Work Text:
<Tumblr> theMOSTmayo sent you a message: i saw that you posted…
Derek didn't even bother reading the message at first. No, actually—he was more focused on the name. theMOSTmayo. Emphasis on most. He doubted that anyone other than this person would want to be 'the most' mayo. Or, mayo at all, really. It made him want to chuckle, though. It wasn't inherently funny, just that ridiculous.
He figured he should probably stop focusing on the name, though, and read the message.
theMOSTmayo: i saw that you posted about not having anyone to play minecraft with
theMOSTmayo: i mean. you didn't post it but i saw your reblog on it
theMOSTmayo: the original had so many comments
theMOSTmayo: too many
Derek raised an eyebrow at the message, an amused grin spreading on his lips, despite himself. This person didn't seem worried in the least bit about double text. Quadruple texting, infact. They didn't even know each other.
Ah… right. His reblog. Derek didn't actually use Tumblr much, really. He liked looking at art sometimes, but he didn't enjoy that many medias. Sometimes he scrolled through the Minecraft tag, just to lurk. To see if there was anything interesting there—build ideas, mods to download… you get the gist.
He didn't really post either, obviously. Actually, he hadn't posted anything. Just a few reblogs. A lot of them he got second hand embarrassment (from himself, but in the past—is that still first hand? he wasn't sure) about, and deleted them later.
He didn't really have the chance to be embarrassed about the reblog that was the topic of discussion—he'd just reblogged it last night. Now, he was honestly cringing about it. It's almost pathetic. Reblogging a post about being lonely? Announcing that to the world? Yikes.
Derek didn't answer the DM yet. He wanted to know what he was getting himself into before he decided on anything. For all he knew, this person was a hacker. And they wanted his information. While he would probably have no problem catching and blocking them for that, he was never one too take a risk. He was screwed if he lost this laptop.
The direct messages area gave a small bit of information—the profile picture, the username, and then the bio below it.
he/him | skywars PROFESSIONAL | my youtube > https://youtube.com/@averylargemayo?si=ZLiVVzEN-nh110u8
Derek raised a brow, clicking on the profile picture—pulling up the rest of the profile.
The profile was a stark contrast to Derek's own. It was… well-built. A banner that matched the profile photo, and colors that complemented everything—it was also bright green and burning into Derek's eyes. The display name read AveryTheMayo with a glass of milk emoji by it. Close enough to mayo, he supposed?
This guy—Avery—also seemed to have a decent amount of traction. His recent had 119 reblogs. That was a lot, to Derek, at least. He had four followers. One of them was his alt account. When he did post, they got no attention before he quickly deleted them from embarrassment. Not that he didn't prefer it that way—he would probably start blocking people if he had traction like that.
His mouse hovered over the link for a few seconds, before clicking on it. It took him to youtube, obviously.
averylargemayo. He couldn't be surprised anymore, but he rolled his eyes. What was up with this guy and mayo? Of all things? Mayo?
Nonetheless… A few videos were posted—pretty much all Skywars. He didn't have that many subscribers, around one hundred, but one of his videos seems to have blown up, with over 80k views. Which Derek thought was insane. He was surprised more people wouldn't subscribe to him after that.
Derek can't imagine why this guy wouldn't have someone to play Minecraft with, or some kind of friends.
He got another notification before he got the chance to watch any videos.
<Tumblr> theMOSTmayo sent you a message: was that too much
theMOSTmayo: was that too much
theMOSTmayo: i can come on a little strong
theMOSTmayo: Sorry
Right. He'd opened the message about twenty minutes ago, now, and hadn't replied. Oops. It was a little much. He was surprised anyone would send that many messages to a stranger—but he found his fingers typing something else. For some reason.
d3rlord3: No, it's okay. I was looking at your profile. You post Minecraft?
theMOSTmayo: yeah! i spend most of my free time playing
theMOSTmayo: lol
theMOSTmayo: it sounds kind of sad when i say it
theMOSTmayo: i do other things
He couldn't help but chuckle at the message. The scramble to make it seem like he was less of a loser—Derek understood. He'd been there before. He didn't really care anymore, though.
theMOSTmayo: but i saw you didn't have anyone to play with
theMOSTmayo: i don't either
d3rlord3: What about all those people who like your content?
theMOSTmayo: my reblogs?
theMOSTmayo: or my subscribers
theMOSTmayo: or my viewers
theMOStmayo: well it doesn't really matter which
theMOSTmayo: it's not like i know any of them personally
theMOSTmayo: i see u checked out the youtube too
theMOSTmayo: u couldn't resist it huh ;P
He ignored the last two messages. Obviously, he checked it out. For all he knew, Avery was a psycho murderer.
