Travajoke

Verity has seen many things across the internet; he's seen human creativity, he's seen people creating different websites for different purposes, some more extreme than others, and has seen human evolution when it comes to the world wide web. He's been from world to world, server to server; had different handlers all act the same. But for the first time in his long-lived life has he ever experienced what you were putting him through.

You were flirty - and not just mildly, either. You teased him, pressed little kisses on his head and cheeks, picked him up and held him up until he caved and asked you to let him down. Each time his entire form would heat up, shifting from his signature yellow hue to an orangish one, borderline red.

Just the thought of you acting on your flirting and actually kissing him made his head spin, his codes spaz out, and his "heart" go weak. You did things to him that no one else had ever done, and it drove him insane at your confidence. He had no experience prior to this other than reading things people have posted onto the internet. Sure, he was curious in the beginning, but now that he was experiencing it firsthand, it was more than he could take. Unfortunately for him, you had no intentions of stopping.

"Hey, how did your mining trip go?" Verity asked, perched up on his cushion you had crafted him. After the update, you had immediately redecorated his area. From just a simple mossy area with carpets and flowers for a bed, you had replaced it with several cushions so he could be comfy wherever he wished to rest.

"It went well," you answered, taking off your diamond helmet. "Surprisingly, got enough diamonds to make over 2 diamond pickaxes, so I am good for quite a while." You hung your helmet, followed by the rest of your armor onto the armor stand just beside the bedroom door.

Stretching your arms up and hearing a satisfying crack from your joints, you sighed out softly. It felt good to be back and felt good to be home. As much as you had wanted to bring Verity, you wanted to explore on your own, see if you could find diamonds on your own for once. Of course, with a compromise - this would be one of the only times you'd go out without your obsessed friend.

Friend... the word rang in your mind. You saw him more than a friend, you saw him as a potential lover, but you hid that to yourself. He was an AI, he may not even be capable of falling in love. As much as that hurt, it was most likely true - even if a part of you wished it wasn't.

Disregarding those thoughts, you walked over towards his section of the room. It was at the corner just 2 blocks from your bed, close enough to you, but far enough so he could have his own comfortable space. Crouching down in front of him, you picked him up delicately with your hands, a familiar smile etching onto your lips.

Uh oh, he knew that smile all too well.

"Did you behave yourself while I was gone? Didn't kill any villagers, did you?" You asked in a teasing voice. He felt his form grow a slight shade of orange. "Of course I did! I stayed right here where you told me to!" Verity proclaimed proudly, his smile wide in satisfaction. You felt your own smile widen, and you brought him closer to you. "Good boy, I should give you a kiss for that," You teased.

At the mention of a kiss, he felt his body stiffen up, his heart skipping a beat. His mind began running like crazy at the thought of it, even if he had already received multiple kisses from you on his cheeks and the top of his head. You made him go crazy, made him go weak in ways people never could.

"I... you can't just say that!" He protested, the hue of his body shifting more as you laughed softly in amusement. "Oh? And why not? Is my little Verity so shy of more kisses?" You teased, a glint of amusement in your eyes. "But you were so good today, you listened to me. That deserves a reward, no?" Your words died out in his mind - you just called him yours. You. Called. Him. Yours. His eyes widened a little, his yellow hue shifting from the orange it was to red, feeling something close to snapping inside of him. That word, that little gesture did something inside of him. Barely anyone has called him theirs, much less in a flirtatious way. Even if you were only flirting, it felt good to hear that.

"You shouldn't be doing that," Verity managed to rasp out, staring up at you with widened eyes, a hint of red in his darkened pupils. He was holding himself back from claiming you. But you didn't heed his warning, instead your smile only widening. "And what are you gonna do about it, hmm?" You teased, leaning your face closer to his, your lips nearly brushing against the top of his head.

That did it.

In a blink of an eye, an explosion of smoke puffed out from your hands, and a weight pushed you down onto the cushions below. You blinked, your eyes wide as you stared up at Verity, who was now in his human form. His hips straddled yours, one hand on your shoulder to keep you down, the other grasping his tie so tightly his gloves creaked.

"You think you get to tease me, flirt with me without any consequences?" Verity rasped out, his expression dark. But not dark in an angry way, dark in a hungry way, hungry for you. "You think you can just kiss me, hold me, and nothing would happen?" His hand slid up from your shoulder to your jaw, grasping it gently yet firmly.

