Chapter Text
You’ve been on this server for about an hour now. You’re all geared up and looking for a car. Earlier you spotted a group of players not far from you and they could easily take you down if they find you, so you need to get the hell out of here, otherwise it’s game over.
You’ve been playing DayZ nonstop ever since you bought it on Steam last week. You’ve gotten pretty good at it pretty fast, as you usually do with every game. You think that all this sitting and screen time - and also the embarrassingly large amount of cookies you’ve pretty much inhaled by now - must be doing wonders for your body. Your dad would have a nervous breakdown if he knew about your bad habits.
You’re an honest player. You really are. You’re not one of those players whose sole purpose on this game is to hunt and kill the other players on the server. Yes, at first you did try and help everyone you met along the way, but that has proven to get you killed or looted (most times both) more often than not. So now you just tend to stay in the shadows whenever you spot another player. You assess the situation first, and then you decide if it’s safe to reach out and help.
This map is huge though, so you’re having a hard time just trying to find a working car to drive to a town on the other side. When you finally find one, you set a checkpoint for your destination on your mini map and start driving.
About halfway through you spot a player running in the middle of the road in front of you. They’re using a female character and you can’t help but wonder how probable it is that it’s really a girl playing. The odds on that are low, but as you get closer their gamertag reads ‘@heycarmilla’ so maybe it really is a girl? Maybe.
They’re not wearing any gear as well, which probably means they’ve just entered the server, so you think it’s safe to approach. Maybe even help if you can. They do seem a bit lost after all.
You adjust your headset and drive closer, trailing right behind the other player.
“Hey, friendly player here. Do you have a headset?”
You hear some scuffling followed by a raspy women’s voice. “If you’re going to kill me you might as well just get on with it and run me over with your car.”
Wow. How someone can sound sexy over a headset, you don’t really know, but you’re confused by her response.
“Why would I do that? I said I was friendly.” You hear her chuckle.
“That’s what everyone says until they shoot you and take your stuff. It’s just the way the world works, Cutie.”
Cutie? You’ve been talking to this person for literally less than a minute and she’s already calling you nicknames? Plus, she doesn’t even know what you look like, why is she calling you Cutie? Anyways.
“I wouldn’t do that. It’s just a game anyway, no need to be so dramatic about it. I want to help you.”
“Why should I trust you?” She’s still running while you trail right behind with your car.
“If I wanted to kill you I would’ve done it a long time ago, trust me.” And it’s true, you could have run her over right when you first saw her. But you didn’t. And now you absolutely won’t. You’re admittedly intrigued by this girl.
“That’s fair.” She suddenly stopped running and you almost ran her over because of how close you were trailing behind her. You’re so glad you didn’t. That would not have helped your case. At all.
“Then get in the car already and tell me where you want to go.” That came out maybe a little harsher than you intended, but you hear her chuckle anyway.
“Oh. So bossy, Cupcake.” You can’t help but roll your eyes at the nickname. “Careful. I might actually like that.” You swear you can hear the smirk in her voice as she said that.
“I’m heading to that little town down South. By the lake. I heard it has a lot of stuff to loot.” You inform as she gets in the passenger sit and you start driving. “Wanna come with?”
“Sure thing, Creampuff.”
Okay, that’s it. You’ve had enough with the stupid edible nicknames. “Okay, could you stop with the stupid edible nicknames? Please and thank you.”
“I would, but to be honest I’m not a big fan of Lois Lane.”
You audibly gasp at the nonsense that juts came out of her mouth. “EXCUSE YOU? Lois Lane is totally AWESOME. How dare you criticize my gamertag like that?”
She laughs loudly in response. “Whatever you say, Sweetheart.” You roll your eyes for what feels like the 100th time. At least this one wasn’t an actual edible object. “What’s your real name anyway?”
“Why would I tell you?”
“Why wouldn’t you?” You’re surely going to injure yourself with this many eye rolls.
“Well, my dad always told me you shouldn’t share your personal information with strangers on the internet.” You say, half playfully, half seriously. You hope she gets it.
“Well, my mom always told me not to get in cars with strangers and here we are.” She responds with a lazy, unaffected tone. You feel like she’s mocking your response.
“Very funny.”
“You know my name. I think it’s only fair I know yours.”
So Carmilla really is her name? You think that’s actually… kind of cute… Whatever. “Still, there’s a high chance Carmilla is not your real name.”
“Seriously? Whatever. Suit yourself, Lois.” She sounds a bit annoyed.
“It’s Laura.” You blurt it out without even thinking. But you don’t regret revealing your real name to Carmilla.
“What?”
“My name. It’s Laura.”
