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everywherestrs · 1 day ago

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You make your ingame character look like him. Pt. 2

Sylus

You had just stepped through the threshold of Onychinus's base and were ready to collapse to your knees from exhaustion. Somehow, you managed to summon the last bits of strength and make it to the bedroom where you immediately sprawled across the bed, utterly drained.

This week had been nothing short of hellish, judging by how overloaded you were. Though, to be fair, you had only yourself to blame. You’d willingly stayed later than others, taken on extra tasks—all for the promise of a slightly larger paycheck at the end of the month.

The reason? Your latest obsession: a new video game. Or more specifically, a limited-edition weapon pack. Not that you really needed it for gameplay, but it would look absolutely perfect on your avatar.

Why torture yourself like that when you had a rich and loving boyfriend for whom a small in-game donation wouldn’t even register as a blip on his bank statement? Because that avatar was exactly the reason you didn’t dare mention the game to Sylus.

It had started innocently. You were bored, saw a post online of someone playing it, and curiosity got the better of you. You downloaded the game, made an avatar resembling yourself, and played for a few hours. But later that day, you had plans with Sylus.

Naturally, Sylus wouldn’t be Sylus if he didn’t spend the entire evening teasing you endlessly.

You weren’t sure what came over you when you got home, but before you realized it, you had picked up your phone, created a second avatar with silver hair and red eyes, and launched him off the highest cliff you could find in the game.

Strangely enough... It was oddly satisfying.

And that’s how it began. Any time Sylus teased you a little too much or you had a minor argument, you’d whip out your phone, switch to your second avatar, and kill him in increasingly creative ways.

Originally, Mini-Sylus was supposed to be a rare sight on your account. Brief, silly. But before you knew it, you found yourself switching to him even for simple missions. Your original avatar was starting to collect dust while his was showered in accessories, outfits, and a camera roll filled with that little arrogant, smirking face.

You’d sworn to yourself you’d never tell Sylus what you were up to. Because you knew exactly how he’d respond: “Oh? One of me wasn’t enough, kitten, so you made a pocket-sized version?”

Just the thought of him saying that, with his signature smirk, made a shiver run down your spine.

Now, you were lying on your stomach, booting up the game. And right on cue, that too-familiar face greeted you on the loading screen.

—…This is all your fault.

You mumbled under your breath, but still tapped open the shop, your eyes locked on the exact amount of crystals you needed for that crimson revolver.

Once the payment went through, you pulled the weapon banner—and soon, your screen gleamed with the image of the prize you’d been chasing. You equipped it immediately, took a few fresh screenshots, then finally set your phone down and sighed. The adrenaline high of getting the wanted weapon was wearing off, and the exhaustion of the week was pressing down harder than ever.

You didn’t even notice when you dozed off—your phone still lit up, the game still running.

The first thing you noticed was a faint, familiar set of beeps. At first, you ignored them, turning over. But the beeps grew louder, and your eyes slowly fluttered open.

The scene in front of you: Sylus sitting at your bedside. With your phone in his hands. With the game open.

You had never sat up that fast in your life.

You lunged forward in a panic, trying to grab the phone, but Sylus, almost like he sensed it coming, pulled it out of your reach.

—Sylus!

He let out a soft chuckle.

—What is it, kitten? I was just curious what ‘Little Forest’ was… after I got a message about you spending $150 on it.

You froze. Your brain blanked for a second as you processed his words.

Then it hit you. Your face went pale.

You’d forgotten to change the payment method.

Weeks ago, you had jokingly asked Sylus if you could order some cute cat stickers to plaster all over his motorcycle. Of course, he said you could do whatever you wanted. At the time, you were already eyeing that revolver pack, so you’d entered his card info and said, “Well, technically I’m buying it for your bike, so you should pay.”

And apparently… you forgot to delete the card. Your phone had saved the details.

Now you sat frozen in place while Sylus clearly tried (and failed) to contain his amusement. His eyes sparkled with mischief as he returned his gaze to your screen, to the character on it.

—Honestly? I’m flattered. You paid such close attention to the details. You even gave him his own crow companion.

Your face heated up instantly with embarrassment. You cursed your past self for immediately thinking of Mephisto when you saw that crow accessory in the shop.

—But there’s one thing I don’t get…

He continued, turning to you and slowly leaning closer.

