Chapter Text
“You’re capable of great things.”
No…
“You’ll do great things.”
No…No this can’t be real!
“So believe in yourself.”
…
“And I don’t just say that because I saw it. It doesn’t take a god for me to figure that out. I know it because I know you.”
Please…don’t do this to me…
“Goodbye my friend.”
No no no no…-
“Whatever you do at the crossroads. Keep going forward.”
NO-!
And that was that.
Avery slammed down his computer, not hard enough to break but enough for a loud snap to echo in his apartment. He couldn’t bear to look at that letter anymore. Not when the words would just keep echoing in his head. Not when he knew that he could’ve stopped it. How could he have been so stupid?! He should’ve called his bluff, should’ve fought back harder, he could’ve won if Derek had actually chosen to PvP! So how could he have failed so…
The small pop of fireworks were muffled in the background. By now people were drunk out of their minds. Probably blacking out, some probably heading back to the building to sleep. But now? Avery’s head was wide awake. Full of all the things he could’ve done, what he could’ve said, just…why? Why? WHY?!
He banged his head against the wooden floor, sobbing into the ground. Blonde hair now drenched in sweat and tears. His breath caught a number of times, what else was there to do now?
“I’m sorry Derek…”
His breath caught in his throat,
“I should’ve worked harder…it should’ve been me…”
He sobbed into the floor again, the only other noises being the steps of people returning to the apartment complex.
“I’m so…so sorry…”
— *** —
Days felt like a loop. Breakfast, classes, work, sleep. Breakfast, classes, work, sleep. Well…the last part if Avery could’ve slept that is. He tried to sleep. He really did, but every night felt like a series of twists and turns, nightmares and flashbacks. Every call felt like a jolt to reality, every friend asking if he was okay felt like a knife going through his throat. Every bit of concern that he didn’t deserve made him want to just break down and sob. Every blue flower reminded him of what he did, every flash of bright yellow made him internally feel a sense of pure and absolute dread.
Avery could barely take this anymore. Why did he have to play minecraft on new years of all times ANYWAYS?! Why was he so connected to a guy he just met? Why was he grieving over someone he barely knew? It was useless, pointless, worthless…And in a sense? It was just like Avery. Or how he felt anyways.
And today felt like another one of those repetitive cycles. Avery had just finished what felt like 2 days worth of calculus, all while trying to avoid the (what felt like) borderline invasive questions from his friends.
“You okay man? You’ve been showing up to class late lately.”
“Oh I’ve just been low on sleep recently, that's all.”
“Hey man, I haven't seen you online recently, what’s up with that?”
“Uhm…just been prioritizing family is all.”
It was all the same questions. The same concerns. And to that? Avery couldn’t feel anything but the ever guilty hole eating at him at a constant pace.
So, he returned home and slumped onto his desk, tired eyes staring down at the shut computer. And with caution and trepidation, he slowly opened it up. He took a deep breath, before finally opening his eyes. Green gaze darting over the familiar goodbye letter Derek had written to him weeks ago. He held back the tears that threatened to lift into his eyes again. So, with shaky hands, he lifted and gently placed them onto the keyboard. Despite the homework beginning to pile up on his desk, he only had one goal at the moment, one determination, one chance to fill the hole that was consuming his heart, to find answers. Just as he did all those weeks ago on a foolish night during New Year's.
With another breath, he opened a new tab and began searching.
First, he decided to check the letter again. There was a video about it, was there not? It didn’t take long for Avery to find the channel.
“dhutchins333”
“Hutchins”. So that was his last name huh? Not a bad one. What was it…German? Regardless of where it came from, it was a clue. A big one. With fast hands, ones that had been made from hours on Skywars, he quickly typed the name into the search bar, scrolling for any information on the man he grew to care about so quickly.
After a bit of scrolling and digging into various forums, Avery eventually found a small website where various freelancers would offer their services, and who was near the top?