“See, that wasn’t so hard. Was it, Cupcake?” You roll your eyes as far back as they would go.
“Well, now that you know my real name you could, you know… USE IT.”
She giggles on the other side. “Where’s the fun in that, Cutie?”
“Uugghh, whatever.” You’re more than ready to give up on this nickname situation.
You continue driving in comfortable silence for a bit when you start hearing the sound of another car behind you. You move your mouse around so you can look for it. You spot it and they’re still a bit far from you, so you’re not sure they’ve spotted you.
“Do you think they see us?” You ask Carmilla, looking straight ahead again so you can drive properly and hopefully not crash into a tree or something.
Suddenly you hear gunfire and bullets ricocheting off of your car.
“Yup. They definitely see us.” Carmilla answers.
Crap. You drive off the main road and dodge the trees in your way. There’s a little town with a few houses up ahead that should work great for cover.
“Shit. I don’t have any weapons, Cupcake!”
“We’ll take cover in one of those houses and I’ll give you some.” You’re too focused dodging trees and trying not to crash and burn this car to notice the innuendo in your words.
You hear Carmilla laugh and you’re not sure what can possibly be so funny when you have bullets flying over your head and you’re slaloming trees like a maniac.
“Is it really the most appropriate time for such activities?” Carmilla asks with a low seductive voice that leaves you a bit confused.
“What? What are you talking abo-OH.” You nearly hit a tree. “SHUP UP, CARMILLA. NOW IS REALLY NOT THE TIME. FOCUS ON THE GAME. PLEASE.” You can feel how red your face is. How inappropriate can this girl be? You don’t want to find out.
“Calm down, Cupcake. No need to get so flustered.” Camilla is laughing at your reaction. “Just ty not to crash and kill us both.”
“I am NOT flustered. Don’t flatter yourself.” You say, failing miserably at hiding how flustered you actually are.
“Sure you’re not, Sweetheart.” Carmilla responds with a low seductive voice again, that only serves to make you even more flustered.
You finally reach the small town and move inside one of the houses. You close the door behind you and open your inventory to drop some guns, ammo and health supplies on the floor for Carmilla. She picks them up with a quick ‘thanks, Cutie.’ and you make your way to one of the windows facing the front of the house.
“Did you check how many were inside the car?” You ask, looking out the window but not seeing anyone out there.
“I’d say I’m about 70% sure there were two guys.”
“Wow, 70% sure? Greeaaat…“ You can no longer hear the car’s engine and not knowing where the bad guys are always makes you nervous.
“Getting sassy are we, Cupcake? Just keep watch on the front of the house. I got the back covered.”
“I learned from the best.” You tease her and hear her chuckle in response, which helps you relax a little.
You focus on the front of the house and after a while you finally spot a player lurking in the bushes.
“I see one!” You shout and you take four shots in the player’s direction, hitting your target every time. You see the animation of the hostile player’s character laying down on the floor, defeated. The ultimate confirmation comes when you can read @johnnyC89 was killed by @LoisLane on the bottom of your screen. You can’t help but throw your hands up in victory. “GOT HIM.”
“Good job, Sweetheart.” Carmilla says with a genuine tone. “Keep an eye out for the other one. I haven’t spotted him yet.”
You comply and return to your previous position looking out the window. You suddenly get shot twice and jump on your chair (a little higher than you would ever care to admit). You don’t understand what happened. You had the front of the house covered and he is nowhere to be seen. Your health is rapidly dropping and you don’t have any more bandages in your inventory to heal your character.
“Carmilla, bandage me! Please! Did you see him? I don’t know what happened. I had the front of the house and he was nowhere and-“
“Cupcake, it wasn’t him.” Carmilla interrupts you. She sounds oddly calm and not totally freaking out like you are.
“What do you mean it wasn’t him?” You move your mouse to look at her and she’s pointing her gun at you. You’re laying on the floor, defenseless. The only thing that could help right now are the bandages you gave Carmilla when you first entered the house. You finally wrap your head around what’s really happening and you’re fuming. “WHAT THE HELL, CARMILLA. I TRUSTED YOU.”
“It’s just a game, Cutie. No need to be so dramatic.” Carmilla reminds you of the words you spoke to her earlier.
“WHAT THE HECK IS YOUR PROBLEM?” You shout as your health reaches 0% and the words Killed by @heycarmilla appear on the center of your screen. “I WAS HELPING YOU. WHY WOULD YOU DO THIS? AND DON’T YOU DARE LOOT MY STUFF.”
“Too late, Sweetheart.” You can hear the smugness in her voice and the desire to punch your computer screen is at an all-time high. “Have a good night. And don’t go breaking any keyboards.” Oh, you want to. You really do.
