Chapter Text
Logan wasn’t a fan of where his life was at the moment. Sure, he was successful. He was a head doctor in a city hospital and had his own house in the suburbs. He even had a West Highland Terrier he called Rubiks. But that was all he had.
“Rubi! I have a treat for you fella!” Logan called into his empty house, mellowing in the silent darkness until he heard the happy barks of his little puppy. The doctor shook the new treat packet he got his dog and the dog jumped and barked more in return. It was such a cute sight whenever Rubiks got treats – so Logan ended up getting a new packet at least weekly. The dog slabbered up the treats without hesitation. “Good boy!”
The house came to silence again as Rubiks ate his treats, causing the gentleman to sigh. He already had a bad day, many losses of life and some went too soon, but that was the life of being a doctor. Seeing grieving families made Logan realise how much he wanted a strong family structure to return to after hard days.
He made his attempts at dating in high school – but he was always awkward and never had good ideas for first dates. When college came he had to focus completely in order to become a doctor. Romance came last in his worries… But now they wish it didn’t.
The only sanctity Logan had was through dating sim video games. He could just pretend to have a partner, even if it was just half an hour. So Logan walked to the kitchen and got his laptop and a jar of Crofters’ jam. When he sat on the sofa Rubiks sat next to him with a chew toy. “Right… Uh great I need to get a new one.” Logan sighed to himself, seeing that all the dating sims he had already bought were played to completion. Now he had to search.
After some searching one title that caught Logan’s eyes was called: ‘Find Your Soulmate’. It was a gay male dating sim – which Logan didn’t mind as he was pansexual so really settled for anyone to take out on dates. The graphics looked ultra-realistic, and honestly the more realistic the better. Logan was a lonely guy.
The game quickly downloaded – quicker than it should but since the game was free there was nothing to particularly lose. Logan was giving Rubiks a pat as the game started. The first screen showed a simple text:
Pick who you want to date! Choose one, two, or all five!
Five? Oh boy, Logan was going to be spoilt for choice. He would happily take five electronic first dates over no dates in any form at all.
The next screen showed what looked like five dating profiles. The first one showed a man with curly blond hair and circular glasses, and he had a glorious smile, and he wore a blue crop top with light grey overalls which had paint all over. “Cute!” Logan cheered to himself as if he wasn’t just staring at a dozen pixels. Under the picture was a simple summary.
Patton Thomason
Likes – Animals, candy, all things sweet and cute! (like you!).
Dislikes – Mean people and spiders.
Hi-Hi! I’m Patton and I identify as cisgender and pansexual. I work at a daycare/kindergarten during the weekdays and volunteer at the local animal shelter during the weekends! I’m looking for someone who can see the positive sides of life and enjoys a good cuddle (and can deal with cute pets). Maybe I can take you to the shelter sometime?
Logan swiped right at that profile; his cheeks slightly pink at the cuteness already. The next profile that came up showed much the inverse of Patton’s aesthetic. He had tattoos all over his body up to his neck and wore just a black tank top and shorts. He had a mischievous smile on his face as he stared into the camera.
Remus Garcia
Likes – Touch, mischief, adventures anywhere!
Dislikes – Eh, I get on with everyone. Just don’t be a dick (you can have one though).
Hello there, you’re looking at Remus who goes by he/they pronouns and enjoys anyone who identifies as androgynous. I’m not employed at the moment as I take the bull from the horns on experiences – but I can play guitar and sing. I hope we can enjoy some time together sometime soon…
Well, Logan wasn’t that indifferent to a friskier electronic date. He would just have to shoo Rubiks away as he didn’t want to traumatise his puppy. With a swipe right the third profile came up – and at first Logan thought he encountered a glitch as the third profile’s picture looked very similar to Remus’. The only difference was the lack of tattoos, but he still had the same dark olive skin and chocolate brown eyes and was dressed in a prince outfit. Once he saw the profile’s name though he realised they must be brothers. Well, written to be brothers.
Roman Garcia
Likes – Theatre, literature and art.
Dislikes – Criticism! There is no reason to say a mean word to anyone else!
Hello there you amazing person! I am Roman, my pronouns are he/him, and I’m gay (as gay as they come). You’ll have to enjoy the higher things in life to date me – like theatre and expansive novellas, since I’m employed to write both plays and books. I cannot stand boring conversations. But if you think you won’t bore me, feel free to swipe right!
“Ugh… That’ll probably be my least favourite level.” Logan complained to his dog and fed him more treats once he started to bark again. Still, it was just a video game, he could just turn off the game and rage quit the level. He could also swipe left… But also it might give some realism. Reluctantly he swiped right and took a deep breath in. But it was released when he saw the fourth profile. Dark skinned, a semi-colon tattoo on his wrist, and one of his eyes covered by his curls. There was a more gentle look in his eyes compared to the previous two, but it wasn’t overwhelmingly sweet like Patton’s.
Virgil Musa
Likes – Quiet times, cups of coffee, and long walks on the beach (typical I know).
Dislikes – Loud noises, sudden movements, unexpected plans.
Hello? I’m Virgil, I’m demiromantic, and I’m cisgender. This is all new to me so please don’t kill me or anything. If you choose me I’ll probably take you out for coffee, since my brother works there and he pushed me into this whole dating app. He will judge you – I’m sorry. Swipe left or right, whichever makes you feel more comfortable, but I’d love to meet someone nice on here!
Honestly, if Logan were to go on any dates in real life he’d probably choose a coffee date. It just seemed a lot more relaxing than the other stereotypical dates, although he can’t imagine getting judged by a close relative on the first date would work that well in real life. Still, there was something about Virgil that seemed nice and down-to-earth, and he’d probably have a fun level so Logan swiped right.
The final profile showed a pixel image of a pale person in yellow, an inviting smirk on their face as they sat with an open book on their lap. Their entire background was a giant bookshelf too. Now this was Logan’s real life type. Their hair was a darker blond and they seemed to have heterochromia, one eye light brown the other more green. The profile was more mysterious than the others too.
Janus Dulik
Likes – Reading, learning about the world and people.
Dislikes – Insufferable people that don’t want to appreciate differences
Janus, they/them, bisexual. Swipe right and I’ll take you for an adventure of a lifetime, you won’t regret it.
Logan swiped right with no hesitation… Then the screen went white. Was that the game? Just viewing five profiles and imagining five separate fantasies? Not what he was expecting. But now his computer was heating up too. Hopefully there was no virus on his computer otherwise that would be an interesting story to explain to the technician. But before he could press the off button a loud ringing came from the computer, chasing Rubiks away. “Rubi it’s O-“
The world went black.