You ever kiss someone who doesn't exist?
Not like metaphorically doesn't exist, like "she broke my heart and now she's dead to me." I mean literally. As in: she's a character from a movie, and you're not supposed to be able to kiss her because, well... she's not real.
But then again, I wasn't exactly playing by the rules anymore.
After Emma Watson,I mean, her character,held my face like I was the only real thing in a world made of set props and scripted lines, something changed.
[SKILL UNLOCKED: Character Affection : LVL 1]
It popped up in my mind like a floating subtitle. At first, I thought I was going insane. But no,this was a new ability. A skill. I could now influence the hearts of fictional characters. Flirt with Catwoman? Yep. Make Elsa melt for me? Probably illegal in at least three kingdoms. Point is, the skill worked.
Kind of.
I tried it again in a gritty crime thriller. The femme fatale went from slapping me to calling me "tiger" in less than five minutes. Then, in a romantic comedy, the quirky lead canceled her wedding for me… and promptly punched me when she found out I wasn't even in the script.
So yeah, it was buggy. Powerful, but buggy.
But something else had started bothering me. A bigger itch. A question:
Why me?
Why did I get this tape? This power? This freedom to leap into Hollywood's wildest dreams like I owned the director's chair?
The VHS had stopped choosing films for me after my second mission. Now I could pick. That was the scariest part. Freedom. Full control. There were no rules anymore.
Well, one.
Every movie I entered… gave me something.
A memory. A skill. A wound. A warning.
It wasn't just playtime anymore. It was evolution. I was learning something about myself with each jump.
And this next film? I didn't choose it because of plot, or action, or Oscar-worthy acting.
I chose it because… well, Emma Watson. Don't blame me, I was obsessed .
That's exactly what you'll do if you could jump movies like me.
This time, it was a fantasy adventure. Swords. Sorcery. Dragons. You know the deal. I figured I'd test "CharacterAffection" again. Maybe she'd fall for me harder this time. Maybe I'd actually feel something too.
Spoiler: I did.
She recognized me.as in it again.
Not just in a déjà vu way. No. She remembered. "You…" she whispered in one scene.That stopped me cold.
"What do you mean?" I asked, trying to play it cool, even though I was two seconds away from losing my grip on reality.
Her gaze softened. "You're like a crack in the glass. A beautiful one… but a crack still."
Cue emotional music. Cue dramatic close-up. Cue my heart having a tiny, pixelated panic attack.
I kissed her anyway. She kissed back.
And just like that, the affection skill leveled up.
[Character Affection LVL 2: You now leave a lingering memory in the character's mind, even after you leave the film.]
Oh. Shit.
Now I was emotionally infecting movies.
Like a weird virus with nice hair and commitment issues.
After we defeated the evil warlock and rode off into the sunset, I stayed back. Watching her from the shadows of the credits. She smiled at nothing. Like she could still feel my hands, still hear my laugh.
Then she said something.So faint, I almost thought I imagined it."Come back."
And the screen flickered.
The real world returned. My room. The tape. The flickering VHS player that had no business working in 2025.
I sat down. Staring at it.Something wasn't right.
The power… the tape… the memories…
It wasn't random.
There was a purpose to this.
And maybe… just maybe… I was starting to figure it out.
Or maybe I was falling in love with pixels.
Either way, I was screwed.