Chapter 1

I started working for “The Hub” a year ago.  Working for a social media company was my lifelong dream.  Ever since I opened my first social media account I was fascinated with being able to trace degrees of separation within an extended circle of friends.  I never imagined that those same platforms would become media empires and would control every facet of daily information consumption.

I’m Ryan.  I’m in the middle of my career.  I busted my ass for the past 20 years from company to company developing a whole bunch of algorithms that consumed social media information and used it to build apps for people.  I worked my way up each company’s corporate ladder before finally my resume was good enough for The Hub.

The Hub was the largest social media company in the world having overtook the previous leaders last decade.

Getting here required me to sacrifice having a normal life.  I didn’t have any friends, and I rarely saw my family.  My career was my only focus.

When I was first hired by The Hub, I kept my head down, and coded away.  I used a whole bunch of code that took what people posted and created predictive algorithms designed to help advertisers market products individually to each person.

I lived a rather boring life, so I don’t know why Eric took an interest in me.

Eric is the CEO’s son.  He’s the playboy type and maybe a decade younger than me.  He found me one day and we struck up a friendship.  We had nothing in common, but maybe he saw getting me to come out of my shell as a challenge.

It started casually with lunch, moved to after work drinks, then it was a weekend hiking trip.  Somehow, he convinced me to go skydiving.  Each time he introduced me to a new experience I was scared shitless.  But I found myself getting addicted to the adrenaline rush.

Which brings us to this month.  Eric wasn’t coasting on his nepotism.  He actually was in charge of a secret division of The Hub.  He had grand visions of including virtual reality into the network.  Eric wanted to show me his secret project.  He called it Wonderland.

“What is Wonderland?” I asked.

“Imagine the movie The Matrix,” Eric said. “Now imagine if it was real.  Imagine that it was a desirable place to go.  Imagine you were Cypher and the real world sucks so much that you just want to live in a fantasy world.  That’s Wonderland.”

“Isn’t that what all of those second life applications were about?” I asked

“Yes. but this is different.  This is better.  This is real.  Wonderland lets you choose a pre-existing persona that you can live in for 24 hours.  You tap into that person.  Live a different life for a day.  Leave and you’re back in the real world.  It’s the ultimate walk a mile in someone else’s shoes.”

“In Wonderland, you can leave the real world behind and live 24 hours as someone else.  Be a celebrity.  Be a pro sports player.  Hell, you can be someone boring and just live a quiet 24 hours.  It’s up to you.”

“This can’t be real.” I said.

“It is very real.” he said.  “And I’d like you to join me on my beta test.”

“Me?” I asked.

“Yes you” he said.  “It’ll be fun.”

“When?” I asked. “Sunday night.  We’ll do the simulation all day Monday.  Don’t worry, you can charge your time to the project.”

“Isn’t Monday Valentine's Day?” I asked.

He scoffed.  “As if you have a date for Valentine's day.”

“Hey” I said.  I mean I didn’t.  But what if I had.  I let it go because his offer was more intriguing than a date night.

* * *

It didn’t take much convincing.  After all, the idea was tantalizing.  Leave behind my boring career-centered life for 24 hours?  Yes, please.

After work, Eric and I made our way to the Wonderland lab.  It was in a nondescript building on The Hub’s campus.

“Remember,” Eric said.  “This is all secret and still in development.”

I was forced to sign a whole bunch of notices of intellectual property agreements and liability waivers before I was allowed in the building.

The first room was just a generic office lobby.  One would never expect that behind the next door was a state of the art simulation platform.

A woman came out to greet us, take our signed forms and explain the rules to us.  “Hi, I’m Anna Davis, Quality Control specialist for Wonderland.”

We greeted her with a quick handshake.

“Rule number 1” she said. “Don’t tell people in the simulation they’re in a simulation, our algorithms don’t handle that well.  Please don’t pretend you're in the Matrix and try freeing other people’s minds. All of the data is persistent and we don’t want to have to scrub the databases. Question on Rule 1?”

Eric and I shook our heads.

“Great,” she continued.  “Rule number 2 is don’t do anything illegal.  You may be tempted, but again, it’s a mess we don't want to clean up. Questions?”

Again we shook our heads.

“The goal is to live the other person’s life for 24 hours.” she continued.  “Go to work.  Hang out with friends and family. Explore not being yourself.”  She handed us both a tablet.  “You may pick your avatar from here.”

I quickly glanced at the tablet.  I recognized faces immediately.  “Wait, these are real people.”

“Yes.” she said.  “Every avatar in the simulation is based on a real person’s life.  We’ve preselected various celebrities, athletes, etc.”

I scrolled through the pictures.  She was right.  I recognized actors, athletes, and politicians.

She then held up a cell phone. “When you get into Wonderland, you will have the Wonderland app on your phone.  This will give you everything you need to know to interact with the simulation.  It will tell you where you live, where your job is, the names of family and friends, etc.  You can even use it to communicate back with the command center.  Questions?”

