When the arrogant and wild rookie, Vexx, first joined the team, he always loved to clash with me. But gradually, I noticed something changing in the way he looked at me. Fans flooded the comments: [Bro, you’re looking real good right now.] [Ray, your teammate is totally gay! Better guard your six and keep running!] Just when everyone was shipping us like crazy, living for the chaos, Vexx publicly announced his new girlfriend and posted: [I am completely straight! Stop trying to pair me up with a girly-man like Ray, okay? Anyone shipping us needs to get their head checked...] 1 Ten minutes after Julian posted his official announcement on X (formerly Twitter), it blew up the trending topics. Which wasn't surprising. After all, he was highly skilled, insanely popular, and had a face handsome enough to cause a stir. For an esports player, a normal relationship announcement wouldn't be this explosive. The reason it blew up was... Rather than a simple announcement, it looked more like Julian was desperately throwing a selfie with a beautiful woman in everyone's faces just to prove he was straight. And, as a bonus, he completely severed ties with his teammate. Unfortunately, that teammate was me. My in-game ID is Volt. "Ray" or "Ray-mom" is the derogatory nickname haters gave me because they think I'm too effeminate, hence bestowing me with the word "mom." To be honest, I wasn't angry about this at all. Applying feminine traits to me... was actually a compliment. It represents the strongest, bravest force in the world. Besides... I actually am a girl. The esports circle is different from the entertainment industry. Esports fans never coddle anyone: [Lmao, does this kid not know 'Ray-mom' is a derogatory term? Volt has been carrying your team for two years, even if he hasn't won it all, he's put in the work, right? And this is how he gets treated by a rookie? @VG_Esports] [If the org doesn't step in after this kind of public tear-down, Volt will probably transfer next season... maybe even retire. Sigh, three consecutive runner-up finishes is too heartbreaking.] [Getting first in the regular season went straight to your head, huh? Tearing the team apart before the playoffs even start, are you guys even going to play?] [Even as a hardcore Volt hater, I can't stand this. Julian is way too arrogant. Is this the future of the LCS? What a joke!] Scrolling through these comments, I couldn't help but let out a soft scoff. It was true. Julian had just debuted this year. Just a few days ago, he won Rookie of the Year and Regular Season MVP. He was widely acknowledged as the future hope of the LCS. Yeah. Widely acknowledged. I didn't acknowledge it. Because I wasn't a guy. "Volt" wasn't me. It was actually my twin brother, Liam Sullivan. Two years ago, he hit rank one on the North American server and signed with the VG organization for a multi-million dollar contract. But then... The day before he was supposed to report to the team house, he slipped in the shower and broke his right hand. We originally planned to tell the truth, but the moment we saw the penalty clause for breaching the contract, we completely scrapped that idea. Left with no choice, I had to cut my hair short and pretend to be Liam to play Jungler for VG. In ancient times, Mulan took her father's place in the army. Today, I, Lily Sullivan, was playing in my brother's place. Thank God the game he played was League of Legends. If it had been any other game, my brother and I would probably be bankrupt and starving on the streets. I originally thought I'd just stall for a bit, and once his hand healed, we'd switch back. But who knew... Liam's injury was too severe. Even after recovering, it was incredibly hard for him to regain his previous mechanical agility. And so... I stalled all the way to the final year of the contract. This year was my third year playing for VG. I had an agreement with Liam: whether he could make a comeback or not, I had to go back to living my own life. Therefore... Whether "Volt" would retire depended entirely on the results of Liam's physical therapy. 2 After Julian threw that massive fit, our manager, Dave, couldn't sit still. He rushed back to the team house in the middle of the night, only wearing one sock. He ran a hand through his thinning hair, his face etched with worry as he asked: "Jesus Christ! What the hell are you doing now?!" Julian was messing with his phone, non-stop arguing with people in the comments section, not even bothering to look up. Seeing he couldn't get through to him, Dave forced a smile and turned to try and placate me: "Ray, man, why don't you post on X and clarify things? Just say you guys have a great relationship and Julian just lost his head because of those crazy shippers." I let out a cold laugh, turned my face away, and said nothing. The atmosphere in the practice room was heavy. Even our usually good-tempered Support, Marcus, uncharacteristically muted his mic and continued grinding solo queue with a bitter expression. Finally, our Top Laner, Ethan, stepped up to break the ice: "We have a scrim scheduled with TG at 10 PM. Let's stop queuing up after this game. I'll make the custom lobby." "I'm good. I'm going out to the balcony for some fresh air. Call me when everyone's ready." Hearing my voice, Julian finally looked up: "My bad, Volt. I acted impulsively earlier and couldn't control my temper. It wasn't directed at you. I just think those fangirls shipping us are disgusting, don't you think?" He flashed a toothy grin. But there was zero warmth in his eyes. His striking, arrogant face showed absolutely no sign of apology. Instead, it looked like... He was faintly expectant. I stopped, frowned, and replied: "First