Oh man, the last few days reading through my old chapters written by younger me was a ride. I didn't realize how much of a mess the story flow of the last 3 chapters before I disappeared were. So much so that there were directly contradictory information in chapter 12 and 15. I've applied some immediate bandaid to chapter 12 so chapter 15 and this one makes sense, but it'll stay for now. Hopefully when I get to rewriting those old chapters, I should be able to correct them for good. For now, let's just pretend it makes sense, haha.

I'm quite happy with this chapter. I got to test out new writing ideas, finished a large plot point, and moved things forward. Also quite happy some of you are still here, I'm glad you're sticking around! Now enjoy the final chapter before 2023 ends.

Chapter 17: Stardust

Time had an uncanny sense of humour.

The last few days had been rather terrible. This time it was pneumonia that allied with a dozen or so infections that I struggled to keep track of to put me down. It got so bad that the doctors had to disconnect me from the Medicuboid for specialized treatment.

I was so scared. For a time, it really seemed like everything was over, and I would not have been able to say goodbye…

The Medicuboid was my only link to reach the Sleeping Knights. Any minute I could get away from the jungles of cables and IV drips, I tried to at the very least, craft a goodbye letter, a physical one in case my death came before I could rejoin the machine. Clovis's death was also a very sudden one, a cardiac arrest in her sleep that took us a few days to confirm. It hit Tecchi especially hard as out of everyone, Clovis was his closest friend in the guild, having morally supported him through tough times. But at the very least, she departed in peace, or at least that's what I hoped.

'For us especially, every tomorrow is not guaranteed. Promise me, Yuuki, that when the time comes, you'll leave behind a farewell, so the echoes of our happy memories with everyone will linger.'

It was my sister's words to me, a week before she passed. It was not her last goodbye, but it stuck with me more, and the last few days had reminded and reinforced me of that lesson. But soon enough, my pneumonia had subsided, and I was healthy enough to continue my virtual reality journey. Right in time for my birthday too in fact. Fate had been cruel, but they weren't cruel enough to ruin my birthday!

Once I was admitted back to the cleanroom, I logged into ALO. The Sleeping Knights at this point would have been notified of my situation, so I wasn't too worried, but I was ready for a lengthy explanation if need be.

I woke up where I logged off a few days ago – inside the cheap inn I rented. But what I didn't expect to see sitting on a couch nearby was Hirano? Damn, he looked different. Clean and stylish.

"Oh?" He finally parted eyes from the minigame he was playing on his interface. "Hey Yuuki!" His mood quickly brightened, quite a bit more than the Hirano that I knew.

"Good morning, Hirano-san!" I bounced up from my bed, standing up just as he did. "Or good afternoon. Good evening? I dunno what time it is in here anymore."

"Midnight, actually." He corrected me. The flow of time was different in ALO than real life. "Anyway, welcome back! It's been a while."

It has indeed been a while. I missed goofing out with him.

I ran up to him and gave him a quick hug. "I'm back!" I declared, as cheerfully as I could. "Did you wait for me in here, Hirano-san?"

"Yeah. For like a few hours now." He answered. It was a good time as ever to start the teasing barrage.

"Oooh, waiting in a lady's room all alone huh?" I giggled, and Hirano rolled his eyes and sighed.

"Come on, do you think I'm that horrible of a person?" He grumbled.

"Still, it would be weird for someone to find out about you here~" I continued on.

"Who? That NPC downstairs who keeps talking about osmanthus wine? Yeah right…" Hirano said. "And I know you. You wouldn't spread that rumor about me, would you?"

"Hmmm?" I hummed, deliberately not answering. Ahh, he is so easy to tease, I loved it.

Why did he spend a few hours just sitting here though? That wasn't like him to do so. Does the Sleeping Knights know about this?

"Seriously though, why did you wait for me? I never really mentioned when I would be back." I asked.

"To hang out with you of course. I knew you were coming back. And also that I can say to you that we're even." He replied immediately. Immediately immediately

That was definitely a lie.

"They told you to accompany me, didn't they?" I pressed my knuckles onto my hips.

