For The Win (Gamer Girls, #6) - Auryn Hadley Page 0,3

heathens, the entire group groaned in unison, proving that someone wasn't doing very well at their game - just as she closed the door.

"Hey, Ethan," one of the guys taunted, lifting the controller. "Heard you're the one to beat."

"I, uh, play on the computer," she explained, glancing at the screen to see which game they were playing. "Consoles aren't my thing."

"So, you're not as badass as Tyler says, huh?" the guy teased. "Figured you were enough of a loser that you'd know nothing else. Or are you one of those nerds who's too sensitive to kill someone?"

"Not cool," Tyler shot back. "Leave my brother alone, Kevin."

But the guy with the controller just looked a little more amused. "Oh, Ethan needs his big brother to stand up for him? C'mon, loser. Show me what you got."

"Fuck off," Rhaven told him, refusing to correct the name. "Pretty sure my dick doesn't care about your opinion."

"Oh, you got one?" Kevin taunted. "Who knew!"

"Enough!" Tyler snapped.

But that was more than Rhaven could take. Storming over, she grabbed the other guy's controller from his hands. "You want a round? Fine," she told Kevin. "Head to head. You pick."

And Kevin grinned. "Big talk from the little man. Tell me, where'd you learn to play? From girls?"

Rhaven just huffed out a laugh. "Yeah, Kevin. Pretty much."

Chapter 2

Rhaven waited while Kevin went through the game options, but he didn't select a match between them. Instead, he dropped her into an open battle. Just her - and a random group of players online. Rhaven wasn't used to working the controller, but that didn't mean she was clueless. It had been a while, but she'd played consoles before she'd saved up enough for a computer that could handle the next generation games.

Quickly flipping through the options, she loaded out her character the same way she did in Eternal Combat, then the match was on. What Kevin didn't realize was that console games were often easier. The games were simple, designed to work with the tech of the console and on a slower internet connection. Things like ping, frame rate, and graphics lag weren't problems because everything was the same across the board. Then there were the hit boxes.

In Eternal Combat, they were small, mimicking the size and shape of the character. In console games, they were a lot more forgiving. That meant her inexperience with the controller would be compensated by the game itself. Other than that, these things were always the same. Every room would have two ways in, every secure place would have a weakness, and all the guns were balanced to give no one an advantage.

She steered her character through the war zone, ducking low behind cover while waiting for some hint of movement. The mini map showed dots moving - those who'd been spotted by other players on her team. Gunfire turned them red for a few seconds, and getting out of sight made them fade away. Still, one thing was obvious. The enemy's side was all clustered around their control point, so that was where she needed to be. Eventually.

"Dude," Kevin said, pointing at the screen. "You need to get to the point."

"I am," she assured him, taking a circular route around the edges of the buildings.

"He's scared!" another guy laughed. "Oh no, Ethan's gonna die."

"Leave him alone," Tyler snapped.

Rhaven's eyes flicked to her brother to find his jaw clenched as he glared at his friends. It was sweet - or as sweet as Tyler ever got - but didn't really help. All he was doing was convincing these guys that she was something to feel sorry for. Too bad for them, shooters were the one place she actually felt in control of her life.

And when she came around the last building, she got the chance to prove it. Two guys were all but napping at the back. Rhaven tore them down with a pair of perfectly executed headshots. Without hesitation, she moved in, triggering the control point to shift to her side. Across the map, she could hear the rattle of guns which meant that the rest of her team were trying a head-on assault, but those never worked. What it did was give her the advantage.

Turning the point got her a little attention. A guy came in from the side with his gun blazing. Rhaven strafed, returning fire, and tore him down. That was the third kill, which meant there should only be five guys left, and she was out in the open.