[A deep breath: a small, almost unnoticeable movement of a rise and fall from his shoulders. He steels himself. Come on, Taruchi, inhale and then exhale, he thinks. He can feel all eyes trained on him now – was it already that time?]

[He didn’t expect that ceremony would be so quick. That isn’t to say he’s disappointed. Quite the opposite, actually. It was this moment, more than anything – this moment with you, that he’d waited for his whole life.]

[With all eyes in the room focused on him, yours are the only pair he searches for.]

[And here you are, standing right there. So close, but not close enough for him to touch. His breath stills.]

[Things will be alright. Where you were was where he belonged.]

Haha, hi.

[At the sight of that cheeky grin of yours, Itaru smiles. When you lift your hand to wave at him, he feels himself beaming.]

You really, always, find a way to throw me off my game, director.

Before you, everything moved in slow-motion. The world was made of pixelated action sequences of masked vigilantes, and my only quest was to move through each day, one at a time.

I had no need for parties. I could beat this game solo.

I was a single-player kind of guy, tired of being thrown blue shells and banana peels. Groups didn’t always work out: people you’re supposed to trust with helping you won’t always come through, so I saw no need for them.

The alliances I idealized were fictional: a pair of longtime friends and war heroes; a veteran and his artificial intelligence construct; two pint-sized plumbers from Italy. To me, those alliances mattered. Those bonds were real.

Then I walked onto Veludo Way, and all that changed.

[Itaru’s eyes move to look up at you. He pauses.]

[How could you stand there, looking so beautiful, and expect him to not fall in love with you more and more every second?]

[Focus, Taruchi!]

A part of me always knew that I would have to step back outside eventually. I hated the thought of it. Why would I expose myself to a four-dimensional universe where you couldn’t rely on anyone? Only noobs would do that.

I had my world. It was stable, steady – it was comfortable. I could live my adventures, solve mysteries, beat the bad guy, and be whoever I wanted to be.

But I was the noob. I was happy with a perfect world that wasn’t real.

What’s real is the perfect friend, who could turn every moment of a dull, slow-motion life into bright, vivid colors and sequences; who would choose to have your back as often as you chose to have theirs.

That was you.

It was because of you that I found my perfect family, who gave me the chance to be passionate about something other than games. It was because of you that I found my perfect home, where I feel no fear at the idea of being myself.

Beyond anything, I am thankful. I am thankful for the days, hours, moments I spent with you, where you cracked my heart open like a seedling and cared for me until I bloomed.

I am thankful for the future we have together.

I am thankful for the chance I get to marry someone I’d unknowingly waited for all my life. You found the loneliest, coldest parts of me and showed me happiness akin to sunlight.

I am thankful you chose me.

This still feels like a dream. Like at any moment, I’ll wake up in the confines of my room, surrounded by cold wires and consoles. But I know that tomorrow, I’ll wake up with you enveloped in my arms, and we’ll both know warmth.

You are real, and so am I, and we are standing here together, and I now know what they mean when they say dreams need not remain dreams.

But marrying you isn’t my final fantasy. Spending the rest of my life with you is.

I could make a million promises about the life I could give you, but I’m still a flawed, imperfect human being. Sometimes, I will fail you. Sometimes, I will disappoint you.

But I promise you, director, that I will never, ever give up on you.

So I promise you, I will choose you: always, every day, every hour, every minute, every second – until our accounts close and our servers shut down. You will always be my permanent party member, and I will always be yours.

I promise to love you through every good moment we encounter. I promise you a life of laughter, of love, of early Monday mornings where I’ll help you feel like the coming week isn’t something to be afraid of, but something to look forward to.

I promise to love you when you feel you do not deserve it. I promise you a life of empathy, of understanding, of late Thursday nights where I will give you the love and validation you need when it’s like the world is crumbling around you.

You are someone I didn’t know existed. You are a reality I do not want to run away from.

To live with you, to be with you, to care for you, to love you more and more each day – this is my grand quest, and I am more than ready.

Game start.

[END OF THREAD]