Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

He felt like shit. Real hot burning shit.

Who was he to be laying here and rotting away in his bed, in this damp dark basement and in his mom’s house. He was 26, a computer obsessed, comic nerd, sci-fi geek who preferred to be left alone in his room and only really made any action to leave when it turned dark. He didn’t blame Mom or Demitrius in being disappointed with him.

He felt pathetic.

And so Sebastian turned over– with the time just hitting 10:30 AM on his sleek digital alarm clock– the neon green light was blinding and practically seared into his brain. He pulled his pale hand from out and under the thick blanket and allowed it to hover over the alarm. The repetitive blaring echoed into his ears, over… and over… and over… and– 

Despite everything; he trudged on. All because his stubborn nature would never allow him to ever commit to anything so… 

He shut off the clock, kicking off the blanket and lifting himself out of bed with a low groan leaving his lips. His room was so dark… it could be so easy to just go back to sleep… lay his head back down and just skip over the day completely.

He didn’t want to think about it.

With a grunt, he trudged across his room and flicked on the switch as the room was dimly lit up, rather sparse aside of the numerous posters he had hung up and the table designated for– Solarion Chronicles: The Game– whenever Sam or Abigail would agree to play a campaign with him. 

He made the best with what he had but god damn… he really wished he had a window… maybe that would help relieve some of those sinking feelings within him. 

After washing up he went to work– if you could call it that…

He had taken up working on a small passion project on his own– amongst the bits of freelancing he’d do for other projects– Sebastian would always come back to hyper fixating on his ‘ Choose your Own Adventure Game: Name Work in Progress’. Despite the lack of… artistic development… with what little art skills he was born with and the drawing tablet he invested into, he was able to bring some of his characters to life. 

Even if it was poorly drawn, practically stitched together scribbles… he couldn’t help but be pretty proud of it.  

Though he’d never share this with anyone, not his family, not even friends– it was embarrassing– besides Sam and Abigail wouldn’t get it. They’d probably poke fun at his drawings and tease his loosely put together lines of code and hardly functioning game. It stung a bit but he didn’t want to linger on it… besides if he wanted to impress Abigail he’d have to make a pretty fucking fire game… 

With a few cigarettes– that usually subbed out for any actual substantial meals– fueling him throughout the day, he’d end the night off without saying much if not nothing to his family… the exception would be his mother’s nagging. About what depends, though repeated– either it was the heavy stench of smoke on his clothes, the lack of care for his own health or the fact she hardly sees him anymore– he couldn’t find anything in him to respond with anything substantial other than a glance and a shrug before padding off back into his room.

He felt bad… he felt like he was being a bad son after everything that his mom had to grow through… but god after so many years he felt like he couldn’t talk to her anymore.

Things changed… and Sebastian knew it’d never go back to the way things were before…

And so… in the silence of his room, his computer being the only thing illuminating this corner of his cave, he opened up this site he’s been visiting pretty recently.

He had always found it difficult talking to others– even with Sam and Abigail it was awkward– so he opted for something he was more familiar with. A screen. 

[Sunny is Online!]

–

Working on a farm was hard–

I mean no shit right?

But Sol would have never been prepared for how much intensive labor he had to put in to cultivate the farm to its once former glory. Though he knew he’d do anything for his late grandfather– and if that meant selling his soul to dry soil and poorly fertilized land… sobeit…

His days started early– 6 AM– waking up, pulling on his boots, gathering his tools, lifting the heaviest watering can and showering his oh so precious plants. He would repeat this, over and over until his small field was fully nourished– and only then, he would finally leave the farm and continue his work elsewhere. Either that be burying himself deep in the minds or getting soaked on the docks– there was one thing every Pelican Town villager knew– and that was that Sol was a very diligent worker.

Even so he was very active in the community, despite his busy schedule, he always made time for a small chat or just a simple hello to those he passed by. Even if it had only been a few months ever since he had first moved in, many felt as if Sol had been here for years. Their very own sweaty, overworked, friendly farmer that older villagers noted looked a bit like his grandfather in his prime. 

As the day went on, the sun set, the moon rose, and the town grew quiet– Sol finally retired to his small cottage. He fed his small black cat: Mochi, her dinner as she curled up on his soft bed, calling it a night. 

He took a seat at his desk tucked away in the corner of his cottage as he turned on his computer. Calloused fingers clicking away into the night as he allowed the fireplace to continue to burn across the other side of his cottage. 

