d3rlord3 — Derek

After everything that had happened in his world and reading Derek's letter, Avery felt somewhat empty, as if Derek had taken a part of his heart with him. Even though he hadn't known him for very long, he truly appreciated him and he was important, making the way he sacrificed himself in his place even more painful and guilt-ridden.

Every night, Avery would sit down and open his laptop to play in the world, wandering through the empty places and landscapes, watching the memories of every moment with Derek pass before his eyes. The darkness was a constant reminder of his loneliness and loss, crying every time like a child waking up from a nightmare in the gloom of the night.

That day, Avery was playing again and stopped, staring for a very long time at the sign Derek had written: "you are real" "you are special, remember who you are." His gaze was lost on the screen, thinking about him and sinking once more into pain, tears falling from his face onto the keys, his hands, and the table—silent, yet agonizing at the same time.

And just as he began to sink into despair again, a message appeared in the chat. He froze upon seeing that name.

d3rlord3...?

he whispered with a broken, hopeful voice, thinking he was hallucinating, but the user spoke.

"I'm still here... Avery, I haven't died."

Avery choked back a scream that sounded like agony, but he turned the camera everywhere, searching for that knight he missed so much, and he found him; behind him, that all-too-familiar silhouette was already there as if nothing had happened.

It's not true, right...? Am I crazy?

He hurried to type in the chat, thinking that if it was a hallucination, at least he wanted to seek comfort.

"Derek... is it really you...? You have no idea how much I miss you."

"Yes Avery, it's me, I'm real, I swear."

Avery stayed there processing this, rubbing his eyes and crying inconsolably.

Please don't play with me like this right now... please.

But upon looking back at the screen, he was still there, real.