"Dah…" He brushed his forehead with a sigh. It was indeed what I expected. "I knew this wouldn't work. Can't escape your observant eyes."

"Hehe." I victoriously put out the sign. "I knew they would try to do something about my birthday that I clearly did not know was coming!" I loved the knights just as much as the next member did, but they were simpletons sometimes.

"Better yet, they sent me. The guy who's very good at lying to my friends." Hirano joined me with a dry quip. "They also wanted to cook for the party too, instead of having me do all the work."

"Oh no, why did you let that happen?!" I clutched my hair. "Please do not let Talken into the kitchen please!"

Hirano crossed his arms and shook his head. "I dunno…they all looked like they wanted contribution. Besides, they were also guilty since I also sent you gifts and directed the decoration work."

"Wow, pretty much all by yourself." I noted. I'm not surprised though. Hirano is a really talented person, just as much leadership quality as my sister, if not more. Honestly, he would totally have been the guild leader if he was around when we formed up.

His other point brought me to my excitement though. "Gifts huh? Whatisitwhatisit?!"

"That, well, you're going to have to find out when it arrives later today." My bouncy grin quickly turned into a pout as he said. "Come on, you already spoiled yourself today! I won't budge even if you ask."

Hirano's crossed arms tightened as he declared. And I wouldn't ask either. Ultimately, it was all with good intentions, so I'd let them have the surprises. I was also pleased that it was Hirano who sent me gifts. That meant that the guild had shared my hospital address with him. I did reassure the guild that he is one of us, despite not really knowing what he had been dealing with, but it was them ultimately who chose to trust him.

"From what I knew, this is the part where you'll lead me around to distract me while the guild finishes their thing, right?" I asked.

"Exactly. But since you already knew what we're doing, I can drop the awkward act." Hirano said. "Where do you want to go? The whole world is yours."

I didn't really care, I just wanted to hang out. But when the other party is leaving it to me, it's going to be an awkward moment if I didn't make up my mind.

"The cave maybe?" I blurted out. "Our clan treasury is running low."

"Hmm, you're right." Hirano said, looking at the game interface that I could assume was the treasury tab. I did use it to expand our clubhouse before I had to leave, so it did take a toll. "Yeah, I don't mind that then."

"Alright, fishing time it is!" I declared.

We arrived at the cave not long after and quickly settled down on the pond that we always used. It was the second place the Sleeping Knights were formed outside our clubhouse, and there were arguments to be made that without this place, economically the Sleeping Knights would be nowhere it was today, and also the place we met and bonded the second time. It never had to be all excitement; a nice relaxing chat were just as great, especially for the both of us. I left for my medical treatment, and Hirano took his few weeks break for his art competition, one he promised he'd bring first price back.

"So, how did that competition go?" I asked him first thing, as I leaned back on the rocks, waiting for my fishing pole to yank. He did the same too.

"The art competition?" He replied. "I've finished it and handed my work in. Now I gotta wait for them to decide. It's gonna take…I'm not sure how long, probably a few weeks?"

"That long?" I jerked my head back a little.

"Yeah, it's a lot more bureaucracy I think." Hirano said. From his tone of voice, I imagined this was commonplace. I kinda accepted it without much further thought since I did not know that much about this adult stuff.

"Mind if I ask more?" I continued, and Hirano's face brightened. Guess that was a yes. "What is it about? Or what does it look like?"

"It's umm…imagine a man and a wolf hugging in a snowstorm." He described. "They hug to keep each other warm."

"That's so touching." I remarked. "Two worlds, one family yeah?"

Hirano chuckled, which I assumed understood what I was referring to.

"I should have submitted it under that name." He said. "I just took inspiration from that wolf that I saved the other day when we were on the quest."

"I like the imagery regardless. Two of the unlikeliest creatures in nature in a warm embrace to ward off Mother Nature's coldest breeze." I rambled on as the description fluttered in my mind and tickled my romantic senses. "It reminds me of how the Sleeping Knights came together. We're from different walks of life, coming together under a common interest in virtual reality games to escape our cruel fate…"

Hirano stared at me and stayed silent, and I suddenly felt like I had said something that I shouldn't have or something weird. Did I kill the mood?

