"Happy birthday dear Josh…. Happy birthday to you!" Winston sang half-heartedly along with his parents. His brother Josh sat across from him at the kitchen table, smiling his trademark smile. It had lead many a girl to his arms and more than a few to his bed, but Winston knew Josh did his best not to break their hearts. He was too handsome for anyone's good but he was, at his core, good-natured. It was why women liked him so much. Hell, it was why Winston liked him. He was often jealous of his older brother but they'd always gotten along well.

Josh sat at the end of the table in front of his football shaped cake. Eighteen candles were stuck into and Josh grinned as he took a deep breath and blew them all out. Winston and Josh's father sat to Josh's right. A tall athletic man in his late-thirties, while their mother, sat to Josh's left.

Josh took after their father in looks. He was blonde-haired, blue-eyed, tall and athletic, Winston took after their mother, short, dark-haired, olive skinned, and more than a little dumpy. As for how his rather unattractive mother had landed their more attractive father? It was likely because of all the money she inherited from her parents. Anyone who knew the couple was aware that Carlotta Stevenson ran the show, while John Stevenson was basically a trophy husband. Although, he now was the regional manager for a popular sporting goods chain, it was Carlotta's influence that had landed him the position.

The two's relationship wasn't really that good. Not that it bothered Winston that much. In fact he disliked his father quite a bit. It wasn't the man was abusive or anything, he was just an ass and he favored Winston's brother to a ridiculous degree. That was alright.

The four of them sat around the table while Josh cut the cake and took the first piece. Then he pushed back his chair and hopped to his feet.

"Where is my present! He said grinning, as he rubbed his hands together in anticipation. John smiled and lead them to the kitchen closet where he opened the door. A massive box, that was taller than Josh waited there, wrapped in red paper and tied with a light blue bow.

Josh and his Father drug the massive box out into the living room where they pushed it into the middle of the floor. Josh smiled happily as he looked over at Wiston. "What'dda think Win? It's gonna be something good if the box is this big right." He said as he started ripping off the wrapping paper. Inside the paper was a giant box and Winston froze in place when he saw what was written on it.

Albion Mark V was printed on the box in Large block letters with the words Nexus Corp below it in smaller lettering. 'Created for Otherworld the number one game on Earth', it said even lower down. Winston just looked at the box in a sort of stunned disbelief as anger started boiling in his gut.

"You can't be serious…" His mind said as he started at the obvious evidence in front of him. He'd been working his ass off for months to get a system to play Otherworld. They were expensive, Nearly five-grand for the newest Mark V's and Winston had been begging his parents for months to get one for him. Now here one was, like he'd always dreamed. Only it was for his brother, who didn't even play video games that much. Winston was so angry he wanted to spit up blood.

The Albion Mark V entertainment system was the latest state-of-the-art model from Nexus Corp. They had been behind the creation of the first true full immersive VR hardware along with the launch of their flagship game Otherworld. The game had launched three years ago, and although there had been a large scandal at Nexus following the development and release of the game, the new CEO and board of directors had continued to operate the game. The game now boasted almost seventy million subscribers who all paid 100 USD a month for the privilege of playing. The systems had cost nearly five grand at launch, and the newest systems were still that much, although the older-model systems had come down in price.

Winston had always taken his parents neglect as a matter of course. He'd never understood it, but it wasn't like they abused him. They fed him and clothed him, his mom had even helped him with his homework and been kind to him when he was younger. It was only as he'd gotten older that she'd pulled away from him. That had always been fine to Winston. It wasn't like he could do anything about it. So he'd decided long ago to take it as a challenge. If they didn't want to help him he'd just do it himself. That had been his way since he was in fifth or sixth grade.

He'd always known his brother was his parents favorite. It didn't take a genius to figure out why. His brother was better looking, was more sociable, and was well on his way to a football scholarship. Everyone in town was in love with him. Winston on the other hand got decent grades but had no athletic ability to speak of. Instead he spent most of his time playing video games and hanging out with his equally odd friends.