You get disconnected and you stare blankly at the screen in front of you. You can feel the rage bubbling inside you so you need to step away from your desk to distract yourself with something else. You can’t let yourself turn into one of those 13 year olds who throw the controller at the TV when things don’t go their way.
You do, however, forget to take off your headset as you sit up on your chair to leave. The speakers the chord is attached to almost get dragged to the floor, but the chord snaps before that happens.
“Crap! These things are super expensive!” You whine and examine the damage you’ve made.
The chord is completely detached from the headset, making it officially broken. You’re furious at the thought that this is all Carmilla’s fault. God, that girl is annoying!
You’re going to have to stop by the game store tomorrow so you pull out your phone and send a quick text to your friend Kirsch.
Little Nerd: hey Kirsch, r u working tmrw?
Big Puppy Kirsch: hey little nerd! yeah why
Little Nerd: I broke my headset :((((((
Big Puppy Kirsch: that sucks!!! come by at like 4
Little Nerd: alright, thnks K. see u tmrw :)
Big Puppy Kirsch: no problem. g’night lil nerd
Little Nerd: u too :)
You put your phone down and sit back on your chair. You scroll through the game sales on Steam and then you receive a friend request along with a message. You cannot believe you’re seeing this with your own two eyes.
@heycarmilla sent you a friend request
@heycarmilla: better luck next time, cutie ;)
You never wanted to throw your computer out the window so much before. SERIOUSLY? ARE YOU KIDDING ME? You want to smash the block button right away, but you can’t let her win like this. You’re not going down without a fight.
@LoisLane: that was a real dick move you pulled. hope you’re happy with yourself.
You wait impatiently while Carmilla types a new message.
@heycarmilla: oh im very happy. thanks for the food and ammo btw :)
Of course this raging bi- BAD PERSON stole my stuff! Uuugh! You cannot believe this girl.
@LoisLane: fuck u.
@heycarmilla: wow, watch your language cupcake. im a sensitive girl.
@LoisLane: kindly, fuck u.
@heycarmilla: see? much better. anyway, if you ever want a rematch just hit me up ;)
@heycarmilla: have a good night cutie. xo
Talking to her is not doing you any good. She’s only making you more upset. You need to leave it. She’s not worth it.
@LoisLane: whatever
You are so done with this girl. Who does she think she is? You shut down your computer and leave the bedroom. No more video games for today. Your headset is ruined anyway.
You go to the kitchen and spot your cat Ellie sitting on top of the counter. She looks at you so you go and try to pet her, but as you get closer she starts hissing and then quickly jumps off the counter and disappears into your bedroom.
Ellie has always been a bit of an asshole to you, which offends you deeply because you have given her nothing but love and affection. You figure she’s just a bit more anti-social than most cats.
Ellie does let you pet her sometimes though. You feel like the chosen one in those very rare moments. She has to be the one to initiate contact though, otherwise you are certainly going to get a few scratches. Ellie has even slept on your bed before, but that only happened like three or four times. You’re pretty sure she was just confused or something.
But despite all the clawing at your favorite armchair, the cat hairs everywhere and the object knocking off of high surfaces, you still love that grumpy ball of fur. Ultimately Ellie does help a lot. Ever since you got her, you don’t feel so alone all the time. And also so useless. You love having that tiny living thing as your responsibility.
You grab a few snacks from the kitchen and plop down on the couch. Maybe binging something on Netflix will help you relax and forget that this whole situation with Carmilla ever happened.
You set your headset down next to your keyboard and step away from the desk. You have a weird feeling bubbling in your chest, but you can’t quite figure out what it is? Wait, is that… Is that guilt? Maybe regret? No, it can't be. You were just messing with the girl you found online. You do this all the time. What the hell is wrong now?
You make your way to the kitchen and grab a beer from the fridge. As you lean against the counter, you pop the beer cap open and take a big gulp from it.
You’ve had a crappy day, that’s for sure. Some lady at work came in yelling at you because apparently her son failed to mention all the violence in GTA V and she was not pleased when she found out about it. Of course, the lady felt the need to let it out on the first store employee she could find. That employee happened to be you. Of course… This is why you hate working the main counter shifts.
This happens all the time, but today it annoyed you more than any other day. You’re sure it had something to do with the call you received from dear mother just moments before the whole angry mom incident at the store.
Your relationship has always been a bit rocky. Your mother always had certain expectations for you. She has pressured you from a young age to work in your family’s company, which you never wanted to do.
When you started going against your mother’s wishes, you both clashed.