of all, we don't have shippers. The entire league knows our relationship is garbage. It's all just trolls and haters intentionally trying to disgust people. Girls aren't that desperate. Stop fighting imaginary enemies and throwing around 'fangirls' like an insult. Second, apologies require a 'sorry'. And obviously, even if you said it, I wouldn't accept it. Finally..." I hooked the corner of my mouth, looking him up and down scrutinizingly: "Julian, homophobia is just closeted behavior. What exactly are you afraid of? Don't worry, even if I were gay, I wouldn't be interested in someone like you." Straight guys really have this baffling delusion that everyone, male or female, is attracted to them. Julian was so furious he laughed. He sat there quietly, a storm brewing in his eyes: "Liam, before I actually get mad, you'd better take that back." "Okay, you're mad. Then what? You're going to int the scrims? Or post a few more tweets and have your haters come flame me with you? Go ahead, knock yourself out. I just lost my verified badge anyway, you guys can help boost my engagement metrics." I shrugged and smiled nonchalantly. Julian's face darkened significantly. I continued: "Julian, you're a pro player. Whether it's an official match or a scrim, if you want to troll, I can't stop you. The only career you're throwing away is your own." "You think I'm like you? What gives a three-time runner-up trash like you the right to lecture me?" Hearing this, my face drained of color. I clenched my fists tight. Seeing Julian about to say something else, Ethan stood up and said coldly: "Don't cross the line." "Mind your own business." Seeing the situation spiraling, Dave quickly called the head coach over to separate us. I shook my head. Sighed. I pulled Ethan to the side, then raised my head, trying my best to look Julian straight in the eye: "You're confident, and that's a good thing. But Julian, in esports, no one wins forever." We were currently on the same team. I wouldn't curse Julian to lose matches just out of spite. But I would wait... For the moment he fell from his pedestal. "Ray, Ethan, TG's Mid Laner is rushing us. Let's just play the scrim first." Marcus took off his headset, glaring blankly at Julian. Then he waved the two of us over. The three of us exchanged a look... and inexplicably let out a bitter laugh. Right. The three unlucky bastards with three consecutive second-place finishes were all right here. Julian really was a buy-one-get-two-free deal. Insult one, get the whole package. 3 The drama that night ended with the social media manager logging into both of our X accounts and posting a PR-crafted essay for each of us. They even posted a photo of the two of us with our arms around each other's shoulders, looking chummy. They hoped to dispel the rumors of a Mid/Jungle rift. It was just a pity that observant fans quickly deduced from our styling that... The photo was from a commercial shoot last month. As for the scrim, there were no surprises. Julian still refused to listen to the draft plan or shotcalling. He locked in Fizz, and proceeded to int across all three lanes for the rest of the game. I knew it... A mad dog like him would never listen to a word I said. Right before bed. A friend request suddenly popped up on Discord, and the message attached sent a shiver of disgust down my spine: [Volt, sweetie, I'm Julian's girlfriend.] ... I can't take this anymore. Could I get any more ridiculous nicknames? Holding firm to the belief that the enemy of my enemy is definitely my enemy... I simply blocked the friend request, pretending I never saw it. 4 After the Spring Split regular season ended, Julian absolutely crushed the competition with 14 MVP awards, securing both the Rookie of the Split and the Regular Season MVP honors. On the podium, he was as ill-mannered as ever: "The people I should thank the most for getting these awards are my teammates, right? Especially the Jungler. If Volt didn't carry so hard, how would it ever be my turn to steal so many MVPs?" The regular season awards ceremony wasn't a huge affair; they usually just breezed through it before the first Best of 5 (BO5) of the playoffs. So when Julian said that, I was sitting right behind him adjusting my peripherals. The broadcast appropriately cut to my camera feed, followed by a tidal wave of deafening screams from the crowd. Everyone knows esports doesn't have fans, only trolls. So no matter how much Julian and I hated each other, there were always spectators in the audience who loved the drama and shipped our "pure hatred" dynamic. Especially after Julian's announcement fiasco a few days ago. The number of our shippers didn't decrease; it surged. Rumor had it they were all doing it just to piss Julian off. And this massive wave of engagement... The event organizers obviously weren't going to miss out on it. So the host practically crossed the entire stage to shove a microphone in my face: "I wonder what player Volt has to say about this?" I flicked my bangs out of my eyes, deliberately lowered my voice, and replied: "Ah, nothing really. As long as he knows he stole them, that's fine." Seeing Julian's face completely darken, I finally felt a bit of satisfaction. I smiled, pushed the microphone away, and went back to adjusting my gear. Marcus shook his head: "Why did you have to provoke him? He's just going to int again later." "Let him. Are we supposed to coddle him through every match forever? I'm not his mother." Just as I finished speaking, Julian returned to the lineup to adjust his equipment. He strode past me and sneered: "That's not impossible either. After all, you look like a girl anyway." I opened my mouth, but didn't retort. But