= flip side = a cube smp fanfiction = discontinued

= prologue =

Hello everyone, and welcome to Flip Side! c:

It feels so strange to be saying that.

Anyway, welcome to the real beginning of Flip Side! I've actually had this story in my head for a while now, and it feels nice to finally be putting words to it at last. I'm really hyped to be sharing this with you guys. The support for the Pixel trilogy was spectacular, and I'm hoping you all will love this story just as much.

It's an AU, which is slightly unusual for me, but I think I've made it work in my plotting. And as per usual, I'll probably end up altering or changing my original plotting completely at some point, just as I did way too often with Virus xD For more general information on Flip Side, I'd recommend reading the introduction if you haven't already.

This upcoming week is Thanksgiving Break for me, so I'll be trying to get some stuff done over the week off that we have. I'll be hopefully getting a plot summary jotted down to send to my betas, a couple chapters written, etc etc so...

This prologue is a little vague for someone who doesn't know what's going on imo, but Jamie liked it so I'm hoping you guys will as well :)

Remember to follow code_cherry on Twitter and Instagram, and to vote and comment for more. Enjoy Flip Side's prologue :D

The Cube was, by far, the best thing that had ever happened to me.

There was no more teasing, no more whispering about how strange the Zach kid was... and best of all, I wasn't invisible any longer. People saw me, and they cared, urging me forward and providing everything I'd wished I'd had. And I had friends, too—ones who knew about my goofiness, my unique sense of humor, and didn't mind it one bit. I didn't have to hide who I was anymore, and I was doing what I'd loved for years. Call it an exaggeration if you want, but for me, it was a dream come true.

And that's where it starts to get ugly.

I think I let it get to my head, looking back. I'd relished in my new life, the tables having been turned, and I was on top of the world. I was so high, so incredibly ignorant, that I'd missed the same symptoms that had happened to me for years... happening around me. I'd missed my own situation in someone else when it was right in front of my face the entire time.

He was a lower-scale repeat, but a repeat none the less. He'd joined us because his best friend thought it would be good for him. For a while, he was simply there, a ghost in a room full of humans. He rarely spoke, and when he did, it was quiet and uncertain. That's when I should have noticed, should have done something. But I'd played it off, telling myself he was only shy, and that eventually, he'd come around. I think I knew that I was lying to myself, but I let it happen anyway.

I was guilty of everything he accused me of. He was right—I barely knew a thing about him when, as the head of the group, I should have made every effort to make him feel welcome. I hadn't done a single thing.

I got defensive. I don't know why. My eyes, again, purposefully ignored what they were seeing and instead chose to see a threat to my newfound prosperity. In the end, I guess it was fear that sent me over the edge. I had just gotten to the top—I didn't want to be sent tumbling back down again. It was irrational and I know I was jumping to conclusions, but it was what drove my thoughts that day and for several days afterwards.

I'm ashamed to say that I didn't think twice, originally, when he left.

I'd known at the time that there would be consequences. It's impossible to get out of a scrap like that without at least a small scrape. But I never would have expected what I ended up with. Not in a thousand years.

...allow me to explain.

You know all those alternate realities, those scenarios that could've gone another way but didn't?

What if, by a single odd twist of fate, one of them did?

It could change everything. I should know; it happened to me.

To this day, I don't think I can explain it accurately. All of a sudden, I was back where I started. Everything was gone, and the friends I'd come to care so much about didn't know so much as my name. I would be lying if I said it hadn't hurt.

It could've been a blank slate, an opportunity to start over, I suppose. I'd been practically handed a second chance at life on a silver platter, inviting me to take it. However, I'd already had the taste of my own perfect life, and it wasn't something I'd wanted to replace. I didn't want new friends. I wanted my friends.

I was lucky. Even then, even in that different timeline, they all still wanted me, too. I think that's what opened my eyes at long last.

Now, I've seen both sides... and that's not something that you forget.

In this world, there are some things that will inevitably affect you, whether for better or for worse.

Ultimately... I think it's up to you to decide. To choose if you will come back from it or let it destroy you. Or in some cases, a mix of the two. But no matter what, a small part of you, a shred of innocence and ignorance, will always, always be lost. Take it from someone who understands. Because unless you've been through it yourself, it's impossible to grasp it entirely.

I guess you'll just have to take my word for it.

This was from Graser's POV, in case any of you were wondering c: His personality will be slightly different in this story than it was in Begin Again and the Pixel trilogy. Less goofy and a little more serious, you know? Don't worry, I won't completely make him lose his Graser charm, but this story is a little more focused on deeper themes.

Also, thank you if you're supportive enough of my work that you followed me here from Virus. You rock <3

QUESTION OF THE CHAPTER:

Are you guys looking forward to this story? Is your attention caught, do you want to read more? What is your opinion so far? As usual, I love to hear your thoughts before the story begins and compare it at the end *smirks*

Vote and comment for more! Until next time!

~ Cherry