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Rain pattered outside the window making a rhythmic calming sound, the water dripping off the eaves making little plops as they hit the grass outside. Karl watched as the droplets slid down the glass window, catching on to others and dragging them down further, making a small pool at the bottom of the window. He kept observing as they raced. The cold air flowing in against his arm and shoulders as he propped up against it, the glow from the phone lit up the side of his face. He glanced down at his phone, pulling his eyes away from the unwelcoming weather outside. This was nothing new, it was just a typical day, but he was anxious to see something blink at him. He sighed softly, and slid his arm off the windowsill, his elbow and forearm leaving a slight fog of heat on the glass.
He turned and stood up from the couch by the windows. The rain hit the roof, and the clocks ticked loudly, echoing in his ears. The deafening silence was shortly broken by small dings from inside his office door.
He quickly walked over and swung open the door, feeling icy-cold air piercing through his soft purple sweater. The light from his monitors illuminated the room making it less dreary. A small message popped up on the bottom of his screen from his friend George asking if he wanted to join the stream. He smiled softly to himself, happy to have something to do, and typed out a quick reply saying that he would be joining soon.
He grabbed a water bottle, his headphones and turned on his room lights, getting ready for a few hours of chatting with his friends. He sat in his chair and clicked his mouse over to the join call button, no longer than a second later his little logo floated into the call. He was greeted by loud cheers from his friends, welcoming him warmly, earning a small smile on his face.
"Hey, Karl! Welcome!" his friend Clay said,
"Karl!" George announced, letting his viewers know who had joined.
"Hey! What are you guys doing?"
"Oh, we're just playing a bit of Minecraft, want to join us?" George explained.
"Oo yes sir" Karl nodded and quickly booted up the game. He logged on and saw his friends bouncing around on fences and chatting, the little pixels of their avatars moving across his screen. He giggled watching them goof around and joined in on the fun.
You see, Karl and his friends are 'streamers'. A career that many have attempted and very few have succeeded, Karl happened to be doing quite well with it. They all had their own form of making content for entertainment, whether it be streaming or creating different videos, but they always shared their fanbase when they got together. They were all skilled in some way or the other.
Streaming was how they connected in the first place. They met through different events and mutual friends and never would have gotten close if it weren't for the peculiar nature of their jobs.
He laughed with his friends for a while, the downpour still pounding out his window. A small bing, followed by a raspy voice startled him from messing around, and his stomach fluttered, which he liked to blame on being startled.
"Hey guys, I saw you in a call, what's up?" Karl's closest friend Nick said, his voice hoarse, evident from the absence of sleep. Karl's face lit up as a smile spread across his face. He responded;
"Sappy! We're on the server, isn't it late where you are though?"
"A bit yeah, I couldn't sleep. Can I join?"
"Sure Nick, I'm streaming though," George made sure he knew before letting him say anything else.
"Oo, okay Georgie~," Nick said, hoping to get some laughs from the viewers. Karl giggled along with him, and soon, he saw his avatar join their game. They chased and they giggled, as they fooled around on the server. They said goodbyes to their friends as they went to bed and ended their streams. Until it was just the two of them in the call alone. They didn't notice, but they felt a pleasant silence fall over the call, they paused for a moment. Karl's stomach flipped again, waiting for Nick to say something, but he just yawned loudly. Karl snickered in response to his exhausted friend as he looked at the time.
12:48 AM
"Oh, dude, go to bed!" Karl exclaimed, slight concern evident in his voice. Sapnap let out a little whine, Karl could hear him slide out of his chair and onto the floor on the other side of the line. Distantly, Karl heard him call out.
"But I really don't want to," he complained. "It's so hot in here, and my brain just won't shut up," he said. Karl listened, his face molding into a worried expression.
"Do you- do you want to talk about it?" he asked, hoping to help out his best friend.
"Ah, no, you're right. I just need to go to sleep. I'm certain it'll work out eventually, everything is just a little stressful right now," he sighed, and Karl could hear him sitting back up in his chair to keep talking.
"If you're sure SappyNappy," he laughed to himself about the nickname. "Even if you don't want to talk about it right now, I'm here for you any time, day or night. I care, you know that right?"
"'Course. I'll text you in the morning, mhm?"
"Yeah, but make sure you get real sleep," Karl assured. Nick sighed and said goodbye, and they ended the call. Karl was left alone again to sit in the sound of drizzling from the rain, almost strangling him in his own head.