Once he'd started middle school his homelife had begun to deteriorate. His mother had started ignoring him and his father had turned from sullen silence to active harassment. It was never physical so Winston had just buried it all deep inside and plowed onward, waiting for the day he turned 18 so he could leave. There were lines though. Limits to what one could endure. WInston's parents has just stepped across that line.

"You guys really amaze me sometimes." Winston said calmly, even as his rage built. "Ignoring me? That I understand, after all I'm a kid, just a drain on your resources. That's cold but it's at least logical. However you KNEW that I've been wanting one of these for MONTHS. I've been working, I've been begging, I've offered payment, I've offered to get a real job, raise my grades, anything. And you shot me down every time."

"Yet now, you give one to Josh? Who I know didn't even ask for one. That's just cruel. Neglect I can at least understand, but why cruelty? What did I do? It's not like I got a vote for being born." Winston said both pissed and hurt. He was still a high-schooler. Even if he didn't feel much love for his parents he still wanted to be accepted by them. The long years of burying his feelings were finally bubbling up.

"Not everything is about you." Winston's dad snapped. "Just because you feel like we owe you something doesn't mean you can talk to use like that. We got this for josh because fighting in game is good exercise and it helps hone reflexes. This is to help Josh with his scholarship not so he can play games." His dad snapped.

"Oh!, And the seventy-inch TV and Xbox you bought him last christmas? Those for training to? If you feel the need to lie to me about it, at least come up with something reasonable." Winston said. "Not that you really need to. Since your adults and are wise and all knowing. You can just play the 'sit down and shut up card' to your heart's content." Winston said, derisively.

"I don't need to explain myself to you? You're just a damn kid who think because he has some brains he gets to be an adult." His father snapped. " Your brother got straight A's last report card, and we wanted to reward him. I've noticed your grades have been slipping."

"He gets straight A's because he's in WOODSHOP and like THREE PE's!" Winston nearly screamed. Winston himself was in the advanced classes in Chem, Physics, and Math and they wanted to talk to him about grades, ridiculous. "But you're right, you don't need to explain yourself to me. You don't need to care, you don't need to worry, if that's the way to want it that's fine. I just hope you'll stay the hell outta my way, because I'm done. I'm never asking you guys for anything again, and the moment I get enough money to move out I'm gone and never coming back." Winston shouted as he stormed out of the living room and towards his bedroom.

He slumped onto his rickety old computer chair still seething. His computer screen was blinking with IM notifications from his friends but he ignored them while he tried to get his emotions back under control. Winston knew he had a temper. He worked hard to control it and he was embarrassed about the little fit he just threw. He was just so damn tired of having to work around his parents.

He'd met parents who just didn't care what their kids did, and he'd met parents that restricted their children for their own good. Winston's parents however seemed to be actively trying to screw up his life. If they didn't want to support him that was fine, he was old enough to do it himself, but they wouldn't let him get a job to become independent. It was ridiculous. Most parents would be happy with their kids working, instead of mooching off them. Winston though was trapped. His parents refused to help him and actively prevented him from helping himself.

He'd managed to save up a little money, by working odd jobs around town but it wasn't enough to really move out on his own.

He was staring absently in the direction of his scantily clad night-elf poster when someone knocked on the door. It was a firm knock, in the pattern of 'shave and a haircut' Winston sighed and said, "Come in Josh." They'd started knocking like that years ago, so they'd know when it was each other, and when it was their parents. It was a bit silly, but they'd started doing it when they were only twelve and the habit had stuck.

Josh opened the door and walked in, grinning as usual. His blonde-hair was cut close to his head and the front was spiked up with just a bit of gel. Honestly, he looked a bit like Captain America, with his blonde-hair, handsome face, and too white smile. Winston loved his brother but he had an urge to punch the too handsome bastard in the face sometimes.

"So you just gonna stay in here brooding all night. Or you wanna come check out my new system?" Josh asked Winston as he sat down on his brother's bed. "I'm getting ready to go pick-up Kate anyway, so I won't be back most of the night." He said. That was the other problem with Josh. Not only was he handsome and easy-going he was also a good person. It was honestly, unfair.