"What's wrong? Did I say something I shouldn't have?" I asked.

"Nah." He shook his head smiling. "My professor said I have talent but does lack a bit of that…how should I put it…romanticism. A lot of my work feels literal. I was a bit taken aback that someone interpreted it that way."

"Haha, my mind tends to go places sometimes." I laughed out loud relieved. "It does help in my moments of isolation, ya know."

"That's good…" I heard his soft whisper, as he stared into the calm blanket of water, his gaze silent for a few moments.

"I heard from Siune what happened." Then the words flowed, like the waves formed by the tugging fish.

"Yeah…" I sighed.

"Sorry I…" Hirano's expression was troubled. "There is something I wanted to ask about you and the guild. But I acknowledge it is a heavy topic, and today is your birthday. You don't need to saddle it if you don't want to."

"That's fine." I smiled. It's not like I'm even keeping secrecy anymore. And this was something of my own doing. I allowed everyone to share my situation with him. I let him join the guild. Hell, I was the one who chose to befriend him that night when we could have parted ways. I trusted him that he would empathize and not take pity on our plight, and more importantly that he would find a place he would belong.

It's about time that I revealed our secrets to him, one that I completely expected him to have found out already.

"You're terminally ill too, right? That's how you're playing this game 24/7."

There it is…

Honestly, 'Terminally ill too' was an awkward but hilarious way of putting it that I couldn't help but giggle.

"Yeah." I affirmed very simply.

"Yeah..." He nodded, a sigh escaped his smiling lips, as if a big weight had just been lifted off his shoulders. For us both.

And with two yeses, the masks lifted.

"That was easy." He joked, and both of us joined a quiet laugh. Hirano then leaned his head, laying to rest his cheek on his knees wrapped around by his arms, and continued.

"Would you like to know more?"

I knew what was meant here, and I nodded. Hirano let out another sigh, one of preparation. And I braced too. He was a true Sleeping Knight; it was never easy being one.

"I have a disease called Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis." He said. "I don't know if you know Lou Gehrig's disease, or even motor neuron disease."

I shook my head, he continued. "Basically, my brain, the part that tells what my muscles what to do - arms, legs, lips, eyes, everything – slowly loses that ability. Progressively, one by one, I would lose the ability to control my physical body. It would feel weak, twitchy, and then I couldn't control them anymore."

Slowly losing the ability to control one's body.

That's…

"Within a year, I already struggle to walk, who knows when it would confine me to a wheelchair." He trailed off, I could hear his soft voice growing weak and weary. "Or it might kill my voice next and chokes me while I eat. Theoretically, at the very end, it would leave the brain completely intact, trapped in a body it has lost control of. Whatever thoughts I might have…no one would know."

That's horrible…

"Realistically though, my breathing will likely fail at some point, and I'll die that way." Hirano's voice picked up a little. I could easily tell his admirable attempt to lighten the mood, but it was not effective. Just imagining what he had and would have to go through tore me apart.

"Do…" I hesitated. "Do you know why?"

"No." He replied, the answer like a swing of a hammer on my chest. "My family never had it. I lived just like any kid my age, until one day, my arms and legs began to twitch, and I injured myself in a fall."

Even I at least knew why my entire family caught HIV. It's so insidious that a doctor could just ruin three lives just on a whim or a bad day at work, but it was closure. The anger and grief that I felt knowing my future was robbed eventually died settled down into a calm lake, but for Hirano, he didn't even know. No person to curse the heavens at. No entity to place blame on. Just out of nowhere, as if fate had a cruel vendetta against him, he is steps away from his grave.

Even worse, it didn't seem like he knows when his time would come.

"The doctors said I have two to three years, but who knows what it decides to take away next."

"Is there any chance you can live longer?" I asked, remembering what he said the other night.

"Chance?" He replied. "There always is. The longest-lived person lasted fifty-five years, even outlasting the doctor who diagnosed him. But he's an exceptional case. Ten years is the most I could probably hope for. But what am I here trying to ask a favour, right?"

Basically, it was completely up to chance, and no matter how much he begged, it wouldn't matter.

It's just so unfair.

