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And just like that, he was gone.
Avery stares at the death screen, motionless. He reaches for his mouse to respawn, to maybe have a chance at saving D3rlord3 when his screen flickers violently before going black. Avery stares. He stares at the reflection on the laptop screen and feels his heart stop.
But the world keeps on moving. His clock is still ticking and Avery's ears pick up the laptop's fan incessant whirring. Cars are still driving by outside, and he can hear his neighbor counting down the last minute till the new year with her family.
But D3rlord3— Derek. Derek, is gone. And Avery isn't.
Why am I the one sitting here, alive?
Avery ducks his head as if to hide his tears from the screen. As if Derek could see him through it. But Derek couldn't. Derek is dead. He can't see Avery cry and he can't hear Avery sob.
Avery won't ever get the chance to know Derek.
Avery mourns the man Derek was, and the friend he could've been. So he cries. He cries and cries and cries because that's all he can fucking do. He's useless, in all sense of the word. He cries and sobs loudly because no one would hear him. He's utterly alone.
A loud explosion in the sky jolts Avery, and he looks up through his window. Fireworks litter the sky. Red, yellow, green, pink, red, blue, yellow, orange, red.
Right. New years.
He's been sitting infront of this stupid laptop for 13 hours, maybe even more, for absolutely nothing. Avery laughs, and the echoing sound is hollow and brittle. He counts down with the rest of the neighborhood, whispering the words he wished he could've told Derek in person.
"Happy new year, friend."