Jake and Chloe entered a 2v2 Apex Legends Tournament hosted by the famous pro player and streamer—Jake's favorite. It was a dream event: the winners would earn $250 each, backstage access to the upcoming E-sports Apex Legends Tournament "Electrical Power," and a chance to enjoy and celebrate their victory with the streamer.

But Chloe wasn't Jake's first pick. Or even his second. She found out by accident—and even though she played it off with her usual dry tone, it stung.

"Don't worry" she had said "third choice is still a medal position."

Still, when Jake asked her to team up officially, she agreed. Not because she was thrilled about the tourney, but because she liked playing with him, in her own quiet way, and wanted to support his passion.

Chloe's skills? Average. She wasn't bad, wasn't great—just held her own. Against the Gold and Silver-ranked duos, she kept pace. Jake, being a Master 1, handled most of the real work with precision and strategy, and she followed his lead.

Everything went fine—until the final match. Their opponents? A duo including a Predator, the highest Apex rank, and his duo was just a platinum. Jake started stressing. Chloe froze. She believed they were done for and basically gave up.

"We're toast" she muttered, watching the killfeed. "No we're not" Jake snapped. "Just play smart!""Yeah... smart" she echoed, not moving.

Out of frustration, she tossed a grenade cross-map without aiming... then just watched.

The grenade cracked the Predator's shield. Jake took the opening, landed the shots after swiftly eliminating the platinum player they both secured the win.

They ended the tournament with 4 wins out of 10—just like second place. But their final time was shorter, giving them the edge and barely scraping by with the win.

With the victory confirmed, they claimed their prizes and packed for the flight. Chloe didn't care much about the backstage passes or cash—Jake was glowing, and that was enough.

The next day, they arrived at the Electrical Power tournament venue. It was massive. Loud. Buzzing. The streamer greeted them briefly near the entrance—just a five-second "Welcome. Backstage after the Apex finals." before heading off.

Jake was on cloud nine.

"Did you see him?" Jake grinned. "He talked to us." Chloe arched a brow. "Barely.""Still counts" he said, practically bouncing as they found their seats.

They watched the streamer's team compete—three matches total, with two wins to secure the championship. When it ended, Jake and Chloe met him backstage.

Chloe, casually drinking her drink while seated beside Jake, with a neutral voice and unreadable expression, she looked at the streamer and casually said:

"Congrats on winning the match. I wonder what else can those fingers do?...."