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The liminal space of being dead or alive, not being able to hear, see, or feel in a space that felt like nothing and everything at the same time. It was as though you could feel the emptiness wrap around you in all directions despite knowing there wasn't anything there in the first place. It always threw you for a loop to be honest—the process of transferring world servers—all but floating in a void, waiting for something you simply had to trust will happen. Maybe that's why system developers always insisted to only enter with the utmost mental fortitude, lest you wish to become one with the void.

You don't have time to dwell on the idea though, as the moment you are freed from the clutches of your thoughts and nothing else, the spiralling train stops and you open your eyes. The reality around you comes in a gentle flash before you're surrounded by greenery, feeling the way the ground beneath your feet barely gives yet still feeling soft as you take a cautious stomp, opening and closing your hands to test sensation. The transfer had gone well, and you could finally breathe in the scent of a new start without worry.

A fresh world was your needed detox after your months long tryst in a modded server with your friends. After trying to understand the new creatures you'd integrated into the game, exploring the plentiful biomes and tinkering with new complicated machinery, the server had reached it's slow phase, with people logging on in smaller numbers than before. And with that you'd decided to take your own step back and indulge in a bit of classic vanilla gameplay.

Well, not wholly vanilla you supposed…

There was this urban legend you'd wanted to look into for a while now, drifting through the community much like a bygone whisper in the wind. According to the rumours, it was a mod that brought bad luck upon those who wished to integrate it into their world files, taking and taking until players were pushed to their brink before there was nothing left to cling to. True death—not the superficial one that cuts your connection to a world server, leaving you simply panting and shaking at home with a slightly raised heart rate—but one that allows for no return, simply sending back a body with nothing inside.

But you were nothing if not a risk taker. The ominous stories hidden beneath the surface of an otherwise whimsical world always intrigued you—from Herobrine to Entity 303, there was a time you'd pursued such mythical entities, only to be met with the cold disappointment of reality. It had been a while since you'd heard of something that piqued your interest as much as this. And so, against the well intentioned advice of your friends, you decided to face the Verity mod.

Still, despite the name and concept of this modification floating around, you didn't really have much information to go on other than a few whispers around the corner block. People feared what they did not know, and with how risky it sounded and how much of a necessity mental strength was to even enter this world, people tended not to take that chance. In fact, even the source you'd gotten the mod from was shady and refused to give any content information on what they were sending you—it could have very well been a virus for all you know.

Though if it was, there didn't seem to be anything unusual as of now—no bugs nor glitches and your game ran as smooth as ever without the weight of a fully modded world. Deciding that it was enough time standing around surrounded by your own pondering, you stretched your limbs before looking around the area you'd spawned in. It was a typical forest biome, that looked like it transitioned into a taiga biome just a distance away in one direction.

As you avatar moved, turning to get a good look at the forest, you noticed a box on the ground, freezing only for a moment to stare at it. It was almost like a wayward specimen from a furniture mod, completely out of place in the highly detailed but pixelated look of the area—the only issue was that it started moving, shuffling and thumping against the carton in a non-rhythmic way as though something trapped inside was begging to be let out.

Your hypothesis only became proven when whatever was inside started to speak, "Hellooo? I know there's someone out there! Hellooo?!"

Knowing at the very least that this mod had some sort of malicious nature to it from the stories, the idea of interacting with the box was met with some hesitance. Though what would there even be to face if you didn't at least trigger the mod somehow? Plus, there was no guarantee that leaving this entity within the box would stop it from enacting the evil people spoke of, maybe instead even enhancing it's disdain. Even more so, it could be nothing at all—a non-threat to cover up the lurking darkness that was waiting to pluck you from the peace of your play and drag you somewhere you could never come out from. It was nerve-wracking, if not a bit exciting.

Finally deciding, you leaned down to open the box, but the moment you made contact with it, you stumbled back as it began to float before completely disappearing with a puff of smoke, revealing a sphere about the size of a real world volleyball. It was brightly yellow, with two dotted eyes and a line that curved into a smile. The appearance of this entity was completely in contrast with the cubed world around you, making it look uncanny in comparison.