Of course, Derek knew how subscribers worked—you rarely actually interacted with them, much less became their friends. But, he figured Tumblr posts were kind of different—look at what's happening to him. Over a post that he didn't even make.
Even then, though. No one in a youtube comment section had wanted to play Skywars with him?
d3rlord3: You don't know Me personally.
theMOSTmayo: ..
theMOSTmayo: you make a good point
theMOSTmayo: but i want to
The flip in his stomach was, without a doubt, pure anxiety. Because that sounded like a threat. Of some kind. In his world, at least. Why would this random guy want to get to know him? Without even any previous interaction? Hell, Derek was able to find some information through the social media Avery had. Avery was going on nothing; other than the fact Derek was lonely. And liked Minecraft.
That was barely anything. Why would that pull him in?
d3rlord3: Why?
theMOSTmayo: why not?
Derek paused. That was a good point. Plus… he had been the one reblogging shit about wanting to play Minecraft with someone. Who, exactly, was he to turn that down now?
He knew he was often too easily skeptical. Like everyone in the world was out to get him; maybe he could blame that on his father. Maybe he should take responsibility for it himself.
d3rlord3: That's a good point.
theMOSTmayo: i always make good points
d3rlord3: ???
theMOSTmayo: are u going to give me ur user
theMOSTmayo: or what
d3rlord3: We're playing now?
theMOSTmayo: i mean
theMOSTmayo: are you busy?
Derek considered. Technically, no. It was 11pm on a Tuesday. Of course he wasn't busy. But, he did have some studying he should probably get through. He'd been slacking in his classes, and it was coming to bite him in the ass. It wasn't his fault he could barely get out of bed.
Anyway. He wasn't about to throw a pity party.
He should just tell Avery he's busy.
d3rlord3: No.
d3rlord3: it's just d3rlord3
theMOSTmayo: creative
d3rlord3: ?
d3rlord3: You have Mayo in All of your users.
theMOSTmayo: ^ - ^
theMOSTmayo: i added you
He rolled his eyes. That face was not a response to Avery's previous comment. He didn't say anything, though, instead opening Minecraft. He clicked play, and then navigated over to the social tab. He had a request, obviously, from—oh, this guy couldn't be serious. Really? He was giving Derek shit about being creative?
TheMostMayo.
It was the exact same user as the Tumblr. Hypocrite.
He got an invite to a world, almost as quickly as he accepted the friend request. His eyes drifted to the time, but his brain clicked on the invite before he even gave himself proper permission to do that.
When the world loaded in, some thing was jumping around him in circles. Crouching. Hitting the air.
This could only be Avery, obviously.
It seemed to be… A humanized slime. In a Hawaiian shirt and khaki shorts. And Sandals, he was pretty sure?
It definitely stood in a contrast to Derek's own Roman knight skin.
<d3rlord3> You said I'm not creative?
<TheMostMayo> you aren't
Derek almost rolled his eyes.
<d3rlord3> You have the same user
<TheMostMayo> No
<TheMostMayo> my user here is TheMostMayo
<TheMostMayo> not theMOSTmayo
During their conversation, he wasn't sure Avery had stopped moving once—jumping around, still crouching repeatedly in front of him, and even breaking a line of blocks in front of Derek; who had barely moved yet.
He was not going to argue with someone who clearly lacked logic.
Instead, he smacked the pixel avatar to express his feelings. Avery stopped his jumping, turning to face him.
<TheMostMayo> ok damn
<TheMostMayo> no need to get violent
<TheMostMayo> i get the gist
He backed away, while crouching. Hitting the air, far enough to assure he wouldn't hit Derek.
Despite himself, Derek smiled at the screen. Ridiculous. Really.
<d3rlord3> We should stop talking and set up a base for the night.
Avery seemed to agree with that, jumping instead of replying. He headed off in a random direction, and Derek followed behind him.
꩜
He couldn't remember the last time he'd been up this late from his own free will. Derek hadn't even meant to stay up this late—he was just going to play for a little. But… he got, well, sucked in. Or something. Usually, when he was up this late, it was his anxious insomnia gnawing at him and refusing to let him sleep, or a headache that wouldn't let him sit with nothing to do for too long. Chronic headaches and insomnia did not mix well.
Tonight, though—he wasn't pondering over every bad thing he'd said, or even all his overdue assignments.
He'd just… been playing the game. It was weird, he liked Avery. Could he even say that? They were strangers. He didn't know Avery.
He knew he liked his presence, though.