“No.” we said.

“The locker room is straight through this door.  Please choose your avatar then disrobe completely.”

“Disrobe?”

“No garments are allowed in our immersion tanks.” she said.

Eric and I walked into the locker room.

“Who are you going to be?” he asked.

“I don’t know yet.” I said.

“I’m going to be him,” he said, holding up his table.  On the screen was an image of a famous male pop star.  “I’m going to throw a wicked party.”

“Weird” I said.  “I thought the goal was to live a different lifestyle.”

He playfully nudged me then started to take his clothes off.

I kept my eyes to myself.  I hated locker rooms.  I hated being around other naked men.

“See you in a day!” he said standing at the door naked.  “Have fun, Ryan.”

I nodded then turned my attention back to my tablet.

I scrolled through the tablet looking at celebrities.  I found a filter that allowed me to look at non-celebrities.  Normal people. I stopped at a cute looking girl.  I felt butterflies in my stomach.

What nobody knew about me is that I think I might be transgender.  I haven’t told anyone for fear that it would impact my career.  I’ve had thoughts about wanting to live life as a woman but never followed through with it.

But here I am.  I can actually choose to live 24 hours as a cis woman and no one would know.

I clicked on the profile of this girl.  Ashley.  29 years old.  Not Married. Computer Analyst.  It displayed several pictures of Ashley with friends.

I nervously looked around.  I wanted to do this.  I wanted to be her. 

I clicked “Choose this person”.

A message popped up saying “Selection confirmed.  Please disrobe and enter the simulation room.”

I was excited and nervous.  I’m going to be 29 year old Ashley for 24 hours.

I took my clothes off, put them on hangers and hung them up.  I walked naked to the simulation room and opened the door.

It was a dimly lit room.

The woman from earlier was there waiting for me.  I modestly covered my penis.

“Please lie down in the tank.” she said.

I walked over and examined it.  A large tank, bigger than a bathtub.  It was filled halfway with what appeared to be water. I climbed the stepping stool and put my legs into the liquid.

It was warm and pleasant.  I sat down next then fully laid down.  The tank was deep enough for me to float a little bit.

“Don’t try to swim.” she said.   She handed me a plastic breathing tube.  “Start breathing into the tube, close your eyes and just drift.”

I put the tube into my mouth and started breathing through it.  I closed my eyes and I could feel myself sink a little.

Before long I noticed my back didn’t touch the bottom any more.  I opened my eyes for an instant.  More liquid was entering the tank.

Each breath would make my body float back to the top.

“Close your eyes” she reminded me.

I closed them.  The ambient light through my eye slides suddenly went dark as they closed the tank on me.    I opened my eyes one more moment to realize I was in complete darkness.

I was floating in the dark.  I felt weightless.  There was no sound.  No light.  I closed my eyes again.

I wondered when the simulation would start.

I eventually drifted off.

* * *

I woke up to an alarm chime.  I opened my eyes.  I was disoriented for a moment.  I was in an unfamiliar bedroom.  Then I remembered I fell asleep in the Wonderland simulation.  

When I didn’t shut the alarm off right away, a calm computerized voice announced.  “Good Morning.  It’s 7 AM on Monday February 14th.  The current temperature is 68 degrees fahrenheit.  Today’s top new stores are..” 

I clicked “Dismiss” on the cell phone.

I could already tell things were different.  I was shorter.  I felt my center of gravity was different.  It was dim in this bedroom, so I opened the blinds.

The blinding sun shone through the window and illuminated the bedroom.  It was a tastefully decorated room.  White walls, house plants, dressers.  A mirror. 

I walked over to the dresser that had clothes strewn across it and looked into the attached mirror.  

My reflection was the woman I picked earlier.  Ashley.  Except she had messed up hair and was wearing a t-shirt and shorts.

The first thing I did was bring my hands up to her modest breasts.  The moment I cupped them, I felt euphoria.  So this is what it feels like.

I stood in the mirror and took off the t-shirt to get a better look at what this simulation has given me.  

She wasn’t a model, She seemed like any other cute neighbor you’d see.  Some freckles, a few moles.

“Wow Eric.” I said with my new feminine voice.  “This is amazing.  You’re going to make a fortune on this.”

I had a slight pang of regret that I didn’t contribute to coding this.  This was amazing.

I picked up the phone and searched for the Wonderland app.  It was the last app listed.  I opened it and clicked the “Job” tab.

Apparently I’m supposed to be at work at 8:30.  I should probably get dressed then.  

I gleefully ran to the closet to start my day

Chapter 2

I checked the Wonderland app to see what Ashley likes to wear to work. The Dress code of her office is business casual.  Ashley wears a variation of blouses and pencil skirts and slacks.  