"There there. It's ok."

A palm laid on my head, tender and warm.

"I don't know what to say, really." I whispered.

"You don't need to."

His fingers lifted and laid back down on my hair. It felt so much like a warm embrace.

"Thank you for hearing me out."

We didn't realize it until now, but our fishing rods were being pulled this entire time. We both pulled the fish up at the same time in sync, and both shared a laugh. Once our lines were set up again, the silence once again set in.

I looked at Hirano. His body sagged onto the cave wall. His arm laid hanging on one of his raised knee, his other laid flat on the cave floor. A small, faint but content smile was present. I could tell it was a lot of baggage off his shoulders. While I could not imagine how much he was carrying with him this whole time, my heart grew a size to see him like this.

I looked down, this time, wrapping my arms around my knees as well like he did earlier. It was weirdly comforting.

"It's my turn." Gathering my courage, I spoke. "When me and my sister was born, an accident happened during my mother's caesarian section, and she needed a blood transfusion."

I buried my face between my knees, taking a deep breathe and gritted teeth, I continued. "The blood happens to be tainted with HIV."

"HIV…"

"You know what it is?" I asked.

"Yeah." Hirano replied. "Then AIDS, right?"

"Mhm." I nodded.

"You've been living with it your entire life."

"Longer than any friends I had." I sneered. "It's a drug resistant variant as well, so it never got better."

"Around two years ago, I was offered to test this device, or contraption, designed for terminal patients like me. Well, it's Aiko who got the offer, but she gave it to me." I continued. "Aiko also was healthier than I was actually, and was still trying to finish school, but we both dropped out and she followed me in."

"She sounds like a wonderful person." Hirano comforted. I smiled, remembering her determinable personality. It was hard to argue against her, she never really brooded over anything. But everything she did was for me. She loved me, and I loved her.

"I sometimes wished that you and Aiko could have met." I said. "She liked to doodle in her free times, even though her skills with the pencil sucked. She would have loved to learn from you."

"If you want to, I can dedicate a painting in her honor." Hirano offered; his kindness really was unbound.

"Thank you, Hirano-san. Maybe one of these days." I replied, steering back to the topic. "Just as my AIDS begin to turn for the worse, I was admitted to the cleanroom. It's my new home at this point. Forever quite likely. Without it though, I wouldn't be sitting here with you. But at the same time, both my parents and Aiko couldn't be here with me."

"It's shitty either way. Can you leave at all?"

"The hospital? No, it's too dangerous. In fact, except for what I went through just now and other emergencies, I never leave the room I am in."

"Wow…" Hirano let out a dejected sigh. I felt that. When was the last time I saw the sun, felt the wind, and tasted the rain.

"Ya know, I envy you a lot." I said. "You're still out there, finishing your studies, entering art competitions, doing what you truly love doing and adding something to this world."

I looked down at my hands - those frail, pale digital hands. "Meanwhile, I literally could not do anything. I remember being called smart by my classmates and teachers, and that I have 'potential in life', could you believe?" I chuckled cynically. "But here I am, playing video games all day because I literally could not do anything else."

"You're still testing that Medicuboid, aren't you?" Hirano said. "You are contributing. Future patients will thank you."

"Me or the scientists that work on the device?" I looked up and over to him. "What I'm doing really doesn't require any specific skills. It's just using the machine as it is intended. The scientists and doctors who use those data are the ones those patients should thank. Best I could do is create memories with you and the Sleeping Knights, and hope that it would not fade into history."

Hirano looked back at me with widened eyes, surprised and holding back his urge to respond. His brown eyes blinked several times, each felt like a silent apology, but like the creator he is, I could see in it, filling the empty void with sparkles of the awe-inspiring distant stars.

"You've been dealing with a lot in your life. I can't imagine how difficult it had been." He said. "But you are a strong person, Yuuki. You inspired me. This isn't the first time I said this to you either."

It wasn't, but it felt differently from the last time I heard him say it. Maybe I was just negative today. It happens.

"I already told you, but I had been contemplating just calling it. Retire to my hometown, live with my mother, be taken cared of, as compared to living alone with a barely functioning body." His words echoed in my ears. "It's not a bad way to go. But my whole life has been building towards this distant dream. A journey to the stars if you will."