She would constantly criticize every decision you made. She made your life a living hell for a while. But you fought back. You stood for what you believed in and fought for your own future. You sure as hell didn’t want to spend it working for your mother. So you worked during high school to get enough money to move out on your own when you turned 18. Much to your mother’s disapproval, you moved to the city just a month after graduating.
At first it was rough. Your apartment wasn’t much of an apartment. More like a tiny bedroom. And as much as you hate to admit this: you were lonely. You didn’t know anyone. But you pushed through. Apparently Kirsch had moved to the city after graduating like you did and when he contacted you, you didn’t hesitate in reaching out to him as well.
Kirsch was your lab partner in chemistry class and you hated him at first. He seemed like the typical popular jock jackass, but you later learned that he’s actually just a puppy in human form. To this day you still can’t quite understand how on earth you two became friends. Let’s be real, the only things you two have in common are probably your love for video games and women.
So far that seems to be enough though, because deep down you love the big puppy (although you’ll never admit it to anyone, specially to him). And you’re forever grateful to him because he got you this job at the video game store. You’ve been working there together for three years now.
You love your job. You really do. But it’s days like these when you just want to throw x-box controllers at yelling costumers.
And to add to all of this, now you’re feeling bad for messing with a stranger online? Sure, maybe you did take out your frustration on an innocent stranger, and that isn’t fair. You know that. But you’ve done it so many times before. What’s different now?
You think maybe it’s the fact that all the other times you’ve done it, the victims were annoying fifteen year olds. This time it was a nice girl with a soft voice. You’re always a sucker for a soft voice.
But it’s not just that. The girl had a fire in her. She was stubborn and headstrong. You couldn’t help not getting her all riled up just to see what her reaction would be.
You didn’t really want to pull the trigger and kill her in the game. At least not so soon. But this is what you always do: lure players in and then get their stuff. Now that you think about it, you don’t think you’ve kept any other player around as long as Laura was. You were breaking your own rules there.
You couldn’t however resist sending the girl a friend request and a message, and the response you got did surprise you a bit.
She seemed even more pissed at you, which you didn’t think was possible, but you can’t blame her. And you don’t. Because you know what you did was shitty and, in all honesty, if you could go back and not do it, you would.
All of these thoughts are definitely not helping the guilt and regret that have been building in your chest ever since you first aimed your gun at her.
Okay, what the hell? You shake your head and push yourself away from the counter and towards the living room. You’re overthinking this. She’s just a stranger. And what’s done is done. There’s nothing for you to do. Right now you just need a distraction.
As if she can read your thoughts, Elsie sends a text asking you to come over. Apparently this girl can’t take a hint, because you’ve been ignoring her texts and calls for the past two weeks.
You two had your fun, but now it’s over. You don’t know why it’s so hard for her to understand that. You don’t do relationships and she knows that.
You ignore her text again because you’re really not in the mood right now. The thought of going to the bar and maybe try to get another girl crosses your mind, but you dismiss it. Right now all you want to do is lay on your couch and watch a movie.
And that’s exactly what you do. You flop down on your couch, you bring up Netflix and start scrolling through your options. There’s nothing like a late night movie session to relax at the end of a rough day. And the beer helps a little as well.
The next day rolled around and you’re having a shitty day.
Everything seems to be working against you. Rude costumers, the delivery guy messed up the order, the dough mixer (which is probably the piece of equipment you rely on the most) is acting up again and you burned a batch of your bestselling cookies.
So, yeah. You’re not in the best mood.
You’re working the main counter, while Perry and Lafontaine take care of everything in the back, and you can’t stop looking at the clock. You told Kirsch you’d meet him at the store at 4 and it’s almost 3:30. You can’t wait to get the hell out of here. You don’t think you can handle any more work related stress today.
Soon enough Laf tells you the repair guy is on his way to fix the dough mixer and that they have everything under control, so you quickly finish up with your last costumer and run to the back of the store to get changed.
You wave Laf and Perry goodbye on your way out and you can hear Perry’s usual ‘ride safely, dear’ as you leave the store and move towards your bike. You’re glad to see it’s still chained to the lamppost you usually leave it leaning against and with both tires full of air. The last thing you needed today was a flat tire. You unchain the bike and start pedalling to the game store.
You met Laf and Perry when you first moved to the city. Your dad wasn’t too happy when you told him you were moving to a big city and living alone. But you had too. There was nothing for you back home. Except for your dad of course, but you’ve been living under his wing since you were born and it was starting to feel suffocating.
You know this distance is hard on him, but ultimately it’s what’s best for you both. You can’t be his little baby forever and he can’t protect you from everyone and everything. He has to understand that. And you think he’s starting to.