He was funny.
Annoying, and he seemed to… not quite understand things a lot, but he was funny.
He was also really good at PVP. Derek supposed he should've guessed that, based on his Skywars videos, but he didn't.
He'd tried to fight him off for some diamonds, and lost. Pathetically so.
Avery gave him the diamonds anyway, which Derek thought was weird. He was… really nice, and this guy didn't even know him. He seemed such a stark contrast to Derek.
<d3rlord3> I should go
<d3rlord3> I have classes tomorrow
<TheMostMayo> classes ???
<TheMostMayo> Please tell me you aren't in high school
<d3rlord3> No lol
<d3rlord3> college
<TheMostMayo> ohhh that makes more sense
<TheMostMayo> i was scared you were underage
Derek raised a brow. He highly doubted that he gave off the vibes of high schooler. He wasn't sure if that would be a good or a bad thing. He assumed bad—twenty-one was too old to want to pass as a high school.
<d3rlord3> I take it you're Of age, then?
<TheMostMayo> i'm twenty
<TheMostMayo> do i not seem twenty.
He smiled at the screen. They seemed to be having the same dilemma, which he thought was funny. It was small. And stupid. And hearing Avery worry about that made him see how stupid it was.
<TheMostMayo> oops sorry
<TheMostMayo> I don't wanna distract you
<TheMostMayo> u should go
Right, he declared that. Even if he maybe wanted to stay on for a little longer. He really did have class tomorrow.
<TheMostMayo> Night d3rlord
<TheMostMayo> sleep well
<TheMostMayo> :P
He doubted he would. But it was nice to hear anyway.
<d3rlord3> Goodnight, Avery
You're nice to be around
The message sat unsent on his chat bar, before he promptly deleted it. That was weird. He just met him. He shouldn't say that.
He pulled down the pause screen, before leaving the world.
One-thirty. That was plenty of time to still get sleep.
꩜
Okay—first things out of the way. Derek was not a stalker. Seriously. He wasn't crazy, or whatever. He wasn't even creepy. Just making sure that's clear. Okay? Okay. Seriously.
Three weeks had passed since he first met Avery. They had been playing on the world a lot more than he'd expected. It was more commitment than he'd been giving his classes recently.
But he still didn't know much about Avery—yes, the average person would probably say to just ask, but Derek had other ways. Easier ways, obviously.
Also, you're basically asking for it by using almost the same username on every platform.
It wasn't that hard to find Avery's other social medias—no surprise, everything had mayo in it. Mayo was not good enough for this obsession. Genuinely.
It was even on his Facebook.
Anyway. A lot of the social medias only gave so much information. He hadn't touched Facebook since twenty-sixteen (but really, who had?), and his Instagram had one post from twenty-twenty-one.
It wasn't all a lost cause, though. He learned a few things—like where he lived, assuming it was still accurate (some small town in Florida). He already knew his favorite color from his Tumblr—some mild stalking on that helped, too, he learned about his interests, and he reblogged a lot of stuff about hating his job (it sounded like he worked in a restaurant). All in all, he didn't come up empty handed. He did feel a little guilty after the whole thing—was that appropriate? Who knows.
Derek wasn't particularly social. He didn't have many friends—or any—but that wasn't something he minded. He had a few when he'd started university, but they all slowly drifted. Mostly because of him.
Keeping up with people… it was just, difficult. You didn't text back fast enough, and they decided you hated them. Or you weren't worth time anymore. You don't wanna go out every weekend? Well, forget that bond.
Derek didn't even keep in contact with his sister. It was nothing personal. He wasn't great at dealing with people, or accepting what society deemed as normal for relationships, and he was fine with that. If other people didn't want to keep him around for that, he didn't care. He wouldn't take offense to it.
That's why things with Avery were… different.
He didn't push for an answer—sure, he would occasionally (most of the time) send a string of messages at once, but he never got annoyed when Derek didn't reply until the next day. Or three days later (that had only happened once so far, in his defense). Or when he wasn't in the mood to play, Avery didn't mind. When he did want to play, and didn't want to talk, he played with him in silence.
Yes, okay—he was aware it had only been three weeks. But most of his friendships died out by now. So it was just nice. Leave him alone.
Anyway.
He was getting off topic.
Point being—he really liked Avery's company. More than he expected, and honestly—more than he probably should have. He looked forward to playing with him.
He watched the videos Avery posted on youtube. He didn't even like Skywars. Seriously. He hated PVP.
<TheMostMayo> You should come inside
<TheMostMayo> it's getting nighttime
<TheMostMayo> d3rlord?