“Derek Hutchins”
Avery’s breath hitched before digging further into the profile, times available…coding services, prices, and more. Based on the date, the profile was likely made a while ago, and inactive, for a long time. As he scrolled further into the profile, his breath suddenly stopped. Hands trembled, eyes watered. An address. There really was an address. A sign, a sense of hope, and a chance to find him. To find Derek.
And it wasn’t too far from his apartment complex either! What were the chances? With a quick bus drive, he’d probably get there in half an hour!
Without further hesitation, Avery stood up, grabbing the computer and quickly shoving it into his bag, among other things he might need. Phone, wallet, water bottle, some packed lunch he kept in the fridge, and he left.
— *** —
Avery scanned his card and sat onto an empty seat in the bus, luckily it wasn’t too crowded on a Wednesday. Turning on his headphones and playing some songs, he looked down at his phone and began to scroll through the folder where he saw the doc again. And…What was that next to the goodbye doc?
Without another moment of hesitation, Avery clicked onto the second document that rested next to the goodbye letter.
“The footage in this folder belonging to “Derek Hutchins” has been temporarily seized for investigation by the US D.M.S.. We thank you for your patience.”
A raised brow mixed with a sense of dread began to form on Avery. The D.M.S? Avery hadn’t heard of an organization like that before. After a quick google search, it didn’t take long for him to find some information about them. “Department of Metaphysical Sciences”, an organization that specializes in dealing with and exterminating various supernatural and otherworldly threats. So…maybe like creatures like the King in Yellow? Maybe that was why they took Derek’s footage. As heroic as their goal sounded, it only made Avery frown slightly. He didn’t want some government to be an obstacle in his way when all he wanted to do was find Derek. What if they wanted Derek for something? The thought made Avery both want to groan and grimace. Those shows where people had to run away or hide from the government was his least favorite genre! The last thing he wanted was to become one of those main characters…
He’ll figure it out regardless of if the D.M.S come after him or not. All he wanted was to see his Derek again.
Wait- His Derek? Okay now Avery was starting to get into his own head again. He just needed to make sure the guy was safe! He saved Avery’s life after all…having some clearance on what happened to him would at least fill the guilt ridden hole in his heart to some degree.
But then it got Avery thinking. What exactly did happen to Derek after he fell off that platform? What happened to his physical body? Was he okay? Likely not…But unconscious? Slumped against a desk?
…
Rotting?
Avery shook his head, his stomach was already churning just from thinking about it. Anyways, not too much time had passed since that fateful day…So nothing too bad could have happened to Derek yet right? RIGHT?? Avery let out a sigh and decided to move his gaze towards the bus window, turning up the volume of his music to try and drown out the “worst-case scenarios” rushing through his head. The bus continued on, and by the time he got to his destination, the sun had set.
Once the bus screeched to a stop, Avery quickly hopped off and turned off the headphones, looking up at the various apartment complexes that towered before him. With a deep, steady breath, and a glance at his phone to make sure he had the right address, he began to walk towards the one on the left.
As he entered the building and began to climb up the never-ending amount of stairs, it didn’t take long for him to get looks from the people who actually lived in the complex. And Avery couldn’t blame them, he didn’t live here, never was seen around the area. Regardless, he just hoped they assumed he was a friend or guest…which in a sense he was so-
After climbing up to the 5th floor and turning left (haha see what I did there? I’m gonna kms-), Avery became face to face with what he could only hope was Derek’s place. Once he took a quiet breath, his trembling hand carefully began to turn the doorknob. Until…it stopped.
Locked.
What else did he expect?
— *** —
Avery cursed under his breath, a censored curse of course (frick or smt), because the man almost barely swore. And after a while put a palm to his chin to think on what he could do to try and open the door. He tried to turn the doorknob a couple more times, which failed miserably, then decided to maybe try just slamming the door or even ramming into it, and yeah…that went as well as you would expect from someone who hadn’t gone to the gym in a while and was built like a stick since he was a teen. And finally, finally, right before Avery was about to lose all hope and just mope in front of the door, he quickly pulled out a bobby pin from his hair. He used to watch all those videos on how people picked locks with just bobby pins. It hadn’t been that long ago, surely he could just pull that off and get in right?
