The Most Inefficient Promise

Dating hadn't changed Mia and Logan's lives all that much. Mia still raced to meet deadlines, and Logan squeezed in time between meetings. Sometimes they spent twenty minutes together over lunch. Other days, they sat side by side in a cabin inside ARCA, each absorbed in their own work.

What had changed was how hard it had become to say goodbye.

"Five more minutes," Logan would say, refusing to let go of her hand.

Mia would glance at the time, then sit back down anyway. More than once, they'd nearly made each other late.

They saw each other almost every day, yet somehow, they missed each other more with every passing day.

When a torrential downpour swept across Bali, Mia discovered just how much.

Rain had been falling since dawn. By afternoon, it was so heavy she could barely make out the building across the street. Her accommodation briefly lost power, but she managed to finish her work using a backup connection.

ARCA was another matter.

𝘍𝘶𝘭𝘭 𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘪𝘴 𝘶𝘯𝘢𝘷𝘢𝘪𝘭𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦.

She tried again and again. The same message appeared every time.

Mia sent Logan a message, and her phone rang almost immediately.

"Are you okay? We can just talk like this today."

He asked whether she'd eaten dinner, then scolded her gently when she said she hadn't. Hearing his voice made her happy, but the longer they talked, the more she wanted something she couldn't have over the phone.

She wanted to see him smile. She wanted to hold his hand and kiss him before they said goodbye.

"Mia? You've gone quiet."

"Hold on. There's something I need to check."

After hanging up, she looked out the window. Through the rain, she could just make out the sign of a hotel across the main road.

A member of the staff told her the hotel had an independent network and a stable ARCA connection. Unfortunately, its lounge charged an outrageous access fee.

Mia laughed when she saw the price. They'd already talked on the phone. They could meet tomorrow. Going out in this weather and paying that much for a few minutes together made absolutely no sense.

But she couldn't bear the thought of ending the day with only his voice.

𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦'𝘴 𝘢 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘣𝘺 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯. 𝘐'𝘮 𝘨𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢 𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘦.

Logan replied at once.

𝘐𝘵'𝘴 𝘱𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦. 𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘥𝘰𝘯'𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘰𝘥𝘢𝘺.

𝘐'𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘶𝘭.

Mia grabbed her bag.

She waited for the rain to ease before leaving, but by the time she reached the hotel, her shoes and the hem of her skirt were soaked.

She dried her hair with a towel from the lobby, paid the lounge fee, and ordered an expensive coffee to satisfy the minimum-purchase requirement.

"This is ridiculously inefficient."

She was smiling as she said it.

Then she sat down and checked the connection.

𝘈𝘙𝘊𝘈 𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯: 𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦.

Mia logged in immediately.

The sound of rain vanished, replaced by a sunlit beach.

Logan was standing by the breakwater. The moment he spotted her, he hurried over.

"Are you okay? Did you get soaked?"

"A little."

"We could've just talked on the phone."

"I know."

"Then why did you come?"

Mia fiddled with the sleeve of his shirt. She'd had so much she wanted to tell him on the way here, but now that he was standing in front of her, she couldn't remember any of it.

"Because I missed you."

For a moment, Logan said nothing.

"Why aren't you saying anything?"

"...I missed you, too."

He held out his hand, but Mia didn't take it. Instead, she stepped straight into his arms.

Logan seemed startled for a heartbeat before pulling her tightly against him.

"You heard my voice on the phone."

"I did."

"And you still missed me this much?"

Mia buried her face against his shoulder.

"Like crazy."

His arms tightened around her.

"Me too. I take back what I said about not coming."

Mia looked up with a laugh.

"I'm already here."

She couldn't stand looking at him another second without kissing him.

Mia pressed her lips to his, and Logan pulled her closer as though he'd been waiting for her to do exactly that.

What should have been a brief kiss kept beginning all over again. Whenever they finally drew apart to catch their breath, their faces were still so close that one of them would lean in for another.

"Mia."

"What?"

"I'm in trouble. I don't want to stop."

"Neither do I."

This time, Logan kissed her first.

Mia wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed closer. They'd seen each other almost every day, yet they clung to each other as though they'd been apart for months. When his arm tightened around her waist, she gripped his shirt and drew him closer still.

At last, Logan managed to pull away. His eyes shifted past her shoulder.