I opened her closet to reveal a whole bunch of outfits I wanted to try. Dresses, blouses, skirts.  Unfortunately I only have 24 hours to do this.

I pulled out a pale blue blouse and a patterned pencil skirt.  I remembered the alarm saying it was going to be a warm day.  No tights.  I’m going to bare my legs like I’ve always wanted to do.

I turned on the shower and started removing the clothes that were on this body.  Under the t-shirt was no bra.  Ashley had what I would call perfect breasts.  Not too much, not too little.  Just enough.  Very cute pink areolas.  I took off the shorts to reveal pink polka dot panties. I slide those off too. Her hair down below was shaped into a heart.  Cute.

I felt my legs. A little prickly. I was going to need to shave them.

I walked into the shower and felt the hot water cascade off my head and shoulders.  This simulation is amazing.  It feels like the real thing. Granted my real body is currently submerged in a tank, yet I can feel everything in this environment.

I looked at Ashley’s selection of shampoos and conditioners and went to work washing my hair.  Next was the razor and shaving cream.  What nobody knows is that I‘ve actually been shaving my legs for 2 years, so this was easy.  Ashley’s legs were shorter and thinner than mine and her hair wasn’t nearly as thick so I was done quicker than usual.

I got out of the shower and dried off with a towel.  I wrapped my hair up in a towel and I draped a second towel around my chest like I’ve always wanted to do.

I found a matching  bra and panty set, put them on, and admired myself in the mirror for a few minutes.

I started brushing and blow drying my hair.  Looking at Ashley’s pictures shows she keeps her hair straight with a center part.  So that’s simple enough.

After my hair was dry, I put the blouse and skirt on and admired my reflection.  I had attempted to cross dress a few years back when I had a female roommate.  She never knew that I snuck into her room when she was out with her boyfriend.   I always looked like a dude in a dress.  But now - Ashley is hot.

Stupid Eric.  He chose some goofy celebrity to spend a day as.  I chose a hot woman and I am having zero regrets.

I looked at Ashley’s The Hub profile pictures and attempted to mimic her makeup.  My attempt wasn’t perfect but I think it was close enough.  The Wonderland app told me that her everyday look included eye shadow, mascara, and lip gloss.

Shoes.  I saw Ashley’s shoe rack.  Wow.  A lot of shoes.  Which ones will be good for work?  I saw a pair of black flats that looked like they were worn every day.  Ashley likely wears those to work.  I saw a pair of black heels.  But I’m going to wear those heels today.

I put the heels on and practiced walking around the room with them.  This is not the first time I’ve worn heels, but it has been a while.

I found a purse at the front door.  I examined the contents.  A wallet, keys, a brush, and chapstick.  I opened the wallet to reveal credit cards, cash, and a driver's license.  The attention to detail in this sim is amazing.

I dropped my phone into the purse and walked out the front door.  Outside was a neighborhood of rowhomes.  I locked the door behind me.

I pulled the phone and app out and let it lead me to the subway.

I found Ashley’s subway pass tucked into the back of her work badge.  I walked into the station and caught the next train heading in my directions.  4 stops later I got off the train and walked out of the station.  I was in the middle of a bustling city with skyscrapers lining the street.

I followed the app to Ashley’s office.

Ashley had some kind of analyst job and I spent the morning hours writing and compiling reports.  My mind was mostly distracted by being in a woman’s body.  Every sense was heightened.  I could feel my bare thighs rub against each other.  I could feel my breasts bounce when I walked.  I noticed each and every male walk by, look at me and smile.

The Wonderland app told me every colleague's name, so I managed to strike up conversation with everyone who the app told me I was friendly with.

Around lunch time a delivery came.  It was a bouquet of roses.  There was a message. “Happy Valentine's Day, Ash! Looking forward to our date tonight.  I’ll meet you outside Union Station. - Bill 

Oh shit.  Ashley has a Valentine's day date.  I didn’t know that when I picked her.  Now I have to go on a date with a guy.  I’m not gay and very much into women.  I’m sure I could cancel.  Bill wouldn’t mind right?”

I looked at my personal calendar in The Hub.  Sure enough, “VDay with Bill <3” was listed for today.  My feedback for Wonderland will include not giving me my avatar’s calendar for that day before selecting them.  Or maybe that was part of the allure.  Being surprised like this.

My phone vibrated.  It was the The Hub app.  Bill messaged me.  “Hey babe.  I just sent you flowers. I Love you!”

I started typing “I’m going to have to cancel” but didn’t hit send.  I've been given a unique opportunity here.  Sure Bill is a guy, but I’m currently a very attractive woman.  When in Rome, right?  I erased my message and instead typed back “Can’t wait.  Love you too!”  I hit send.  

I guess I’m going to have evening plans now. This gives me an opportunity to find and try a sexy outfit.