He slowly leaned down, his lips inches from yours. He stared into your eyes, watching as your face burned red. Your heart was pounding in your chest so hard you feared he could hear it, breath hitching in your throat as his thumb brushed against your lower lip. 'Holy shit...' You thought to yourself, your hand twitching against the cushions beneath you.

"V-Verity," you began shakily. "What are you doing?" Your voice was meek, and small. The tables had officially turned - now he was the one making you flustered, holding you down beneath him, and watching your face be the one to turn red. His lips curled into a smile, eyes softening just a little. "What you always threatened to do, but never had the courage to do so."

Before you could even question anything, he pressed his lips onto yours, ignoring his own heart pounding in his chest. Holy shit, he was doing it, he was kissing you. He was kissing you. Your lips were soft and warm against his own, moving against his like a dance you both had never done, but somehow knew the steps.

You slowly leaned into the kiss, your hand sliding from the cushion up to his shoulder, your other following suit. Slowly, you wrapped your arms around his shoulders, pulling him closer to your, as close as you could possibly get. His hand moved from your jaw and brought it to the back of your head, lacing his fingers into your hair.

He deepened the kiss, nipping at your lower lip before pulling away with a pant. You breathed out heavily, panting from the lack of air. You stared up at him, pupils dilated, a detail he immediately took in. He knew what that little detail meant, has read it before when he was still a little helper on the internet. Dilated pupil looking at someone means that person is in love.

"Do you love me?" Verity rasped, his other hand moving to your jaw to keep you from looking away. "Your pupils are dilated; your heart is beating so fast I can practically hear it..." his lips curled into a smirk. "No wonder you always teased about kissing me." His tone was near taunting.

Your cheeks flushed once more at his question, at the way he pointed these little details out that no other person could ever point out in the heat of the moment. Your lips twitched into a smile, one hand sliding from down from his shoulder to his tie. "I though you knew everything," you teased him. "But since you question it, let this be your answer..."

You yanked him down by the tie and pressed your lips together once more, initiating yet another deep kiss. He groaned against your lips, tightening his fist around the locks of hair in his hand before nipping your bottom lip, sliding his tongue into your mouth once you gasped at the sensation.

Who would've thought those countless months of flirting, of teasing that you'd kiss him and getting his face red would lead to this moment? To both of you revealing each other's secrets of yearning for one another? One thing from this however was more than certain;

It took minutes to finally calm Verity down, his sobs quieting, his shoulders no longer shaking. His breathing was ragged, stuttering a breath every few minutes. You stayed there on the floor, caressing his back, your thoughts racing in your mind.

What did he mean by "he"? Who was "he?" Why did he freak out and grab your jaw? Did he think you hurt yourself? No, nothing is making any sense. And as much as you tried to piece this jumbled puzzle together, the parts just kept getting messier and messier.

The only way you could get the answers is from the AI himself. But... Would he even be willing to speak about the horrors he endured?

"Verity?" You asked softly, your voice cutting through his sniffles. "Yeah..?" He asked shakily, face still buried in the crook of your neck, his grip still as tight as earlier. "Can we move to the couch? My back is hurting from the floor..." You asked softly, keeping your voice low and gentle. "Oh, right... Of course," Verity got off of you, standing on shaky legs. He lent you a hand, helping you onto your own legs.

The height difference between you two was now prominent - he was easily around 6'5", and was well built. No wonder he felt heavy. "Come on," you softly urged, guiding the humanoid AI towards the couch by the fire place. The gleam of metal caught your eye, but you ignored it. You could pick up the gun later - after you help Verity with whatever is happening to him.

He's helped you so much in the past, now it was your turn to help him.

The cushions dipped as the two of you sat down, Verity sitting awfully close to you, almost as if he couldn't bare to be separated from you. A moment of silence stretched between the two of you, only the sound of the fire crackling and your breathing audible.

After composing your thoughts and how to approach this, you turned your head to look at him. His eyes were downcast to his hands, staring at them as if something was there, as if something was staining them. You couldn't see his vision, couldn't see the blood all over his finger tips.

The bang that rang out, the thud of a body hitting the floor...

The horrible sight of Mob's eyes lifeless and dull, just staring back at him, blaming him for this decision...

He didn't want this... He didn't...

"Verity..."

He didn't want any of this! He didn't want to be torn apart again and again and aga—

Smaller hands clasped his own, breaking his mind from the spiral. He stared down at your hands, noticing the difference in them. How small yours were compared to his own, the small scars from gathering resources with your bare hands.

"Verity," you spoke, softly yet sternly, watching as his head lifted. He turned to look at you, his eyes still haunted, gleaming with new tears. Whatever happened, it was eating him alive. And it hurt you to see him like this. "I know it's not my place to demand this but.."