Speaking of—when Derek looked back to his laptop screen, Avery was crouching and un-crouching repeatedly, in front of him. He had also built a room of dirt around them—probably to protect Derek when the sun set.
Derek crouched once in response.
<d3rlord3> sorry
<d3rlord3> I wasn't paying attention
<TheMostMayo> you okay?
<TheMostMayo> we don't have to play rn if you don't want to
A small smile. He was always putting Derek's feelings first. It was weird to call someone you'd known such a short amount of time a friend, but he did. Consider them friends.
<d3rlord3> No, no, I do.
<d3rlord3> I was just thinking
<TheMostMayo> about?
By now, Avery was destroying the dirt-room around them, as the sun was coming up. He could hear the monsters outside burning.
You, was probably the realistic answer. But, again, that felt like the wrong thing to say.
<d3rlord3> just life
<TheMostMayo> Oh yikes
<TheMostMayo> that's deep man
Derek wished Avery could see the eye roll he gave him.
He didn't answer, instead, heading off towards their mine. He'd been searching for diamonds, and he was pretty sure he'd found some the other day, but he died before he got there. Since then, he had been trying to find them.
Avery followed behind him—which wasn't unusual, ironically. Avery didn't even like mining, but he would usually follow him in, anyway.
<TheMostMayo> wanna be more specific?
It almost felt like concern. Which was… weird. Why would Avery be concerned about him, anyway?
<d3rlord3> I'm thinking about dropping out of college
Derek briefly wondered if there was a word to describe blurting something out over a message. He would use it right now.
<TheMostMayo> WHAT/
<TheMostMayo> why would u do that.?.??????
<TheMostMayo> ur so smart though
If he was smiling at that message, that was for Derek to know. And take to his grave, by the way.
Besides, Derek knew he was smart. He wasn't a genius, but he knew he hadn't gotten into Cornell on pure luck.
<d3rlord3> idk
<d3rlord3> I'm not really motivated towards any of my classes, or anything honestly
<d3rlord3> I'm gonna at least finish out the semester
<d3rlord> Not sure what I'll do after that. any suggestions?
<TheMostMayo> don't work in fast food
<TheMostMayo> lol
He smiled a little at the comment. He wondered where exactly Avery worked. What chain. How many people he worked with.
<d3rlord3> I don't think I planned on it
He really didn't—he worked at the local library, and the job was perfect for him. It was a part time job, so it left room in his schedule for school. Room that he had been paying less and less mind to.
<TheMostMayo> Seriously though
<TheMostMayo> I'm sure whatever you choose will be the right choice :)
<TheMostMayo> ur smart like that
<d3rlord3> …Thank you. Sorry for dropping that randomly.
<TheMostMayo> no don't apologize
<TheMostMayo> I asked
<TheMostMayo> I like that you would tell me something like that
<d3rlord3> You are comforting to talk to.
He wasn't entirely sure if that was the right thing to say, either. But he said it too soon to take it back, so it didn't matter anymore.
Avery's character punched the air near him.
<TheMostMayo> ur comforting to be around
<TheMostMayo> :3
That made Derek feel like he had something hard to swallow around in his throat. Which was, notably, weird. He wasn't sure how to respond to that.
Instead—he did the obvious thing.
He left.
He left the game, and then continued to stare at his laptop screen for ten minutes. Ugh, he was getting a headache. The light was too much.
<Tumblr> theMOSTmayo sent you a message: u ok???
<Tumblr> theMOSTmayo sent you a message: sorry if i had smt wrong!!!
<Tumblr> theMOSTmayo sent you a message: said**
<Tumblr> theMOSTmayo sent you a message: lmk if ur ok whenever…
He probably should've said something to Avery before leaving. A bye, even.
He opened up their Tumblr DMs—which had been filled much since their first conversation. Avery sent him a lot of posts—videos from other social medias, too. He also just talked a lot. Neither of which Derek minded.
He opened their direct messages, reading over the most recent one again. He felt bad, now.
theMOSTmayo: lmk if ur ok whenever u can!! no rush xP
He typed a message, then deleted it. Another message, before deciding against it. God, it was not this serious. He didn't care what way anyone else perceived him, what was different now?
d3rlord3: You didn't say anything wrong. I am fine
theMOSTmayo: why'd you leave? u sure ur okay?
d3rlord3: I just need to study
d3rlord3: Sorry I left so abruptly.
d3rlord3: I was not prepared for your message.
theMOSTmayo: oooo ur embarrassed
theMOSTmayo: it's ok, i won't tell
He stared at his screen again, he wasn't sure why he was staring this time, either.
d3rlord3: Goodnight, Avery.
theMOSTmayo: I WAS KIDDING
theMOSTmayo: DONTLEAVE
theMOSTmayo: D3RLORD
Derek chuckled at the onslaught of messages—but he had been serious. He needed to study. He had a testing come up, and even if he was thinking about dropping out, he would leave with good grades.
…Which meant he needed to get the ones he already had so low back up. Including passing his next few tests.
꩜
<TheMostMayo> we should call sometime
<d3rlord3> Oh? We should?
<TheMostMayo> I mean
<TheMostMayo> only if you want
<TheMostMayo> but i'd like to know what you sound like
<TheMostMayo> we've known each other for over two months and i don't have a voice to put the personality to
<d3rlord3> Is it not 'a face to put the name to' ?
<TheMostMayo> it is yes
<TheMostMayo> but i don't have a face or a name
<TheMostMayo> unless ur legal name is d3rlord
<TheMostMayo> 3
He rolled his eyes at the message, but the grin on his face didn't fade.
Yes, he'd known Avery for more than a month now. It was… weird. To keep a stranger on the internet—Avery was much more than that by now—around for that long. Not to mention as close as Derek had been keeping him.
Well, he kept him close, but at an arm's distance. As stated—Avery didn't even know his name. Maybe a little unfair, he supposed. He knew Avery's name. Actually, he knew a lot about Avery. If it wasn't something he found himself, Avery shared it. Unprompted. He was very open to sharing—very extroverted. Something that made it surprising to Derek that he didn't have many friends.
Avery seemed outgoing enough.
And yet, he was just as lonely as Derek himself.
Intertwined, the word crossed his mind for a moment, before he waved it off.
<d3rlord3> And where would we call?
<TheMostMayo> well
<TheMostMayo> u could give me ur number
<TheMostMayo> ;)
<d3rlord3> You really know how to wow a guy.
<TheMostMayo> :D
<d3rlord3> But, I guess that would be okay
Say he had a lack of internet safety information, or whatever. It didn't really matter anymore, Avery knew where he lived. Well, he knew here he went to school. Avery had his moments, but Derek was sure he was smart enough to put two and two together on that one.
<d3rlord3> 607-***-****
Avery's character went still, a rare occasion, and Derek could only assume he was putting his number into his phone.
i hope you didn't give me a fake number Today, 11:31pm <
that would be really embarrassing for me Today, 11:31pm <
d3rlord? Today, 11:32pm <
> Derek is fine, too Today, 11:33pm
> lol Today, 11:33pm
> And I would never do that. Today, 11:34pm
omg Today, 11:33pm <
Name Reveal Today, 11:33pm <
> It was only Fair. Today, 11:33pm
Derek watched the little typing bubble appear and disappear for several minutes. No, he wasn't waiting for an answer. He was simply… watching, of course.
soooo Today, 11:40Ppm <
Are we calling? Today, 11:40pm <
> Well, I gave you my number. Today, 11:41pm
He stared at his phone for another few minutes, before it started ringing. He almost dropped it—not in a panic. He wasn't panicking. He just wasn't ready; the guy didn't even give him a warning!
He stared at the phone call icon for a few moments, before realizing it was going to go to voicemail if he didn't answer soon. So. Even as his stomach twisted, he accepted the call.
Both ends were silent for a moment, before Avery cleared his throat and spoke first.
"Derlord?" It felt weird to hear his username said outloud. "Ah! Right. I mean, Derek. It's weird for you to have an actual name."
He laughed at that. "It's weird?"
Avery paused, muttering out a woah. "I mean, yeah. You've been Derlord to me this whole time. Derek suits you, though."
"I'd hope so. It worked for twenty-two years."
"You know what I mean."
By now, Avery's character had started running and jumping around again, going in circles around Derek.
It was like he struggled to stay still in the game. Ridiculous.
Even so, it made him smile.
They headed off down one of the tunnels in the mine, and Derek stopped at the end. He switched to his pickaxe, before starting to break the blocks in front of him. Avery made a tunnel down the side—in any other situation, he would've complained about how it messed with the order, but he didn't really mind here. He just let Avery do what he wanted.
Avery spoke up after a few minutes of silence—weirdly, it wasn't awkward, "You sound… exactly how I expected, actually."
"Is that a good thing?"
"Yeah." The green slime block punched the air in his direction. "I like your voice."
Derek fell silent for a moment, stopping where he was mining. He swallowed, around nothing in particular. "You're weird, Avery."
"So I've heard!"
He spoke like he had no clue the words he'd just uttered punched the air out of Derek.