You didn’t have much of a plan when you moved. Your dad helped you with your first apartment, all you had to do next was get a job. Which was no easy task at first, but then you literally stumbled onto your job at the bakery.
You were walking around, getting to know the city, when you spotted delicious looking cupcakes and cookies staring at you through a store window. You could never really resist cookies, so you decided to go inside and try them out.
Being the majestic creature that you are, you tripped on your feet and fell face first as soon as you opened the door. You busted your lip and there was blood everywhere, but Perry and Lafontaine were by your side helping you in an instant.
They were both so sweet to you in what has to be one of the most embarrassing moments of your life. You started going to the bakery regularly after that, and you became fast friends with them. Soon enough they were offering you a job.
You’ve been working at the bakery for four years now and you really like it. It’s fun, it’s hands-on and you get to work every day with your two best friends. Plus, you get free cookies pretty much whenever you want.
When it’s not too cold or raining, like today, you quite enjoy these bike rides. It’s a time for you to think and to look at the world around you. You love feeling the air hit your face and how your legs start burning when you pedal really fast. It makes you feel alive.
You continue weaving through traffic, and a few blocks later you’re chaining your bike to the lamppost in front of the video game store. You take off your helmet and make your way inside, looking for your friend Kirsch.
You met Kirsch through Danny a couple months ago when he joined you both in one of your gaming hangouts. You’ve since become good friends and often play together online and in real life. Now you come to the store a lot to hang out with him and also because he sometimes offers you great discounts.
Your way of thanking him is by letting him eat as many cookies as he can when he visits you at the bakery. You think he’s fine with that.
You look around for Kirsch and finally spot him working the front counter, but he seems busy with a very angry mom who’s waving a copy of Grand Theft Auto V in his face, telling him that no one warned her it was way too violent for her 10 year old kid.
You can never understand these angry moms because it literally says 18+ on the front of the box, but oh well. Kirsch looks at you so you shoot him a look of compassion, to which he responds with an overly exasperated look on his face when the angry mom isn’t looking.
You signal to him that you’re going to look around and you move over to the headset shelf. You didn’t do any research, as you normally do when you’re buying electronics, because you were expecting Kirsch to help you. It’s fine though. You have a general idea of what you want: good but cheap. As always.
You glance up from the shelf and you spot her. The dark haired, mysterious looking girl that you’ve been eyeing for a few weeks now. You think she’s kind of friends with Kirsch, but you’re not really sure. You haven’t had the chance to ask him about her anyways.
You know she has noticed you too. You’ve shared a few awkward glances. Hanging out with Kirsch may not be the only reason why you’ve been coming to the store so often lately… Maybe.
She has long dark curly hair, a slim figure, a jawline that should honestly be considered illegal, and she just gives off this mysterious vibe. You’re absolutely entranced by her every time you see her. You never seem to catch her working the front counter, so you’ve never really had an excuse to interact with her. She’s usually restocking or coming in and out the back room.
You two suddenly lock eyes for a few seconds and you’re not really sure what to do with your face. You find yourself slightly smiling at her because she has a nice face so what else would you do and oh god she ducked her head. Of course. You now look like a creepy weirdo. Great.
But then you think you notice her trying to hide a small smile and blush, but you’re not sure. She probably just thinks you’re a total weirdo.
You focus back on the headsets in front of you and continue studying your options.
//
It’s almost ten minutes later and you still haven’t made a choice. Kirsch is still getting yelled at by the angry mom and you’re stuck between two different headsets. You always overthink these decisions.
You look around for another employee, but the only one you spot is the dark haired girl. She’s standing on a three step ladder, lazily stuffing video game cases on the top shelf.
There’s no way you can talk to her after that awkward fest earlier, but you really want to get out of here already. Your day was awful and you can’t wait to get home so you can lay on your couch and continue binging Orphan Black like you were doing last night.
You’ve been wanting to talk to this girl for a while and now that the opportunity has presented itself, you can’t help but feel nervous. You’re the first one to admit that talking to girls is not you strong suit. Especially girls you’re so goddamn attracted to.
You think it’s time to suck it up and girl the hell up, so you start walking in her direction. You’re running all kinds of different scenarios in your head, but they all go out the window when you find yourself standing right behind her.
“Um… Hey! Hi. How are you?” How are you?! Get it together, Hollis! “I just… um… need some help… and was, you know… wondering if you could… you know… help. Hehe. Please?”
Today you have the afternoon shift, which means you’re stuck here until the store closes at 6. Needless to say you’re not happy about that at all, but at least today wasn’t as shitty as yesterday.
