Page 7 of Cyber Revenge

[VIP_Patrick] has joined the party.

Right.Patrick.One of the guys who paid for a stream session tonight. Another ego in the chatroom.

I sigh, adjust my mic, and lean into the camera with a practiced smirk.

“Let’s play, boys.”

FIVE

TRIP

“Yo, Tripster, cover mid?”

Patrick’s voice crackles through the comms. Cool. Relaxed. A little too polished.

“Got it,” I mutter, pushing up from cover and sprinting through the center lane of Grind, the new mid-sized Black Ops 6 map they re-released, a colorful skatepark set near Venice Beach.

We’re playing Hardpoint, holding rotating zones for as long as possible. Fast-paced. No room for hesitation.

Lydia’s voice chimes through as her character ducks into the room behind me.

“I’m rotating to point. You guys are slow as fuck.”

That laugh. That cocky-ass smirk in her tone.

I grin to myself, thumb twitching on the stick as I drop-shot two enemies near the vert ramp. One headshot. One hipfire. Easy.

“I got mid locked, killstreak,” I say. “Push the next hardpoint. You’re clear.”

“Look at us,” she teases. “Killing together. Real bonding moment.”

[TripsterGuy ? LydieLIVE]: If we were alone, I’d say something really filthy right now.

I blink. Then smirk.

Her response came between rounds.

I open the message, thumb hovering over the reply.

[LydieLIVE ? TripsterGuy]: You think I can’t handle filthy?

[TripsterGuy ? LydieLIVE: Oh, I know you can, little killer. That’s the problem.

Fuuuck. I shift in my seat, hand tightening on the controller. She’s good at this. Casual enough to pass off as harmless, but laced with heat that hits deep in my gut.

Patrick’s voice cuts in again.

“Trip, you ever use the AEK-973?” he asks, referring to the new burst rifle everyone is simping over.

“Hate it,” I reply. “Give me a SWAT 5.56 with the conversion kit or the AK-74, and I’ll clear the point solo.”

“Ohhhh, so Trip’s old school, huh?” Lydia says, laughing. “You like to feel the recoil, I bet.”

“Bet he does,” Patrick adds, laughing, but it lands weird. A little too pointed. Like, he needs to insert himself every time I get a little too close.

I let it slide.

For now.

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