"I thought that if I stop here, it would have been for nothing - a life ruined by cruel chance. If I couldn't make it, it'd be a tragedy. But I learned, from you, a new perspective."

"From me?"

"Yes, from you. That it didn't have to be what's waiting at the end of the journey. The sky is pretty on the way there, and if I were to return to dust before I arrive, I could always become stardust and embrace the cosmic dance."

Poetic. Quite frankly I never thought I would make that big of an impact. I always thought it was a positive and motivating thing to say.

The Sleeping Knights was formed on the premise of creating joyful memories in our short times together playing virtual reality games, and a community for us who didn't belong. But for the longest time, I couldn't help but feel like it was also what Hirano said: a retirement home for lives ruined by cruel chance, a maze with no goal other than to keep us occupied until the day we leave. I mostly comforted myself with the fact that it was a good way to leave, surrounded by friends of kinship. However, seeing someone like Hirano, reaching for the stars despite the hardship and uncertain future, all of a sudden, I felt a similar fire in me. I wanted some of his courage too.

"What can I do?"

Hirano. That future world you created. Please guide me onto its distant sky.

His smile unfolded like the first light of dawn. "Think of what you could possibly do in your circumstances, with your abilities, that leaves a mark."

What could I do that leave a mark?

"Doesn't have to be big. Small contributions will add up." He added. "And of course, take your time. I know we don't have a lot of it, but where's the fun in rushing."

I'd need some time to ponder it over…

After a while, I saw Hirano typing something.

"Is it time?" I asked. It's probably them.

"Yup." Hirano replied. Both he and I quickly cleaned up our fishing spot and got ready to leave. He pulled out the minimap for teleportation. "Let's go. Best to not keep them waiting."

His avatar turned white before fading away. I waited for his name to pop up near the teleporter next to the clubhouse before following.

"Alright, act surprised." Hirano leaned over for a whisper. I chuckled but agreed. Putting on my best act I could, I opened the clubhouse door.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY!" At once, the entire Sleeping Knights erupted into joyous cheers.

"Yuuki! Congratulations on levelling up another year!" Jun had a wide grin, being the first to approach me. I was soon surrounded by the rest of the guild members.

"Happy birthday Yuuki-san. We worked quite a bit for this special occasion, I hope you'll like it." Siune followed with her graceful demeanor.

"Yuuki…congratulation!" Followed by Talken.

"Happy birthday Yuuki!" Tecchi and Nori's were plain and simple.

I stood frozen for a moment; eyes wide before breaking into a genuine radiant smile. I knew this was coming but seeing everyone's love and dedication to the surprise act, I felt so happy.

"You guys…" I responded with affection.

"Come on! We made you some food!" Jun readily declared. "Let's also play werewolf once we're all done!"

"Mhm!" I nodded excitedly. Not before long, Hirano came up next to me, addressing the guild.

"Looks like everything went smoothly." He said, a contagious smile on his face too. "There's nothing else then but to enjoy ourselves to our heart's content today!"

"YEAH!" The guild erupted into a unified cheer before we get into our first celebration activity: a hearty meal.

"By the way, Hirano-san." Jun turned to Hirano. "Each of us made a dish for today. Can you give us your opinion on them? Both of you actually. You're better cooks than we are."

"Ah, so we're the Masterchef judges for today." Hirano quipped. "No worries. Yuuki, you can be the nice gentle judge while I'm the jerk who insults people, ok?"

"Nooo." I knew who Hirano was referring to, and quite frankly it was too depreciating for me, even if it was just for laugh. "Let's both be nice judges, alright?"

"For sure." Hirano nodded, pulled out a chair for me and himself next to each other. There was no area for us judges separately for dramatic purposes, but we did face the rest of the Sleeping Knights this way.

Once seated, Nori and Jun headed into the kitchen and brought out our first appetizer.

"It's me and Jun's dish." Nori proudly laid out in front of us, and then the rest of the knights. It was prawn dumplings with pork and some weird-looking sauce (it looked like chili?). But the pork though, it looked so crispy!