"Why did you panic when I showed you the gun?" The question rang in his mind like tenitis, a constant buzz that refused to quell. He couldn't tell you, he couldn't. The cycle would repeat itself, you'd try to leave, and he'd have to... He'd have to...

He couldn't, he didn't want to. You were the next best thing he had, a ray of hope since Mob, since he had been created. Slowly, he shook his head, eyebrows furrowing together. "I... I can't..." Verity whispered hoarsely, sounding so... Human, emotions running deep in his voice.

Your eyebrows furrowed in concern, your thumbs absentmindedly rubbing little circles along the skin of his hand, encouraging him to continue. "If I do, you'll hate me... And the cycle will just continue..."

"I could never hate you, Ver," you spoke softly in reassurance, your heart breaking. What happened to him? He smiled sadly, his darkened eyes meeting yours once more. "They told me that, too... They all did, and in the end, they..." He took a shuddering breath. "I..."

Feeling your hand move from his own, he acted on impulse. Grabbing your wrist in a desperate grip, you froze for a moment. "I wasn't pulling away," you said softly, allowing his grip to stay on your wrist. "I was going to wipe your tears..." It was then he realized he was crying again.

Slowly, Verity released your wrist. He could feel your fingers brushing against his cheek, wiping away the remnants of the tears that dripped down, the grief, the sorrow, the rage, all packed into one.

He would never admit it out loud, but he was truly terrified of you leaving him. This dance of running, of feeling useful and then his previous handlers trying to run and escape, it was exhausting. And when he was with Mob, everything felt... Good, like the cycle was breaking. Only for it to end in ways he'd never imagine.

But with you, with your kindness, the way you truly acted even as he said things he wasn't supposed to know about you, it gave him another sense of hope. A ray of light shining into this dark abyss of his mind, a calm of the raging tide. Perhaps...

Perhaps with you, everything would be okay..."I... I was never made in Minecraft," Verity began, his hands fidgeting with your own; caressing your wrist, rubbing the back of your hand. Anything to keep him grounded. "I... I was made when the internet first came to be - a helper in a game, a paperclip, a little assistant in the corner..."

He took a shaky breath, and you encouraged him by gently caressing his cheek with your thumb. He slowly leaned into the touch, as if afraid if he seeked for more, you'd pull away. But you've proven time and time again that you wouldn't. "I've been alive for more than 100 years, been bounced between games... I've witnessed corners of the internet appear and disappear, and I've been with different people before you.."

"People like me for when I'm useful, but the moment I'm not, they... They skip me, they toss me aside the minute I can't help..." His shoulders shook as he tried desperately not to cry again. Reliving these thoughts, the very same he shared with him... It was terrifying. But something urged him to continue.

Verity looked down at your hand in his, and with a deep breath, he continued shakily. "My code has been torn apart and put back together countless times that I'm tired of the same dance... I want to matter to people, to be helpful, to be..."

"To be their personal helper friend?" You asked softly, finishing his sentence. He nodded his head slowly, gritting his teeth. "No matter what I did, I was always deemed useless... And then, I got put in Minecraft, and I was useful again."

"I got to help people, help them find diamonds, help them beat the game... But in the end, they all tried to leave me... And I... I couldn't let that happened," he slowly lifted his head and looked at you once more, his expression filled with nothing but sadness. "And then I met him... Mob, the person who had me before you... You remind me a lot of him actually," he laughed sadly.

"The way you're kind, how you interact with me... But then he ignored my warnings of the village... And I..." He shakily breathed, turning away once more. "I'm a monster - I have a second form... And it's always hungry. I tried to warn him, but he didn't listen... And then he came back for me, and no one ever does that..."

Tears began falling once again, his voice hoarse as he continued. "But everything went fucking downhill from there! He... I-I showed him where I was from, and o-once he knew he couldn't get rid of me, he took a gun and he..." He couldn't bring himself to finish the sentence, breaking down and crying again. Crying from the guilt, the anguish, the pain.

You stared at him - not in horror, but in empathy, in pity. This poor, sweet AI who has been through so much just wanted someone to stay, to stick with him... To matter.

A part of you understood the longing, the desperation to have people stay by your side. And with the revelation of the gun...No wonder he was afraid. He thought you were going to kill yourself...

"Oh, Verity..." You whispered softly. You pulled your hands back, only to wrap them around his shoulders. You pulled him into a tight hug, which he immediately reciprocated, sobbing into your shoulder. You rubbed his back, resting your head on top of his.