"I'm pretty good at brooding, but I think if I stay in here and practice some more tonight, I might be able to make the national team." Winston said. "It's not like I can play your account anyway. So go have fun with your girl. And… Josh." Winston said as his brother stood back up. "Sorry about what I said. I was pissed at mom and dad, but I shouldn't have brought your classes into it."

Josh laughed. "No problems man. I love seeing you when you're on one of your rants.Besides You know I've never liked how they treat you. I doubt you'll even get in trouble. It's not like what you said wasn't true. Just try to calm down a bit while I'm gone." He said as He pulled a key-ring from his pocket and spun the keys around his finger. "Alright little bro, I'm off to woo a lovely maiden." Winston snorted derisively as Josh left and closed the door. If Katie Trailman was a maiden Winston would eat his pillow.

He watched his brother leave and before standing up again and starting to pace. The two had always been close. They'd only been born 11 months apart, and although Josh was a senior and Winston a junior they'd played together everyday as children. It wasn't until they started middle school that the two had started to grow apart. Josh was a natural athlete and had gone out for all the sports teams, while Winston was more cerebral.Their diverging interests had lead them into different cliques, but they'd managed to stay close. Winston wasn't sure how he'd react to Josh leaving for college next year.

That was alright though. Winston had his own life and his own friends and he could be stubborn when needed. He just needed a way to make some more money. He had managed to save up about 1500 dollars from working odd jobs, but that wasn't enough money to move out without a steady income. He also needed to find a way to afford a VR system. Most of his friends already played and he was NOT going to be left on the sidelines forever. Winston paced his small room as tried to come up with ideas. Things would be difficult, but that didn't make them impossible.

*****************************************************************

Winston walked up to his locker at Ulysses S. Grant Memorial High School. It was about ten minutes before the homeroom bell rang and Winston felt like ass. He'd stayed up half the night listening to a cheesy fantasy novel on audiobook and three hours of sleep was going to make it a very long Wednesday.

He blearily reached for his trig book and a notebook in a sort of glassy-eyed stupor, by the time he'd gotten the book, a pencil, and his notebook all ready, the bell was already-ringing and Winston zombie-walked himself to homeroom.

Mrs. Funkelstein was an attractive woman in her mid-thirties. She acted more like an older sister than a teacher to most of the students but she was popular with both the boys and the girls. Winston gave her a vague nod as he slid into his seat a few rows from the back. It was a calculated choice. Too close to the front and you might catch the teacher's eye. Too close to the back and you'd be in the line of fire when the teachers sought to pick out kids who weren't paying attention. The key was to stay in the middle of the room, in the middle of the pack and pay attention without looking excited. It was a tough line to walk, but he'd been practicing since junior high and had it down to science.

It wasn't that Winston disliked school. He just found it all a waste of time. His grades were always near the top of the class but he never really found much to engage himself. He was taking multiple advanced classes, which was part of the reason he was so pissed when his parents had used grades as their excuse. In his opinion a B in advanced chemistry should net him more educational goodwill than an A in woodshop.

Winston was trying his best not to fall asleep when his buddy Jason slid into the desk beside him, a good two-minutes late as usual. He was a tall gangly kid with wild hair and a devil-may-care attitude. He, like Winston, was near the top of the class in terms of grades, but where Winston's main goal was to keep his head down and due his time, Jason loved to flaunt the fact that we was so smart he could get good grades while not paying attention, showing up to class on time, or really trying at all.

"What the hell Stevenson, where were you last night? We needed you. I had to play support since you weren't around and we ended up playing some crazy Korean clannies. How the hell am I supposed to carry Brad and Ruger against Koreans when I'm an F-ing support?" Jason said, looking put upon.

"You can survive without me for one night and Brad and Ruger aren't THAT bad." Winston defended.