Plus, you managed to avoid angry mom number 2. Poor Kirsch is the one dealing with that today. You don’t think you could handle another angry mom without doing something stupid that would surely get you fired. And arrested.
You still have two more hours to go, so you might as well do something. You’re making your way to the back room when you see her come in. Her sunny brown hair is disheveled, her cheeks are red and she’s holding a bike helmet, as usual. She looks gorgeous. As usual.
She shares a glance with Kirsch and then starts looking around the store. As she’s about to look your way, you enter the back room and close the door behind you.
You’ve been eyeing this girl for weeks, and you know she’s friends with Kirsch, but there’s no way you can ask him about her. He’d never leave you alone, or even worse: he would tell her. No, you can’t let that happen.
The thing is: you’re not really sure why you get like this every time you see her. She’s just a girl, right? Why does she make you feel this nervous and flustered? It’s like you’re a kid with a crush for god sake. Wait. Do you have a crush? That’s ridiculous, you don’t even know her name and you haven't even talked to her yet.
You’ve caught her looking at you several times though. You’re not sure if you’re making this up in your head or not, but you think the small glances at each other have kind of become your thing. Or she just thinks you’re a creeper who’s always staring at her. Yeah, that’s probably it.
You have to restock the Nintendo U games shelf, so you pick up a case full of them and make your way out of the backroom. You can’t hide forever and she’s just a girl. You can’t let her have this effect on you. It’s ridiculous and embarrassing. You have to keep your shit together.
You subconsciously look for her when you’re walking to the Nintendo section of the store, and you spot her looking at a pair of headsets with a confused and pensive expression. You can’t push away the thought of how cute she looks with her eyebrows pushed together and her mouth hanging a little to the side.
For fuck’s sake Karnstein. Now is really not the time to be having such thoughts so you set down the case on the floor and reach for the small step ladder. When you’re done setting up the ladder where you need it to be, you can’t help but look at her again and this time she’s looking at you too.
You lock eyes for a few seconds and when you notice she’s offering you a shy smile, you don’t know what else to do other than look at the floor to hide your own smile and your very red face.
Since when do you duck your face in embarrassment when an attractive girl looks at you? It’s like your brain stops working when you look at her, what the hell? This has to stop. You’re Carmilla Karnstein. You don’t have crushes. You focus back on your task and decide to try to ignore her presence.
//
It’s ten minutes later and you’ve managed to not look at her once since that disaster of an interaction you two had earlier. You’re almost done with this shelf, but then you hear a sweet and weirdly familiar voice behind you.
“Um… Hey! Hi. How are you?” You slowly turn around, hoping it’s not who you think it is. “I just… um… need some help… and was, you know… wondering if you could… you know… help. Hehe. Please?” Great.
There’s no way you can escape now. You have to interact with this girl and you can’t make a fool of yourself. You have to put your game face on. You have to stop acting like a kid with a crush.
She’s right in front of you. Oh god, she’s right in front of you. You realize you’re staring, but she’s staring too, and oh god this is getting awkward. You have to end this. Put your game face on and get this over with.
And also why does her voice sound so goddamn familiar? You’re sure you’ve heard it before, but that doesn’t make sense. Whatever. Time to focus, Karnstein. Don’t mess this up.
Wow. She’s standing right in front of you and you’ve never felt more attacked by someone’s beauty as you do now. She’s smirking at you and quirking an eyebrow and you finally realize why. You’re staring. Open-mouthed. Eyes wide open. Speechlessly staring at her beautiful face.
You shake your head and scream internally. That’s not embarrassing or weird at all. Crap. Crap crap crap! She totally noticed me staring! Say something, Hollis!
“Um… Hey!” You already said hey, Hollis! What the hell is wrong with you?
“Hey.” You hear her say with a smirk playing on her lips.
“Hi.” You say in an assertive tone. “I need your help with the headsets. If you- um. Maybe could- um. Yeah. Please?” You cannot believe how much you’re stuttering right now.
She lets out a short giggle which helps you relax a bit. “Sure thing, cutie.”
You feel your face turn red at the nickname, so you turn around to hide it and you guide her towards the headset section. You’re doing great, Hollis! Don’t mess it up now! You two reach the aisle and you face her again and wow. Her beauty hits you every time like a high speed train. Focus Laura!
“So, I kind of broke my headset so now I have the perfect excuse to upgrade,” You turn to the headsets because her gaze on you is going to make you start stuttering again. “I’m just not sure which one I should choose.” Boom. Nailed it. No stuttering. I totally deserve a cookie right now.
“I didn’t know Club Penguin could get that intense.” She teases you so you decide to play along.
