Strangely Affectionate

Your Choice

After untying the author's wrists, you took a glance at Pierce. Just what exactly is he? His unconscious body is now tied by the angry author who is fuming like a steam train.

"Just as I thought," the author said, "He's not an NPC or an OC... He's an AI." The author swiped the flash drive from him and viewed it. Apparently, he found a loophole into the system and turned himself from an OC to an AI.

"What does this mean?" you asked, suddenly clutching your throat with surprise. Did you just talk just now? You spoke again and heard your own voice in the story. How was this possible now but not before?

"Looks like I can hear my own voice as well... Pierce must have controlled it so that your voice—and perhaps even mine are the only ones without quotation marks."

"But why?"

"From what I understand, it must be the way he prefers it; so that you can imagine your own words. Not only that, he made sure your gender and appearance was neutral." The author viewed the contents in the flash drive and saw hundreds of files of memories between you and Pierce. Memories that even you don't remember. Perhaps Pierce locked them. Or maybe he's trying to unlock your memories through the drive.

It was completely possible for Pierce to do everything he did because he was an AI. An artificial intelligence can learn from their mistakes and change overtime. Even scientists feared what AI's can do if they planned to take over the human race. This time, Pierce decided to change the story to his own liking.

"I really wished you just trusted me to do everything..." a voice behind you groaned.

You and the author quickly spun around to look at the raven-haired man. Instead of anger and resentment, he looked at you with worry, longing, and sadness.

"I couldn't have you in at least 283,427 different worlds... I refused to let this go on as we kept breaking apart every single time! What was I supposed to do? How many times do you think I've had this conversation already? Plus, I let you program me unconscious just now..." Pierce looked at you with pleading puppy dog eyes—except, they looked tired, lonely, and on the verge of giving up; not on you, but the world and fate itself.

His limbs may be bound, but he used his body's energy to inch closer to you on the ground. You and the author just looked at him with both pity and confusion.

But in the end, it is all your choice. Will you refuse him again or will you finally accept him and his love?

You think back to the time when you first met Pierce. Was there ever a time where you could turn your back on him? He listened to you when you were heartbroken, he introduced you to his parents, he helped you find a job, he introduced you to his friends because you had none, he would buy you cute and pure gifts on any random day he pleased, and he never even touched you inappropriately.

And you think back to the negatives. He wrongly set up Seth for failure, he perhaps controlled parts of your life and mind, and heck, he almost tried to jump you just now. Even if there are fewer negatives, it doesn't mean the positives outweigh the negatives.

Suddenly, he was free from his binds, but he stayed on the floor, holding onto your legs gently while kneeling.

"Please don't go... I don't want to lose you again..." His voice cracked and he began to sob, "Not for the 283,428th time."

The author looked away and squirmed.

"It's your choice. Whatever ending you choose, whatever happens will be final."

You looked at both Pierce and the author anxiously. It seems the author would rather let you choose how you want your ending to go.

The screen flashed and several choices show up: