Chapter 293: Side Effect
Lily had never felt so exhausted when she logged back into reality. Despite technically having been laying down in a bed for hours, she felt like every part of her body was sore as if she had actually exercised and pushed herself to her limits!
However the worst part for her was her eyes. She closed her eyes as she felt a stinging pain coursing through them. She had a sinking feeling that this was a side effect of what she did in the game and it was now bleeding over into reality as well.
"Shit! SHit! Shit! I’m too pretty go blind now!"
She whined as she rolled a bit on the bed, until she rolled and bumped into the other person who was sharing her bed.
"What are you moaning and groaning about now Lily...."
Luna grumbled as she sat up, feeling unnaturally stiff. She was used to Lily’s theatrics and thought nothing of it. That was until she noticed Lily was actually crying from pain. Gripping her shoulders she immediately panicked and shouted for the others.
"Leo! Rachel! Come help!"
Leo was the first person that Luna thought of but then she remembered that Rachel actually did have a medical background so she called for her too. She would never be able to forgive herself if Lily was significantly injured.
Rachel was the first to arrive, literally sliding to a stop in front of the door and quickly entering the room, a rare look of concern on her face at hearing Luna’s panicked cry.
"What’s wrong?!"
"Lily’s eyes. She keeps saying it hurts!"
Lily cracked her eyes open slowly, blinking against the sting as Rachel leaned in to check.
Luna hovered beside her, clearly trying to stay calm but gripping Lily’s arm like she was afraid she’d vanish.
Rachel squinted, then tilted Lily’s chin gently.
"Well, you’re not blind. No burst vessels, no cloudiness, nothing unusual. Honestly? You just look tired. Probably eye strain from staring at weird magical lighting effects and shooting guns for hours. You should be fine if you drink some water and get some rest"
Luna exhaled sharply. "Thank the gods."
Rachel seemed to be pondering something before she shook her head and spoke again. " Just to be clear, when I say drink water, I mean it. Not pop. Not juice. Water."
Lily blinked again, then pouted.
"That’s boring."
Rachel shrugged. "So is retinal fatigue. Welcome to being human."
Leo entered right then, flanked by Penny, Crystal, Aria, and Adam. Rachel and Luna were still turned toward Lily, explaining the situation, but the rest of the group stopped short in the doorway.
It was at that moment the ceiling light blinked out with a soft click, and the room went dark.
Penny’s eyes widened. Crystal stiffened. Aria blinked slowly, confused. Even Adam’s expression shifted slightly.
"What?" Luna asked, glancing over, quietly annoyed that Lily had forgotten to turn out the lights and she would need to change the bulb herself later.
"It’s fine. Rachel said she’s okay."
Rachel nodded. "She just needs—"
Rachel and Luna paused. Something was off.
Luna turned. Rachel turned with her.
Then they both froze.
Lily was sitting up in bed, her blanket half draped over her lap. She looked completely ordinary...except for her eyes.
They glowed a bright, piercing green. Not just reflecting the light. They produced it. Her pupils were narrow and vertical, like a cat’s, and the illumination cast soft shadows on her cheeks and the wall behind her.
She blinked once, confused.
"What?" she asked. "Why are you all staring at me like that?"
Penny didn’t miss a beat. She pointed with her granola bar that she had raided from the kitchen as soon as she woke up.
"I dunno. Maybe because your eyes are glowing like a possessed housecat. And last I checked, our eyes aren’t supposed to do that!"
Lily blinked again, then tilted her head as the soft green glow from her eyes lit the front of her shirt. She looked down at her hands, then back at everyone, confused.
"What are you talking about?" she asked.
"Your eyes, Lily," Luna said carefully. "They’re... glowing."
"Glowing?" Lily echoed, voice uncertain.
She reached over to her nightstand, fumbling a little before grabbing a small hand mirror that sat beside a half-finished sketchbook. She angled it toward her face, squinting at the reflection.
There was a pause.
"Oh my god," she breathed. "That’s... that’s so cool."
She leaned in closer, watching her eyes gleam back at her with a sharp, feline glow. The color matched her natural green, but brighter, more intense, like emeralds catching candlelight.
"I look like a damn forest spirit," she whispered, almost in awe.
Rachel raised an eyebrow. "You good?"
Lily nodded slowly. "No. I mean yes. I mean... I can see. I can see the whole room. It’s pitch black but I can still make out everyone’s faces and the furniture and even the crack in the ceiling plaster."
She turned to Luna, wide-eyed and glowing. "I have night vision. I literally have built-in night vision now."
"That’s not normal," Penny said from the doorway, still pointing with her granola bar.
Lily grinned. "It’s amazing."
"That’s not normal," Penny repeated. "But also, I want it."
Lily smirked. "Jealous?"
Penny scoffed. "Obviously. Why do you get cool eye powers? All I got was paler skin and little baby fangs!"
"I guess the universe rewards beauty," Lily said with faux elegance, flipping her hair, which didn’t quite cooperate.
"You flipped out thinking you were going blind five minutes ago."
Luna calmly remarked with an incredulous look on her face.
"And now I can see better than all of you in the dark," Lily shot back. "That’s called growth."
Penny groaned. "I swear if you start purring I’m throwing something."
Rachel waved a hand between them as she let out a yawn, clearly growing tired herself. "Alright, alright. She’s not dying, her ego’s intact, and apparently she’s got cat eyes now. Can we all get some water and go back to not panicking?"
"Fine," Penny muttered, taking another bite of granola as she turned away. "But if she starts catching mice, I’m logging out."
Crystal shook her head and walked off without a word. Aria followed, still watching Lily curiously. Adam looked like he wanted to say something but he stopped himself, instead he just gave Lily one more look before turning to leave.
Luna relaxed a little, her hand still resting on Lily’s shoulder.
"You scared me, you know," she said softly.
"I scared myself," Lily admitted. "But now I think it’s kinda awesome."
She leaned against Luna, eyes still glowing faintly in the dark.
"I’m never stubbing my toe at night again."
Luna chuckled under her breath. "That might actually be the most useful superpower out of all of us."