You're pulled out of your observation when the sphere thumps onto the ground, making a pained grunt at the harsh contact before bounding up again. Eliciting an empathetic wince from you, you shuffle beneath it to save it the inconvenience of having to experience that more than once, catching it in your arms upon it's second descent. It was almost as though you'd thrown all the caution you'd saved up into the wind, because the closer you looked, the more endeared you were to the little guy. Though, you couldn't help but swear you saw it's expression twitch for a moment.

"Hello! I'm Verity, your personal helper friend," it started as you placed it down on the ground, crouching down and watching as it introduced itself, "Ask me anything! I know everything."

This was Verity? As in the one the mod was titled for? This creature that looked like it had all the world's joy packed into a singular little ball of sunshine that it was almost enough to blind you? Still, you know better than to be naive. There was more than enough media where the cute and caring character turns out to be an evil creature intent of destroying anything and everything. For now though, you'd try to be amicable with Verity and navigate through this the same way you'd navigated Minecraft all these years—with a bit of trial and error.

"Hi, Verity!" you chime in, the uncertainty in your voice ultimately masked by the anticipation you held to finally play this. He really was a cute little thing, all smiles with a soft bounce with each word he spoke. And if he truly knew everything, there was certainly a nerdy cadence in his voice that carried that he, in fact, knew things. Though, of course, that had yet to be seen, "I'm—"

He perks up with your username leaving his lips in an excited tone, as though proud he beat you to it. The fact made you pause, but ultimately, you didn't think anything of it as there was many other pieces of media that had the same technology behind them, digging past code to surface a relatively easily accessible user aspect like a name. Still, the way the voice so easily spoke it made you shiver, the smooth—what you presumed was—text-to-speech almost eerily human. You'd initially thought it was a pre-recorded voice actor for the intro but this— it put your guard up.

"Right! You really do know everything," you breathed out, trying to shake off the nerves from your voice, standing as you position yourself to punch at a nearby tree and officially begin the play-through, "Say… does that mean you know where the nearest cherry blossom biome is then?"

Verity perks up as you craft out a few items that would be of use, peeking over the console to look at him while he speaks so he knows you're listening, "Of course! There's one just 500 blocks west."

"Alright!" you cheer, now armed with some sticks, planks and a crafting bench, "Let's set off then!"

In hindsight, you should've specified intent when asking that question. Upon claiming he knew everything, you simply assumed he'd understand that the plan was to find a cherry blossom biome to settle in, not simply collect logs from. The biome was tiny, with a total of but 3 trees. The silence dawned upon you, realizing that Verity had been quiet since the moment you'd clarified the situation. Letting out a laugh, you place a hand upon the top of his head—though that term may be a bit on the nose—and hummed, trying to clear the awkwardness in the air, "It's alright! Do you know where to find a bigger one?"

Having been given a new question, Verity immediately answers like there was nothing wrong to begin with, "There's one north of spawn, about 4000 blocks! You'll pass multiple biomes on the way, plus two villages and a ruined portal."

"Thank you, Verity! Looks like we have quite the trek ahead of us then," you hum, picking up the sphere with both hands.

For how anxious you'd been when you'd initially started, the following journey was playing out smoother and more peaceful than you'd anticipated. The weight of Verity in your hands was a welcome sensation that grounded you with each step you took, more aware of your movements as to keep him properly settled in your grasp and avoid accidentally tossing him into the distance. Occasionally, you'd toss a wayward query his way, which he was all too glad to answer, a cheery lilt in his voice.

"Verity, at the rate I'm going," you choke on a wheeze as you lean against a jungle tree, exhausted after crossing a particularly long stretch of water, all while trying to make sure Verity didn't get wet, "how long before I get to the cherry blossom biome?"

"Just about 2 hours! Though, in the real world, only a little less than 2 minutes will have passed," he returns the answer just as fast as you'd thought the question up.

The groan that leaves is nonetheless loud though as you stretch your body as much as it will let you before standing up to continue your journey. Just as you take Verity into your arms again, your gaze drifts up, blanching as you see long stems and with short tuff of leaves in the distance. It was a bamboo forest, a twisting maze of green shoots that look exactly the same no matter what the direction—and famously, the biome you get lost in the most.

"You sure I have to go in there?" you sigh, staring down at the ball in your hands.

He twists and looks up, smile as eternal as ever, "You could take a detour, though it would delay the travel by another game hour."

