‘Sup chat?

Joining H. T. Darrow's July challenge - Day 9: goat

“GGs! I can’t believe I got to play with the actual GOAT, man”

“All good, kid. Maybe I’ll catch you another time.” Billy said before returning to the lobby. “Alright chat, that’s it for the night. I’ll be back for random duos same time tomorrow.” The chat filled with fire emojis. Flashing a peace sign, Billy disconnected his stream and left his game.

Once everything was turned off and away he stood up, stretched and sighed.

As he made his way up the stairs, the silence started pressing in around me.

I made my way to the kitchen, glancing at my wife on the way past. She sensed my gaze, glared at me and went back to her show.

Honestly, I couldn’t remember the last time she spoke to me. The loneliness pulled at my very being, this real version of me was fraying at the edges, blurring and disappearing.

The more I disappeared here, the more time I started spending in the basement, playing a more popular version of myself.

Creating a new, virtual me— loved, accepted, wanted— as this one became a wisp of smoke blowing away on the breeze.