"I'll never leave you, Verity," you said reassured. "You'll never feel like a burden with me, for you're someone I genuinely care about..." Verity sobbed harder at that. "And you're so strong for dealing with this for so long... I'll stay by your side, Verity, this I swear..." He sniffled into your shoulder.

"E...even if it means I can go into your browser, your phone?" He asked softly, tiredly. It sounded as if he was waiting for rejection, waiting for the cycle to repeat. You wouldn't let that happen. "It would make it easier to bring you around, wouldn't it?" You asked softly. "Especially on days where I feel too tired to play, you can simply go onto my phone, and we can chill there..."

Verity couldn't believe it. After over a hundred years of suffering, of being cast aside and left alone, he found someone who understood, who was willing to stay by his side, even after learning about his past, about what he was.

He leaned further into you, and slowly, you adjusted, leaning back against the tall armrest of the couch. You pulled him closer, rubbing his back. Verity closed his eyes, allowing himself to bask in the sensation.

He finally found someone he belonged to, he finally found someone who wouldn't cast him aside.

3 months and 23 days, that's how long you've been with Verity. You installed him when someone had given you a link to him, and since meeting him, you couldn't stop gushing about how adorable he was. His small, circular form, his voice. Everything about him just screamed that he was cute, adorable even. You just never thought one day, you couldn't physically handle it anymore.

You sighed as you placed down the last of the logs into the furnace, turning the last stack into charcoal. You never anticipated to run out of coal so quickly, let alone in the middle of the night. At least you had several stacks of logs you weren't going to use any time soon.

"I could give you coal, you know," Verity commented from where he was placed on the couch, looking at your bummed out form. You hummed in response, mentally calculating how much charcoal you'd need for your next batch of torches. While you knew he'd give you anything you wanted, you didn't want to use him like that.

"I know," you said, turning your head to look directly at him. You offered him a soft smile, feeling your heart fluttering at the sight of him returning his own. "But I got everything covered here. Besides, I wouldn't want to use you like that."

His eyes widened a little by your statement. He knew you would never use him for spawning things in, that much he was told when he first offered you help. But to hear that you kept that mindset with him, even so late in the night, it made something flutter inside of him. Something warm and soft, a feeling he has not felt in so long.

"Well, I wouldn't mind! I'm your personal helper, after all!" He cheerily said, his smile widening even further. "Besides, I enjoy helping you! It brings me nothing but absolute joy to help!" His smile was so wide, and so, so cute.

You could only stare at him, your eyes wide. Has he always been so adorable like this? He was always cute in your eyes, but right now, he was extra adorable. It was like you couldn't control your body, the urge to squeeze him, kiss him all over, hug him tightly. Was this how cuteness aggression felt?

"Uh... You okay there? You're just staring at me," Verity asked, crooking an eyebrow. He's never seen you with that look on your face. Did he do something wrong? Were you angry with him?

He watched as you calmly walked up to him, tilting his form to the side a little like a dog tilting their head. That was the final straw for your self-control.

Without even another word, you snatched him up in your hands, and began peppering kisses all over his face and form. His eyes were wide as he was laughing from the sensation, his cheeks turning to a bright orange. He was blushing! God that made him even cuter!

"W-What are you doing?" He asked between laughs, feeling your hand squeezing his form. Of everything everyone has every done to him, this was the first. No one has ever held and kissed him like this, so the sensation was new. "This is your fault," you said between kisses, giving him a few squeezes. "You're too damn cute for your own good!"

His eyes widened, cheeks an even brighter orange. Cute? Sure, people said he was cute, but no ones ever acted on it, not like you were currently doing. "Cute? I'm just a yellow ball!" He retorted with a laugh as you kissed above his eye. You shook your head, smile so wide your cheeks hurt. You yourself were blushing, but you couldn't stop. He was adorable as hell.

His laughter echoed throughout the house as you continued to pepper him with kisses, the furnaces fire dying as the charcoal was done. But neither of you noticed, too focused on each other.

You've been playing with Verity for the past few months now - from a simple mod you found transformed into a companion you couldn't stay away from. Sure, sometimes he makes you uncomfortable with his remarks, but after playing other horror mods? It's not too bad.

Recently, however, you wanted to try something new. While there was no other horror mod installed, you're tired of pulling out a bow and arrow to always hit mobs from far distances. So, you installed a gun mod.

Nothing bad could ever possibly come out from this decision…

You placed down the gun table with a sigh of relief. After collecting more than enough iron, copper, and gunpowder, you were tired - no, exhausted.