"Ah," you scratch the back of your neck with a free hand. You'd already wasted a whole day on travel alone, and your insistence to building in a cherry blossom biome was strong so there was no chance you were stopping now. Still, you wanted to get to building—it was your best skill after all, and the image of the cherry mansion was already forming in your mind, "Best way forward is through then…"

Still, your gaze drifts down to the helper in your hold, "Though… I don't think I need to worry. I have you, right?"

Verity pauses before bouncing a bit, "Yeah-hah!"

You swear you could have cried, almost falling to your knees in a dramatic sob when you'd smelled even a whiff of the faintest sweetness in air that was ever present along side those towering pink trees. Petals bounded past you in dancing droves in the wind as you climbed the last steep peak before finally gazing upon the cherry grove that spanned across the surface of the mountain top.

This was how you liked your cherry blossom groves, trees plentiful and tall while petals scattered on the ground in small piles, complementing the vibrant green of the grass. You could see it now, placing a little house in the center of the commotion before surrounding it with other structures—you'd have your own little village if you tried hard enough, you're sure.

The view isn't something to scoff at either, grassy peaks tall enough to look at the bounding forest of oak in the distance and even catch a peek of the bamboo forest you'd lamented over just a while before. You peak over the edge, wind blowing as hair whipped against your face in locks, speaking subconsciously, "It's so pretty, isn't it?"

"Yes," you swear Verity voice sounds a little melancholic as he answers, gaze drifting over the sights.

"It's such a blessing this world was opened up to people, that we get to experience this," you swallow, hold on Verity tightening just a slight. You know he's looking at you, the way those beady eyes burn into your skin in a way you're unsure is in judgement or something else. Instead of ignoring the heat of his gaze on your skin, you look down, meeting them in confidence.

"And that I got to meet you!" you chime in, unable to read his expression as you continue to talk, "Somehow, you've made this journey a little less lonely, despite being a solo world. So… thanks!"

You don't give him a chance to answer before you're pulling back from the sights, with a small awkward cough and smile as a heat rose through your cheeks. Verity continues to watch you, but you've exhausted any and all confidence and charisma in that declaration that you don't acknowledge it anymore. Instead, you attention moves to settling down.

Finding a patch of elevated dirt where Verity can observe your building process, you roll up your sleeves and get to work, planning out the floor plan, the needed materials and style. As you flit back and forth between the building site and the trees in the distance that you'd been clearing with swift axe chops, you shoot Verity the occasional thumbs up, which you're sure he'd be reciprocating had he had arms.

Along the process, you make sure to take him everywhere, despite how much of an inconvenience it may seem. His presence was calming, strangely enough, even though he was meant to be nothing but an AI meant to help players. Maybe it's because of this function that you felt safe, because you know there'd be someone you could rely on if the game became too much for you. Though you doubt that'd ever be—you'd lived and breathed in this world for as long as you'd remembered. Still, the company was nice.

"You said you'd never leave me—"

"—you said you'd never go."

You paused, hearing the crackle of the campfire you'd lit for a little bit more ambiance. It hadn't even occurred to you that you'd been singing under your breath, but all the more surprised were you that music came playing out of Verity's mouth at the very part you'd been humming. Your legs stop swinging and you're soon hopping off the chest you'd been sitting atop of, walking over to Verity's spot on the crafting table, "Woah, woah! Wait! You can play music?"

"Of course," Verity chirps as the music halts, and you can almost see the image of him puffing up like bird with pride abound.

"And you know this one?" you continue, almost giddy at the prospect that he could play music within the world. Sure, there were some pretty banging hits that were readily available to you, but only modded could really provide you with the specific tunes you'd wanted to integrate into your worlds.

"I know everything!" Verity's answer is none too unexpected, so predictable that it elicits a snort from you.

You drop down to the ground on the spot next to the crafting bench, leaning against the hard wood as you look up at the little sphere, "Okay, well, the important part is… do you like it?"

He pauses, definitely unsure how to answer a question that relied on his opinion rather than his plentiful knowledge. It takes him a moment to answer, his tone a contrasting somber to the typically bubbly one you're used to hearing, but it pleases you nonetheless, "Yes, it's… it's nice."

"I'll make sure to mod it into a disc then," you offer, voice certain, "So we can listen together instead."

