Carissa inevitably felt sad about it. Yet, pleasant surprises soon came one after another.Alex recommended her to other clubs willing to take in female players. Because of that, she didn't need to join the youth training camp and could advance straight to the clubs' tryouts.Still, Carissa ended up going to the youth training camp. She wasn't refusing to use her connections with Alex out of pride. Instead, she wanted to experience life in the training camp after conversing about it with Alex. Besides, she couldn't join competitions regardless of whether a club would sign her. That was because the competition season only started after the youth training camp ended. So, her wish to experience the camo wouldn't affect anything.She could also familiarize herself with a competitive environment. She'd train with the youth training camp's players.Carissa had also asked for Alex's opinion before she signed with the Flashfocus Esports Club. She wasn't trying to trouble Alex. Carissa si
Carissa continued planning for her life after having a big cry.Apart from her original practice schedule and finding a partner to train one-on-one, she added an hour of live streams to earn more money. A career in the gaming industry was indeed unstable. Carissa had also experienced days when no one would watch her live streams in the early days of doing it. The worst part was she had to pay for her electricity usage.No matter what, Carissa made it through to today. So, she seized the chance to earn as much money as possible. Otherwise, things would be less stable once she retired, and society would lose its buzz for her. Without earning enough money, she could only obey her parents' wish to marry someone and have children.That would be terrifying for her. Although Carissa wasn't against marrying, she still feared it because she wasn't prepared and hadn't met the right person.She could only earn as much money as possible while she was young. That way, she could give herse
"It's Gina Jackman. I used to live in the apartment unit below your parents, but I guess you don't know me since we seldom saw each other, huh?" The woman wiped her hands on her apron. Her hands were oily because of the dishes she cooked at her food stand. Her hands would still appear unclean even if she rinsed them. So, she wiped them against her apron while flustered.Carissa had finally remembered who this woman was. "I remember you. It's just that we haven't seen each other in a while, so I couldn't recall at first glance. Please don't take it to heart, Ms. Gina."One couldn't blame Carissa for not remembering. In truth, most neighbors seldom saw each other despite living in the same apartment. Carissa's memories of Gina were from her days as a junior in high school. She would go downstairs to the activity area, where Gina's child would play in the sandbox.Carissa never interfered with the child and would only watch from afar. She couldn't help reflecting on her childhood n
Carissa felt like confetti had burst in her chest when she heard Gina's words. She never thought she'd become someone else's role model. After all, not winning first place was pointless in her parent's eyes. In high school, Carissa only had average grades in her class, so her parents didn't treat her any better. Even if people called her an elite student after learning she attended the top middle school in the area, she didn't feel like she was one.That was because there were exceptional students around her, many of whom had better grades than her. Carissa just refused to fall too far behind. So, she could only spend more time working hard to get a middle rank in her class.Yet, Gina stood before her and said a younger girl now saw her as a role model.Carissa found the situation bizarre as she felt wasn't worthy of such a role. At the same time, she was giddy with joy that someone saw her as an inspiring figure.Gina didn't hold back any information. Since it was late, ther
"Should I go home?" Carissa wondered as she balled her fists, which were hidden in her long sleeves. She was hesitant. On the one hand, she felt conflicted after learning from Gina that her parents watched her competitions. It made her want to go home at once and confront her parents. She wanted their approval.On the other hand, Carissa felt terrified. She feared her parents would react coldly toward her like always. She was worried that Gina had only said those things out of politeness and to flatter her since they were neighbors.Yet, it had already been two, almost three years since she went home.Carissa also seldom answered their calls.Deep down, she wanted to go and see them.Carissa pursed her lips, inhaled deeply, and snapped out of her thoughts. Then, she looked at Rebecca to say, "Thanks, Rebecca, but it's too late. My parents usually sleep around this time. It'll be inconvenient if I go home now. I'll visit tomorrow instead. Can I hitch a ride back to the hotel with
Both clubs only learned about the situation online the following afternoon.Their celebratory dinner yesterday lasted till late at night. Plus, they had split up to do their own things after leaving the restaurant. They later returned to their hotel rooms, hosted individual live streams, and had a midnight snack. They ended up sleeping at their usual bedtime when everything ended. Naturally, they awoke in the afternoon the next day.Alex instantly saw the countless missed calls and messages on his phone once he awoke.He thought he was dreaming, so he rubbed his eyes and went back to sleep. In the next second, he sprang up from the bed with a frosty expression as he dealt with the various text messages.As for the post that just appeared online, Alex merely found it ridiculous. Anyone who had seen yesterday's competition would intuitively know the players on the other team were in worse condition.If anyone was match-fixing, it should be a famous player from his club, not Flashf
Rebecca lost interest after looking at it for a while.Under the comments, there were several pages and accounts piping up about the competition. They clarified that CalX Esports Club was very strong overall and was always in first place during the regular season events. The contestant in the video just wasn't in good condition that day, and he usually did very well in the regular season. They explained that they had already done their best in the competition with Flashfocus Esports Club, and there was no need for them to accept money and rig the competition. It was just a pity that no one was reading those accounts. In addition, the issue had died down, and the top comments were all sarcastic. The comments trying to clarify would just be seen as trying to whitewash and would be buried quickly. They would be labeled as those who were accepting money or be humiliated as saying they were just the club's bitches. Rebecca scanned a few comments and suddenly felt that there was n
Rebecca was stunned when she saw the man in the doorway. She had woken up late and had just been scrolling on her phone after washing up. She still hadn't gotten dressed or put on her makeup and was in her pajamas with her hair loose. When she saw the huge figure of the man in front of her, she had no choice but to hide behind the door and ask in a low voice, "Mr. Winston? Is … anything the matter?"Daniel lowered his head, and his vision was filled with the bare face of a young lady who looked rather guarded. She was guarded against him. When he realized this, Daniel pressed his thin lips together, and his fingers curled slightly. He did not retreat. He maintained his usual expression. After a moment, he asked gently, "There isn't anything urgent. I just wanted to come over and ask if you've had lunch yet, Becca."He was smiling gently and looked harmless.After a pause, he added, "I saw that it was almost lunchtime, and you know that I don't really know anyone here. I