“What do normal people do when they're depressed because of a lack of job offers or a bum knee?” Penny smiled, and for the first time in days, it reached her eyes.
“I think it probably involves ice cream and either a really sad movie or a really stupid one.”
She walked into the living room and opened the console underneath his flat-screen TV.
“I don't have any DVDs if that's what you're looking for. I mostly just stream—”
Penny gasped, and Brett startled so hard he banged his knee into the leg of the table. He grunted in pain, and Penny jumped to her feet. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah.” Brett rubbed his knee as if that would stop the throbbing.
“I'm sorry. Was that my fault?
“No, I don't think it had anything to do with the fact that you just reacted like you were witnessing a murder.”
Penny gave an apologetic smile. “I'm sorry, I just got excited.”
Brett frowned. “About something in my TV cabinet?” He stood and hobbled over to where she was standing. Penny pointed to the shelf. “My old Xbox console from high school?”
“Yeah, you didn't tell me that you play.”
“Because I don't. I haven't touched that thing in years.”
“But you used to?”
Did her eyes look hopeful?Any girl he’d ever met only gave looks of disgust or annoyance when a guy brought video games into the conversation. “Of course, I used to. What guy didn't play video games in high school?”
“What did you play?”
Brett pointed to the drawer next to the cabinet door she'd opened. “All the games I played are in there. I don't think people even use physical games anymore. It's all downloaded.”
Penny dropped to her knees, and Brett waited as she rifled through the games. She was going to be disappointed. Everything in there was either a sports or shooting game.
Before Brett could warn her, Penny gasped again and pulled one out, brandishing it in front of him.
“Halo?” He gave her a skeptical look.
“Umm, yeah. It's my favourite.”
Brett’s eyes narrowed. “Your favourite video game is Halo?”
Penny stood up. “Brothers, remember? We used to have tournaments with their friends in the basement.”
“You played with them?”
“Oh, I didn't just play with them. I destroyed them. Want to have a go?”
ChapterTen
Penny pickedup the controller and smoothed her thumbs over the buttons, surprised at how familiar they still felt after all these years. She couldn't help but think of Lucas. As the brother closest in age to her, he was always the one most offended when she won.
She didn’t wineverytime and may have exaggerated her skill just a little with her previous comment to Brett. But in her younger-sister mind, the goal was always to make her brothers rue the day they picked up those controllers, even if she pretended to be indifferent in the moment. Penny still hadn't admitted to her brothers how much she practiced when they were out of the house. Beating the bots never felt quite as satisfying, though.
Brett sat next to Penny on the couch, and she almost slid into him as the cushion compressed. She glanced down as she shifted to the side and noticed the rolled-up towel sitting on the floor. The one they'd used in their sessions. She distinctly remembered setting that on the counter the other night.Someone had been practicing.
Brett ran a hand over the back of his neck as the game loaded, and Penny grinned.
“Are you nervous?”
