Wii Reclaimed You (WDY AU)

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With only the dim flickering of the servers illuminating his path, Austin slowly, but surely, made his way out of the server room. Not daring to look back, not wanting the sight behind him to be further burned into his mind. Despite being shaken up, Austin took caution with his posture along with his manner of walking to ensure it wasn't off. He didn't want to give any implication that something had clearly disturbed him. After all, no one needed to know what just went down. Well, for now.

Maybe I need something to clear my head, thought Austin as he directed himself to the nearest breakroom. When he arrived, there were only two people, Jonathan and Mike. Their conversation came to an abrupt halt the moment he walked in. He must have looked awful since all they did was stare at him. Not really knowing them very well, only becoming somewhat acquainted with each other through infrequent small talk, Austin saw no point in trying to strike up a conversation. But, wanting to cut the prolonged stare off short, he exchanged a brief hello before making a beeline to the coffee maker. Using it proved to be a challenge with his hands suddenly becoming shaky, spilling coffee as he tried to pour himself a cup.

Jonathan immediately took note of this, "Hey, uh you doing alright there Austin?" He froze. Forced into a silent panic, Austin didn't turn to face him, staring down at his drink as he quickly began to form a lie. "I've never seen him like this," whispered Mike, "do you even think he wants to talk right now?"

"No, no I totally do wanna talk, it's just you guys caught me a little off guard that's all!" A nervous Austin turned around, being faced with a confused, yet concerned pair of faces. Still wanting to avoid eye contact, he continued to stare into his coffee. The blackness of it reminded him of Henry's clothing, making him shudder as his mind flashed the last memory of him. Awkwardness once again loomed over them. Wanting to break the silence, Jonathan's eyes began to wander in hopes of finding something, anything, to comment on. Eventually, they settled on the folder Johnathan had not seen previously when Austin first walked in. Nudging Mike a little, he gestured slightly to the folder. Understanding the signal, Mike said, "You got an important report to turn in or something? Is that what's got you all worked up?"
"H-huh?" Austin exclaimed, nearly dropping his coffee. He had completely forgotten. "Oh..., oh! Yes, that's why I'm worried! I've just been feeling a little bit nervous about showing this to Todd, that's all!" A wave of relief washed into the room, causing Johnathan and Mike's expressions shifted to ones of understanding. How lucky for Austin that these two had just handed him the perfect cover-up.

"Yeah, I guess everyone here has also been a little bit tense lately. I mean, with the release date of the Wii being so close. I'm actually quite surprised that the pressure finally caught up to you. You always seem so calm and collected, Austin. Say, what exactly is in this report?" Jonathan reached out to grab the document. It was only then that Austin remembered that some of the pages were tinted with blood. Realizing this could make or break his story, he frantically pulled back the folder in one big motion. "N-no!" He uttered in retaliation, becoming more fearful than ever. "Hey Jonathan, I'm starting to think that that isn't a report." Instantly, Austin's eyes darted towards Mike, who had his arms crossed, eyes narrowing as he raised an eyebrow in suspicion. "I mean, this isn't a report, but that doesn't mean it's not as important." In an attempt to regain his confidence, Austin tried to steer the conversation away from himself, but to no avail. It only seemed to feed their growing interest. Silently accepting defeat, Austin figured there was no use in avoiding the truth.

"Actually, this is my game pitch. Just a little something I've been brainstorming on the side." Austin clutched the folder as he readied himself for upcoming questions.

The trio stared at each other.

"What kind of game is it?" Jonathan asked out of curiosity, pulling his arms back.

"It's sort of like an adventure RPG."

"What's it called?"

"R-reclamation."

"Wow what a hotshot, huh Jonathan? Only just starting here and he's already jumping to take risks. " The sly comment from Mike replaced Austin's panic with bitterness. What did he know? With all the hard work he did, he was most qualified for the chance to go higher. Unlike these two, he actually wanted to go beyond just making software. "Anyway, if you're gonna pitch that game, you might as well get a move on. I heard Todd's taking his leave today. Something about wanting to spend more time with the family, maybe being able to see his kid play with the Wii for the first time."

"Wait, what? He's taking that now? I thought he was going to wait until after the release?" Austin's mind flooded with this new knowledge, worrying about how this little obstacle could completely obliterate his dream.
"I thought so too, I guess the boss felt that he took on too much work these past few days. But hasn't everyone?"

In a panic, Austin chugged his remaining coffee. Slammed the mug on the counter before bolting, fumbling with his documents. He couldn't let this moment escape him. He didn't care how pissed Todd might be with him turning up to his office so late. All he wanted was to get his idea out now, to receive some confirmation that his work was indeed superb. "Thanks for telling me! Hey, don't be surprised when you get a call to work for me!" And with that, he was gone.

With the two of them finally alone again, Mike chirped, "With how quickly he left, you could almost believe that he thought one of us was gonna steal his idea, huh Jonathan?"
Jonathan's mind still fixated on how out of character the encounter with Austin was, so much so that all he could muster out was, "Yeah, I guess so."
"You know what? I actually think he can actually pull it off. After all, Todd has taken quite a liking to him."