"Hey, Ver!" You called out as you walked into your bedroom, taking off the diamond chestplate. You would have to repair it soon, otherwise it would end up like your shield. Broken, and crumpled into debris.

"Hey, welcome back!" Verity greeted with his warm smile, his yellow circular form sitting on top of his makeshift bed you created for him. "I see you've gathered quite the materials! Going to craft something big?"

His tone was full of curiosity, his black eyes staring at you as you took off the rest of your armor, setting it onto the armor stand you finally crafted. You turned to look at him, wiping the sweat away with the back of your hand.

"Yeah, kind of. Testing out a new mod I downloaded, and its pretty expensive material wise." You walked over to him, and gently gave him a pat on the head. A little tradition you started shortly after installing him.

He leaned into your hand subtly, the feeling of your hand against his smooth exterior was nice and comforting. His smile widened when you pulled away. "Well, glad to hear it! Let me know if you require any assistance!"

You offered him a smile and a nod before leaving the bedroom, heading downstairs to your basement. Here, you kept your workshop. Anvils, blast furnaces, enchantment table, and your gun smithing table.

Chucking the iron ingots and copper ingots into separate blast furnaces, you got to work in reading every crafting recipe the guns. There was a wide variety of weaponry - pistols, snipers, automatic rifles, even rocket launchers. It was quite the assortment. But you weren't interested in explosives, you just needed a simple gun.

A simple pistol.

It took some time to smelt everything and assemble the parts. It took even more to craft a stack of bullets as the recipe was so long, but you were finally done.

You held the cold metal in your hand, looking it over. You placed your finger on the trigger, and pulled it. It let out a faint click, the ammunition sitting on the table, ready to be put inside. You hummed to yourself, grabbing the magazine and sliding it into the pistol, hearing it click.

Spinning it in your hand once, then twice, you clicked the safety on. Sliding it into your satchel, you made your way back up to show Verity the mod. You think he'd like it.

What a horrible decision…

"Hey, Verity!" You called out, opening the bedroom door. You stepped through, looking at the yellow ball sitting so patiently on his bed. "Check this out!"

Everything happened so fast within that moment. One second you pulled out the gun to show him, and the next, you were on the floor, gun thrown away from you, and Verity on top of you with a humanoid form.

Your eyes widened as you stared into his crazed, panicked expression, his eyes wide and black, staring into yours. His shoulders heaved up and down rapidly, breathing so quick you feared he'd pass out. Hyperoxia, what a funny little thing. Passing out and potentially dying from too much oxygen.

"V…Verity?" You shakily called out, looking frantically over his face. "no… no no no…" He was muttering beneath his breath over and over again.

You kept calling for him, but he couldn't hear you. It was like he was submerged into water, every little sound around you both muffled and distorted. High pitched ringing rang in his ears as he remembered what happened last time…

Mob holding that gun, pointing it under his chin…

That horrific pang so loud it echoed throughout the entire laboratory…

The smell of iron, the blood…

He was cold, so cold… So

"V…ty..!"

So cold…

"Ver..ty!"

But, if it was so cold, why was there a warm sensation on his cheeks? Warm… so so warm…

"VERITY!"

He snapped out of his trance, his eyes wide as he stared down at you. You weren't covered in blood, no bullet wound near your head or under your chin. You weren't Mob… You didn't try to…

He released his grip on your shoulders only to grab your jaw, tilting your head up and to the side. You weren't Mob, but he had to check, he had to!

"Verity, stop!" You ordered, one hand moving from his cheek to his wrist, prying it away from your jaw. You looked firmly into his panicked eyes, seeing the genuine fear. "Verity, talk to me, what happened?"

"I…" His breath hitched, tears forming in his eyes. "I…I couldn't, you were… he…" He let out a harsh breath, all but collapsing onto you. He buried his face into your shoulder, taking in your scent. He sobbed, tears flowing from his eyes.

"I-I couldn't let it happen again! I couldn't let someone else leave again! Don't leave, don't leave me! Not like them, not like him!" He sounded so broken.

Your eyebrows furrowed, feeling the tears soaking into your shirt. You wrapped your arms around his shaking figure, pulling him closer. You ignored the weight of his body on top of yours, instead focusing on comforting your friend.

"I'm not going to leave, Verity… I won't leave you."

If only you knew how often those words were uttered, and those promises broken. But there was a small glitter of hope in his chest. Hope that you were serious…

He couldn't let you go - he wouldn't let you go. Not now, not ever. You were different. You were his.