A figure stood at the far end of the garden path — tall, golden skin, calm eyes. He wasn’t smiling. But he looked like he’d found something he’d lost a long time ago. “Who…?” Oakley started, but the words stopped in her throat. He stepped forward. Slowly. Like she was a dream he didn’t want to spook. “You don’t remember me,” he said softly. “No,” she replied — but something inside her shifted. Her hand twitched. Her heart — the fake one in this world — gave a false flutter. “You look familiar,” she admitted. “Because I’ve been in your head,” he said. “And your heart. And your bad ideas.” She cracked the ghost of a smile. “That sounds about right.” The name started surfacing. Not from the fake code. From beneath it. From the place where no programming could reach. “…Hera,” she whispered. His eyes softened. “Still in there.” She blinked. “Did I know you?” “You loved me,” he said. “And I loved you back. I still do.” “Did we kiss?” He let out a short, breathless laugh. “You kissed me first.” That surprised her. “I don’t usually do that.” “You do with me.” Oakley stepped closer, slowly. The flowers around her glitched—just faintly. The perfect garden was starting to unravel. “They told me this world was safe,” she said, eyes scanning the shimmering sky. “That I was fine here. That I was… free.” He shook his head. “They told you what you needed to hear so you wouldn’t fight.” She looked at him again. And there it was — that pull. The same gravity her soul remembered, even if her mind didn’t. Oakley stepped close enough to see the flecks of light in his eyes. Her hand lifted — not quite touching him, but wanting to. “Do I fall in love with you again?” she asked. He nodded. (Lore explanation inside)
DO NOT READ THE STORY ABOVE IF YOU ARE NOT 10+ OR BE MATURE ATLEAST. thank you. Art: H4Z4RD- Character(s): Hera (Yellow) and Oakley (Blue), both designed by @PumpkinGecku (TYSM AUHG)
