Too Late to Hold Her, Too Late to Love Her

Slowly, the emptiness faded, replaced by the familiar neon glow of the city at night.

I was floating. Suspended high above the skyline, looking down at the world I had once called home.

"What’s going on?"

I turned to the system. "Am I not dead yet?"

The response was cold. "Program disengagement in progress. In 12 hours, the host will return to the original world."

Twelve hours.

A bitter sense of helplessness washed over me. Below, the city sprawled in every direction, lights flickering like distant stars. Ten years I had spent in this place, and now, I drifted above it like a ghost with nowhere to go.

Then, movement caught my eye.

Two familiar figures.

Hugo and Ava.

They sat across from each other in a high-end restaurant, bathed in the golden glow of candlelight.