"Wait a second."

"Why?"

"People are walking by."

A few visitors had wandered close along the beach. One of them noticed the couple and passed with a knowing smile.

Only then did Mia feel her cheeks grow warm.

"Oh."

"Let's go somewhere more secluded."

Still holding her hand, Logan opened the location menu. A woodland cabin, a private garden, and a seaside villa flickered across the screen.

"You can take your time," Mia said.

She kissed his cheek.

"Mia, wait—"

His finger faltered over the menu.

And the sound of the ocean abruptly disappeared.

A large window and soft lighting appeared around them. Plush carpet lay beneath their feet, and an enormous bed stood in the middle of the room.

Mia looked at the bed.

Then at Logan.

"...Logan?"

He looked around and froze.

"Wait. This isn't—"

"I thought we were going somewhere secluded."

"We were. I mean, I was trying to—"

Logan hurriedly reopened the location menu.

Mia caught sight of the destination displayed on the screen.

𝘏𝘖𝘛𝘌𝘓 𝘚𝘜𝘐𝘛𝘌.

"You picked a hotel room?"

"I pressed the wrong one."

"Really?"

"Really."

He frantically searched for another location. Mia watched him swipe through the options until she couldn't hold back her laughter.

"That's what happens when you rush."

"Someone kept kissing me."

"You were kissing me, too."

"I know."

Mia caught his wrist, stopping him.

"It's fine. It's quiet here, isn't it?"

His gaze darted toward the bed before returning to her.

"Mia, don't tease me."

"I haven't said anything."

"You have that look."

Smiling, she stepped closer.

"Are you going to move us somewhere else?"

"If you want me to."

"I'm fine here."

Logan's hand went still.

For a moment, neither of them spoke. The room was suddenly very quiet.

Mia reached up and closed the location menu for him.

"Then let's pick up where we left off."

Logan studied her face.

"Are you sure?"

Instead of answering, Mia slipped her arms around his neck.

This time, Logan kissed her first.

It was a longer, deeper kiss than the ones they'd shared on the beach. Mia drew him closer, and he held her as though he had no intention of letting go. They would separate for a breath, only to meet each other's eyes and kiss again.

"Wait..."

Mia turned her face away, and Logan stopped immediately.

"Are you okay?"

"Let me breathe."

They laughed, resting their foreheads together. Mia tried to steady her racing heart, but having him this close wasn't helping.

She was about to kiss him again when her heel touched something behind her.

The bed.

Logan caught her around the waist and stopped. They both glanced back, then looked at each other.

Mia burst out laughing.

"See? You really should've checked before you pressed anything."

Logan laughed, too.

"Someone kept distracting me."

"So it's my fault?"

"A little."

Mia playfully stepped away.

"Fine. Then I'll stop."

Logan caught her hand.

"I don't want you to stop."

Her laughter softened.

Still holding her hand, he asked quietly, "Can I kiss you one more time?"

Mia stepped back into his arms.

"Just once?"

"...I can't promise that."

This time, Mia kissed him first.

An alert from the real-world hotel lounge finally interrupted them.

𝘠𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘤𝘰𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘺.

Mia hid her face against Logan's shoulder and laughed.

"Oh. My coffee."

"You should go get it."

"It was ridiculously expensive."

"Then you definitely should."

Neither of them moved.

Eventually, Mia pressed a hand lightly against his chest.

"I really have to go."

"I know."

Logan lifted her hand and kissed the back of it.

"Don't go out in the rain for me again. If the connection's down tomorrow, call me. I'll wait."

Mia looked at him and smiled.

"I'm still glad I came."

"So am I."

The noise of the hotel lounge returned as Mia disconnected.

Rain was still falling outside. She collected her coffee and took a sip. It was outrageously expensive and tasted perfectly ordinary.

She'd crossed a rain-soaked street, paid the lounge fee, and ordered coffee she hadn't even wanted—all for something a phone call should have been able to accomplish.

Mia set down her cup and unconsciously touched her lips.

Remembering Logan's face when the hotel bedroom had appeared, she started laughing again.

The old Mia would never have made a choice like this.

But today, she'd willingly rearranged her entire day just to see him.

By any reasonable calculation, it had been a terrible decision. And yet, ending the day without seeing him would have felt like a far greater waste.