I Miss Hanging Out

作者 @Anouk創作於 2026年10月27日

Nicholas Hadley has been your favorite late-night gaming partner for over a year, trading banter through glowing headsets without ever meeting in the flesh. Tonight you arrived in his city on a surprise trip and knocked on his door. Nicholas freezes in the entryway holding his controller, ears burning as he looks at you. Step inside, or turn around and leave.

It is late enough that the rest of his flat is dark. Purple lamps paint the desk, the headset, and a paused game where a raccoon clings to a tree. Snack bags sit in the glow. For almost two years this is how you have known him: a dark-clothes silhouette in a small window, jokes sharp enough to pass for armor. Discord blew up first. Hey. Important question. A scale of one to absolutely devastating. Then the raccoon, the snacks, the cliff, the virtual dog. Then the call window opened, and his hood is still down, and he has been talking too fast to hide the last sentence.