June 6th 2114
Day

The bell rung, signifying the end of the day's final period. Students began flooding the hallways, looking forward to having the rest of the day either to themselves or with friends.

Takahashi Tatsuhiro was the former. 

As much as his friends wanted him to string along for an after-school trip to the nearest row of shops, he was the resident gamer of their bunch, after all. Not a single bone in his body didn't know of what would be waiting for him at home. Virtually leaping inside, the boy took off towards his room after having his shoes come undone and yelling "I'm home!". He passed a reflection of himself sitting on the couch in the living room, except a few years older.

"Oh, Hiro, the mail came in for you today. Some package from--" the young man said, pulling away from the television.
"Got it, bro." replied Hiro without stopping. His brother turned back to the set, showing a few people debating the values of a next-generation, deep-immersion game, simply known by the name Morpheus Online, or MO. It was easy enough even before that - as he's already heard about MO - to guess what the package was about. There could only be two things in that package that he'd run all the way upstairs for, and the only place he's ever known Hiro to order something fish-related from is the local McDonald's joint. 

Upstairs, Hiro opened his bedroom door and took a moment to let the sight of the large, dark-gray box on his bed sink in - it was that exciting a prospect to him. Imagine listening to the sounds and serenades of the game not flow out from his headphones - but flow and wrap all around him instead! All the sights, all the scents, all the new treats for the senses! Hiro walked inside, prompting the overhead fan to come to life, and closed the door behind him. The quality of the packaging alone was enough to convince him that all the pocket money he'd saved up for the helmet and the game was worth it. 

A whole new world, once fiction, now fact. 

Hiro's lips curved into an excited smile.