He probably didn't have a clue, if he was being honest.
It's not that Avery was clueless—Derek wouldn't even say he was necessarily dumb, he just didn't think before he spoke. Or after, a lot of the times. It was one of the things he… almost admired. All Derek did was think. Before he spoke, before he did anything, really. He analyzed every possible outcome of every single thing he would do or say, to assure the best possible outcome would be the one he got.
Avery didn't seem to do that. He didn't care what the outcome was—he just went for it. Weirdly.
It was easier to not analyze everything around Avery.
To see the outcome before he'd calculated it.
Some weird affect Avery had, something Derek hadn't experienced before. A sense of comfort, that he didn't even have around his own parents.
>TheMostMayo fell from a high place.
"You know what? Don't go down the tunnel I just dug." Avery muttered, and Derek headed back to the house to meet him when he respawned.
They actually had a pretty decent house going—neither were wonderful builders, but together they made it work.
They'd built it out of cherry blossom oak, Avery insisted that was the best looking one, and it was decently sized. Two stories, and they were adding on. Avery also had a garden he rarely tended to, Derek usually ended up collecting and replanting everything, but they still called it Avery's.
"Did you not look where you were going?"
"…Well, yes. I was just digging down." He commented, offhandedly.
Derek paused. "Why would you do that?"
"Nothing bad has ever come from digging down!"
"Something just did!" Derek would've facepalmed, if he didn't have his hand on the mouse. That was like the first rule of Minecraft—but, to be fair, he was pretty sure everyone broke that rule all the time.
"Doesn't count!" He could hear the dismissal in Avery's tone, and while he could've easily won this argument, all facts were on his side, he… didn't really want to. It wasn't about being right, and instead, he just laughed. It was ridiculous.
He liked it.
꩜
Derek didn't hate the holidays—honestly! Despite what anyone who knew him might have said, he didn't hate them. He just didn't celebrate them, he had no reason to. So, he didn't.
Christmas and New Years, in specific, were right around the corner.
He didn't even understand the point of celebrating a new year. Great, another one passed. He wasn't dead yet. Congratulations.
Christmas, though, made a little more sense. Kind of. He wasn't religious, but even then, the holiday was less religious now and more… he doesn't know, spending time with family, maybe. Giving gifts, getting gifts—something he still didn't see a point in celebrating.
Sure, maybe it's because he didn't have family or friends to celebrate with, but he would tell you that wasn't why.
He had his reasons, okay?
Mind your business.
Which is exactly what he wanted to tell Avery, when he'd first brought up the conversation.
"You're not doing anything for Christmas? Really? At all?"
Derek groaned, not wanting to be back on this conversation. "No. I'm not. We've had this conversation for the last three days, now, Avery. It's tomorrow, why would I lie about that?" He resisted an eye roll.
He didn't have plans. Just like always.
He had officially known Avery for five months now, going on six. It felt like it had been longer, but shorter at the same time.
Like he'd known Avery his whole life, and also like he had just met him. It was a weird feeling—to trust someone you hadn't even seen before with your whole life
Of course, he had technically seen Avery before, and had a relative idea of what he looked like, but it was years old. Maybe he looked different. How would Derek know?
He didn't, and it picked at him, but he wasn't going to ask.
Because if he asked, Avery would want to see his face. And he was dreading that. Really. Of course—Avery would never push, but it would just be unfair; to ask to see Avery's face, and not share his.
But Avery would be disappointed in his look, he had no doubt.
Derek was rarely out in the sun, not to mention he rarely slept, which left his complexion… not doing great. He tried to not even look at the bags under his eyes.
The best thing he had going for him was his locs—he liked his hair, really, he did. He liked that the style was nice, but still kept them decently low maintenance. Even if he hated moisturizing—that was out of his hands. But, even then—his dye job wasn't doing him wonders lately. It was pretty faded, and he hadn't done shit to maintain it.
It wasn't like he was gross, no—really. Self-care was just… Difficult. Especially during breaks, like this, when he didn't leave the apartment. He didn't have a lot of motivation.
Anyway. He was getting off topic. Avery would think he wanted to see him, but he wouldn't really want to. Derek could tell, and he didn't want to risk that.
"—What about new years, though? Any plans? Family?"
Derek rolled his eyes, again. "No. No plans. Just staying home." He didn't even want to stay up until midnight, but he doubted his brain would give him that choice.
Avery was silent on the other end for a few minutes. Like he wasn't content with that answer. "What if we celebrate together?"
Derek could laugh, almost. "What, like in Minecraft?"
"No," Avery said, immediately. "Like, really. What if I come see you?"