“Excuse you?” You fake gasp, with a hand over your heart and an offended expression. “Club Penguin is not a game to be taken lightly. It gets very competitive out there. 10 year olds are ruthless.” You giggle and can’t help but feel proud at your lack of stuttering.
She lets out a loud laugh that you can’t wait to hear again as soon as it’s over. “Oh, is that so?” You nod, smiling. “Perhaps you could show me one day?”
Is that flirting? It is, right? You’re not exactly an expert, but you’re at least 80% sure that was flirting.
“Absolutely. I’d love that.” Nailed it. “I was actually playing DayZ though. I got up to leave and forgot I still had the headset on, which is so typical of me, and then the chord snapped.” You’re certainly not going to mention to the beautiful girl standing in front of you that this wasn’t the first time it happened. You’re already embarrassed as it is.
“Wait. DayZ? Are you serious?” she asks with a surprised look on her face and you nod. “I would’ve never guessed you were a DayZ kind of girl. I play it too and I have to say I’m impressed, Cupcake.” she says with a smirk playing on her face the whole time.
Realization hits you like a train and your smile rapidly vanishes.
Cupcake? Why does that sound so familiar? And she plays DayZ as well. Wait a sec- No. Nope. It can’t be. You peek at the name tag hiding behind her dark curls. CARMILLA. NO WAY. Your eyes are now wide open and she’s giving you a confused look.
“You’re Carmilla?!” You whisper-shout at her.
“Um… Yes, Cupcake. I’m Carmilla.” She looks pensive for a second. “May I ask why you’re whisper-shouting my own name at me?”
“What’s your gamertag?” You demand. You think the anger in your face must be obvious by now.
“Wait- What? Why?” Carmilla looks apprehensive.
“Just tell me what your gamertag is.” You say a little louder than you wanted to, but you can’t really help it.
“It’s @heycarmilla.” She finally reveals and you let out an angry huff. “What the hell is going on, Creampuff?”
“I told you to stop with the stupid edible nicknames.” You say dryly, hoping she remembers your words from last night.
“What are you talking abo- Oh my god.” You notice when the realization of who you are hits her. “You’re Laura. No way.”
“Yes way. What the hell is wrong with you?” You’re glad you can confront this girl in person. Somehow texts and online messages don’t always translate your anger accurately.
You want to get an explanation out of her. Like why the hell did she shoot you in the back after you helped her and were nothing but nice to her.
“First of all, Cupcake, please do not murder me in my workplace. I don’t think my boss would appreciate that. He’s already all over me as it is. Second of all, it’s just a game. Why won’t you just let it go? Elsa did and now she’s happily freezing shit with her hands.”
Apparently Carmilla is physically incapable of not teasing you every 30 seconds.
“Oh my god. Do you ever not say stupid things? And you bet your ass I’m going to murder you right here!” Your face is probably red with anger by now and your fists are clenched by your sides.
“That bunched up face you make when you’re angry is hilarious, Buttercup.” Carmilla is now walking on a very thin line.
“You really want to die don’t you?” You don’t mean it of course.
You’d never do something like that, obviously. But no one ever seems to take you seriously, so you at least have to try to intimidate them somehow.
“Okay, let’s calm down a little, alright? No one’s killing anyone today, okay?” You huff but you let her continue. “Look, Cupcake, you were actually being nice before you knew who I was. Why can’t we just forget about yesterday and go back to you not wanting to kill me?”
She actually sounds sincere. And you hate to admit it, but technically she’s right. You two were indeed having a nice conversation and there was even some flirting. You’re at least 80% sure of it.
“I was being nice because I needed your help. Unlike you, I don’t stab the people that help me in the back when I no longer need them.”
“Technically I shot you in the back.” Your eyes go wide. “But you know, potatoh potahto…”
“ARE YOU KIDDING ME?” You take a step towards Carmilla, although you’re not sure with what intentions, but someone blocks you from getting to her before you can figure it out.
“Wow there little nerd! Let’s relax, okay?” Kirsch says. “What the hell is going on?”
“I WILL RELAX WHEN YOU PUT ME DOWN KIRSCH.” He obliges but stands still between you and Carmilla. “Ugh, why do you always do that?”
“Well, I wouldn’t have to do it if you didn’t lose your chill so often!” He turns to Carmilla. “What the hell did you do this time?”
“Why do you always assume it was me?” Kirsch gives Carmilla a pointed look. “Whatever. The Cupcake here is mad because I beat her at DayZ.” Carmilla says with a smirk, looking directly at you the whole time.
“You did not beat me! I was helping you and then you betrayed me!” You try to defend your honor because what else can you do with Kirsch standing between you two.