Ethan, next to me, furrowed his brow: "Julian, can you watch your mouth for once?" "Why do you always butt in when I'm talking to Liam?" Julian glared at Ethan over my head, looking incredibly annoyed. "Uh, referee, please help me lower the Mid Laner's volume. Thanks." Our newly imported Korean AD Carry couldn't understand English well, which was fine, but he was also completely oblivious and couldn't read the room at all. He just thought Julian was being noisy. Consequently... Marcus and Ethan casually chimed in: "Referee, lower the Mid Laner's volume for Support." "Referee, lower the Mid Laner's volume for Top Laner." Me... I couldn't lower it. Because I was the Jungler. League of Legends is a Mid/Jungle game. Even though Julian hadn't trolled in an official match yet, I still couldn't relax. I deliberately used his ID to give him a final reminder: "Alright, Vexx, knock it off. We're entering draft phase." Playoffs have a double-elimination bracket, so both teams played relatively relaxed. We ultimately moved on to the next round with a 3:1 victory. Team XY fell to the lower bracket to fight another day. I thought it was just an unremarkable BO5, but who knew... By evening, the hashtag #VGTeamBullying was trending on X. 5 It started because the pre-match conversation with the referee was cut into the official broadcast comms. Instantly, the internet exploded with different opinions: [Feel so bad for Julian. I didn't expect Volt to be the only one who didn't join in...] [Min-ho Lee (the Korean AD) leads the bullying and you do nothing? @VG_Esports. Koreans love pulling this seniority crap, and you just watch your own player get bullied?] [It's not that serious... What are Julian's mom-fans throwing a fit about now?] [The drama clearly started on Reddit first... Stop blaming Julian's fans!] [What's all the fighting for? It's such a minor thing! Reddit guys are so petty, can you just leave?] Ethan scrolled through the comments section: "Wow, Ray. I got my verified badge taken away before you did." "Congratulations." I clapped calmly. Marcus had escaped disaster because he had already deleted his X account. Min-ho Lee looked at him with envy: "I just made account, you no tell me." "Are you jealous? After we played the final game last year, I traded my whole family's safety for it." After the finals last year, "Marcus Mad Cow Disease" hung on the trending list for three whole days. His entire family was almost "confiscated" by the netizens. Thinking back on it, he still had lingering trauma. He glanced at Julian, who was sitting nearby with his headphones on, and muttered: "What a joke. Bullying him? He basically bullies the four of us..." "Vouch!" "+1" I also gave a thumbs up, agreeing with Marcus. Julian let out a cold snort: "It's not a big deal. I'll just clarify it and it'll be fine." "It's all just people chasing shadows. Just don't mention it and it'll blow over. The official league is just milking our team for engagement..." Dave stopped Julian, smiling bitterly. I looked at his thinning hair and felt a rare pang of sympathy: "Let's just focus on the matches first. Winning fixes everything." "Tch! Stop looking so depressed, Dave! Just wait till I bring back that first-place trophy for you!" Julian deliberately emphasized the words "first place." Looking at his arrogant, naive face, I sighed secretly in my heart. My final year... Will probably end with nothing to show for it either. 6 Since the start of the season, the most discussed topic around the VG team was— Could they break the second-place curse this season? The answer was... We broke it. Just in the opposite direction. This time, we didn't even manage to scrape a second-place finish... We were unexpectedly knocked out in the semifinals, proudly taking home third place. In that moment... The word "DEFEAT" felt like a knife, stabbing viciously into my heart. It was over. My first half of the year. I closed my eyes in despair, then took off my headset. Ready to face the hurricane of the fans' wrath. Marcus was crying so hard he couldn't stand straight. Ethan and I exchanged a look, helped him up, and walked to the front of the stage together, bowing deeply and ashamedly to the fans: "We're sorry for letting everyone down." Julian wasn't with us. The moment the match ended, he threw off his headset and walked off the stage. He hid in the locker room and refused to participate in the post-match interviews. Ethan knocked on the door to no avail, his face dark as he cursed: "Coward." A few seconds later, Julian came out with red eyes. His voice was hoarse: "I'll take responsibility for the match I lost." "Take responsibility with what? How many times did I tell you not to play so aggressive without vision?! If you can't win the trade, call for help! Aren't you usually so talkative? Why do you turn mute the second you get into a game? You're still young! You're only 18! You have time to waste! We don't!" Seeing Julian, Marcus, who had just calmed down, broke down again. He rushed forward, grabbed Julian by the collar, and roared. I rubbed my sore eyes, took a deep breath, stepped forward, and tried to mediate: "Alright, it's fine. You guys go rest for a bit. I'll handle the interview by myself." "I'll go with Ray. We're top-tier damage sponges for getting flamed. Don't worry, and stop crying." Ethan patted Marcus, trying hard to force a smile. However, Marcus wiped his tears: "I'm coming too." After arguing for ages, Min-ho Lee only understood the word "too." So he quickly raised his hand: "Too, together, no matter what do." I nodded. Then together it is. Julian didn't say anything; he just silently followed behind us.
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