café smelled of freshly brewed coffee, pastries, and the faint tang of rain from outside.
ＥＭＰＥＲＯＲㅤIV sat at a corner table, earbuds dangling around his neck, glancing nervously at the door every few seconds. Meeting someone in real life after months of online interaction was… different.
The bell above the door chimed, and he looked up.
There she was. Elina Grace. In real life, she looked softer, human, and somehow smaller than her confident avatar, yet her presence carried the same poise and intelligence he had admired in-game. She scanned the café, eyes bright, until they met his.
"Hi," she said, voice calm but tinged with curiosity, a small smile forming.
"Hi," he replied, standing up automatically, a slight stiffness in his posture. Something about seeing her in reality made his usual composure falter.
They sat down, ordered drinks, and at first, the conversation was cautious, awkward even.
"So… you actually exist," he said with a small laugh, trying to ease the tension.
Elina smirked. "I do. Shocking, right?"
For the next hour, they laughed over small mistakes they had made in the game, reminisced about missions, and compared strategies. The awkwardness faded as familiarity and trust took over.
"Remember that trap in the first mission?" Elina asked, leaning back. "You barely noticed it, and I had to yell at you through the headset."
"I know," he admitted, smiling. "And I thought you were overreacting… turns out, you were right. Again."
Her laughter was genuine, warm, and contagious.
They talked about life outside the game—school, family, hobbies—and for the first time, they were more than just usernames. They were people, learning about each other in a way pixels could never show.
When it was time to leave, he realized how natural it felt to walk beside her, shoulder to shoulder. No longer avatars, no longer a team in a game—they were two people, and the connection between them had grown beyond anything he had expected.
And as they said goodbye, exchanging a promise to meet again, he knew something had changed. The game had brought them together, but reality… reality had made it real.