Page 140 of Glitched Play

"The Evergreens need their warm-up stations reset!"

"I'm on it!"

The next hour passes in a blur.

Player introductions.

Smoke cannons.

Music.

Crowds chanting.

The opening kickoff.

Every time something threatens to go sideways, another member of the team solves it before I even arrive.

Because that's what we've built, not a production, a team.

Late in the third match, I finally stop long enough to look around.

Thousands of fans.

Ten competitors.

Broadcasters shouting over the roar of the crowd.

Children wearing oversized plush headphones pretending they're the next generation of champions. They’re so cute and fuzzy like little stuffed animals on their ears.

I smile. This is exactly what Witt wanted.

Maybe...it's exactly what gaming needed.

A hand lands lightly on my shoulder.

I turn.

Sutton smiles. "You did good."

Emotion catches me completely off guard.

"I didn't do it alone."

"No."

She looks around the pavilion. "But you led it and Witt let you. That means more than you know."

My throat tightens. Before I can answer, someone calls my name again.

Another problem.

Another solution.

Another chance to prove Witt was right to believe in me.

I take one last look across the arena.

Just for a second.