I stabbed the pork with my chopsticks and put it in my mouth. "Whoo, hot hot!"

"Thanks for the heads up." Hirano smirked, as he now blew his pork before having it. "Hmm."

The rest of the knights was quietly attentive. They seemed to really want Hirano's input.

"It's not easy to make crispy pork belly, but you guys nailed it." He praised, a grin blossomed on Nori and Jun. "It's crispy, the pork is not at all dry. I could feel the fat here."

"It's so tender as well!" I savored the rest of the meat once it stopped burning in my mouth. Once finished, I tried the dumplings "The dumplings are great too."

"Yeah, there's nothing more to be said there. It's delicious. Really good job you guys."

Nori and Jun both gave each other high-fives. The seven of us then devoured the rest of our small but delicious dish. If this was the appetizer, it set quite a high bar.

And a little unfortunately, it was indeed a high bar. The next dish, the entrée made by Tecchi and Siune, was a lot more of usual territory: sushi. It was a lot of tuna salmon rolls, embraced by the rice and nori, with some usual vegetables, eggs and the occasional temaki rolls. I was so hyped for some new stuff after that appetizer, but all in all it was still quite good.

"I'd love a good sashimi though." Hirano seemed to agree with me as well. It was probably for the best that it was a safe option.

However…

"I-I'll go and get mine now, ok?" Talken stood up while we were still cleaning up the entrée. My stomach sank. I should probably have saved that last sushi to cleanse myself of whatever comes next.

Talken returned with…uhh…

"What is that?"

Hirano looked concerned, seeing a rather large lump of white goo on a large dish. This looked like a cake, so I could only assume this was our dessert.

"Talken, can you…enlighten us on what this is?" Hirano asked.

"I-It's a lemon sponge cake." Talken stuttered a little. "There's some caramelized peaches on top there too."

I could see Nori and Jun shifting in their seats, Siune side-eyeing me and Hirano. Only Tecchi seemed relaxed. I didn't know how.

I let Hirano take the lead on this one. He had never tasted Talken's monstrosity before, so out of a morbid sense of curiosity, I really wanted to see his first impression.

"Dear me…"

Hirano took a slice out of the 'cake' and put it on his plate. He gathered as much as he could onto the fork, as it wouldn't stay still on it, and gulped it in.

I really felt his soul departing his body there. That distant stare into nothingness, the fork twirling, his other hand tapping on the table inconsistently.

"You know what, it's not a bad cake."

What?

"But could use a lot more work. The cream is too thick, and too much." He commented. "I could give you some pointers afterwards if you wish."

"Y-Yes please. I'm relying on you, Hirano-san!" Talken bowed appreciatively.

Surprised, I had a slice of the cake too. It was…subpar if I were to be frank. Presentation-wise, it looked like a dog ate my homework and spat it out. It wasn't good, but far from the worst thing I had eaten from him.

Jun, Nori and Siune all looked at me, their empty eyes wordlessly agreed with my assessment. Tecchi looked neutral, I could only guess to keep the peace. Hirano must be being nice to him.

"I'll get some soda ok?" Siune left the table. Thanks Siune, I needed something to cleanse my mouth of that cake.

"That should be the last too." Jun said. "Alright, let's cleanup everybody. We'll move onto our next activities: werewolf!"

It was a hearty meal. I felt full. Only undermined by what Talken made. Oh well, the soda would kill its memories soon, and we'll soon move on

"Alright, it's late for me. I'm gonna hop off." Hirano remarked, looking at the real-time clock.

"Is it? I should hop off soon." Siune put down her cup, having pretty much drank two bottles of juice tonight. Probably only something that could be done in ALO where food consumption didn't affect fullness.

"Aw, we were going to do some quests together." Jun pouted.

"It's only ten. Can't you stay for another hour or so?" Nori asked.

"It's not that late, but I actually need to prepare for sleep." Hirano replied. The Sleeping Knights looked a bit confused, but I understood. Hirano didn't look like he was in the mood nor position to explain, so I nodded to him. I'd help him out once we get back.