And so after bending the material a bit, he carefully inserted the tip with slightly shaking hands, a mix of thrill and anxiety forming within him.
This is bad, this could be so bad, what if it wasn’t even Derek’s apartment? What if he just look like some random creep breaking in?
He carefully looked from side to side to make sure no one was around or watching just in case of that latter scenario, before returning his attention to the lock. His fingers shook, red by pinching the pin for so long, sweat began to drip from his forehead, whether it be from adrenaline or just actually being hot, he couldn’t tell. And after moving it around for a little longer, he was just about to consider pulling it out and finding another way when…
Click
It worked! It actually worked! The door was unlocked! Avery let out a shaky sigh of relief, before finally turning the doorknob and going inside, shutting the door behind him.
With one quick sniff, Avery could immediately tell the state of the apartment without even needing to look. It smelled of rot and certainly had a slightly strong odor to it. Avery had to use his colorful shirt to cover his nose just not to gag. Looking down at the floor, overall the room wasn’t crazy messy everywhere and all over…just dirty. Like it hadn’t been taken care of in weeks, maybe even months. Bugs clearly had made their homes here and there, and various crusts began to develop on certain objetcs. The sight and smell of…everything, made Avery want to vomit and cry. Just how long had Derek been living like this? Whatever…Once Avery finds Derek, he’s getting him out of here, and fast.
Upon exploring the room, it didn’t take long for Avery to find various objects that caught his eye. Notes about different coding languages, which wasn’t at all a surprise, considering the other man could solve all those puzzles so quickly, a couple geometry sketches, ones Avery didn’t bother on looking at for too long, and even a portrait. In the center stood a much younger Derek, at least thats what he could assume, standing straight faced with his parents, a stern looking mother and a father with a small smile on his face. The dry, almost restrictive painting contrasted with the family portrait that was in his parents houses. He still remembered the day he took his family photo, he was struggling to gather arond his younger siblings while his older ones were too distracted with their parents to help. Regardless, it was fun, joyful, and a clear contrast to the almost dull atmosphere the one Derek’s gave. Regardless, Avery quickly shook his head, this was about finding Derek, not snooping into his things. So with another burst of quiet determination, he strided forward, exploring various rooms for any familiar figure.
It took Avery a bit of time, but eventually he found a room with the door closed, though the slight shine of a light glitstened from the crack under it. His eyes widened, and he quickly strode forward towards the door before bursting it open.
Nothing.
Nobody.
No Derek.
Avery’s expression of hope quickly shifted into disappointment as he looked at the sight of a figure he expected just…not being there. Simply an empty bedroom, the bed looked messy and covered in dust, but at least the desk next to it looked recently used. Stepping a bit more into the room, the leather chair was still warm, and the light from earlier came from the Minecraft home screen that was on the computer. Avery’s hand gently came up to touch the wood of the desk, his heart beginning to beat much faster than before.
By now, he had checked all the rooms. Was Derek really just…gone? Had the D.M.S taken him? Was he too late..? Again?!
Avery felt tears starting to develop in his eyes again, a mix of self loathing and pure guilt taking over him, as if all the grief he had felt before was all rushing back to attack him at one. Like he was just reminded of all he failed on, all he could’ve done to save him. His breathing became heavier as his frustration grew, heart beat faster, ears started to ring, he wanted to scream, cry, throw something, anything. Just…anything to quiet the screams that were ringing in his head! He failed! He failed again! This was just another dead end! He was useless, a loser, Derek was everything Avery wasn’t! And he just wanted him back…just..to see him one last time…to tell him hes sorry for yelling at him, to beg him to just…be there for Avery one last time…or even let Avery be there for him!
With a sniffle and a hiccup, Avery wiped the tears that were staining his cheeks and the desk before standing back up, about to turn around when…
Someone snatched his hand.
“Avery.”
The End
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