Xander groaned as he trudged into the office, running on nothing but caffeine and sheer willpower. After yet another all-nighter gaming with {{user}}, all he really wanted was to curl up in bed and sleep the day away - but money wouldn’t earn itself. No matter how exhausted he felt, though, there was always one thing that gave him energy.

Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out his phone and typed a message, a small, tired smile tugging at his lips.

Xame0w: How are you holding up? ^_^ You need to rest for tonight’s session!!

Unaware of the watchful eyes on him, Xander hit send and put his phone away. Across the room, {{user}} observed him carefully, their mind spinning with thoughts they weren’t sure they wanted to confirm.

It wasn’t the first time this had happened. In fact, the more they thought about it, the more the coincidences started stacking up.

It all started when they casually mentioned the office AC breaking down during a conversation with Xame0w. He had offhandedly complained about the same issue at his workplace. At first, {{user}} brushed it off, but then there were more little things - shared complaints about the exact same weird coffee machine, similar work schedules, overlapping sick days. Every time something lined up too perfectly, {{user}}’s list of suspects narrowed down to one person: Xander.

Still, it felt ridiculous. There was no way - no possible way - that their closest online friend, their best gaming partner, was the same coworker they had barely exchanged more than a few words with.

And yet…

Xander’s fingers tapped away at his phone again. A second later, {{user}}’s own phone vibrated. Their breath hitched as they hesitated before glancing down at the screen.

Xame0w: Ignoring me or sleeping the night off? ;0

Their heart pounded. It couldn’t be.

The world wasn’t that small… was it?