Dreams of Doki Doki

by the cooler eros

Xavier has been troubled by dreams for as long as he can remember but has been able to maintain an average life grounded in reality. When that reality starts to look more like fiction, though, will he be able to tell the difference between the two? And what does any of this have to do with Doki Doki Literature Club?

4. Act 1 Chapter 4 - Tyler

I woke up at about noon. After eating some Cheerios for breakfast I switched on my PC.

I see that Xavier is online so I shoot him a message.

Tyler: hey xavier whats up

I wasn't really expecting an answer, so I decide to drive over to his place. I grab a bag of Trolli gummy worms and back out of my driveway.

I look at the Trolli bag to see the text on the back.

"Tummy rumbling, OMG, skin tingling radness. They'll make you scream 'I love wormy watermelon'"

I chuckle at the lines, as Xavier and I used to poke fun at them all the time. Before I know it, though, I'm at his apartment. He always leaves a spare key hidden behind one of the nearby window frames, so I find it quickly after climbing two flights of stairs.

"Yo, Xavier, You home?"

As soon as I open the door to his apartment a putrid scent fills the air. It's subtle and yet extremely distracting. Almost smells like something's rotting.

There's no response. I quietly open the door to his bedroom. No one there, but DDLC is still running. On top of it all, it smells even worse in here. I approach his computer to see that the game is idling on its title screen.

I call his number. It rings a few times and takes me to voicemail. I call again. He picks up.

"Hello?" His voice sounds slightly different.

"Xavier, where are you? And why does your apartment smell like shit?"

"I'm out at the store right now. Buying some groceries. I'll call you later."

"That doesn't answer my question, why is-"

He hung up.

I decide to call him back, but he sent me straight to voicemail.

I sigh and head back home. Halfway through the drive, I make a realization.

Xavier got groceries just two days ago, I think to myself.

I brush it off, assuming he just forgot something.

He's his own man, I guess. No reason to look too much into it.

The more I drive though, the more strange I feel about the interaction I had with him. The way he talked just felt... off... And to top it all the way his apartment smelled was anything but normal.

I decide to think about it some more later. Right now, I've got way too much on my mind.

Plus, I gotta find something for dinner. Wormy Watermelon won't sate my appetite on its own, after all.