* * *

The rest of Ashley’s workday was rather quiet. It was a huge change from my busy work day where I would end up working late often.  I closed up my computer, grabbed my purse and headed back home through the subway.

When I got home I picked out a little red dress and matching red heels.  I also found black lingerie in the underwear drawer.  I took off my work clothes and slipped into the lacy underwear.  I danced sexily in front of the dresser mirror.

“Hub” I called to the phone.  “What’s tonight’s temperature?”

“This evening will be 70 degrees fahrenheit with a low of 62” the phone replied.

I could go bare leg again, but I really wanted to try out pantyhose.  I found a cute pair that had tiny hearts all over them. Perfect for tonight’s date.

I pulled the hose up each leg, smoothing it out.  God I felt so sexy.

I did a time check, then threw on the red dress.  I touched up my makeup and brushed my hair, grabbed my purse and headed back into the city.

I met Bill at Union Station like he requested.

Bill was taller than me - or rather taller than Ashley.  I’d say he was my height, but had a more athletic build than I did.  He was dressed in a suit and tie.

“Hey beautiful,” he said with a smile.  

He leaned in, and I decided to go with the flow as our lips touched. 

Kissing a man.  It was OK I suppose.  I was already turned on being in this body, but kissing him definitely turned me on more.  I felt his hands on my waist and it reminded me of how hot this body was that I kissed him more

He broke this kiss and chucked.  “Dinner first?”

“Let’s,” I said with a smile.

Bill led me two city blocks to a fancy restaurant that had a line of couples waiting outside the doors.  Bill walked us past the line.  We had a reservation and were seated within 2 minutes.

Bill ordered us drinks.  I ordered a special Valentine's Day cocktail that tasted like various rums.  I ordered a lobster tail.  Hey, if he’s paying, right?

The conversation was pleasant.  We talked about our day.  Apparently we’ve been dating for 6 months and met one day on the subway.  I could tell he was eager to get dinner over with.  It just occurred to me what I may have gotten myself into.  Ashley and Bill are likely sexually active.  Bill is going to expect sex tonight after all of this wining and dining.

I could feel my adrenaline kick in.  Just like all of the other crazy stuff Eric has made me too.  This might be the craziest.

Bill paid for our dinner.  We casually walked back to the subway holding hands.  We stopped at the station entrance.

The silence lingered there for a moment before he said.  “Your place or mine?”

I didn’t know what to say. Should I say “Not tonight?”  Instead I wanted more excitement and said.  “Mine.”

I led Bill back to Ashley’s place.  The moment we walked through the door, Bill threw himself at me.  I didn’t resist.  Instead I lost myself in the moment and gave myself to him freely.

Off came my red dress and heels.  Off came his suit, his tie.  I was lying in my bed in my sexy lace underwear.  We kissed. I could feel his hands on my bare skin.  I could feel his dick poking into my thigh through his boxers.  He cupped my breasts and I closed my eyes and smiled.  Off came my lace bra.  Bill started playing with my nipples.  First with his fingers.  Then his tongue.  I let out a moan.  I wanted more.

I ran my hand down to my groin.  I was wet.  I rubbed my clit for a few minutes while he was kissing me and attended to my breasts.  

I could tell he was waiting for something.  He was a gentleman and was waiting for the go ahead.

I looked into his eyes and told him “Take me.”

And he did.  Off came my lacy underwear. Off came his boxers. Before I knew it, I felt his member slide into my wet pussy.  

Oh my god this is amazing.  How is this possible? I’m a man in a simulation and I can feel everything.  I don’t have a vagina yet I can feel him thrusting into me.  

I came about 5 times.

Bill fell asleep spooning me. 

I was coming off an amazing high.  My 24 hours were just about up.  I kept having the same recurring thought.  I’m going to need to do this again.

* * *

The alarm from yesterday went off.  “Good Morning.  It’s 7 AM on Tuesday February 15th.  The current temperature is 65 degrees fahrenheit.  Today’s top new stores are..” 

I reached over and dismissed the alarm.  I looked to my side and Bill snoring next to me.  I expected to wake up in the tank.  What?  It’s been over 24 hours.  I shouldn’t still be in the simulation.

I jumped out of bed in a panic.  I searched for the Wonderland App.  It was gone.

Chapter 3

“It’s gone.” I said, frantically swiping around my phone.

“What’s wrong babe?” Bill said, rolling over to look at me.

“The simulation app.” I said, forgetting rule number 1.

“What?” he said.

“Um, nevermind.” I said.

There must be a way to get in contact with the Wonderland operators.  There must be a way to tell them I didn’t wake up.

Bill got up out of bed and gave me a hug and kissed me.  “Good Morning to you too” he said, kissing my bare shoulder.  Did he not notice how panicked I was?  “Is something wrong?  Did you oversleep?”

“No, I'm fine.” I said.  “Just a bad dream.”

