tje year is 2048. cerasium is entering his midlife. he looks to his right and sees a cracked, peeling wall. it has a sour and poignant smell, must be from the stain left by a spilt energy drink. he looks to his right and sees his small apartment room in shambles. it's a unified mess, as if it's the very essence of the room, giving a life force to the piles of garbage and clothes. but in the dark, none of it is noticeable. he likes the dark. but theres a light. he looks straight ahead and sees the light, the glow from his laptop, just bright enough to illuminate the reminders of the harsh realities surrounding him. but he's able to get lost within, calmed by the comforting ambient hum of the bike riding sound effect used in free rider hd. he's distracted.
well, normally that is. but today is different. maybe his laptop is glowing just a bit more than normal, or maybe it's the ever diminishing free rider hd fanbase, leaving him to be the last one remaining on that site. the isolation is setting in. he stares blankly at his screen for a while, then slowly lifts his arm, sweaty fingers press gently against the back of his laptop, and he closes it. something he has not for years. and, in this moment, only in complete darkness can he see that even with nine thousand six hundred and twenty four featured ghosts, he won't even leave one behind.
he can't bear it. he stumbles out of his chair and over trash and reaches for his door. the gentle, orange tinted light in the hallway was harsh to him, burning his retinas. he staggers to the elevator, presses the button to go up by mistake when he wanted to go down, but the doors open before he realizes his mistake. he tripped on the way in, but luckily there was someone there to catch him. still in a haze, he mutters "s-sorry". the old man responds, "no worries at all, sonny. in fact, i should be thanking you." confused, and still out of it, cerasium asks "w-what do you mea-" but then he saw. it was none other than Eric.
"you saved me. you saved me from financial ruin. i know exactly who you are, cerasium. the amount of free rider hd you played... the amount of adsense money we made from you.... you see, kano was going under. i needed to support my family. there was a moment there when i thought it was the end. when my daughter got married, she had her wedding in maui. unfortunately for them, i wasn't able to attend because my health went on the decline and i needed surgery. but that's just what i told them, the reality was i didn't even have money for a plane ticket, let alone gifts and a hotel room and the bunch. i wasn't able to attend my own daughters' wedding." Eric starts choking up, and his eyes start to fill with tears. "but you, you saved me. money just started pouring in from your gameplay. i invested what i made off of you into NFTs and now i have 645 million dollars under my name. but i couldn't have done it without you. please, i need to repay you. i want to give you 100 million dollars. it's the least i can do. it's nothing for me, i wouldn't have had it in the first place if it wasnt for you"
cerasium's shoulders drop. he looks down. he sees a small drop of water splash on the elevator ground. then another. and then some more. he was crying. his purpose, his reason was found. he didn't have to worry about anything anymore. he could finally get a nice car. he could buy a nice house, with the best maid service he can get. he could buy a large theatre to project his free rider hd gameplay onto with the brightest display. he didn't have to be afraid of the glow anymore, and every seat would be filled with hot women. but more important than material wealth, he could finally die at peace. knowing he had left a mark in some way, knowing that he will be remembered after he's gone, that's all he ever wanted. to be remembered.
the end.
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