Authors note: Two quick things I wanna say; one, I didn't know the movie Ordinal Scale was a thing. Therefore this also takes place before the movie since I have yet to even see it. Two, I don't know if this is a universal thing, but I use italics to show a character's thoughts. Just wanna put that out there

Kazuto woke up late the next morning. He looked around the room as the little memory he had from last night came back to him. He sat up, wincing as he put his hand over the stinging mark on his stomach. There were bandages covering it, Not that he could see it through the hospital gown anyway.

He bent his knee and straightened it a few times. He was able to bend it now without too much pain but leaning on it would probably be impossible. They had given him a crutch he could use though. It was leaning on the nightstand next to his phone.

He wondered if he could find out anything else by going through his phone… Kazuto grabbed it and hit the button to turn it on, only for a lock screen to appear.

Well, that's great. I don't know my password.

There was a knock on the door. Kazuto looked up as a nurse came in. Her blonde hair was in a loose braid that went over her shoulder down to her waist. She had glasses, brown eyes, a white nurse cap and wore a blue open sweater over top of her white button-up dress.

She smiled, "Oh good, you're awake," she walked over to the side of the bed, "how are you feeling?"

"I don't know, I don't really have anything to compare it to so…" Kazuto answered.

"Right, well, that's okay," she said.

Was it really okay?

...He sure didn't think so.

"My name's Aki Natsuki. I'll be your nurse" she stated, "well, I have been for years but I know you don't remember…"

Kazuto wasn't sure what to say.

"On another note," she added, "Your friend and sister will be back today to visit. You must still be excited for that right?"

She's...My sister?

Kazuto smiled a little.

I have a sister…

"I take that as a yes?" She asked.

Kazuto nodded. He would figure this out.

Later that day, after kazuto's bandages got checked and he was given pain killers, Asuna and Suguha arrived. They said their greetings before Asuna sat on the bottom right corner of the bed facing Kazuto, legs bent and crossed over each other. Suguha sat on the stool next to the bed.

Asuna smiled at him, "How are you feeling Kirito?"

"Why don't you just use my real name?" Kazuto asked.

"Well…" She paused, "Kirito was the only name I knew for the first two years I knew you, so…"

Did we meet in-game?

"What about you then? You never told me your character name" He said

Asuna let out a nervous laugh "I… kinda just used my real name"

Kazuto chuckled, "and I'm the uncreative one?"

Asuna giggled, "uncreative character names aside, Just as promised, we're gonna try and get your memories back"

"Thank you, I don't know what I would have done without you. Both of you"

"We'd do anything for you," Suguha said.

Asuna moved forward so she sat closer to the headboard, "Were here for you," she said as she put her hand on top of his.

Her hand's warm.

"I have so many questions…" he admitted.

"Ask anything," Asuna said, squeezing his hand a bit.

Kazuto thought for a moment, "last night. You said you knew what my burn mark was"

"Wait," Suguha chimed in, "you were burned?"

Kazuto nodded, "but it's a specific thing. It has eyes and a large mouth and It's kind of creepy to look at"

"Kirito," Asuna sighed, "Let me tell you about a game. A game called sword art online"

Asuna proceeded to explain what Nervegear was and how it and the game came to be. She explained how Kazuto was a beta tester, and how they both had dived in on the game's release day. About Aincrad and how the game worked.

"However…" Asuna paused, "everyone was trapped in the game"

"Trapped? What do you mean?" Kazuto asked.

"I mean, the logout button was gone. Removed on purpose," she said, "the only way to get out was to beat all 100 floors of the game"

"But how… why would someone do that?" He asked.

Suguha chimed in, "that's not all"

Kazuto looked her in the eyes and they were filled with grief. So were Asuna's when he looked back at her.

"Since the Nervegear had a connection to the player's brain, if done right, it has the power to seriously harm someone. Or worse," Asuna explained, "Basically… the creator of sword art online made it so that if you die in the game, you also die in the real world"

Kazuto froze, "die?"

Asuna nodded, "you and I are here today because of everyone who risked and lost their lives, including us"

People died?

"I… I don't understand… why?" Kazuto asked, stumbling with his words a bit.

"Your burn mark... it's a symbol of a guild that was part of SAO. A horrible guild that PK'd despite knowing people would really die…"

Kazuto looked down at both their hands. Why would anyone do that? He...He was attacked by a murderous guild and lived when so many others hadn't…

"But hey, look at the bright side," Asuna said and Kazuto looked back up at her, "I met you"

"But," he paused, "I still don't really know you"

Asuna's eyes softened with sorrow, "I know…"

Kazuto sighed, "how many people were trapped inside that game? If you can even really call it that"

"...About Fifty thousand," Asuna answered.