Bill walked naked over to my dresser and opened one of my drawers and pulled out men’s clothes.  I didn’t realize he had a drawer at my place.

I looked at my phone.  I can call Eric.  But I don’t have his number memorized.  Does he even exist in the simulation?  I know The Hub exists in the simulation.  I wonder if calling headquarters will result in a direct call to the real world.

I searched on the phone for the number for The Hub.  When Bill was in the bathroom and out of hearing range I called them.  I gave them my name and I was looking for Eric or Ms Davis.

The person who took my call put me on hold.

“Are you taking off today?” Bill asked me, coming out of the bathroom.

“I’m not sure,” I said.  

“Is there anything I can help you with?” he asked.

“I don't think so,” I replied.

“Ash, you’re being very cryptic and you’re starting to worry me.  As much as I love you standing there naked, I think something’s wrong.”

“Hello?” a different voice answered the phone.

“Yes, I am looking for the people in charge of the Wonderland division.”

“Miss, that division doesn’t exist here. I think you may have the wrong number.” they replied

“How about Anna Davis?  She’s in charge of quality control?”

“Listen, we are very busy here at The Hub.  If you’re having problems with your app, please contact technical support.”

“But that’s what I-”

Click.

“What’s going on?” Bill asked.

“They hung up on me.” I said.  

Maybe this is all just a simulation and I can't contact them through simulation.  

“Hello!” I said out loud to nobody. “I’m done.  It’s time to let me out.”

“Ash?” Bill said.  “You’re scaring me.”

“The simulation is broken!” I yelled to the walls.

“Simulation?” he said.

“Yeah, don’t worry about it.  You’re just part of the simulation. You should get to work.”

He stared at me. “You think I’m a simulation?”

I sighed.  “Dont’ worry about it.”

“Is that what the past 6 months have been to you?”

“I didn’t mean it that way. You.  This apartment. Me. Isn’t real.”

“I’m not a simulation.” Bill said in frustration.  “Neither is our relationship. I’m real.  I have a family and a job. I’ve lived 30 years.”

“An elaborate backstory created by computer algorithms.” I said.  “Well, likely generated by information you provided to The Hub. So yeah, there’s likely a real Bill, but you’re not him.” 

“There’s no way you can create a simulation using stuff I posted to social media.” he said.

“It’s possible,” I said.  “I wrote the algorithms. I know how much data The Hub collects.”  I pulled up my phone and looked for directions back to headquarters from here.

“I don’t have a Hub account.” he said.

I stopped what I was doing and looked at him.  “You don’t?”

“No.” he said.  “But you know that already.  You’ve joked with me about it when we first met.” He paused for a moment “What do you think is going on here?”

I realized I am making a huge mistake.  So many thoughts are running through my head.  If this isn’t a simulation, then this is real life.  If this is real life then someone across the country is in my body sitting in an immersion tank waiting for me to wake up.  And if that’s true, I’m going to need to get there.  And I’m going to need an ally. I can’t tell him I’m not Ashley.  He’d lose all trust in me.

“I was under the impression the last 24 hours were a simulation.”  I said.   “It was… an experiment… to see the different permutations that Valentine's Day could go…  given all the data The Hub knows about us.”

“That sounds like far fetched sci-fi crap.” he said.  “Honey, this has all been real.”

I nodded. “I think I may have been tricked. That’s why I need to get to The Hub headquarters.”

“Where is that?” he asked.

I held up my phone to show the directions to The Hub from here.

“That’s 8 hours away!” he said.

“I know.” I replied.  “Can you take me?”  It occurred to me that I didn't know if Bill had a car or not.

“Yeah” he said.  “I’m parked a few blocks from my apartment of course.”

“Of course.” I said. 

“And I’ll have to call out sick.” he said.

“Me too” I replied.

“And you’ll need clothes” he added.

I looked down and realized for the first time since waking up I was standing there completely naked.

* * *

After I found a casual outfit, hopped on the subway and went to Bill’s house to get his car, we started our journey. During the long 8 hour drive, Bill and I made casual small talk.   I tried to keep the conversation away from the truth.

It felt like I lost a little bit of his trust. He must think I’ve gone off the deep end.  I wanted to try to repair that.

“Bill,” I said.

“Yeah?”

“Last night was amazing.”

He nodded.  “You called it a simulation.  You thought it wasn’t real.”

“It was so awesome, so perfect.” I said.  “I should’ve known that it was real.”

I’m so stupid.  I didn’t realize it before.  This was never a simulation.  Everything felt real because everything was real.  

At first I considered that maybe I was a synthetic person who my consciousness has been uploaded into. Ms Davis did call it an avatar. But then I remembered the tablet.  Everyone there was real.  If this is a synthetic Ashley, then there was a real Ashley.  If that’s the case, where is the real Ashley?

