SOLVED. YA Sci-fi, girl who doesn't have implant which changes what you see. Spoilers ahead. [s]

[Kiri]

A Young Adult book about an implant which a company controls to make you see what they want you to see. It also connects you to a virtual reality which you can enter.

The main character, a young girl, she refuses to have one. Her grandma is her closest relative and is very sceptical of the world. The girl has to use a helmet to access the virtual reality.

Her brother and parents have the implant. She walks through this dilapidated town once when lost with her brother.

She struggles at school because she is different.

She ends up at a facility where they are training kids. She is good at working out what isn't real because she doesn't have the implant.

She meets a guy whilst they are both looking to escape.

I can not say more on the plot without giving away spoilers.

I read this book two years ago at college and don't think it is too old.
I think the book had a short game style title. Possibly one word.
I could not find it in the virtual reality section on goodreads.

[Rosa]

Sounds a bit like Feed, but not exactly. You can tell spoilers, just write a warning before them (and in the header) or cover them with the "reveal spoiler" html.

[Kiri]

Rosa wrote: "Sounds a bit like Feed, but not exactly. You can tell spoilers, just write a warning before them (and in the header) or cover them with the "reveal spoiler" html."

Yes, I have done lots of research and it is similar to feed.

I have put a spoiler warning at the top now.

*ALSO WARNING< SPOILER POST*

From what I can remember, her grandma dies at the beginning.

There is one scene where the whole hall the kids are in is in trouble... I think a fire?... However, the main female character can see through the fire like it is a ghost, because it is one of the tests.

I also believe that at one point she takes her helmet off that she has to use to enter the virtual reality and she is trying to find the boy. Eventually, she finds a tank with his brain in.

I vaguely remember her trying to hide in the virtual world and finding him and I believe somehow exciting outside the limits of the virtual reality that has been created and shutting it down? Not entirely sure how this actually went.

Now I have a slight issue that I feel like I could be muddling two books up that I read at the same time, however this is all I remember and I really hope someone can pick it out of this jumbled mess ahaha.

[Ayshe]

Mind Games by Teri Terry maybe?

[Kiri]

I actually love you oh my. I have been scrolling through the web for hours....