Enter the Meta by Colette Bennett

Author:Colette Bennett
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Science Fiction
Publisher: Rebellion Publishing Ltd

Chapter Sixteen

Replicants

“Is this the place?”

Ji-Soo peered through the windshield at the neon sign on the front of the restaurant. An elegant pink script spelled out the word Replicants next to a massive bowl of glowing noodles. A few were being lifted out of the soup by a pair of violently blue chopsticks.

“Yep. This is it.”

Lissa guided her car into one of the compact spots and turned off the ignition. Ji-Soo reached into the backseat and fished out a tall patent leather tote bag in an intense shade of bright green. Her friend eyed it as it came into view.

“Did you… match your bag to the restaurant’s aesthetic?”

“Well, it is cyberpunk inspired,” Ji-Soo said as she tossed her hair—today a long mint bob with blunt bangs—over her shoulder. “How could I not dress for the occasion?”

“Don’t you always?” Lissa said as she grabbed her own bag, opened the door and got out of the car.

Lucas and Devon were waiting outside, checking their phones. They waved as soon as they saw the girls approaching. Lissa noticed Devon was rocking a new hairstyle, his dreads piled high atop his head and wrapped to resemble a pompadour. He was also sporting a few blonde locks that hadn’t been there a few days ago.

“Right on time!”

“Look at that cool hair,” Lissa said, motioning towards Devon’s head.

“You like it? I just got it done.” Devon struck a pose, turning to the side to show off his profile. “I feel so light though. It’s weird not to feel hair swinging all around my head.”

“Now I feel boring,” Lissa lamented, patting her dark brown hair.

Ji-Soo frowned in her friend’s direction and slapped Lissa’s leg with her bag.

“As if!”

“I can’t believe you two haven’t been here before,” Lucas said through a happy smile. “I found it my first week and I was addicted instantly. This has gotta be the best ramen in the city.”

“It’s further north than I usually go but I’m always up for an adventure.” Lissa smiled back at him. Lucas could have suggested a much crazier prospect and she’d have gone along with it. She had made up her mind that he was one of the good guys.

“Who else are we waiting on?”

“Just Ray and Zio, but I’ll text them,” Devon said as he pulled his phone out of his back pocket. “Let’s go in and get settled.”

The dark, narrow restaurant was modelled to perfection after a side alley lifted right out of a bustling, overcrowded metropolis. Neon signs of all shapes and sizes hung from the walls and ceiling, blinking their empty promises. A huge rectangular white sign with red and blue Chinese characters stretched across the entirety of the right side of the restaurant. To their left, transplanted bus stops with loud pink advertisements on the sides promised extremely low phone service rates. As they drew closer, they saw that the benches within had been removed and replaced with little bars where guests now sat, sucking noodles from their bowls with great relish.

“This place is wild,” Devon said as he took it all in.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.