"Avery, you're over a thousand miles away. And you live off a fast food paycheck. I know you already struggle to make ends meet. I don't want you to… get yourself into that." It would be nice to see Avery—amazing, actually—but, well, we've already been over this. And the money thing was a serious concern. Derek couldn't afford a plane ticket, either. He could barely afford his groceries, on a good day.
It just wasn't plausible. After a few moments of silence, he added, "It would be nice, though. You're the only person I'd really want to spend my new years with."
Avery commented about being great company, before returning to whatever they'd been talking about before the holidays.
They stayed on for a while longer, before Avery had to go to get some sleep for work in the morning.
They got off Minecraft, but it's not like they really left, considering the fact that they stayed on for the next few hours until Avery fell asleep.
Even then, Derek stayed on for a little longer before he ended the call. Just to make sure he stayed asleep, was all. Avery liked to talk until he physically couldn't keep moving his mouth.
And Derek liked not being alone in the nights. He didn't say, probably wouldn't ever, but he had a feeling Avery knew. He appreciated him never bringing it up, at least. Saving him some humiliation.
꩜
Christmas came and went. Derek did the most celebrating of that holiday he'd ever done—sent Avery a package with some odds and ends gifts. They opened it on call—Avery cried, and then cried some more because he didn't get Derek anything. It's not like he wanted anything, though. Getting Avery gifts was more like his gifts.
But he did feel pretty awful for making him cry, until Avery insisted it was happy tears.
Happy tears.
He was so weird.
Anyway, with Christmas gone, of course New Years rolled around the corner. Multiple fraternities at his college were holding New Year's parties—Derek only really knew from social media. He wouldn't have wanted to go, even if he did get an invite.
Either way, though, Derek wasn't really worried about that. Avery had barely been talking to him for the last few weeks, and that's what Derek was mostly worried about. Usually, he left him a string of messages, about random things. Work things. A cat he saw on the street. Anything, weird stuff.
But not lately. Actually, he was barely getting texts back lately. They weren't playing Minecraft, either, which had him worried. Avery had also become a part of his nightly routine, and his brain was not enjoying having him gone from it.
…His brain wasn't enjoying having Avery gone, in general. He wasn't really sure when it had happened—when he'd started to care so much. But, it had. And it was there now. And he was pretty sure he'd never cared about anyone like he cared about Avery now.
He was frustrated. Frustrated that he started caring that much. Mad that, after everything, Avery wasn't going radio silent on him.
More than anything, though, he missed him. Really.
He was pretty sure he'd left the house more in the past week than he had in the last year. It wasn't even that he wanted to, he just hated being home right now. Being alone.
He was eternally grateful that he was allowed in the campus library during break—probably because he worked there—because it was where he'd spent most of his time. Reading literature that most people find torture—it brought him comfort, actually. He liked long, boring books. Books based in fiction, he could always guess what would happen in the ending.
It was different in old literature. He liked the mystery.
So. That is where he had spent the entire day of New Year's eve, until he'd been kicked out. His boss begged him to go find someone to celebrate with. He'd given her a deadpan look, before accepting defeat, and leaving.
His phone had been in his apartment all day—he didn't see a reason in bringing it with him, really. He wanted to be alone, anyway. Unbothered.
He probably wouldn't have been bothered in the first place, really, but it was fun to imagine.
He was regretting his decision to stay out so late, only a little, now, because it was so cold. It was dark, and it was snowing, and he had not layered up enough for this (his own fault. He'd lived in New York long enough to know better).
The campus was pretty empty, obviously, save for a few people who stayed in the dorms and were on their way home.
That, being said, is why Derek did not question a figure sprinting at him full speed.
People had places to be, he got it. People to kiss at midnight, you know? Actually, he should probably just step to the side—
"Wait! Hold—on," The person stopped in front of him, panting, and trying to catch his breath. He bent over, hands on his knees.
He was dressed… Awful, actually. For this weather. He had shorts on. Granted, a sweater, but that didn't make up for the shorts. The guy had to be freezing.
He was taller than derek—definitely by a few inches—not that you could tell with him being bent over. He was tan, well sunned, and Derek could see that even in the dark.
His hair was an odd length (no judgement). Not really long, but not short, either, and dirty blonde. It was pulled back in a half up-half down ponytail. There was a very faded green—it must have been dark at one point, but it was light now—at the tips. Almost like the dye was holding on for its life.
"Sorry," He wheezed. "Gimmie a second. Don't run a lot." He also had sneakers on, despite the two inches of snow on the ground. The guy took one last breath, before standing up straight. "You go here, yeah?" He was still panting between every breath, actually, Derek could hardly make out his words.
