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LV 3 0 0 ? DAWN OF A NEW DAY? MAYBE? 5 PM TO 7 PM CENTRAL TIME?
Nirhao
Mingyu has never really been a big gamer. That would all be his roommate and best friend, Wonwoo.
Wonwoo, like many other gamers, goes through phases of what games he enjoys playing. Last year, it was PUBG. A few months ago, League. Mingyu thinks that was his least favorite phase. He didn't even know some of those slurs existed, but it's hard to not learn them when you can hear your roommate screaming them through the walls every night.
Mingyu wasn't prepared for it the first time. Wonwoo, for all intents and purposes, is a mild mannered and quiet man. One that doesn't risk noise complaints by screaming things like “your ADC and your mom have one thing in common and it's that they feel ashamed they had to fucking carry you” and “I hope your IRL KDR becomes 1/1/0”, but some say League changes you. ‘Some’ meaning Mingyu, as a League gamer’s roommate.
After a nonstop hour of a screaming match Mingyu only catches one side of, featuring some of the most truly diabolical insults known to man and words he never could have imagined would come out of Wonwoo's mouth, he's left sitting in absolute silence after one last “and I hope they nerf your fucking firstborn, too!”, trying to process what the hell just happened.
He's startled when a knock comes at his door a few minutes later after a loud clatter, which Mingyu has come to realize is Wonwoo's headset. He hopes he didn't break it like he did the last 20 pairs.
“Yeah?” Mingyu calls, trying to keep his voice even. Wonwoo peers in, face completely neutral like he didn't just give Mingyu a crash course in the best ways to tell your ‘hardstuck beginner bot supportcel’ opponent to kill themselves and permanently change Mingyu’s view on both Wonwoo and maybe the overall level of kindness and amount of slurs in the world.
“Can I have the leftovers in the fridge?” Wonwoo asks as if none of that just happened.
“Uh, yeah.”
Not the point. The point is, Wonwoo's recent gaming fixation has been MapleStory and that this has changed Mingyu's life significantly more than Wonwoo's. A gamer baptism of Mountain Dew Code Red and gamer girl bath water.
Well, for Mingyu, maybe not gamer girl bath water. Gamer boy bath water, maybe. Actually, not maybe. Definitely.
The gamer boy in question is obviously MapleStory streamer Nirhao. Who else could possibly capture Mingyu's delicate little heart? Mingyu feels woozy just thinking about Nirhao’s pallid face and dark under eye bags from his 9 hour grinding streams. Sigh. He's so dreamy.
Mingyu first meets the love of his life after his failed week of trying to play Maple with Wonwoo. He's a good roommate and an even better friend, always ready to give any game Wonwoo likes a try, but it's not his fault cubing and star forcing and legion and flaming and whatever all that other shit is and Everything Fucking Else all suck.
(“Have you tried buying your gear?” Wonwoo asked unhelpfully, sitting on his 3 line prime 9 set exceptionally enhanced pitched and six libbed characters.
“Have you tried touching grass?” Mingyu snarks back, not even sure what any of those words meant when Wonwoo flexed them before even installing the game on Mingyu's laptop. He's definitely sure they're not in the Bible and sincerely hopes Wonwoo is going to hell.
Wonwoo put his headphones back on. He doesn't even have audio for the game enabled.)
“What are you watching?” Mingyu asks, about to uninstall the mushroom malware Wonwoo cursed him with.
“Just a Maple streamer. You wouldn't be interested.”
“Aw, even if the game sucks I'm sure I can still enjoy the…content…” Mingyu's sentence trails off and Wonwoo gives him a confused look.
“You good?”
“There's an angel on your screen,” Mingyu whispers, pointing at the man in the little box on Wonwoo's stream. Wonwoo gapes at Mingyu.
“Nirhao?” Wonwoo asks in disbelief, like he doesn't see the face of God on his Lenovo Legion R27fc-30 27-inch VA Curved FHD 280Hz Gaming Monitor.
“Nirhao…” Mingyu mumbles to himself, already imagining their wedding. He wonders what kind of appetizers Nirhao would like for their 12 course tasting menu.
“That's a Twitch streamer, Mingyu. That's just some guy.”
“He's not just some guy!” Mingyu refutes, slapping Wonwoo on the shoulder. “That's my future husband!”
“Your—are you insane?”
“Of course not! Just look at him!” Mingyu jabs an impatient finger at Wonwoo's monitor, which he immediately smacks away. “Ow.”
“Don’t touch my monitor. I take very good care of all of my gaming equipment,” Wonwoo bites. Mingyu declines to remind him that he just broke another mouse today. What is there to even rage at in Maple? “All he does is play Maple, dude. We don’t even know anything about him except that he wants to be the first to get to 300, even his name.”
Mingyu doesn’t need to know his name. He thinks Mingyu ♡ Nirhao would look just fine on their wedding favors.
“Dude, are you hard?”
-
“You know Twitch streamers don't have fanpages, right?”
“They do now,” Mingyu retorts. He looks at his Twitter stan account, almost finished. He just needs the perfect username. “Do you think this is too racially motivated?”
Wonwoo pushes up his glasses and squints at the screen.
“‘NiHaoNirhao’? Uh, yeah, kinda.”
Mingyu has already clicked ‘log in’.
-
BRING BACK BENE @bishopsystem
y’all see that fuckin nirhao fanpage? lmao :pepelaugh:
lara gang rise up @lilymed
who has fanpages for maple streamers that’s crazy
delete kinesis @clownesis
he kinda fine
BRING BACK BENE @bishopsystem
?
ni hao nirhao <3 @NiHaoNirhao
THANK YOU
-
ni hao nirhao <3 @NiHaoNirhao
[Picture]
022324 Lv 299 83.374%!! go nirhao!!
rip bt @lynnmonade
the kpop format i’m ctfu 😭😭😭
ZERO M3/M4 COMEBACK @azaeyta
why does he always look so fucking tired in these ss :sadge:
ni hao nirhao <3 @NiHaoNirhao
he looks perfect.
You have blocked @azaeyta.
-
“Hey, do you wanna get takeout for dinner or—oh my god, that’s a body pillow. Okay.”
Wonwoo closes the door before Mingyu can even answer. He glances behind him at his body pillow which is completely blank save for a single screenshot of Nirhao on it. He doesn’t see the issue with it, it’s a great picture. Nirhao is laughing in this one, a beautiful, melodic sound Mingyu could listen to for hours. It was difficult to choose, but Mingyu managed to narrow it down to his favorite after about 14 hours of decision making. He’s kind of surprised it didn’t take him too long.
Whatever. It’s not time to look at his body pillow when Nirhao is live on Mingyu’s screen right now.
Sigh. He’s so beautiful like this. Mingyu traces a reverent finger over his screen, mapping out the planes of Nirhao’s perfectly unmoving face. Honestly, it should be considered a talent that he can sit so still for so long and not even flinch at the obnoxious sound his Frenzy timer makes. Mingyu loves that about him. He loves everything about him. His dedication, his ambition, his taste in background music, his beautiful voice crunched up by his shitty mic and nightmare audio balancing, the carpal tunnel he’s probably getting by spamming the same three buttons for hours on end. Isn’t he so perfect?
“I think my ETA is 3 days from now,” Nirhao says, leaning back in his chair after his last exp buffs for the day expire. “See you all then. Party in Carcion!” He ends the stream with a wave and the smallest smile and Mingyu will proudly admit he giggled and kicked his feet at that one.
Mingyu looks at the calendar next to his laptop. He’s already circled the date, knowing full well Nirhao would stick to his schedule. His consistency is so hot.
A knock at Mingyu’s door.
“Come in.”
Wonwoo tentatively opens the door and peeks his head in.
“Look, I really don’t want to be in here again, but—Jesus fucking Christ, you’re hard again.”