"They aren't terrible, but they aren't a match for those crazy rice-burners with 5000 APM either." Jason said, at least with you there I coulda played a real carry and tried to turn it. Besides you're a plat-tier support at least. You wouldn't be stuck in gold if you stopped playing with Ruger and Brad.

"What's the point of playing a game, if you have to ditch your friends to do it? So I can play with solo with a bunch of try-hards who freak out anytime I make a mistake. " Winston said. "Besides I wasn't in the mood for games last night."

"You get into one of your sulks again? You gotta find yourself a woman, or start drinking. You're too broody." Jason said, giving winston a half-serious glare.

"Yes because drowning your sorrows in booze and women is such a great coping mechanism."Winston said with an eye-roll. "And if I started drinking we really wouldn't be able to win a game of League of the Ancients."

"We can't win a game now, and the population has gone to shit since Otherworld came out. First thing I'm doing this summer is getting a Job and saving up for a system." Jason said with zeal.

"That's why I didn't get on last night. Mom and Dad bought Josh a system for his birthday." Winston said.

"THEY DID WHAT!" Jason yelled, turning every head in the room towards them.

"Mr. Masterson please don't yell inside the building." Ms. Funkelstein said with the exasperated tone of someone who knows her statement will be disregarded, but is duty bound to say it anyway.

"I apologise Mrs. F, but honestly you'd be yelling too if you heard what I just did." Jason said to the teacher before turning back to Winston and lowering his voice. "That's some NTR level betrayal right there. I'm surprised you didn't burn the place down, then dance around the flames until the cops showed up to take you away."

"I'm not sure your using NTR properly.".

"But you've been begging them for a year, picking up odd jobs around the neighborhood and working your ass off. If them getting one for your brother and not you isn't a giant kick in the balls then I don't know what is. You shoulda bitch-slapped them." Jason said, looking outraged on Winston's behalf. Winston smiled at his friend. The kid really was insane but he was a good friend.

"I'll figure something out and I'm not asking them for shit ever again. I'll get myself a system without them then they won't be able to say anything to me." Winston said, his thoughts already whirling on how he might accomplish such a thing.

"Preach brother!" Jason said holding out a fist. Winston dutifully bumped it, just as the bell for first period rang.

The morning went by in a sort of fugue state for Wiston. He vaguely remembered turning in his Trig assignment, then listening to a lecture about the political situation in Central Europe leading up to the start of World War I. Then it was lunchtime and the smell of french-fries finally managed to wake Winston up. He grabbed a plate of what passed for school-food then plunked himself down at the table that he and his friends had claimed as their own.

Winston was the first to the table and was already three fries in when Jason, Brad, and Ruger arrived and took their usual spots. Brad was the most stereotypical looking nerd of the bunch. Short, pale, and sporting a pair of thick glasses, he always resembled some small rodent. He was the most into computers and had already designed a couple of apps. None of his creations had sold huge numbers but he'd made decent money for a kid still in highschool. Ruger was the token black guy of their little group. He was built much like Winston, short and thick, but where Winston was mostly flab, Ruger carried around a great deal of muscle under his fat.

"So your parents really bought a Mark V for Jason?" Ruger asked as soon as they sat down. He was looking at Winston seriously with his dark eyes. Ruger was an excitable guy, much like Jason but he was a little more down to earth than Winston's skinny red-haired friend. Ruger wasn't his actual name, but he'd gotten the nickname in grade-school and it had stuck.

"Yep... " Winston said bitterly. "Josh has never played an MMO in his life, but he's going to be firing up Otherworld tonight while I'm stuck playing LotA. That's just so wrong." Winston said sadly.

"That sucks man. I know how bad you've been wanting to get it. It's an awesome game, although I wish our guild was a little more active." Ruger said with a sigh. Ruger's parents were both big-shots, and Ruger had more than enough money to have joined the game. Honestly, Winston's parents had more than enough money but they had been against it for other reasons, until they'd gotten a push from one of Josh's coaches. Of their little four person group, only Winston and Jason were still on the outside. It made Winston crazy and he'd been doing what he could to remedy the problem.