You instinctively began to retreat until your back hit the headboard. Sylus trapped you there with one hand on the bed beside your head and brought the phone up to your face with the other. He leaned in, voice a whisper against your ear.

—Why am I wearing cat ears and a tail?

Yeah.

It was going to be a very long night.

And now, until the servers shut down—or you finally delete the game—you’ll be haunted by this shameful memory forever.

Caleb

You hadn’t even realized how much of your free time had been swallowed up by it.

That video game.

A game you thought you’d play for a few days at most—something casual, something to pass the time. And yet, here you were now, logging in every day without fail, claiming your rewards and completing your daily commissions with religious discipline.

Whenever you were sent on extended missions, you always knew you could rely on your friends, Tara or Simon, to help cover for you.

Only this time… there was a problem.

You were currently standing in the airport with both of them, preparing to board a flight. The three of you were being deployed for a field assignment, and as per protocol, you had to turn in your civilian phones.

That’s when the realization hit you.

“Who’s going to claim my rewards?!”

You started to panic, frantically cycling through options in your head. And then, like a divine light, one name came to you.

Without hesitation, you opened your chat with him and quickly typed a message:

“Caleb!”

“Help!”

“What is it, pipsqueak?”

“Something bad happened?”

“It might happen soon!!”

“I’ll be gone for a while, can you please log into a game and play a little for me?”

The typing bubble appeared… then disappeared.

Your nerves were fraying fast—the boarding line was getting shorter, and your chance to explain everything was slipping away.

Then finally, the notification came.

“Okay, pipsqueak :)”

You exhaled in relief, a grateful smile forming on your face as you quickly sent him your login details.

The rest of your time was a whirlwind of work. Long hours, constant movement. But by the end of the mission, you were finally allowed to use your phone again.

Your first instinct was to send Caleb a quick message letting him know you’d be back soon.

To your surprise, he suggested that instead of heading straight back to Linkon City, you visit him in Skyhaven for a few days by that time he will have time off. You agreed without a second thought.

Every day after that, you looked forward to the reunion with increasing anticipation.

As you waited for your luggage, you messaged Caleb:

“I landed.”

“I’m waiting for my luggage and then driving straight to you.”

The reply came almost instantly.

“That’s great. Can’t wait to meet you!”

[Image Attached]

You smiled, warmth blooming in your chest—until your eyes dropped to the photo.

It was a screenshot from your game.

Your avatar stood proudly on-screen, and behind them, spelled out in colorful flowers, were the words:

“I missed you”

But that wasn’t what made your smile falter and your stomach drop.

The avatar… looked exactly like the person who had been “taking care” of it the past few days.

You stared at the screen in disbelief, not knowing whether to laugh or run.

Just then, out of the corner of your eye, you saw your suitcase come down the carousel. You grabbed it, suddenly unsure if you even wanted to go to Caleb’s… or if you should just book the next flight back to Linkon City.

But the choice was taken out of your hands when your phone buzzed again.

Another photo.

This time it was a close-up of your avatar’s face.

And behind it, spelled in flowers:

“Are you coming soon?”

You paid the taxi and dragged yourself—along with your bags—to the front door of Caleb’s house.

Each step felt heavier than the last. His voice already echoed in your head, teasing and smug.

You entered the code and stepped inside, locking the door behind you.

Footsteps approached and soon, the tall silhouette of Caleb appeared in front of you.

—Welcome back. I hope your mission went without a hitch.

—Yeah… everything went fine…

You replied a bit uncertainly. You braced yourself for the inevitable teasing. You even had a few comeback jokes ready to fire back.

But none came.

Instead, Caleb casually asked if you were hungry. You said yes and he led you to the kitchen, and soon, the two of you were quietly enjoying lunch together.

You slowly began to let your guard down, thinking maybe—just maybe—he hadn’t noticed the resemblance between your in-game character and himself.

That illusion shattered with one sentence.

—You know, while I was playing that game, I got pretty into it.

You nearly choked on your food.

Still, you tried to play it cool. But before you could respond, he continued:

—I also noticed you didn’t have any friends added…

—Oh, yeah! Tara and Simon don’t like these type of games.

—Mhm. So I figured… Maybe I should make an account too. That way, your little guy wouldn’t be lonely.

You felt as if your heart stopped beating as Caleb pulled out his phone and launched the game.

When he turned the screen to face you—

You froze.

There, on his screen, was a tiny version of you—wearing an adorable yellow dress.