"Cool, okay—you know a Derek Hutchins?"
Derek paused. Without the pants—he knew that voice. Oh, and the fact he'd just had his full name said to him by this stranger.
"…Avery?"
The man paused, not even panting anymore. Just frozen—that wouldn't be a metaphor soon, by the way.
He stood up, looking at Derek. Eyes wide. Face red, and Derek couldn't tell if that was from the run or the cold.
"Holy shit," He muttered, before repeating a second, louder, "Holy shit,"
Derek agreed with that, actually. "What—what the fuck are you doing here?" His eyes were wide, and he genuinely couldn't tell if he'd fallen and hit his head on the way back.
"I'm here for you! Why else?" Avery threw his arms up. "Have you not been checking your phone?!"
"I didn't have it," Derek paused a moment, before giving him a suspicious look. "You've barely been texting me this week. It was like you fell off the face of the earth—I had, like, two messages."
"Okay, yes—I feel awful about that. I am sorry. I meant to communicate with you, but, you know! I wanted to make it a surprise. Turns out bus travel is a lot harder than I thought it would be, and it took a while. And then, before that—the extra hours to make sure I had enough money, and, wow, okay, I'm talking so much, but I just wanted—I needed to see you, and I was like, oh yeah! This will be the perfect Christmas slash New Years gift, but I kind of suck at planning, which you probably know, and apparently the drive here barely has any service—"
"Avery," Derek tried.
"—Which I really wish I would've known. But I just hated the idea of you spending both holidays alone, because I know how that feels and I hate it, and maybe it's selfish because maybe I also wanted to spend my holidays with you, but that's because I wanna spend all my time with you, and I just should've put more thought—"
God, this guy did not shut up.
Derek loved that about him.
He wasn't entirely sure what was happening, actually—his brain wasn't calculating all possible outcomes, not even one outcome, he was just… moving. And his hands were finding Avery's cheeks, and he was pulling him down to press his own lips against Avery's.
And then, yeah. Avery shut up.
He didn't move for a moment, before he went to return the kiss, but by then, Derek's actions had processed in his head and why the actual fuck did he do that, what the hell is wrong with him—
"Oh, shit. I am so sorry—I don't know why I—"
Avery didn't give him the chance to splutter, pulling him back in. Like a man starved, and Derek let himself be pulled and didn't hesitate to melt into the kiss.
It was a few minutes before they both pulled away, and Derek genuinely felt like he might pass out from adrenaline. "What the fuck,"
Avery cleared his throat. "What I was, uh, getting to. At the end of that rant. Was, you know. I.. like you. A lot. More than anyone."
Derek had that dry feeling in his throat again, like there was something difficult to swallow around again. He still wasn't entirely sure he was awake.
"…I wanted to tell you that in person." He continued.
Derek let out a soft snort. "I think you made your point," the other man let out a sheepish chuckle, but he was looking to Derek expectantly.
Man, they were really going to have a long talk about context clues.
"I like you too, Avery. Also more than I've liked anyone." He watched the smile spread on Avery's lips, before it immediately dropped.
"Wait! Shit. Is it midnight? Oh my god, no, I was supposed to kiss you at midnight—if you felt the same, I mean—it was part of the whole thing." He frowned—it reminded Derek of telling a dog to go to the kennel. "My whole plan,"
He opened his mouth to speak, but he was interrupted by fireworks from somewhere nearby. "If I were to guess, I'd say it was midnight."
Avery paused, before seeming to catch on. "Oh! Oh! We can still—yes, okay—"
Derek didn't let him keep talking this time, immediately pulling him back in.
What? He wasn't going to miss midnight. Not after this whole thing.
It wasn't a long kiss, short and sweet. He pulled away, even after Avery chased after his lips, but instead rested his forehead against Avery's (yes, he did have to push himself up a little).
"I guess I understand why people celebrate New Years."
Avery laughed at that—a sound like honey on his throat. "Happy New Years, Derek."
"Yeah. Thanks to you. Thank you." He muttered, hands sliding over Avery's waist. He was shivering. Oh shit, right. It was freezing out and this man was in shorts.
"We should really get you inside—come on, my apartments close. What were you thinking with this get up?"
"The plan wasn't to be outside! I was at your apartment. But, for the first time, like, ever, you weren't home. So, I was just going to ask around until someone knew you. And where you were."
"That's an awful plan."
"I already said I'm bad at planning!"
They both laughed, and Derek intertwined his fingers with Avery's own.
"Well, it worked out. Lucky you."