NULL
By Nikluas Vermont
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New Orleans, 4 a.m.
"Done," I sighed as I uploaded the latest chapter to my novel—NULL.
I slumped in the chair for a while, staring at the screen's glow in the dim room, my eyes burning from the all-nighter. I'd been up since noon yesterday, chasing ideas for my masterpiece, piecing together scenes that twisted deeper into the abyss I'd created. Reluctantly, I pushed myself up, my legs heavy like they'd forgotten how to move.
I dragged my feet to the kitchen, the old floorboards creaking under me in the quiet apartment. The fridge hummed softly as I yanked it open, grabbing a cold soda—Coca-Cola, my favorite. The can was slick with condensation, a small comfort in the humid Louisiana night.
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[Nikluas Vermont was a tall, good-looking guy—the type most would call average. From his physique to his bank account, everything about him screamed ordinary. But his imagination soared beyond what the human mind could comprehend, and his eyes... those starry, gently glowing eyes fit perfectly into his oval-round face, framed by sponge-like hair. He was just an average teenager, a full-time novel writer scraping by on dreams.]
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I popped the tab and gulped it down in one go, the fizz burning my throat. God, I was dehydrated—hours of typing had sucked the life out of me. Wiping my mouth with the back of my hand, I shuffled back to my desk, flipped open the laptop again, and scrolled through the novel for the sixth time that day. A gentle smile crept onto my face. Progress: over 7,000 words. Finally enough to pitch for a contract. Maybe this was the chapter that would hook the big platforms.
I always loved the MC in the novel- Jaeger Snyder. He was the loser hero I'd carved from my own fears, I could have made him strong, all-mighty, a walking power fantasy. But where's the fun in that? Suffering builds character. Descent builds gods.
"Jaeger Snyder..." I whispered the name slowly, letting it linger in the air like a spell. Deep in my thoughts, something hit me—my worst enemy: sleep. It crashed over me like a wave, impossible to fight anymore. I closed the laptop with a soft click and decided to call it a night.
I collapsed onto the bed, the sheets cool against my skin, and instantly fell asleep. But something kept disturbing me, something out of the ordinary... something I couldn't quite understand or explain. A pull, like gravity shifting under me. A whisper from the depths I'd written, calling my name.
Or maybe it was just the soda settling wrong.
I didn't know then that it was the beginning of the fall.
(turn the page)