He knew he should be asleep, he had a full day of work ahead of him– he needed to water his plants all over again, he planned on going mining the following day so he really needed to conserve his energy, Even so– he kept clicking away as he opened up a site:

ferngilspace.com

Sol found a sort of solace in the site… a form of social media that mainly functioned as an online meeting place for those in the Ferngill Republic… but that likely didn’t stop anyone else from getting on. 

Sol himself found a sense of normalcy here– after moving in from Zuzu City… he had missed the constant buzz of life there and seeked it out by scrolling through posts from its inhabitants. It wasn’t like he hated the farmland here, it's just that he was so used to Zuzu… it was just… different.

He eased a small sigh as he heard a familiar ding and a pop up in the corner of the screen.

[Void is Online!]

Chapter Text

[Sunny] 

u up?

[You]

u know im a night owl

ofc im up

[Sunny] 

mm yeah ik

Sebastian shifts in his seat, opting to curl up a bit as he leans towards the monitor– eyeing the screen– somewhat squinting… maybe this is the reason he had to get glasses. 

[Sunny] 

how was tday?

[You]

normal

i got to work on the project more

[Sunny]

ooooo

i still wanna know more abt it

[You]

nah

keepin it a secret

[Sunny]

whatttt

unfairrrr

Sebastian wonders what he looks like on the other side of the screen… if his nose scrunches up as he whines, if his bottom lip juts out when he pouts, do his eyes go big when he stares…

He had met Sunny a month or so ago– it was just on a whim– he’d never think that they’d get this close. At first, Sebastian wasn’t sure what Sunny’s intentions were. They were on totally two different sides of the internet– with one look at Sunny’s profile, they hardly had anything in common. Not to mention the first message sent by Sunny was just a way too suspicious “hey” – not to sound paranoid but that could be an introduction to a lot of things. 

Admittedly, Sebastian wanted to ghost him, he’s had his fair share of weirdos on the internet and who's to say that this guy wasn’t one of them. He remembers gliding his mouse over to the exit key before the next message was sent. “i harvested a rlly big carrot today, wanna see”

He remembered being amused and saying yes before being sent the biggest carrot he’s ever seen in his life– and the odd friendship sprung from there.

The way he types is cute– he notes to himself as he feels his lips pull up in a smirk. You know only those addicted to the internet could ever detect that… it was very much a ‘chronically online’ mindset… psh– whatever. 

[You]

fine

ill tell u a bit

He folds.

He tells Sunny about the concept of his game– how its a choose your own adventure, visual novel game with multiple endings. How he wants to make it highly interactive like modern games but retain a sort of simple pixelated style. How he was inspired by the idea of text adventures he played while growing up on his dad’s old computer. He shares all his character ideas, how he wants the main character to be this dark and brooding guy– admittedly a self-insert– that meets a bunch of people on his adventures that will determine if the party beats the end… 

[Sunny]

do u have pics?

[You]

pics??

[Sunny]

yea! 

of like ur characters

[You]

kinda

mm not rlly an artist

[Sunny]

what if i drew them for u

Huh?

[You]

u draw?

[Sunny]

um i think im pretty good

so u wanna tell me more about your main character

[You]

uh yeah sure

It’s your standard main character hero type– well it was supposed to be– but he looks nothing like your run of the mill bright eyed, blonde hair, heroic, charismatic… you get the point. 

Long raven black hair, sharp dark teal eyes, wearing tattered cloth, light armor and a distinct fur collar with a pair on black horns sprouting from his forehead. He’s supposedly a demon who’s ashamed of his past on the path to defeat his father– the demon lord.

The more he explains the more he feels like he’s sounding sort of like a kid– a young boy super immersed into a fantasy setting and makes a cringy oc to top it all off. By the end of it, Sebastian feels a bit embarrassed, he didn’t realize it until he finished but it’s just him sending message after message for about 8 minutes straight.

He reels his fingers back and stares at his screen… Geez was that too much?

[Sunny]

he sounds kinda like a self insert

God damn he got clocked–

[You]

what

no

[Sunny]

based off of ur profile 

seems like he’s totally you

Sebastian doesn’t have any pictures of his face on his profile– sure– but he does have some faceless cosplays here and there… if not he’s wearing a mask… and due to all the customization– his profile is dominated by primarily one color… if that didn’t give it away it might’ve been the occasional ‘edgy’ post or his bio or… his screen name…

Ah nevermind…

[Sunny]

unless u just made your ideal type

Type-?