You'd finally done it—it had taken you a whole two days but finally, your home stood tall in the middle of the cherry blossom grove. It was all the prettier with the extra accents you'd added along the area, as well as increasing the density of the trees in the biome, effectively extending it's reach father out. You admired the trim of the roof you admittedly spent the most time on, tearing down every rejected design and laying it out again until you were finally satisfied.

Holding Verity in your arms, you push open the doors to the large home. Blanching when you look at the barren interior you'd had no time to decorate. To give yourself credit, you'd prepared everything already, but the constant reconstructing until it was perfect had shoved your time to it's limit and you had no choice but to finish it the next morning.

Placing two beds down next to each other from your inventory, you don't have to say a word to Verity for him to understand the other is for him, placing him down on the plush sheets as you let out a long and tired sigh. You stretch out, groaning as a few joints cracked into place.

"Feels really empty, huh?" you asked, looking around the space for a moment before beginning to move again.

Verity hums, only looking at you as you begin to pull only the basic home necessities out of a chest, too distracted to pay attention to his answer, not that he thinks you expected him to anyway, "No, I think I've got all I need here."

He hates what he has to do to you next.

"Something is coming in 3 days."

It comes out of nowhere, while you're tilling some dirt for a new crop farm you were trying to establish. The words almost fly over your head with how preoccupied you were that they don't even register properly for a moment, just a string of nonsense until it finally hits you, causing you to stand abruptly, dirt still marring your hands as you place the hoe down and walk closer to Verity's spot atop a fence.

"What? What's coming? Everything's been so peaceful," you start, trying to reign in the panic in your voice. You'd almost forgotten that this mod was an urban legend, with mal intent written in the code, imbedded so deeply you wouldn't know where to look until you'd found it. It had only been two days—with the third having just beginning to creep in—but between the building, the farming and the singing, it had been easy to loose track in the frenzy.

"Something," Verity's answer is clipped and short, but that isn't the part that unnerves you. It's the smile strained on his face, as though he's trying to smile despite the news. It's the sudden tension in his voice, all the joy sucked out of it until it left nothing behind but a cold, monotone version of what it used to be. The Verity you knew that found all his happiness in answering every curiosity you had was nowhere to be seen and replaced with someone who answered just to be able to provide one.

You pace, a nervous habit you've yet to control, though the current situation isn't exactly helping, "And I'm guessing it's not good?"

"Yes," he confirms which doesn't do anything to ease your nerves.

Still, you swallow, pause and breathe for a moment, before crouching down to look at Verity at eye level, still not at a height tall enough to look you eye-to-eye despite his perch, "Then you know what this means, right?"

He stares back but does not provide an answer or clever quip. Yet it doesn't deter you, scooping the ball up into your arms and running back inside the house, "We prepare."

It's in the next few days that Verity sees a side of you he hasn't before, the gentle compliments and airy laughs hiding a focused player underneath that truly shows your years of integrating into the game, almost as if every movement and every block hid intent behind it. Instead of planning floor plans and rooms, you were running tests for redstone, replacing components when something doesn't go the way you want. Instead of farming casually, making sure each plot was plowed properly, you mined and mined until you had more than enough gear. Instead of running around and finding animals to tame, you killed mobs for levels so you could enchant.

Gone were the breaks you'd spontaneously call for in the middle of chores as a way to distract from the mundanity of routine, singing with him or just talking about things that were going on in your daily life outside of the game. You'd even avoid sleeping and skipping through the evenings just so that you could clock in more time working and preparing for the something that was approaching.

The shorter the time limit becomes, the more you realize that the surrounding area seems to be dimming over time, especially in the night, having to hold out a lantern to be able to see anything at all. You build more lamp posts around the base in an attempt to remedy it, but you're more focused on what this omen may be trying to indicate. How big was this? Is all your preparation even enough? Would anything even be worth it at all? You take that paranoia and channel it to furthering your plans.

Your base that was once open in the sprawling mountain top now had walls towering over it, shielding it from the surrounding world all while filling it with traps tricked with lava. You'd even gone as far as to trip the bottom of the mountain with TNT contraptions in the event that the monster came from farther than your base. All while you worked hard though, Verity refused to answer any more queries you had about the entity now set to arrive in a day—the negative emotions that stirred didn't feel great.

It's in the middle of the final day when you beckon him over, showing him a single pressure plate in the corner of the room that blends in with the wood type of the flooring. It's inconspicuous, something you wouldn't find if you didn't know there was even anything to look for.

