He pressed .

At 11:58 PM, his PS2 hummed like a jet engine. He’d inserted the disc, but this time, he didn’t press “Load Game.” Instead, he held L1 + R1 + Square + Circle as the EA Games logo exploded across the screen. A trick from a friend of a friend on GameFAQs. A rumor. A cheat.

He clicked it.

Leo stared at the message on his flip phone, the grainy green backlight illuminating the pizza boxes and energy drink cans scattered across his floor. For six months, he’d lived in this game. He’d crawled through the soggy industrial sprawl of Bayview, from the glittering neon canyons of Beacon Hill to the rain-slicked concrete of the Coal Harbor East drag strip. He’d beaten every punk in a riced-out Civic. He’d owned the drift circuit. He’d even found all the hidden SUV shops.