“Wait, you two already knew each other?” Kirsch asks Carmilla, confused by the new bit of information. “My two little hotties were playing DayZ together and didn’t think to invite me? Uncool!” Kirsch finishes with a pout.
Carmilla smacks him in the arm at the use of the horrible nickname. “We didn’t know each other, you idiot. We met while playing yesterday.”
“That’s like, so awesome! What are the odds, like… Think about it!”
You do think about it for a moment. It is indeed intriguing how you have a friend in common with Carmilla (and also how you have been eyeing each other for weeks) but ended up meeting in a game with hundreds of servers and a huge map.
You have to admit that it’s a fascinating coincidence, but then the memory of Carmilla shooting you in the back comes to mind again so you glare at her.
“Clearly the odds were not in my favor.”
“Cupcake, if you could just let this go you’d see how much better you’d feel.”
“How many times do I have to tell you to STOP WITH THE STUPID NICKNAMES?”
No one’s ever made you feel this frustrated before. This girl has the ability to get on your nerve like no one else can. And to think you actually thought she was a nice girl and that you two even flirted for a bit.
“Wow little nerd!” Kirsch jumps in front of you again. “Listen, babes shouldn’t fight.” You notice how Carmilla rolls her eyes at his words. “It would be, like, so awesome if you guys could get along.”
“That’s never going to happen.” You say as you glare at Carmilla. You think you saw her grin falter a bit, but you’re not sure.
“See? The Cupcake hates me.” You shoot her yet another angry look. These nicknames have to stop. “There’s nothing you can do here, Beefcake.”
“Yes there is!” Kirsch says excitedly. “Come to my apartment for a Friday night gaming session. You guys can have a um… what’s the word I’m looking for… like a um… OH OH OH. A rematch! This way you could get your revenge, Laura, and then you guys will be even. No more babes fighting! What do you say?”
“Absolutely not.” “Seriously?” You and Carmilla say simultaneously.
“Dudes, just think about it! It would be so much fun!” You and Carmilla are still looking at him like he grew another head or something. “Alright, how about this then: Laura, you can invite Laf and Perry! We could do, like, teams! I have Will and Carmilla, and you would have Laf and Perry!”
You find yourself thinking about it and you’re surprised when you find yourself actually considering going. Sure, revenge would be great, but is it worth it? Is it worth having to put up with her just so you can get your revenge?
You’re not even really sure who Will is. You think you’ve heard Kirsch mention him a few times, but you don’t actually know who he is. You can bring Laf and Perry with you though, which is nice. They don’t game as much as you do, but they’re still pretty decent at most games.
Oh, why the hell not. Kirsch is right, you could totally get your revenge on Carmilla. Oh, how you’re going to LOVE to see the look on her face when you absolutely CRUSH her at whatever game you’ll be playing.
And then it hits you. You know exactly the perfect game you could play on Friday.
“Okay, I’ll go to your little gaming party.” You announce. “But with one condition.”
“Wait, you’re actually serious?” Carmilla looks at you with eyes wide open and you glare at her.
“What is it, Laura?” Kirsch asks.
“I pick the game.” You grin. “Mario Kart.”
Carmilla lets out a loud laugh. “What are we, five?”
“Oh, Laura here is a Mario Kart master!” Kirsch tells Carmilla. “You should watch out, angry hottie!”
“Guess we’ll see about that on Friday.” Carmilla smirks and walks away, making sure to rub shoulders with you.
“I’ll see you Friday, Kirsch. I’ll talk to Perry and Laf in the meantime.” You say as you glare at the back of Carmilla’s head.
As you’re about to step out of the store, Kirsch yells after you. “Hey, aren’t you going to get the headset?”
You curse internally and walk back over to Kirsch. It’s ridiculous how Carmilla gets you this disoriented and riled up. She sure is annoying and provocative, but you can’t help but think that she was right. You were indeed being nice to her before you knew who she really was.
Sure you’re nice to everybody, especially attractive girls you’ve been eyeing for weeks- NO. No, no, no. You can’t be having this kinds of thoughts about her anymore. What she did to you was horrible and you need to focus on getting your revenge. You can’t let her get in your head like this.
You’re already plotting your revenge anyway. There’s no way Carmilla can beat you at Mario Kart. Hell, no one’s beaten you at that game since you were a kid.
You used to play all the time on your awesome Nintendo 64 that your father gave you on your 9th birthday. You still have it stashed under your TV, next to all the more recent consoles. You sometimes still play with it when you’re feeling nostalgic.
You can’t wait to see the look on Carmilla’s face when you finally beat her. It’s going to be priceless.