Chapter 6 – What’s been going on so far?

Rayco stays over at Abián’s place after the company party. When he sees that the engineer has a dangerously large stash of drugs at home and no plans for the weekend, Rayco invites him to join a tabletop RPG session with his friends. The campaign is a success, and they continue the San Juan night together at the fair and setting off firecrackers on the beach. There, Abián opens up about his problems with Atteneri. Rayco, for his part, admits that there are rumors at the factory that he receives preferential treatment because he is sleeping with Jara, and that he lives with the fear that others will discover he is not capable enough. This last point reinforces Abián’s suspicions about Rayco’s dyslexia, although the team leader does not seem to fully understand what it involves.

They spend what remains of the night at Rayco’s place, a single-story house on the outskirts of the city.

Back at his apartment, Abián catches up on the calls and messages he has been ignoring all week and discovers that he has been expelled from the university.

Abián

32 y.o. || 191cm (6’3″)|| 11 November || Scorpio ♏︎

He is a PhD in engineering in charge of the coupling phase. The kind of person who, when playing tabletop RPGs, would deliberately cause a genocide. He is very lucky with the dice and rolls critical successes all the time.

He was genuinely in love with Atteneri, or at least the version of himself he created in order to be with her was. His drug problem was one of the final nails in the coffin of their relationship.

He hates firecrackers.

Rayco

33 y.o. || 186cm (6’1″) || 25 April || Taurus ♉︎

He is the team leader for the coupling phase. The kind of person who, when playing tabletop RPGs, ends up causing a genocide by accident. He has terrible luck with the dice and rolls fumbles all the time.

He has a suffocating case of impostor syndrome that he sometimes manages well and sometimes not so well. He also has fairly severe dyslexia that he has never addressed because he was not aware he had it. He does everything he can to hide his limitations.

He loves firecrackers.

Supporting characters

Jara – 42 years old. Head of engineering.

Some of the factory employees think she is sleeping with Rayco and that this is why she has helped him earn recognition within the company.

Joan – Quality Engineer. She has to buy mortadella sandwiches for six people.

Ale – Preparation Phase Engineer. She leaves more decisions to the tarot than she probably should.

Carme – Post-processing Engineer. She’s been working at PROYPAL for 25 years. Makes really delicious cakes.

Abián’s Father – Professor at the university where Abián also used to work. It seems he was behind Abián’s expulsion from the university.

Atteneri – Abián’s ex-fiancée. She suggested to Abián that they open their relationship because, among other things, they were having problems in bed.

Conchi – Abián’s next-door neighbor. She has a little dog named Zucchini. According to her, she could tell from the very first minute that Rayco and Abián were hooking up. Which is impossible, but who’s going to tell this lady otherwise?

Rob – A worker on Rayco’s team. He’s a bit slow on the uptake, but he’s really nice.

Anna – A worker on Rayco’s team. She’s confirmed her suspicions that her boss is involved with the new engineer.

Zucchini – Conchi’s dachshund. Her favorite show is “Vice and Lust Among Volcanoes.”
She’s really into her new neighbor.

Frank and Xavi – Workers on Rayco’s team. Willing to do whatever it takes for a free mortadella sandwich.

Popi and Crunch – A human sorceress and a half-orc barbarian who occasionally team up to earn some coin. They met years ago during the Papitas Arrugadas Rebellion. Crunch does 200 burpees every day at 5:30 a.m. He does it as consistently as Abián reminds you that he has a PhD.