“So how does this simulation work?” Bill asked

“Well, on Sunday night I went to The Hub headquarters.” I said.  “They told me I would live in a simulation for 24 hours.  They put me in an immersion tank. I woke up at… my apartment.”

“But you were with me Sunday night,” he said.  “We watched a movie and ordered wings.  Then you went straight home afterwards.”

“I don't know what’s real anymore” I said.

I grabbed my hand.  “We are real.” he said.  “And I’ll do anything to prove to you that my love is real.”

* * *

Eight hours later we arrived at The Hub.  The same place where I work.  I had Bill drive around the parking lot.  I needed to know if this was real or a simulation.

That’s when I saw it.  My car.  In the same place I left it Sunday night.

But could that be part of the simulation too?  It hurt my head trying to think of all of the possibilities.  How many systems would be needed to create a simulation this elaborate?

I asked Bill to park near my car.  I got out and tested the doors.  It was locked.  I remembered my passcode.  I punched it into the door’s number pad and the door unlocked.

Bill looked on, amazed.  “Breaking and entering?  Whose car is that?”

“I didn’t break anything,” I said.  I reached into the center console and pulled out my badge.  I didn’t have it with me Sunday night since I went straight to Wonderland’s building with Eric.

“Stay here.” I said.

He nodded and smiled.  Then he leaned in and kissed me.  I kissed him back.  Maybe under different circumstances, I’d be game to see where this relationship went.  If this was a simulation, I was willing to come back and revisit Ashley and Bill.  I had fun being Ashley.  Maybe I can be Bill next time.  Or maybe I’ll stay Ashley.  This is nice.  My body started getting hot.  But that reminded me I had important things I needed to be doing.

I broke off the kiss.  “I need to get going.”

It was evening now and most workers had gone home.  I walked into the lobby and badged in and entered my passcode.  My goal was to get to my desk and find the number for Eric.  He’d know what to do.

I didn’t get very far before I was stopped by security guards.

Play it cool Ryan, you work here.  “Can I help you?” I asked.

One of the guards ripped the badge from my neck.  “This is stolen.”

Shit.

I ran.

They ran after me.  I knew the corridors pretty well after only working here for a year.  I burst through a fire exit and outside.  If I wasn’t going to make it to my desk, I suppose I should run to find Ms. Davis.  I ran towards the unmarked Wonderland building.  

I looked behind me and nobody was running after me.

I slowed down to catch my breath.  I opened the non-descript door to Wonderland and found the guards waiting for me inside.

Next to them was Ms. Davis. 

“Ryan.” Ms Davis said. “I’m glad you were able to communicate with us.”

“Oh, Thank God” I said.  “Nobody was believing me.”

“That makes sense,” she said.  “You don’t look like yourself.”

“You may be excused.” she told the guards.  They scattered away.

“I have so many questions,” I said.  “What is this really?  Why didn’t it end?”

“Like I said to you in person yesterday in the real world, this is a simulation.”

“But it’s so real,” I said.  “It couldn’t possibly simulate all of the things it’s simulationing.”

“Why not Ryan?” she asked.  “You’ve been a contributing coder to it.  You’ve seen the raw data The Hub brings in.”

“OK fine” I said.  “This was cool, I’m ready to end this.”

“Unfortunately because of the glitch, we can't recall you.  You’re going to need to manually terminate it.”

“Great,” I said.  “How do I do that?”

“You have to terminate your link to the avatar.” she said.

“OK.” I said, getting confused.  “I don't get it, Is there a disconnect switch around here somewhere?”

“You have to kill your avatar to terminate the connection.”

“Wait what?” I asked.  “What about not doing crazy shit in the simulation? Illegal stuff, messing up the continuity, etc?”

“We’ll have to do damage control anyway due to the glitch.” she said.  

“No.” I said.  “I can’t kill myself.”

“You’re in a simulation,” she said.  “You’re killing the avatar, not yourself. You are lying in an immersion tank in the real world.”

This felt wrong.  Despite her telling me I was still in the simulation, I no longer believed her.  She was trying to get me to kill myself.  My breathing increased.  I’m not safe here.

She must’ve noticed how frustrated I’ve become. “Ryan. We limit the simulation to 24 hours because after that the subject starts to lose their connection with reality.  Paranoia sets in.”

I started backing off.

“Ryan.” she said.

I ran out the door and back into the parking lot.

I saw Bill sitting in his car.  I opened the passenger door.  “Bill, we need to leave.”

Silence.

“Bill?”  I looked at him.  He had blood trickling down his forehead.

“Shit” I said, jumping out of the car.

“Ryan,” Ms Davis called from behind me.  “If you don’t do it yourself, we’re going to have to do it for you.”

I saw security guards trailing behind her.

They killed Bill.  They were trying to kill me next.

Chapter 4

I ran between cars and I could hear the sound of boots hitting the pavement.