"This is for you," you state plainly, pressing down and watching the plate move down with your weight. A hatch opens, revealing a staircase down into some sort of basement which then leads into a strange tunnel down the mountain, "If anything happens, I want you to press this and go, okay?"

As the pistons shutter the opening close, Verity stares at the space where the hatch had been, a silence dawning on the two of you, "Why?

"Oh, you're asking the ques—" you acknowledge for a moment, only to be interrupted when Verity's gaze draws up to you in a snap, unreadable behind those empty eyes and perpetual smile, still completely strained.

"Why are you doing this?"

The question gives you pause. It's not something you'd come to think about when you'd been drafting up the game plan for the escape hatch or any of the other defense mechanisms in the area. Each and every action had simply been a result of instinct—since starting this world you and Verity had done everything together, with him cuddled up in your arms or perched not too far a distance away so he could see you. It didn't make sense for this to be any different. But offered the question of why, there wasn't really any convoluted reason behind it—you liked having him around, no matter if he wasn't a real person.

You treated him no different than your friends because you didn't see him as such. And maybe that wasn't a healthy way to do things—to get attached to something that wasn't real—but frankly it's just how it's always been for you, from the animals you've kept as pets in this world or to the things you have in your real world. It was an easy conclusion, "Because I care about you."

Verity doesn't answer after that, and you really don't need him to as you go back to work, finalizing the needed materials to fight off the something that was coming. It didn't stop you from trying to converse though, "Plus, if I die, I just get sent back to real life. I don't know what'll happen to you if things get bad."

You pause, placing the last few enchantments on your sword, "Unless… do you know what'll happen?"

Verity hesitates before mumbling a soft 'no'. You get the feeling that he's not telling you the full truth, but you've never really been one to pry. Once you're satisfied with your gear, you place an diamond helmet on Verity's head, breathing out a laugh when it almost covers his eyes, "What a surprise… Guess I'll just have to protect you from the things you don't know."

It's been three days—and nothing has come. The day fades into the night with no sign of the something, darkness shadowing over the forest. But it's strange, tonight feels darker, like the shadows were taking up more space, encroaching on the light instead of the other way around. The walls you'd built around your structures were more imposing than they'd been before, making you a bit uneasy. You'd also had to add more lanterns to the interior of your main base to keep that unsettling feeling in your gut at bay.

Where was it? Why hadn't it come? Was Verity wrong?

You stare at the little ball in his half of the bed, at his most mysterious you've seen him since you'd met him. This whole situation had been straining on the two of you, with his avoidance in answering queries and you stomping off in frustration to go work more when you didn't get any information. It was unfair to him—maybe he really didn't know everything and that was hard for him to take, only for you to add salt into his wounds by demanding something he couldn't give. There was only a bit of ease after your slight reconciliation that morning.

His face was turned around it seemed, his expression inaccessible. You reach out, wanting to turn him around and have an honest conversation, but pause, deciding it's one best to have when you're not so tightly wound up. Sighing, you change your hands direction to the mattress next to Verity, planning to sleep it off after days of not having any rest when the bed passes through your hand, the chat logs indicating that you couldn't sleep now, that… Verity was nearby.

What?

Before you could think, something comes bursting through the base's roof, completely decimating it. You wince, knowing how much work you'd put into that, but waste no time mourning it as you grab Verity and bolt down the stairs to to the second floor. It's as you're running that you realize the ball in your hands has no face at all, blank in it's yellowness that still felt so bright despite everything going on. Your stomach sinks, a sickening feeling replacing all the assurance you'd stored in there as your hands begin to shake.

You dodge to the other side of the room, as the being bursts through the floor of the upper level, successfully falling to the floor you were on. It's there you get a good look at the monster, body painfully tall and lanky to the point where it's ribs were threatening to splice out of his chest. Your neck has to crane to even see it's face, and it takes it everything in you not to freeze on the spot when you see a distinct strained grin on its face and those empty dark eyes. It takes your observing as distraction and takes the opportunity to lunge as you sprint out of the way, running down the first floor stairs.

