I steady myself on the rusted metal roof and pull the gray jacket up onto my shoulder. My eyes scan the horizon as I take in the stillness of the morning. It is one of those rare moments when I feel like I'm the only person in the world. I smile, closing my eyes for a moment. My daydream fades as I hear his breath behind me, and I extend a hand. He reaches up and takes it without hesitating, but I still see a flicker of confusion in his clear eyes.

“Where have you taken me, exactly?” he says, slightly out of breath.

I pull him up, and the roof rattles beneath our feet – a familiar ring to my ears. I grin, watching him awkwardly test his balance like a newborn deer until he realizes the roof isn't going to disintegrate beneath him. I wait until he can match my pace.

The roof creaks as we make our way forward. I dangle my legs off the edge and peel a piece of the chipping paint. His eyes meet mine; I motion for him to sit. I look out at the lake's gentle waves rippling in the glassy water. Having someone here with me is a nice change. His arm brushes mine, and he sits cautiously.

“Wow,” he says, looking out at the trees that surround the lake. He whistles.

I only nod.

The trees vary in size, extending to the horizon, where the faint yellow glow of morning is beginning to break the blue darkness. The sunlight reflects off the water, contrasting yellow and deep blue. I wonder if, sitting atop this barn in the vast countryside, we would look like farmers to an outsider.

“You know what?” He looks at me, then back out at the view. “It's too perfect.”

“Yeah.” I shake my head, watching each perfect wave, each ideally shaped leaf, each smooth, round stone. “That's the problem with fiction.”

A few moments pass before he breaks the silence.

“You never did tell me where we are.”

“You would make fun of the title,” I say simply.

“Then can I pick the next? This is pretty and all, but you always choose such boring books. How about some action and adventure?”

“Sci-fi?” I chuckle.

“Yes!” he exclaims, eyes brightening. “No offense, but I prefer action. And an actual plot.”

The sweet silence and the warmth of early morning settle in the air around us. With a shake of my head, I sigh. “Go ahead,” I say, nudging my best friend.

He doesn't hide his excitement as he hurries down the ladder on the side of the barn.

It starts with the sun and spreads to the rest of the scenery. Black and green pixels begin to fill the sky, then the waves, then the ground, until everything around us is a pixelated glitch.

And then it ends just as suddenly as it began. Everything is black. My eyes are unable to adjust to the darkness; abrupt silence rings in my ears. Though I can no longer see him, I feel the distance growing between us.

After a brief moment, a faint electronic sound pulses, and a thin, blue-white projected grid outlines a large, empty room. Our backpacks lean on the wall by a sliding door, illuminated as the fluorescent lights flash on one at a time.

I sit on the floor in the same position as I was on the barn roof. Shielding my eyes from the sudden bright light, I stand and cross the white room.

“I wish we could go someplace like that in reality,” he says as I approach.

“That's not possible,” I say. “But it'd be nice.”

He ejects my book from the library's control panel and hands it to me. I watch as he pulls a hardcover from a plastic bag in his backpack, blowing the dust from the cover before inserting it. The library's control panel hums as it reads what I know is his favorite book. He grins.

“Zombies?” I ask, bracing myself. “How cliché.”

“Of course,” he winks. “Classic.”

I only roll my eyes and laugh, linking my arm with his. And as the plain room disappears, white fading into the colors of science fiction, a new world flickers in its place.