I ducked down between cars and zigged and zagged through the parking lot.  Where was I going?  I tried to think of the best route to escape.  I can’t do this.  I’m a not a fighter or a soldier.  I’m a software guy.  I sit at a desk all day.  

I peeked through a car window. Bill’s car was still here.  But that would require me having to deal with a dead body. A dead body of someone I just has sex with last night.  My stomach turned to think that Bill died because of his association with me.

My own car was here.  But my keys are with the rest of my belongings in a locker inside the Wonderland building.

I could hear footsteps approaching.  I got up and dodged to the next car.

I heard a gun cock behind me and a male voice yell “Stop”

I looked to see a guard pointing his gun at me.  I involuntarily raised my hands.  It’s not like I had any weapons.

“Up,” he said.  Other guards surrounded us.

I slowly stood up while keeping my hands visible.  

“Move” he said.

I saw Anna Davis and she was talking into a phone.  “We have him.” she said.  “Understood.”

They escorted me back to the Wonderland building.  

Nothing else was said, but I walked with them and they led me back to the Simulation room.  Like when I was here on Sunday night, the lights were dim.

I heard the door shut and I looked around.  I was alone.  Neither the guards nor Ms Davis followed me in here.

Maybe I can run for it now.  Maybe I can find another exit.  I searched the wall for additional lights so I can search for more doors.  I found a slider and slid it up and the room grew brighter.

The room was bigger than I realized.  Lining the room were transparent tanks filled with bodies.  Just floating there in water.  

I looked at them, shocked at what I found.  Were they alive?  They didn’t appear to be breathing or hooked up to any machery.  Just floating in tanks.

I was stunned.  What is this place?  What was really going on here?  This isn’t simply just a virtual reality platform.  Does Eric know about this?

In the center of the room were the immersion tanks from earlier.  Only 3 of them.

I ran to the first one.  I opened the lid.  It was empty.

I ran to another.  Maybe Eric is still here.  Empty again.

Third time’s a charm.  Third one had me floating there.

My body’s eyes were open and staring straight up.

What do I say to my body?

“Ryan,” I said to myself.  

He didn’t respond.  

What if… “Ashley?” I said.

His eyes looked at me.  Holy shit.

I heard a door open.

“Ryan,”  Eric said from the door. “Is that you?”

“Eric,” I said.  “Oh thank god.  There’s been a mistake.  Something went wrong. Something’s not right here.”

He got closer so we could see each other better.  He looked calm and collected.  It suddenly occurred to me that he may know more about this place than I originally had thought.

“Ryan, look at you,” he said. “Wow.  I did not expect you to choose to hop into the body of a woman.  A hot one at that.”

“Eric, this thing isn’t a simulation is it?”  I asked.

“I knew you were the smart one.” Eric said.  

“You knew?” I asked.

“I’m the head of this division.  You’re right.  This isn’t a simulation.  Wonderland allows you to swap lives with a living individual for 24 hours allowing a paying customer to inject themselves into anyone’s life.”

“So I literally swapped places with Ashley in the real world?”

“Yes.”

“Why?” I said.  “You had me at the idea of an immersive simulation.  This was awesome - until I realized this was real life.”

“Imagine.  This has significant applications to… everything. Imagine a person whose body is failing them.   Imagine witness protection.  Or better yet, for the right price, someone can inject themselves into a world leader and make anything happen.  Powerful people will pay for this.”

“That’s sick,” I said.

“That's the ultimate power,” Eric replied.  “And I will make more money than anyone could possibly imagine.”  He came close to me and ran a finger along my bare arm.

I recoiled from his touch.  “So what happened?” I said.  “Why didn’t I swap back?”

“It never actually worked correctly,” he said.  “Ever. It’s supposed to swap both minds and keep the one here in stasis.  We’ve been able to inject a customer into a remote body, but on the trip back, the remote mind is lost.  We tested your body for signs of consciousness, but there isn’t any.”

“What about you?”

“I’ve never actually done this.  You only watched me enter the room.  The goal was to get you to be our guinea pig.  I’m much too valuable to test on.”

The growing dread that I was in danger here was starting to grow.  I looked to the immersion tank where my body was floating. “So Ashley is dead?”

“More like in a vegetive state.  For some reason the remote mind cannot function correctly in the local host.  We don't know why. Maybe they know what’s going on and are resisting it. We went back to the drawing board and made some changes.  I arranged to have you test out our fixes.  We were hoping that this time we would be able to save the remote mind.  We weren’t.  So back to the drawing board.” 

I’m hoping I can find a way out of this. I can bide my time so I can alert the authorities. Maybe if I offer my assistance.  “Fine.” I said.  “Put me back in my body and I can help you track down the bugs.”

“No, sorry Ryan,” he said.  “You know too much now.”  

So much for that idea.

He flipped a switch on my immersion tank and the breath monitors stopped. “Good night Ashley,” he said.