[Sunny]

totalll hunk

super mysterious and kinda shady

but like in a sexy way

And for some reason this makes Sebastian’s cheeks flush with color.

[You]

NONONO

THATS NOT RLLY

THE IDEA

[Sunny]

o did i characterize him wrong

i drew him but lmk if theres something off

Sunny sends the picture and Sebastian’s sort of shocked– 

Even without a reference, the portrait is somewhat similar to his own appearance. Admittedly the character looks far more sharper and rugged– Sebastian could never compare– and the strokes of just a simple pencil looks very intentional. In all fairness, Sebastian wasn’t super big on art consumption but… he can tell that Sunny is one hell of an artist.

On the other hand… he can see the edge of Sunny’s desk… or wherever he’s drawing this. It makes him feel weird… as if he’s being let in a little more into his life… regardless, he likes it.

[You]

holy shit

thats rlly good

[Sunny]

aw u think?

im glad u like it

id be happy to draw more for u

[You]

arent u busy?

farm stuff?

One look at Sunny’s profile and it’s clear to see he’s really in touch with nature…

A lot of his posts are about his life on his farm, tips and tricks on growing crops fast, what’s in season, pictures of his chickens and the occasional really big fish he’s caught. It’s endearing at best and sort of sickening at worst. Despite Sebastian unable to see himself anywhere near a farm– no less living on one– he finds himself envious of such a fulfilling lifestyle. 

He could just imagine the feeling of success that would ooze off of Sunny after selling a large batch of golden crops, or the fulfillment of retrieving chicken eggs every morning, or– you get the point. 

All to say– Sebastian lacked all of this. Maybe the closest he’d come to that feeling was forcing himself to stay awake to finish some programming for a gig all under 5 hours– but how did that really benefit him outside of making some money.

[Sunny]

never too busy for u

<3

Sebastian stared at the screen for a long time. His mouth, not quite gaping– but his lips parted and his throat dry.

[You]

are you flirting with me?

[Sunny]

is it working?

[You]

ur too forward

[Sunny]

oh 

so youd like if i took it slower

[You]

never said that

[Sunny]

o

ill stop if its weird

Sebastian paused, his fingertips hovering over the keys… plotting out what he was going to say…

[You]

never said that either

He felt his cheeks grow warm… geez this felt dumb… but hell it wasn’t going to stop him from continuing. Something about this felt daring– risky– as if he was going to get in trouble. Even if this held no stakes… he still felt like a troublemaker to an extent. Flirting on the internet, how scandalous–

[Sunny]

its late u should sleep

Sebastian frowned, did he say something wrong–?

[You]

dont think i can

[Sunny]

go count some sheep then

[You]

dunno

smth keeping me up

[Sunny]

?

what is it?

[You]

just some stranger that keeps dming me

[Sunny]

???

what???

oh

pshhh ur dumb

[You]

was it funny

[Sunny]

not at all

lack of sleep is getting to u

[You]

i dont mind

as long as it’s you thats keeping me up

As he sent the message Sebastian couldn’t help himself from smiling like an idiot. The corners of his mouth ever so slightly upturned as he bit his lower lip. 

[Sunny]

now look whos the one flirting

[You]

only if u dont mind

[Sunny]

not at all

still serious about you sleeping tho

yk what time it is?

Sebastian in fact didn’t know what time it was. As his gaze wandered to the lower right corner of his monitor he sighed…

[You]

it’s 3

[Sunny]

night void

[You]

same time tmrw?

[Sunny]

ofc

u know it

[You]

night sunny

[Sunny]

<3

[Sunny is Offline!]

As Sebastian hears the familiar ding as his friend signs off for the night– he too decides to finally retire back to his bed. After staring at just his monitor for a god forsaken amount of time, he could feel his eyelids start to droop the moment it turns off. 

He definitely got accustomed to this schedule… not that he thought it was a bad thing– what else was he supposed to do? Go to sleep? Psh– lame…

It’s been a month– maybe little more than that– since he’s started chatting with this guy and in all honesty, it’s one of the few things that gets him up in the morning. It sounded sorta pathetic but he liked it… really…

Socializing in person was exhausting, Sam and Abigail were great but– there was nothing quite like hiding behind a screen and being able to talk to whoever he pleased without leaving himself feeling drained at the end of it all.

He didn’t ask for this life but– he was going to run with it. 

Sebastian got up, walking over to the switch by his door and took one more glance over his room– 

Ready to sleep?

He flicks off the lights, the room is shrouded in darkness.