Page 13 of His Starr Player

I laughed. “I can understand that. How are the crab puffs?”

“They are delicious. Here.” She lifted one of the crab puffs up for me to bite. I happily sunk my teeth into the warm crab and cream cheese blend. The outer dough was crispy.

“You’re right. It’s really good.”

“Told you.”

We ate and sipped our drinks for a while. It was a cool vibe. When the ramen bowls arrived, we hardly said a word as we dug into our meals. She was a professional with the chopsticks, which was cool as hell. I was decent with them myself.

“This is some of the best ramen I’ve ever had. I usually stick to the little mom-and-pop shop by my apartment, but this… this might be my go-to from now on. The broth was so flavorful, and they seasoned the meat to perfection… Whew.”

I smiled. “I’m glad I picked a spot you’ve never tried before and enjoyed. I was nervous as hell about how tonight would go.”

“I’ve had a blast. This is the best date I’ve been on… probably ever.”

I raised an eyebrow. “Yeah? I’m honored.”

“Believe it or not, I actually stopped dating. Most guys who take me out never get a second date because they always end up making shit about my dad.”

“No one wants to talk about parents on the first date. Niggas got to learn how to read the room.”

“Exactly. It’s so annoying because I’m my own person.”

“You definitely are. You worked really hard to build your name in the league. People should respect that.”

“Hello! That’s literally what I be preaching. Like, yes, my daddy is a legend, but y’all askedmeout on a date, not him.”

“I guess because of who my sister is and the jobs my parents had, I don’t really fan out like most niggas. I know what it’s like to be around celebrities. They ain’t nobody special.”

“Sir, you do know you’re not just some regular degular man either, right?”

“What do you mean? I’m nobody compared to you and my sister.”

“Boy, bye. You thought I wasn’t hip to what you be out here doing in the streaming world? I’ve seen several of your clips on social media. You’ve gone viral more times than me.”

I rubbed the back of my neck. “You’ve seen me play?”

She nodded. “Duh. You are one of the top-rated streamers out there right now. Your 2k clips are hilarious. Plus, your sister always drops your streams in our group chat to support.”

“That’s cool. I never would have guessed you knew about my streams.”

“I don’t live under a rock. A lot of y’all streamers be making similar checks, if not more than some of us athletes. The esports world is insane.”

“I’ll have to have you on a stream one day.”

She grinned. “Hell nah. Chat won’t drag me. Your fans are assholes.”

“They’re not that bad. They be cool when fine women join the stream.”

She shook her head. “I bet, but I’ll consider it.”

We talked for a while longer. It was nice to find out all the things we had in common. She said she’d tried to play 2k online, but once she’d spoken into the mic, dudes started getting disrespectful. Online gaming had some of the most toxic people in the world. It got bad.

“You want to come over for a night cap?” she asked after I’d paid the bill.

“Yes.”

“Great. I’ll send you the address. Pack your spend the night bag too.”

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