-
ni hao nirhao <3 @NiHaoNirhao
[Picture]
042224 3 days until 300!! party in ch7 carcion!!
This Tweet has been deleted.
ni hao nirhao <3 @NiHaoNirhao
[Picture]
042224 3 days until 300!! party in ch7 carcion!! sorry, wrong picture last time
lara gang rise up @lilymed
yo wtf forget about nirhao was that the fuckin guy behind the acc :flushed:
rip bt @lynnmonade
HE DELETED ITTTTTT PLEASE TELL ME SOMEONE SAVED IT
crayon eater @celestialsys
[Picture]
got y’all w the ss :adele:
rip bt @lynnmonade
god fuckin bless :adele:
delete kinesis @clownesis
idk lowkey nirhao sweep still
khali op @voidseeking
dog are you good
ni hao nirhao <3 @NiHaoNirhao
agree!
-
The day has arrived. The day Mingyu has been looking forward to his entire life (besides his and Nirhao’s wedding) even if he didn’t know it until 2 months, 6 days, 18 hours, 2 minutes, and 23 seconds ago.
Mingyu has been plastered to his screen ever since the day he first laid eyes upon Nirhao, but this is different. He’s half-tempted to tape his eyes open, but in exchange for not doing that, Wonwoo gave Mingyu his login details so Mingyu could be there in pixel to congratulate Nirhao on his momentous occasion. He would have personally grinded to 285 to get to Carcion himself, but alas, he doesn’t have Nirhao time or funding for his character. Rest in peace NirhaoLuvr.
Today, as usual, Mingyu watches Nirhao brave through the forests of Carcion, heights to which no one else in the entire game has ever reached except for everyone else that’s reached there. But besides that, no one else. Nirhao is so cool.
Finally, finally, Nirhao shows up in Eye of the Ishfira. He’s right there, right next to Mingyu (on Wonwoo’s account, but the details aren’t important). He’s standing next to Nirhao. He’s fucking standing next to Nirhao. They’re basically right next to each other in real life and as soon as that happens, Mingyu will get down on one knee. Both, maybe, if Nirhao lets him.
Mingyu feels like he might vibrate out of his skin, pass out, throw up, and cry. Maybe not in that order, maybe all at once. He’s not sure yet.
Much to Mingyu’s surprise and confusion however, the chat is turned emote only and Nirhao gets up and leaves. Mingyu is left dumbfounded. Nirhao is at 99.993%. Where is he going? What’s happening?
After several minutes, Nirhao returns, sighing as he sits back down. In silence, save for the chat being overrun by people spamming emotes, Nirhao looks over his monitors for a few minutes.
“So…the free to play experience is awful.”
Mingyu’s eyebrows furrow. What is he talking about?
“I’m gonna be talking about this for a while. I don’t know how long, but this is important. There are a lot of issues this game needs to address. I won’t be leveling until changes are made.”
No. No, this can’t be happening. Not after Mingyu has been looking forward to this for months. Not after Nirhao has been working on this for years. He can’t let this happen. Not on his watch.
NIRHAO 300 TODAY @NiHaoNirhao
NIRHAO PLEASE
NIRHAO 300 TODAY @NiHaoNirhao
NIRHAO PLEASE LEAVEL
NIRHAO 300 TODAY @NiHaoNirhao
PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE LEVEL PLEASE
BRING BACK BENE @bishopsystem
oh brother
NIRHAO 300 TODAY @NiHaoNirhao
PLEEEEEASAAAASSEEEE LEVEL I’M CRYINNNHGG
NIRHAO 300 TODAY @NiHaoNirhao
OPLEASE I’M; ON MY HANDS AND KNEES [[[LKEASE
lara gang rise up @lilymed
you’re on your hands and knees you say?
khali op @voidseeking
you are not fr
lara gang rise up @lilymed
i am.