"You two can use that room to log out." I pointed towards one of the empty rooms recently refurbished just for safe logouts.

"I'll be finishing some unfinished business first but thank you for today everyone." Siune bowed, as she excused herself, heading into her usual corner in the clubhouse.

"Thanks for today, Hirano-san, Siune-san!" Jun warmly bade both of them goodbyes, followed closely by the rest of the Sleeping Knights.

"See ya guys tomorrow." Hirano waved his V-sign, and then headed into the room. I followed him, just for the purpose of helping him with the logout.

"It's just like the taverns, nothing special." I said, pointing at the seven beds in there. "You can just pick whichever beds, it doesn't matter."

"Saves me a bit of money every night." Hirano said as he laid on one.

"I can always charge you." I bent forward with my hands on my hips.

"Wow, charging the less wealthy? That's mean." Hirano joked. He's getting better at fighting back I see. "Oh yeah, I wanted to ask. Since you're in a cleanroom, can you receive my gifts then?"

"Oh, we should have means to disinfect them. It might take longer depending on what you're sending me though, but it shouldn't be an issue." I replied.

"Ok good, I was wondering. I use express delivery, so it should have already arrived."

"Oh alright." I remarked. "I can hop out just to see what it is."

"Suit yourself." Hirano said. "Also, I might be off Monday to Wednesday. I'm gonna visit my mother and little sister. I can bring my AmuSphere but might not have the time."

"Busy man. No pressure though. Just hop on whenever you want to." I smiled. "See ya tomorrow, Hirano-san!"

"See ya tomorrow." He waved me goodbye, closing his eyes. Soon his avatar relaxed and stopped moving altogether, its owner logged out. I laid down on the bed next to him and followed suit.

In a few minutes, that smell of disinfectant of a very typical hospital room quickly invaded my senses. That very slight chill too, one that would be too hot for a blanket and too cold without one. An uncomfortable feeling regardless how long I have been here.

I opened my eyes and saw the green glass pane. In the corner of the room, doctors and nurses were doing their monitoring, but very soon noticed that I was out of the machine.

"Yuuki-san. What's wrong?" One of the nurses rushed over, likely didn't expect me to have come out so soon.

"Don't worry, I'm fine." I reassured her. It felt different speaking in real life and in-game. "Is there anything sent to me today?"

"Oh, there is one earlier today. Looks like a gift for you." She replied. "Would you like to see? I'd need to notify to disinfect, which can take a bit."

"That's fine." I gave my approval. It's a bit of a shame I couldn't open it for myself like how I always imagined, but once you are dependent on the care of others, privacy is no longer something that could be maintained, nor something worth complaining anymore.

The nurse nodded and exited the room. Unsure for how long I would need to wait, I headed back into ALO to message the guild that I would be off, again, this time briefly, then was back gamboling with my white dull blanket. Then finally, the nurse came back.

"The sender's name is Hirano Amari." She said. "Can you confirm?"

"Yes, it is him." I replied.

"Alright." She nodded, leaving the room for a second and came back, her hands holding a brown teddy bear wearing a purple pyjama.

"Here, Yuuki-san. Happy birthday. I'm sorry I didn't notice today."

She laid the teddy by my side, accompanied by a card. It was handwritten.

'Hey Yuuki. Both I and the Sleeping Knights wish you a happy birthday. You probably get tired from having to deal with our idiocy everyday, but we want to let you know we are happy you are our leader and friend. For me personally, I'm so thankful to have met you in my life. This world is so much better with you in it.

May we continue to be friends forever.

Hirano'

This world is so much better with me in it…

The tears welled up in my eyes trailed down my cheeks. I heard my own hiccups, choked by the relentless tears, as it continued to stream unchecked.

Not once since I was admitted into the hospital.

Not once since Aiko and mom passed away.

Not once had anyone said anything like that to me.

I traced my finger over the teddy bear, brushing on its head, curling around its little outfit, pulling it into my arms, tightened in a long embrace. It felt so warm. I wished I could hold onto it forever, and never let go.

Thank you, everyone.

Thank you, Hirano.

I am so happy to call you my best friend.

May we continue to be friends forever…

Happy holidays, everyone!