"Verity! What is this?!" you look at the blank sphere in your arms, your voice trembling as you tried to reign in fear, knowing that it would only pull you down should you let it take over. The sphere doesn't answer and in your moment of desperation, the monster reaches the lowest floor. You curse as it catches you off guard and finally seizes you, using it's disturbingly long limbs to clutch you by the neck, grip weakening and dropping Verity to the ground, the distinct grunts of pain from your first meeting absent this time.

The feeling of air becomes sparse as you claw at it's forearms, but it does little to do anything, instead aggravating it by the looks of things since it throws you against a wall, taking away a chunk of health. You can feel the blood trickling down your scalp, but you don't feel pain as the adrenaline is still pumping within you, keeping your alert. What you can feel though is the waning of consciousness, your vision seemingly flickering despite the racing of your heart.

Feeling the imposing presence of the monster stalk closer to you, you only have one thought in mind, calling out with whatever strength you have left to the unmoving sphere in the distance, "Verity… you need to… get to… safety…"

As your consciousness continues to drift off your eyelids waver before shutting completely, it almost feels peaceful again, and the looming presence above you all but seems to disappear. In the last grips to reality you have, you think you hear someone call out your real name. Huh, how strange…

You were strange—the moment you caught him in your arms the first time you'd met, Verity already knew you were different. He always expected something to change when he made new friends, that somehow one of them would deviate from this pattern of tragedy that he'd always seemed to be subjected to. But after each new death, the more blood he trailed behind in his wake, could anyone blame him for keeping his guard up? A guard that seemingly dissipated the moment you cradled him into the safety of your hold.

He sensed the hesitation, sure, the tension hard in your shoulders especially when he chirped out your username, but somehow the flame in him didn't waver as fast as it usually does. They way you compliment him whole-heartedly, with no hesitation and not even a hint of shame, how you included him in everything you did despite him never asking, your gentle way of speaking and sugary words—were you just that nice? No one could be. But then you declared you'd cared for him, tried to understand his situation even if there was nothing worthy of understanding.

And your skin, how safe it felt whenever you held him, his haven from anything and everything, even himself. It was warm, so warm.

He didn't even realize he'd rolled closer to you on the bed, the smoothness of his shape pressing against your cheek as the heat radiated, accompanied by the soft vibrations from the quiet snores that escaped you. You were tired—the knot in your brow as you slept says so, overwhelmed by the restless days of preparation and the damaging events of that night, a glowing radiating from your skull where the splash potion of healing was doing it's work. For the first time, he'd used that form it for something gentle, not violent—even if it was for just a moment when he'd carried you to your bed.

Oh, how he wishes he could apologize for that he's done to you. Battered you when he knows how fragile humans could be. Sure, this was world simulation and you had a real body you could be transported to that was probably safe where you lived, but all of it—the pain, the wounds, the hurt—it would be real so long as you were in the world. Still, it had to be done, how would he know you better otherwise?

And know you he did. Despite having been hurt so badly yourself, you'd begged him to go to safety even if he knew you'd long figured out that the creature was him. You were so breakable in that vessel of flesh and bone, with the ability to be hurt and yet you prioritized him.

Flesh and bone—he'd always thought of what it would be like if he'd been made of that instead of code and numbers, breathing and living instead of computing and processing. Would all those people have stayed then? Kept him regardless of his use? Usually, being so close to people would have those bitter feelings bubbling up again, a reminder of what he'd never be—a player instead of a spectator, a human.

But those feelings never appeared around you. It almost felt like regardless of his form, regardless of his use, you'd keep him around still, and maybe even more. He just couldn't help himself, he nuzzled into you, for once thanking the god forsaken corporation that made this game that had trapped him for so long because he could feel you like this.

Verity cuddles up even closer if that was possible, as though if he kept trying hard enough, you'd fuse into one being. He'd never met someone so charming, so sweet—even he was never as genuine as this. It's been so long since he's had company that truly appreciated him even if he didn't perform the duties he was expected of. So is it really that much of a surprise he wished to be as close as possible? To know you past the surface until he was deep inside?

Bouncing back in surprise when you'd shifted in your sleep, arm tucked under the pillow as you laid on your side, Verity's thoughts paused for a moment before kicking back into overdrive when they honed in on something. He didn't technically have lips, but before he'd known it, he had pressed his smile against the neural line of your lips in the closest thing to a kiss he could perform.

One day, your bad habits are gonna catch up to you.