NIRHAO 300 TODAY @NiHaoNirhao
;;LEASE LEVEL PLEASE PLEASE PLEAOSE
NIRHAO 300 TODAY @NiHaoNirhao
NIRHAO PLEASE I’LKL DO ANYTHING
lara gang rise up @lilymed
anything you say?
delete kinesis @clownesis
i am crying
NIRHAO 300 TODAY @NiHaoNirhao
PLEASE JIUST LEVEL PLEASE
“—and that’s five bonus cubes a month. This is—hang on, someone told me to check Twitter.” Nirhao pauses mid tangent to open Twitter on his seventh monitor. Mingyu nearly passes out. That’s him! That’s him on Nirhao’s screen! He exists in Nirhao’s life!
Nirhao laughs and Mingyu feels like he might cry. He made Nirhao laugh. This is the best day of his life.
“Chat, is this real? Wait, isn’t this that hot guy that accidentally posted that selfie of himself one time?”
“Mingyu, when I walk in there, you better not be—” Wonwoo opens the door. “You are.” He closes it.
So what if he’s hard. The love of Mingyu’s life just called him hot. It doesn’t go up from here. At least not until they’re legally wed in every country that will let them and own their own house and two dogs and honestly, he’d consider kids if Nirhao wanted them. What’s that thing his friend told him about, mpreg?
A slew of ‘yes’ emotes fills up the chat and Mingyu has never felt prouder of himself. Him! Noticed by Nirhao, can you believe it?
“Chat, do I dm this guy?”
Mingyu almost falls forward onto his face scrambling to spam his own emotes in chat.
NiHaoNirhao: YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES
NiHaoNirhao: YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES
NiHaoNirhao: YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES
NiHaoNirhao: YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES
Nirhao watches the chat scroll past and raises his eyebrows, presumably at Mingyu’s messages. Oh my god. He got noticed by Nirhao.
He’s about to pass out before he gets a message notification from Twitter and he thinks he dies and ascends to heaven for a second or two, but comes back into his body to look at his messages.
Private Messages
@maplehao
minghao: hey lol
NIRHAO 300 TODAY: oh my god
NIRHAO 300 TODAY: oh my god
minghao: u can just call me minghao
NIRHAO 300 TODAY: okay minghao
NIRHAO 300 TODAY: um hi
minghao: lowkey thought u were gonna say ni hao that’d b racially motivated as hell
minghao: did u come up with that or
NIRHAO 300 TODAY: no it was my roommate
NIRHAO 300 TODAY: oh man i don’t even know what to say
minghao: maybe ur name for starters?
NIRHAO 300 TODAY: it’s mingyu
NIRHAO 300 TODAY: but you can call me yours
minghao: oo smooth with it
minghao: did you graduate from the school of flattery
NIRHAO 300 TODAY: oh i graduated from yale!
minghao: what
NIRHAO 300 TODAY: so do you think i’m cool? :3
minghao: well
minghao: cool isn’t a word i would describe you with tbh
minghao: like lowkey ur kind of a loser
minghao: except for the yale thing ig
NIRHAO 300 TODAY: 🙁
minghao: but i think ur interesting
minghao: kinda cute too
NIRHAO 300 TODAY: 😳
NIRHAO 300 TODAY: chat is this real
NIRHAO 300 TODAY: is that what you say
minghao: …
minghao: what’s ur number
-
maplestory WORLD FIRST level 300, I am still here Nexon
Nirhao
“3…2…1!”
[Level Up] I’m Lv. 300!
“There it is,” Minghao drawls, leaning back in his chair. “Easy game. Easy. Easy. Not even a challenge.”
Minghao hums as he goes through the level 300 questline, reading all the lines aloud for his stream.
“‘Cygnus is sleeping soundly’? That was me last night.”
“Was it really?” Mingyu says off camera, smug.
“Mingyu, are you—yeah. You are.”
-
Some years later…
“Hey babe, did you hear?” Mingyu announces, walking into his and Minghao’s bedroom, looking down at his phone on r/maplestory. “They raised the level cap again!”
Minghao has his face in his hands, the same post on his screen.
“Babe?”
Minghao groans.