“So,” Noah started, glancing at Amelia as he finished setting up the PC.
“What do you want to play? Underwatch 2 sounds fun, don’t you think?”
Amelia’s eyes lit up.
“Wait, you play Underwatch 2? That’s like one of my favourite games!” she exclaimed, clearly surprised.
“I didn’t expect you to play it too.”
Noah raised an eyebrow, intrigued.
“Hmm…Why’s that?” he asked, a faint smirk playing on his lips.
She hesitated, unsure if her reasoning would sound silly.
“I don’t know… you just seem like someone who’s good at everything and always busy. I mean, you’re good at so many things, it feels like you wouldn’t have time to play games.”
Noah chuckled softly.
“What if I told you I’m the best at Underwatch 2?”
Amelia’s competitive spark lit up immediately.
She grinned, her eyes narrowing playfully.
“Oh? Not better than me, though.”
Noah leaned back in his chair, the challenge clear in his eyes.
“Wanna bet on that?”
Amelia’s pulse quickened.
There was something wrong about his calm confidence, but she wasn’t one to back down. With a cute nod, she declared,
“Yes, let’s do it. What’s the bet?”
Noah leaned forward slightly as if preparing to say something that would tilt the balance.
“How about this…” Noah’s voice dropped slightly, taking on a teasing tone that made Amelia’s heart skip a beat.
“If you lose, you have to…”
Her pulse quickened, every word drawing her in deeper into his clutches, the anticipation building.
“I have to…?” she blinked, her cheeks heating up under his gaze, half-dreading for his next words.
“You have to either do anything I say…” he paused, letting his words hang in the air, his small smile hinted at mischief. “Or, you’ll have to tell me something about you that no one else knows.”
Her face flushed even more.
“Anything?” Her mind couldn’t help but wander to scenarios she’d only seen in romance novels.
There was a small gap between what she imagined and what Noah actually meant, but her thoughts went to places she wasn’t used to.
“A-anything?” she stuttered, her voice betraying her.
Noah’s smile widened just slightly, enough to make her nervous. “Anything,” he confirmed.
“But hey, I’m not that mean. You can always just share something no one else knows instead. Your choice.”
Amelia’s mind raced.
Could she really beat him? She was a grandmaster in “Underwatch 2”, practically unbeatable in her rank.
There’s no way Noah, as good as he was at everything else, could match her in gaming. Right?
“But he isn’t the type to brag? or does he just not know my rank?”
“I mean, what are the chances he’s that good at gaming too?” she thought, trying to calm her nerves. But her heartbeat only raced faster.
Noah was calm, almost too calm.
His expression was impossible to read, and that only made her more flustered.
“If I win, I can make him do something… whatever I want?” That thought, instead of calming her, made her face turn beet red.
“Alright,” she said, trying to sound more confident than she felt.
“Let’s do it. But if you lose, you’ll have to do whatever I want too.”
Noah chuckled softly, the sound only adding to the butterflies swirling in her stomach. “Deal,” he said with that same easy smile as if he’d already won.
Just as the game finished loading, the bell next to Noah rang.
Amelia looked over, startled. “Come in,” Noah called out casually.
The worker entered, balancing two large bubble teas on a tray.
“Your drinks, sir,” the worker said, placing them on the table.
Noah nodded, handing the man a $50 tip without hesitation. “Thanks,” he said with a warm smile.
The worker’s eyes widened slightly at the generous tip, thanking Noah profusely before leaving them alone in the room.
Amelia, watching the scene unfold, couldn’t help but admire how effortlessly kind and thoughtful Noah seemed to be.
“He’s so generous,” she thought, feeling her cheeks warm again, though this time not from embarrassment.
“Ready?” Noah asked, his fingers already resting on the mouse, his eyes locked on the screen.
Amelia snapped back to reality, as she grabbed her mouse.
“Oh, I’m ready,” she said, her voice filled with newfound confidence.
“Let’s see if you can keep up,” Noah teased, his eyes flicking to hers before focusing back on the game.
As the match started, Amelia immediately went on the offensive.
Her years of experience as a DPS kicked in, as her character dashed across the map, landing headshots.
She smirked, feeling her confidence rise with each kill.
“My score is two and yours is 0, 1 more death and you lose Noah,” she said, with a small smile as if she had already won.
“He isn’t bad, but I’m still leagues ahead of him.”
But then, something shifted. Noah’s movements became sharper, his reactions quicker.
His character, once seemingly playing on the defensive, suddenly turned into an unstoppable force.
Amelia’s smirk faltered. “Wait… is he—?”
Another precise shot.
“You’ve been killed! Respawn in 10 seconds” The game flashed
It was Noah again, outplaying her effortlessly.
Her hands trembled slightly on the mouse.
“This isn’t supposed to happen, how did it go from 2-0 to 2-2 in a matter of a minute!” She muttered silently.
He was supposed to struggle, supposed to be outclassed by her skills. Yet here she was, barely able to keep up.
“You’re not bad,” Noah’s calm voice cut through her focus,
“but I did say I’m good at this game, didn’t I?”
Amelia’s heart pounded. He was too good. Way too good. Was this some kind of trick? How was he matching her, step for step, play for play?
She gritted her teeth, determined to turn the tide, but it was too late. Noah’s character took her out once again, securing the final point for the win.
The screen flashed “Victory” in big, bold letters.
“Looks like you lost,” Noah said, his tone teasing but not gloating.
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