I'd seen for the service and the spectacular reviews in all the most prestigious publications, I hadn't tried it yet. As someone who had practically grown up in Bollywood, I preferred reality to make-believe, but I needed to put my reservations aside and move with the times.

An old friend from Stanford worked for Perfect Match, so I reached out to him last week to discuss what they had to offer. To my astonishment, they had a package that aligned perfectly with what I was looking for.

"Don't give up on that story, Luis," Jenna called to my classmate as he left, her voice warm with encouragement. "It has great potential."

Luis smiled and waved before walking out the door.

"Where are my compliments, Ms. Carter?" the curmudgeonly fellow from the back of the room grumbled as he headed out.

"Don't be greedy, Morty. I've already given them to you," Jenna reminded him with a patient smile.

"I'm just kidding," he conceded, then cast a suspicious glare in my direction before ambling out of the room.

Jenna's eyes lit up as I approached her desk, and my heart did a little flip. "Vas. I loved the final version of your script. You managed to accomplish so much in just ten pages."

"Actually, this isn't the final version. There's a longer one."

"Oh?" She smiled shyly, her blue eyes twinkling. "Do you want me to read it?"

"I was hoping you might be interested in experiencing it instead."

"Experiencing it?" She frowned. "What do you mean? Do you want to put on a play?"

"Yes and no." I took a deep breath, steeling myself. "There's a company called the Perfect Match Studios that specializes in creating immersive, realistic experiences for clients." I launched into an explanation of the technology.

The truth was that even with my expertise in artificial intelligence, the technology of Perfect Match seemed like an advanced alien civilization had designed it. I had no clue how they'd managed to pull off such an incredible technological feat that was years ahead of anything else on the market.

"I spoke to a friend who works for the company, and he said that they can design a virtual adventure based on my script. I would love for you to share it with me."

I hadn't told her about the romantic twist of the service or that some of the experiences were elaborate setups for hookups, but since Perfect Match commercials were being blasted all over the place, she might have heard about it.

Jenna lifted a brow. "Really? They can create a custom experience for you?"

That wasn't an answer, but maybe she needed more information before agreeing.

"Apparently, they can. They also have an extensive questionnaire to help match people up. We wouldn't need that since we would go in together, but it is still useful for creating an enjoyable experience for both participants."

Declan had explained that the questionnaire had an extensive section about sexual preferences, but I wasn't going to mention that. If Jenna confronted me about it later, I would pretend that I hadn't known about it either and was just as surprised as she was.

A mischievous grin spread across Jenna's face. "I've heard of the service, and I even know someone who met her husband through Perfect Match. Not that I'm implying anything." She held up her hands.

Relief washed over me. "So, is that a yes?"

She hesitated. "I know it's costly, and I'm not sure I'm comfortable accepting such an extravagant gift."

Since Jenna could no longer bring up the excuse of a teacher-student conflict, I was prepared for the financial excuse rebuttal, and I had the perfect answer. In fact, I had two.

"It's not a gift. You will be helping me to develop my script. Besides, Declan gave me one free token, so it's like getting the service for half the price."

She chewed on her lower lip. "Oh, heck, why not?"

"That would be fantastic." I tried to keep the elation out of my voice. "What are you doing this coming weekend?"

I didn't want to rush her, but I was impatient and pressed for time, and this was the quickest route to having Jenna Carter fall in love with me. Time moved differently inside the virtual world, and weeks or even months could be experienced within a session that lasted only three hours.

Jenna had to be mine before my manufacturing plant was up and running, when I would have to move to the next project.

"So soon?" she asked, sounding more excited than anxious about the prospect.

"Can you do it?" I pressed.

"Well, yes. I don't have any plans for this weekend."

"Awesome. With your permission, I'll give them your email to send you the questionnaire right away so you can fill it in tonight. I'll complete mine as well."

"Thank you." Jenna brushed a lock of her long blonde hair out of her face. "So, I guess no coffee tonight, then?"

"I'm afraid not." I wanted to spend as much time with her as I could but also needed to refine this script and fill out the questionnaire.

I wanted the experience to be as flawless as possible, although according to Declan, nothing ever went exactly according to plan because the algorithm was designed to mix elements from the wish list of both participants and to create some surprises. "But perhaps we could do lunch tomorrow?"

"That would be lovely." She rose to her feet. "I would love to stay and chat, but I have a meeting with the head of the department."

"Of course. Text me to let me know when you receive the questionnaire."