Work Text:
Derek didn't see himself in this situation, because he didn't see himself getting out of that situation alive at all.
No matter how many months have passed, his mind cannot accept the idea of everything being at peace now. He always has a feeling that something bad will happen again, always alert to every little thing that catches his attention and makes him suspicious.
He cannot rest easy. Sometimes when he closes his eyes, he still sees him there, still hears his voice echoing in his mind, not to mention the constant headaches that are a direct consequence of everything.
Other than that, he's fine, he's alive. He doesn't understand the how or why, but he is. That's what's important, he guesses.
But it's one of those nights where he simply can't close his eyes; his gaze wanders through every dark corner of the room until it reaches the faint light coming through the window. He doesn't know what time it is, but really late surely.
That phrase, "He doesn't know," sounds strange now, because for a few days Derek knew absolutely everything—the good and the bad, and the beauties of the universe, which is what matters most to him. It was a horrible experience, but enchanting to a degree, however unsettling that may sound, ignoring the fact that his life was surely at risk if he stopped watching the screen. He still retained certain knowledge to which he paid more attention, but the rest gradually faded from his mind as if it had been some kind of dream. A dream that Derek truly hopes he never has again.
As much as he loved the game and all, the best thing he could do was stay away from it for a while. Supposedly, the danger had passed, but he never knows when that thing might return. After all, nothing guaranteed they'd gotten rid of it completely. Derek had expected the King to merge with his mind, thus putting an end to both his life and his own—necessary for the greater good, if you ask him. Instead, something happened that totally baffled him. In the first few moments, he really felt like he was dying, but his mind went completely blank—no thoughts, no ideas, absolutely nothing. Just a blank canvas with nothing to do, as if he were in some kind of trance. The only thing he remembers is opening his eyes while lying on the floor with a terrible headache, the chair lying next to him. Did he faint?
Why was he alive? Where was the king? Did he simply...disappear?
It sounded too good to be true. He tried searching everywhere for clues to find out if he was alive, dead, or in some kind of dream or unconscious state. But he found nothing, which only made him more uneasy.
He waited a few days to see if anything else would happen, but nothing. As curious as he was to re-enter the world, Derek had learned his lesson more than enough.
His goal then changed: find Avery. To find him and know how he was, to know if he was still himself and not the king who had taken over his mind. He was grateful he had written down his phone number when it first appeared in his mind.
As soon as he texted him, explaining who it was and asking how he was doing, his phone practically exploded with notifications and messages from Avery—questions of all kinds, and some were simply messages from him writing incomprehensible things or outright yelling. Well, it seems Avery is still Avery.
Luckily, they didn't live too far from each other; it seemed luck was on their side for once, so they decided to meet. The moment they saw each other, the first thing Avery did was hug him so tightly that D3r felt like he couldn't breathe for a moment, and also yell him for having tried to sacrifice himself. Can he blame him for that? Not really. Avery was tearing up the whole time, but it seemed more out of happiness than anything else. Derek was never one to cry much, but seeing Avery like that definitely touched him deeply.
Avery was fine. He was fine. It still felt too good to be true, though. Every moment he expected something to happen, for the King to reappear in his mind, to manifest in real life, to manifest in Avery's mind...who knew what atrocities would occur if that were to happen?
Anyway, from that moment on, Avery and Derek basically became inseparable. They saw each other daily and texted or talked on the phone quite often too. Avery always sounded quite happy, and Derek was happy too, but that feeling of anxiety often took hold of him, and he would end up telling Avery about it, which, in turn, made him nervous too.
Even though Avery tries to act relaxed, Derek knows that deep down he's also filled with doubt, intrigue, and fear. But there's nothing they can do now; all they have left is each other and trying to look out for one another, whatever might happen.
The wind moving the curtain catches Derek's attention again.It's nothing, just the wind and not a monstrous creature bothering to play with his mind. Not again. But still, everything that happens will capture his attention, every movement and sound, everything that escapes him out of the corner of his eye.
His arm tightens around Avery, who, by the way, has been sleeping peacefully on his chest for about two hours. Despite being in a fairly deep sleep, he stirs slightly as he feels more pressure on his body, slowly opening his eyes and blinking some times until he adjusts to the darkness.
"Derek?"
"Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you up"
"Mm it's okay, what are you doing awake?"
"Nothing"
"Can't you sleep again?"
"...yeah"
"Why didn't you wake me up before?"
"Because you were sleepy"
"I told you to wake me up if you couldn't sleep!"
"I know, but-"
"No buts, Derek"
"So you're going to stay awake then?"
"Until you fall asleep, yeah"
"You don't need to do that"
"But I want to"
"You're incorrigible, Avery"
"And you love me for that!"
"I do. I certainly do"
Avery snuggled closer to him for more comfort, resting his head on his shoulder so he could see his face and expressions better, his arm around him, hugging him tighter just like Derek had done.
"Can't you sleep because, you know, him...?"
"In part"
"Do you think he's really still alive?"
"I...I don't know Avery, and for once I wish I know more that I should"
"Don't say that"
"To be honest, I don't know what would put my mind at ease. If we knew he was still alive but not where I... I wouldn't know what to do"
"And neither do I! You don't have to know, Derek, not now. I know I shouldn't, but I always try to rule out all those bad possibilities because everything is going so well for us! And I want to live with the idea that everything will stay the same, that you're here and okay. I hope you always continue doing well"
"...I hope the same for you, Aves"
"I know! Your overprotective side is always noticeable". Derek cringes internally, feeling strangely shy out of nowhere and avoiding eye contact for a few moments. "Awww, are you shy now?"
"No"
"Liar!"
Avery chuckled, giving him a kiss on the cheek and seeing that Derek's reaction only became shyer, he continued until he was completely on top of him and filling his face with tiny kisses.
If Derek were to die one of these days, he's sure it would be because of Avery and his clingy side. 'Cause yeah, Avery is clingy, very clingy. And Derek won't lie, he is too, but Avery's is a thousand times worse.
Seeing that Avery had no intention of stopping, Derek had no choice but to take him and make him lie down under him, getting a cute gasp from him.
"Enough"
"Really? What are you going to do about it?"
And the answer to that? Easy. Kiss him.
And of course, Avery reciprocated. Her arms came around Derek's neck to pull him closer, giving him a long, lovely kiss, not rushed at all, just them taking the time to give him all the attention in the world. Like they always do when they kiss.
For a moment the whole world disappears, it's just them here and their lips meeting.
When they finally separate, Derek buries his face against Avery's neck, leaving a trail of kisses that make him giggle. Avery's hand tangles in his hair, stroking it. Everything feels so warm.
"It's safe here Derek. We are safe"
"Safe..."
And for this moment, in this place, and with this wonderful boy by his side, Derek prefers to believe they are safe, that the storm has passed, and all that remains is for them to relax here in each other's arms.