“You son of a bitch.” I said.  I went to turn the machines back on.  I wanted to turn it back on.  But he moved to block me.

“It’s over.” he said.

“But she looked at me.” I said.

“She’s brain dead,” he said.  “We already checked.”  He looked at me and shook his head in disappointment. “Previous beta testers were just content to live out their lives and never came looking for their previous life.” Eric said. “I thought you would’ve been one of those people.  You were the perfect tester.  No friends, no family.  If you went missing, nobody would know.  You didn’t like your life and were looking for a new one.  You should’ve lived out Ashley’s life.  You shouldn’t have come here looking for answers.”

I started backing away.

“Where are you going Ryan?”

I didn’t answer.

“It’s over,” he said. “There’s nowhere to go.”

I darted back across the room and into the locker room.  

“You’re just going to get more people killed, Ryan” he called.  “Ashley.  The guy in the car.”

I exited the locker room and down the hall towards the lobby.  I heard footsteps running towards me, so I ducked into a random room.  

It was a generic office space full of desks and computers.  

“Ryan” I heard Eric call from the hallway. “Come out come out.”

I heard footsteps running by me. 

I went over to a computer and wiggled a mouse.  The computer’s monitor came to life and displayed a login screen.

I entered my “The Hub” employee credentials.

“Access Denied” the screen read.

“Shit.” I whispered in frustration.

 I ran back into the hallway and heard a loud gunshot and I fell down.  Piercing pain like I had never felt came from my leg.  I let out a yell.

Eric was down the hall holding a gun.  

I could see blood gushing from my thigh. A leg shot?  Was he toying with me.

I grabbed a door handle and pulled myself up. The lobby and exit was between me and Eric. I was holding onto the handle to the locker room.

“Now you really can’t go anywhere.” he chuckled.

I decided to go back the way I came and into the locker room.

“There’s no exit that way” Eric called.

I closed the door behind me and locked it.  I found a deadbolt too.

I heard gunshots fire at the door handle and I limped away.

I was in so much pain.  I needed a new plan. I painfully limped to the locker where my stuff was.  I reached into my jacket pocket and my car keys fell out and onto the floor.

I tried to bend over but my leg throbbed too much and I collapsed onto the floor.  

I tried to hoist myself back up, but the pain was too much.

I sat there on the cold tile floor.  The pain was making it impossible to think.  I was getting tired and my eyes were getting heavy.  I tried to put pressure on my thigh.  It wasn’t enough.  The wound was too large and I was losing too much blood.  

My shirt from Sunday had fallen out of my locker.  I wrapped it around my leg.  I tighten it as the pain surged through my body.

Do I have any chance of escape? Any chance of getting to a hospital? Is this it?  Is this how my life ends?  I was blissfully happy yesterday.

I thought back to only 24 hours ago.  Valentine's Day.  A comforting warmth spread over me at the thought.  Eric was right.  I should’ve stayed.

The sharp pain broke me out of my dream.  I realized my eyes had closed and may have been dozing off…

I can’t feel my right leg past my knee anymore.

I looked beside me.  My car keys were still there.  I didn’t think I could get to my car anymore.  Beside the keys was a tablet.  I grabbed it and looked at it.  

The tablet was ready for another simulation.

I could hear people trying to unlock the door.

I have a slim chance.

I scanned the tablet for non-celebrities.  I only have one shot at this.  I found what I was looking for.  

I clicked “Choose this person”.

I started to crawl towards the simulation room.  I pulled myself up by the handle and hoped for the door.  

I managed to stand on my good leg.

I saw an empty tank.  

I hopped and limped over as far as I could before I fell down.

I crawled the rest of the way leaving a path of blood across the floor.

I found the controls.  They were simple.  I pulled the lever to start the liquid.  I turned on the breathing apparatus.

I could hear liquid flowing into the tank.

I saw a timer on the machinery.  Counting down from 30 seconds.

I don't have time to disrobe.  I grabbed the breathing tank and pulled myself into the tub.

I screamed in pain as my wound brushed the outside of the tank.

I fell into it.

I heard loud banging in front of the locker room.  They were just about through the door.  I put the breathing tube into my mouth and closed the lid to the tank.

How many seconds are left?

The tank I opened.  I opened my eyes and they fired shots at me through the water.  I felt the bullets piercing my chest.

My breathing stopped as the world got dim.

* * *

There was a moment during sex that Bill’s eyes locked with mine.  I was Ashley and the real world didn’t matter.  I could be Ashley forever.  I could see her and Bill's future together.  

Bill reached over and brushed my hair out of my face and gently caressed my cheek.  He whispered.  “I love you.”

I whispered “I love you too” back at him.

“How did I get so lucky?” Bill asked me.

I looked at him.  “I don’t want tonight to end.”

“It doesn’t have to” he said “Let’s just live in this moment forever.”

* * *