"And… How many made it out…?" He hesitantly asked.

Asuna looked over at Suguha.

"Do you want an exact number?" Suguha asked.

Kazuto nodded.

Suguha paused for a moment, "...six thousand, one hundred, and forty-seven"

Kazuto's grip on the sheets tightened, "t-that many?"

"But hey," Suguha said, "look at it this way. That number would be even lower if it wasn't for you"

"For me?" He asked

"You saved them Kirito," Asuna said, "you beat the floor 100 boss before we even got to it. You're the hero of SAO, the black swordsman who saved everyone who's still alive"

"I-...you're not just saying that to make me feel better, right?" He asked.

Asuna shook her head, "I would never lie to you"

"This… is a lot to take in…"

Asuna squeezed his hand "do you wanna stop here for now?"

Kazuto nodded, "for a little,"

He hadn't expected to hear something like this. It was hard to process and he wasn't sure what to do. He felt like he should be more upset than he was. Like he wanted to cry, but without his memories, he felt stuck. Fifty thousand people and only about six thousand survived. It was good to know he had helped, but still…

"How about we go get some snacks," Suguha suggested.

"That's a good idea," Asuna said before turning towards Kazuto, "is it okay if we leave you for a few minutes? I'll be sure to get some of your favourites"

Kazuto nodded, curious as to what his favourites were. Suguha stood as Asuna moved to get up, but as her hand started to leave Kazuto's he instinctively turned his hand over to grab hers, stopping her in her tracks. She looked down at him with a look of surprise. Kazuto looked her in the eyes, then down at their hands.

Did I just-?

He let go, "I'm sorry, I don't know what came over me"

Asuna gave a soft smile, "It's okay. I'll be right back," she lovingly ruffled his hair a bit before leaving with Suguha.

Why did I just do that?

He felt the pressure of tears behind his eyes, felt like he was gonna cry, but nothing happened. It felt as if there was a wall, or a dam, stopping the tears from forming.

Kazuto's phone buzzed, snapping him out of his thoughts. He picked it up, turning it on to find a notification for a message from Asuna.

'Asuna: almost forgot, your passwords 1202, the day we met'

He slid over to his lock screen and typed in the number. Once it was unlocked he went straight into his and Asuna's messages where there was another message waiting for him

'Asuna: Make sure you text if you need anything at any time'

How did she know my password?

Kazuto brushed it off for now and texted back a thank you before there was a knock at the door. The door opened and a man with white-ish grey-ish hair came in. He wore a silver chain and a plain blue t-shirt that was tucked into his jeans being held up by a black belt.

"I came as soon as I heard," he said.

He looked like he wasn't having a very good day and appeared very down as he looked at Kazuto.

"Who are you?" Kazuto asked.

"Oh, I'm sorry, my name's Atsushi Kanamoto, but you call me Aka. No need to use my actual name," he sat down on the stool next to the bed, "I'm your best friend"

"Best friend?" Kazuto asked, putting his phone down next to him.

Atsushi sighed, "I know you probably don't remember me. I gotta admit it breaks my heart to see you like this, and losing you is one of my biggest fears…" he looked like he was getting upset as he got closer to Kazuto, "but I'm sure I can still remind you of some things right? Like how we would always play games together, and hang out at my place for hours at a time..."

"Hey, I'm sure I'll remember someday," Kazuto comforted him, despite not knowing this person.

Atsushi nodded "I'm sorry I can't stay long, I just came cause I had to see you, even if it was only for a few minutes. But I hope you trust me when I say, we're really close. Almost like brothers. I know that bond isn't there for you, but I hope whenever I visit, and when we talk, we can build that bond back up again. Sound good?"

Kazuto nodded.

"I'm in your contacts so, just text me whenever you need something or just wanna talk. Okay?" He said, leaning even closer towards Kazuto.

"Ya, I got it," Kazuto said, leaning away from him a bit.

Was he in a hurry? He seemed rushed… and there was a certain vibe he was getting from him. He couldn't quite put his finger on it though...

Atsushi stood up, "I hope you feel better soon. Both mentally and physically" he turned to walk out the door, but what Kazuto didn't see was the unsettling smile on Atsushi's face as he left.

Authors note: why hello plot, where have you been? I'm hoping that I'm improving at least a little bit, and I hope you're enjoying the story so far. I didn't expect such a positive reaction from you all, so, thank you. I'll see you next chapter