Johnny was awoken by the sound of people talking quietly, almost like they were afraid of each other. He sat up immediately, remembering the situation almost instantly. Maya Virtuele surrounded his conscious mind, he could smell the salty ocean air and feel the breeze on his face. He jumped up from his sitting position in the sand and gazed at the crashing waves.
Johnny had never been a beach-goer and probably never would be. The ocean scared him. There was no reason for his fear since he had never had any traumatizing experiences as a child with the ocean. In fact he had never spent much time on a beach, his parents had never taken him on vacation. They always went without him. So maybe his lack of experience with the great blue-and-white, salty beast was what freaked him out. Who knew what kind of creepy-crawlies lurked in there anyway? And seaweed? Gross! Why would sea creatures have a need for weed anyway?
Consequently, Johnny wanted to stay clear of the jagged rocks right on the water's edge, but that was where most everyone else was hanging. He was a social butterfly and wanted to meet his mission buddies, but felt conflicted. He had heard that if you got too far into the water, the waves would pull you in and you'd probably be in trouble.
But then Johnny recalled, this was Maya Virtuele. It wasn't entirely real, so it wasn't like it would hurt his real body if he were to get dragged in. But wouldn't it still feel real? "Ah, screw it," Johnny muttered, marching over to one of the groups. A cute girl with really nice red hair introduced herself as CJ.
"I'm Johnny," he spoke to her with a soft smile. "But you can call me John, if you want. Or Johnny-boy. Or JJ, or Johnny-whonny, or J-wizzle. Better yet, just stick with Johnny."