"That does seem to be a slap in the face for you." Brad added as he looked at his burger dubiously. Brad was a bit of a stoic and was a man of few words.

"It's bullshit that's what it is." Jason said. "Don't worry Stevenson, we'll work something out. We just need to find some alternative options." That worried Winston. 'Alternative Options' for Jason could mean anything from blackmail, to theft, to gun-running. It was best to head him off at the pass. Winston opened his mouth to prevent a felony when a goddess sat down at the table.

Jessica Richards was blonde, stacked, and somewhere in the top three of the school's hottest girls. Today she was wearing a tight blue v-neck blouse with an a white undershirt. The combination made her already impressive breasts look enormous without actually showing any skin.

All the guys at the table started at her breasts for a moment before jerking their eyes up to her beautiful heart-shaped face and heartbreaking blue eyes. They all looked at her slack-jawed and stupefied. Jessica Richard's should not be sitting at their table. It was like finding a flamingo in the middle of the Canadian tundra. It was something so out of place and alien it seemed to break the very nature of the universe.

"So you guys were talking about Otherworld right, do you guys play?" She asked looking both curious and interested. The four men started at her as if she'd spoken in Russian. The silence stretched until before Brad finally spoke up.

"Two of us do, Winston and Jason don't though." He said, in his normal bland voice. Good old Brad, world was ending but he was chill as always. Luckily, his statement seemed to galvanize the rest of the table.

"Yeah, we were just thinking of some ways to help good old Stevenson here get in the game." Jason said as he gave Winston a hearty slap on the back. Winston still had no idea what the hell was going on, but he would really prefer if his friends weren't airing out all his dirty laundry to the hottest girl in school. Winston's brain seemed to be having trouble processing information as his eyes ate up Jessica's beauty like a starving wolf.

"Well, I might be able to help." Jessica said with a smile that nearly had Winston drooling on the table. "My brother Marcus and I are in Swords of Solomon and We've been looking for some people to help out."

"You guys are in Swords of Solomon?" Ruger said incredulously. "Damnnn, They are one of the top guilds in the country. That must kick ass." He said adding star-stuck to the already glazed expression he was wearing when he looked at her.

She smiled again and the four men around the table seemed to all unravel a little. "We're gearing up for the new Cloud-Kingdom expansion and the guild is looking for new recruits. All the top guilds are looking for manpower right now." Winston wasn't sure why they'd need more manpower. They were one of the top guilds. Just a hint of needing people and there should be thousands willing to flock to their banner. However he was too entranced with Jessica's beauty to let something like logic distract him.

"So you're saying you could get me into Swords?" Winston said incredulously. This was all WAY beyond his expectations. This would be an incredible deal if anyone was offering it, but Jessica Richards? It was too amazing to even fathom. Winston was nearly bouncing on his seat.

"Well, not into swords itself. It would be into one of our feeder guilds to start, but you could definitely work your way in." She said, reassuringly.

"How's that gonna help with the system though?" Jason asked. He was as excited as the others but he'd seen to the heart of the matter. Winston's happiness deflated a bit, as he saw his dreams flew away.

"Well, that's what I wanted to talk about. See the clan needs people who are really able to play and help, not just hangers on who wanna join the clan. It's more of a job than a gift. You'd have to promise to help the clan with anything they ask and play for a required amount of time each day from three to six months depending on the contract, but they'd pay for your sub, and would pitch in with you for the system." She explained.

"That seems fair." Winston said, "but what's this about a contact?" He said, finally a little suspicious, putting his name on anything seemed like a bad idea to Winston.

"Of course there's a contact. Deals like this happen all the time in the big clans but the Clan needs a way to defend themselves. They are providing you with quite a bit of money, so they need insurance that you won't just take their money and run off." Jessica said. "We can talk more after school. Give me your number. I'll text you the address and we can go meet up with my brother to get things worked out." Winston acknowledged the point.