Nick was one of Karl's oldest friends. They met right when they both started making content, and they would stay up for hours recording together and giving each other advice. Nick was the one who linked him with Clay and George, who were fellow streamers and content creators as well. Clay was a faceless content creator, and his relationship with George, a fellow streamer, created a huge crowd of fans obsessing over them. They didn't mind though, they would often give in to their gimmick.
On the internet, Clay often went by Dream, and many people called him that in real life as well. It was just how they acted with each other. Even Nick sometimes went by his screen name, Sapnap. Despite the hours and hours that they have spent on call, Karl would always feel a bit nervous when he would join on.
There was something about the call that had felt new to him, and he couldn't put a word on it. He closed his eyes and leaned back, the sound of Nick's tired chuckles and laughs bounced around his ears, bringing a wide smile across his lips. He loved the way the sound recoiled in his head. It was quite soothing in a way, and he didn't want to let go, but it faded into the infinite rain and his smile vanished with it.
Why wouldn't he let go?
The question left unanswered, he slumped his way to his own bed. He slowly slid his hands along the sheets, lost in his own thoughts. His hair curled around the wrinkles of his pillowcase, and soft music from his phone lulled him to sleep.
"If I could, begin to be,
half of what you think of me,
I could do about anything.
I could even learn how to love."
The grooves on his ceiling swirled and turned with slight lights as his eyes softly closed. The song ricocheted through his sternum, settling in his skin. He let out a soft sigh, warm breath passing his lips.
"Why can't I let go?"
Light finally streamed in past thin white curtains, shining a beam of warmth on his emerald green eyes. He inhaled sharply, feeling the cold, damp morning air fill his lungs.
He slid out of bed and stepped over to the window, looking out at the muddy lawns and sidewalks. He loved the smell of the rain, and how everything sat so still and fresh. Little puddles of water oozed into the dips and curves of the sidewalk below. Stepping back, he grabbed his light green pajama shirt pulling it over his head, and walked over to his closet. His light brown hair was ruffled a bit, so he quickly ran his hand through it to make it look neat whilst looking for something new to wear.
Eventually, he settled on tan khakis, with a white turtleneck tucked in, and a green and red color-block sweater over top. He looked himself over in his mirror and grabbed a monster for his breakfast. Slipping on his converse and plugging in his headphones, he swung open his front door and started down the steps. The shuffle-play first decided to play; Beautiful Boy, John Lennon. His feet splashed along the pavement, in time with the beat of the song. His head bounced a bit with each step, making his curly light brown hair dance with giddy.
He was heading down to the ice cream shop that was just down the street from him. A little mom-and-pop place he liked to visit sometimes to get treats. It was very quaint, with wide windows that had little flower boxes hanging loosely from them. Small tulips were starting to grow and would've been destroyed in the rain if not for the light pink canopy that sat over the whole storefront. The inside was filled with cold glass cases showing specially made deserts, the picks of the day, and the best of their selection kept alongside all of them. A big black chalkboard sat above a long counter that had lists of the options and combinations.
The store slowly came into Karl's view as he kept walking, taking in the sweet air. His multicolored shoes tapped on the rug outside the tinted glass door and as he opened it lightly, a soft bell chimed. A tall girl at the counter popped her head up and gave him a wide smile.
"Karl! How's it going?" She said, her long brown hair bobbing over her apron as she spoke.
"Hey Millie, I'm okay, it is so cold out there," he said with a chuckle. She snickered and leaned forward on the counter.
"Then why the hell are you buying ice cream?"
"Right? I need something fancy for dessert tonight, and I only really have time to pick it up now," He sighed
"Ooo~ sounds fancy. Does someone have a date?" She said, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively.
"No, it's just my family. They're bringing dinner, so I thought I'd get them some dessert, you know, some sort of treat from me," he explained, turning to look at the custom-made dishes and deserts. He knew that Millie designed the ones displayed in the cases, so he wanted to pick one of hers.
She walked over to him and started talking to him about what she had made. She showed him a chocolate and cherry ice cream cake. Delicate white frosting was brushed over the top, and little gold intricate detailings curled and twisted around each piece of cherry. Little white and gold ruffles of frosting draped around the sides, adding a soft skirt to the flavoursome dessert. Karl nodded at her cheerfully, signifying it was the one, and she took it out of the case happily.
She gingerly put the cake in the box and added in a little bag of cherry chocolate fudge as a small present for Karl. They chatted for a bit longer just to catch up on everything, but he eventually took his stuff and pushed the door open with his back, and walked back home.
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Edited by Reva_24
1937 words