Chapter Text
The grass swayed in the wind as the water reflected the starry night sky, each wave quietly crashing into the beach. The island was quiet, solemn, leaves slowly dancing in the breeze. Two pairs of feet walked around the sandy beach, one with his pant legs rolled up and the other with his shorts on him tightly. Their footprints left imprints on the sand as their sticks drew words and lines, creating a timeline of sorts.
Each part of the timeline had words connected to certain events, moments from a past that seemed forgotten.
“What are you writing?” Guest asks, looking over 007n7’s shoulder. The hacker quickly scribbled into the sand “Got my C00lgui.” Guest nodded slowly as he continued to study the words. “Got my C00lgui,” Guest read aloud.
“I forgot I remembered how I got my C00lgui,” 007n7 explained, standing upright. “I was with Noli at the time, and we snuck into a banquet of sorts.”
“Hmmm, I see,” Guest says, nodding along. 007n7 appreciated Guest’s company; he never spoke over the hacker and always listened when 007n7 wanted him to listen. It made everything just a bit easier for the hacker. He didn’t feel as lost as he did before.
“I remember a lot more than I thought,” 007n7 comments, staring at the sentences scattered all throughout the timeline. Guest smiled softly, patting the hacker’s shoulder.
“You have a lot of memories,” Guest adds on, the hacker smiling in response. Both survivors turned to face each other, the glistening moonlight reflecting onto them. The air was quiet, but soft and comforting, like a blanket. It didn’t feel suffocating—it never did.
“I do…I do,” 007n7 says, confidence growing in his voice. Both survivors then turned to face the open ocean, watching as the waves rushed in and receded in a similar fashion. The water twinkled and dazzled, the short dock dark against the blue waves. Guest slowly walked towards the dock, 007n7 following closely behind, sitting down at the end, letting his feet dangle as waves grazed them lightly. 007n7 found it calming, relaxing even.
“Sometimes, when things feel hard, impossible or futile, I look up at the stars. They remind me that someone is also looking at them, maybe my family, my friends. It grounds me, you know?” Guest softly says, eyes glued to the sky. 007n7 leans back, relaxing on his elbows as he glances at Guest, who seems lost in the stars. 007n7 softly smiles, letting his head fall back to take in the whole sky.
“Yeah, I know,” 007n7 answers, lying on his back now. He thought of C00lkid, wondering if he could see the stars in the sky. 007n7 wondered if C00lkid liked stargazing.
If I could, I would've taken him stargazing, 007n7 thought to himself.
Then, he thought about Noli, his friend—his closest friend—and wondered if he saw these stars too. Perhaps he could, maybe he could. Maybe he was also stargazing.
Then 007n7 thought about it, wondering if both his child and his best friend were stargazing. What if they were? What if they could stargaze? Would Noli like to stargaze? Could Noli stargaze with C00lkid? Would Noli be fine stargazing with a kid?
Questions flooded 007n7’s mind, each question becoming less answerable by the second. Then, Guest’s words played in his head.
“It grounds me.”
007n7 then felt the waves lightly crashing onto his toes, each gust of wind passing by sending his bangs flying backwards, each small sound like whispers in his ear, comforting. They reminded him of where he was and that he was somewhere . He had a place to return to.
007n7 slowly sat up, sitting upright beside Guest. The hacker took a deep breath, every nerve in his body relaxing for the first time since he entered this world.
“Thank you, Guest,” 007n7 said. Guest turned to face the hacker, shocked, then after studying 007n7’s relaxed demeanor, softened as well.
“My pleasure, 007n7,” Guest said, smiling.
