Joe Keery Imagines

Christmas Distractions-Keys

I could hear the Christmas party going on, but I didn't care. All I cared about was trying to figure out who this Blue Shirt Guy was. The deeper I looked, the weirder it got.

Suddenly, there was a random song that wasn't a Christmas song. It took me a second to realize it was my phone. Without tearing my eyes from my computer, I grabbed my phone and answered it.

"Hello?" I said numbly.

"It's the Christmas party."

I looked up to see Keys across the office with his phone to his ear. He sent me a small smile.

"Come on, Y/N," he said gently. "Join the party."

"I can't," I sighed. "There's something about this NPC that's bugging me."

"Y/N," he said again. "You're going to drive yourself crazy. Take a break. Please?"

"I can't," I said again.

I bit my bottom lip when he angrily hung up the phone and shoved it into his pocket. I held my breath as I watched him walk over to me.

"Please, take a break," he said when he got to me. "It's Christmas."

"Christmas is in three days," I mumbled. "This is just the office party."

"So?" He chuckled. "Come and socialize."

"I can't."

I tried to look at my computer but Keys reached over and gently grabbed my chin. I heard his breath get caught in his throat when he saw the tear streaming down my cheek. He instantly reached up and caught it with his thumb.

I opened my mouth to say something but Keys shook his head. He let go of my face and grabbed my hand, pulling me with him. I didn't bother to try and stop him from leading me into the break room. When we got there, he closed the door behind us and crossed his arms over his chest.

"What's going on?" He asked.

"Keys," I stuttered.

"No," he cut me off. "Ever since Guy became a thing, you've been so focused on finding out who he is. You think I haven't noticed your change, but I have, Y/N. Of course I have. You're always the first to arrive and the last to leave. Why are you so focused on finding out who Guy is?"

"It's my job," I said not at all convincingly.

"Actually, it's mine," he said with a knowing smile. His smile dropped when I looked away from him.

"Y/N," he whispered, trying to get my attention. "Why are you working so hard?"

"He's real."

"What?"

I looked up at Keys and took a shaky breath. "Guy is real, Keys. He's an algorithm that's alive. Your's and Millie's code works. You did it, Keys. You created the first-ever real artificial intelligence."

"Wait, what?"

"Everything you and Millie dreamed of creating, is real. Life Itself's code is in Free Life, Keys. I can't prove it, but it's there. I've been trying to prove it. . ."

"Wait, Y/N, stop," he interrupted me. "I had a feeling that Life Itself's code was in Antwon's game. Why have you been trying so hard to prove it?"

"Because it's my fault," I said, my voice cracking.

"What?" Keys asked as he took a step closer to me. "Y/N, what's your fault?"

"I'm the one who told you to go into business with Antwon," I said, tears streaming down my face. "I'm the one who pushed you to sell your AI to Soonami. Antwon stole your code and hid it in Free Life and it's all my fault."