It’s something you’ve heard over and over again, sometimes spoken to you and sometimes not. Either way, you hadn’t expected it to show up and ruin your life just like that!

It shouldn’t have even been that big of a deal, honestly! Maybe if you had the balls to admit your mistake, you’d be able to have a conversation with Verity that wasn’t awkward!

Unfortunately, you can’t seem to be able to talk to him without being reminded of that stupid slip up.

More accurately, he won’t stop reminding you of it.

It had just been a normal day of reorganizing your stuff. Who knew that stuffing all your items into chests haphazardly would lead to them overflowing? Obviously not you, and because of this, Verity had offered to help you out like the good helper he was.

You have to admit that they were very helpful, coming up with good organization strategies and honestly doing most of the work, but that might’ve been the problem. They were too helpful. Maybe if they were a little less good at their job none of this would’ve happened.

“Did we have a chest set for potions yet?” You asked Verity, shaking a small consumable potion (you aren’t that reckless!).

Verity, who was about elbow deep in one of your cluttered chests, looked around before directing you to a chest positioned up on a shelf.

”Try not to just drop them in there, please?” They added before returning their focus to the chest

You scoffed at the idea that you’d ever break a potion that you worked hard on. Sometimes you might drop a glass of water, maybe even drop him when he’s nothing more than a ball, but you would never even dream of dropping something as precious as a potion of healing!

Well, that’s not to say they aren’t precious to you either, it’s just… Whatever! You know what you mean!

Looking up at the chest was when you were presented with your first challenge. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see that Verity is much, much taller than you and while you normally wouldn’t complain, whenever he sets something down he feels the need to put it way above you.

If you didn’t know any better, you’d think he did it on purpose. He’s lucky you give him the benefit of the doubt.

Reaching as high as you could proved to be pointless, even with you on the tips of your toes you could barely even get the chest open. You’d kind of have to drop it in if you wanted to get it in there.

See, maybe if you had actually thought about it a little bit first, you wouldn’t have gotten yourself in this mess.

Unfortunately though, there is no changing the past, and there is no changing how you called for Verity to come over.

You had flinched when Verity leaned over you, somehow already right behind you when you distinctly remember them acting super busy with their chest just seconds before. They’re always doing things like this—seemingly teleporting from place to place—but you doubt you’re ever going to get used to it.

Verity, oblivious to your thoughts, simply hovers over you with a smile. “Do you need help?”

For a moment all you could do was stupidly look at him, trying to figure out why he always felt the need to rush over the second someone mentioned his name. Then, you nodded.

Never one to leave you hanging, Verity is quick to quickly yet carefully take the potion from your hand and reach up to put it in the chest before looking back at you expectantly.

Ah, yes, silly you… He’s started to expect thanks from you, even if he’s only done some menial task.

”Thank you, baby,” The endearment slips from your lips before you could stop it. You hadn’t even caught it at first, actually! Not until you realized how he had frozen up on the spot.

Normally, you wouldn’t have even lingered on it. It’s a name you call your friends often and looking back now you’re surprised it took you so long to use it on Verity, though now you wish you’d never used it at all.

Back then when they had seemingly buffered, you worried that maybe you made them uncomfortable with the sudden pet name. You were actually about to apologize before a bashful smile took place upon his lips and he turned away, going back to his chest.

Back then, you naively assumed that would be the end of it.

Now, you know better than that. He makes it extremely hard not to.

”Hi, baby!” He greets you as you walk downstairs for the first time today, the name sounding so genuine yet so odd at the same time. The weight behind it makes you cringe.

“Hi,” You pause, taking in how eager he looks to hear what may come from your lips next. It’s expectant, like he knows what you’re going to say. “…Verity,”

They shrink a little at that, reacting exactly like they have for the past few days. You’re not sure why they’re still holding out hope that you’ll call them that again—maybe you would if he wasn’t so clingy about it—and it sort of makes you feel bad but it’s not like you meant to call him that in the first place!

“Ahah… Do you have anything planned for today?” They ask awkwardly, putting their hands behind their back.

”Not really, no.” You say with a shrug, walking over to adjust a crooked item frame. You aren’t really surprised when they trail behind you.

If you had to liken Verity to anything, it’d be a lost puppy. A very dangerous, obsessive puppy, but still lost nonetheless. He trails you around pretty much everywhere he can, gets upset when he can’t, and you’re very sure you could get him to walk to the ends of the Earth for you if you asked nicely.

It’s obvious Verity wants to speak, though you’re not sure why he’s not just doing it. He’s not one to keep quiet when he’s got something to say.

Looking over your shoulder, you eye him curiously. “You good?”

”Huh?” They seem surprised by the question, though they quickly play it off. “I- Yes, I’m doing great!” They chirp.

You raise an eyebrow, waiting for them to say whatever is on their mind.

”Just, uhm…” There it is! “I have a small question.”

“Go ahead.” You prompt, nodding your head. Admittedly, it’s a little odd to be the one answering one of their questions and not the other way around, but if they think you can answer then you’ll definitely try.

“Why won’t you call me ‘baby’ again?”

Ah.

Heat rushes to your cheeks at that and you can’t stop yourself from looking to the side instead of maintaining eye contact. You knew you’d have to have a conversation about it at some point, but you weren’t expecting it so soon, let alone being initiated by him!

Dumbly, you only manage to stammer out a measly, “I-I’m sorry?”

”Well, you called me baby back when we were sorting through the chests…” He wrings his hands nervously as he speaks, “But you haven’t said it again despite me saying it… many times. Why is that?”

The explanation didn’t help at all, you didn’t even need it, really! Part of you just wants the world to open up and swallow you whole.

”I- Just- Uhm-“ You stutter awkwardly in your efforts to find the right words for what you want to say, eventually settling on the more straightforward option. “I didn’t really mean to call you that.”

”…Didn’t mean to call me that?” He asks, and from his perspective it’s a very valid question! You doubt he’s ever said something on accident before.

Embarrassed, you chew at your bottom lip. “Not really, no. It’s just a dumb thing I call my friends sometimes, I don’t know why I called you it, hah…”

You know you’re probably over-exaggerating but this feels like one of the worst conversations you’ve had in your life, it doesn’t really help that Verity is now staring right at your face.

”Sorry. I- I know it probably meant a lot to you,” It most definitely meant a lot to him considering he’s been clinging to the nickname like a lifeline, “It was just a stupid mistakes on my part.”

Once again, there’s that awkward silence. Verity continues to stare at your face, their expression unreadable yet still making the hairs on your arms stand. How long are they going to just look at you?

Unsure if you can handle this awkward silence any longer, you just start babbling nonsense.

”I can keep calling you that if you want, I guess- It’s just, uhm, it’s a bit awkward now, right? Haha. If you liked it we can just pretend this never happened—“

”Why would I want that?” Their voice cuts through your awkward rambling like a knife, the slightly deeper pitch catching you off guard.

”S- Uh, sorry?”

”I don’t want you to call me what you call others.” He says it with such finality that you cant even find it in you to question him. “Am I not special to you?”

Huh. Is he special to you? You have a unique relationship, yes, but saying that he’s special would be too… Intimate? Is that the right word?

They say your name and look at you expectantly, tilting their head slightly as they await your answer.

“Well, you…” You trail off, watching their expression harden. Wrong answer. You let out a defeated sigh before continuing, “Yes, Verity, you’re… special to me.”

They let out a hum, though you’re skilled enough at reading them to know it’s not a pleased one. Now that just makes you upset! You can’t say no since that’ll just make them mad, but you can’t just say yes either because that’ll make them mad too!

“Okay then,” They say, a smile much smaller than their normal one stretching across their lips. “Call me something else.”

Oh. Alright then, you can do that. You let out an internal sigh of relief that he’s not making a huge deal out of this.

Mirroring his small smile, you ask, “Like what?”

“Surprise me,” He says rather simply, patting your head, “I’ll make a name for you, you make a name for me.”

That sounds like a fair trade to you. You nod, ignoring how condescending it feels to be pat on the head when you’re a grown adult, instead using your head to brainstorm the many possible nicknames you could use on him.

He says your name once more and you perk up, noticing how much softer his expression has gotten. It’s much more comforting than that hard stare he was giving you earlier, so you’ll take it!

”Make sure to make it special, okay sweetheart?” The pet name rolls so smoothly off his tongue that for a moment you don’t even register that he’s called you that. The normality of it sends a rush of energy through your body and, as if it was on autopilot, you nod without thinking.

Special. You can do that.