Otherworld was big business, emphasis on the big. 100 dollars a month at seventy million players was 84 billion in gross annual revenue. Combine that with the cut they took of all real money transfers in game, as well as other character and guild services they sold for money and the amount of money they made each year was massive.

The going rate of real money to gold was about 10 gold per dollar. However taking into account that a top guild could make upwards of one-hundred thousand gold on a cutting edge-raid, guilds were as much business as they were a gaming group. Some of the top guilds had annual budgets in the eight-figure range. Then again they were also the most likely to pour that money back into the game and Nexus was happy to take their cut on both sides of the transaction.

Jessica rose from the table in a smooth motion as Winston rattled off his number in a daze. Jessica winked at him and sauntered away with a swish of her tight jeans. All four men watched her walk away with rapt interest.

"Goddddddd damn, now that's a woman." Ruger said. The four boys were still staring after her when another girl slid into the seat Jessica had just vacated. In contrast to Jessica's stylish look, this girl wore a loose gray hoodie and old jeans. Instead of being blonde and built, this girl was pleasantly plump, with a round pretty face and more than her share of curves. Her hair was a common brown that hung down below her shoulders. She looked in the direction of the men's gazes and sighed theatrically. "If you guys stare anymore your tongues are going to go rolling across the floor like that cartoon wolf."

Winston smiled at the girl."Hey Trish… What's up?" He asked. Winston and Trisha had been friends since Junior high. She was one of the few girls who Winston wasn't shy around. They'd been each other's first kiss on a dare back in seventh grade but even though Winston had always been attracted to her, he treated her like one of the guys. She played Otherworld as well, and would even act as their 5th in LotA occasionally.

"What was Jessica doing here?" She asked, in what appeared to Winston to be a bit of a forced nonchalance. Winston smiled.

"She'd helping me get into Otherworld. It's gonna be great Trish. You've been telling me forever how you wanted me to get a system so we could play. Now I'll finally be able to" He said happily. The news just made Trish's face darken.

"You do realize what she's doing don't you?" Trish asked Winston, as her green eyes met his brown ones. Winston just looked at her confused.

"Uhhh, her guild needs some people and she thought she'd help me out?" Winston said, questioningly. Trish looked at him like he was a huge idiot.

"Have you ever seen her do anything for anyone?" She's one of the single most manipulative people I've ever met." Winston frowned, he wasn't really getting that vibe from Jessica but who knew. It's not like he was an expert at reading women or reading anyone really.

"So your saying she'd just using me for something?" Winston asked.

"Of course she's using you for something. You think a girl like that would talk to you guys unless she wanted something." Trish said. That was a little unnecessary and Winston looked at her sideways.

"You saying I'm not good enough for her? I don't care if she's using me or not. If she can get me a system and in game, then it's fine, but it's not like I'm gonna sign anything until I read it. I'm not an idiot." Winston said, angry. It wasn't enough for his dad to bash him all the time. Now Trish was doing it as well?

Trish's face flickered through a few emotions that Winston couldn't follow before her face started to redden in anger as well. "If you wanna chase after her like some puppy then go do it. It's not like I care." She said as he stood up from the seat and stomped off.

Winston looked after her scowling. "What's the hell's wrong were her. She insulted me and then stomps off like I did something wrong?" Winston said as he turned back to his friends. They were all looking at him with various expressions of pity. Jason looked at him and shook his head.

"You really don't get it do you. I always thought you were just not interested, but you're actually just this oblivious." He said. Winston scowled at him.

"What do you mean… and why are you taking her side?" She's the one that insulted me." Winston said. Jason raised his hands defensively.

"I'm not taking anyone's side, I'm Switzerland over here. You can deal with your own girl problems." Jason said.

"What do you mean my girl problems? We aren't an item, never have been." Winston said.

Jason rolled his eyes. "Good lord, you're gonna be a virgin forever. Lemme know if you really do get magical powers when you hit thirty." Jason said. Winston looked from him to Ruger and Brad, who both shook their heads sadly.

Winston stood up from the table and took his plate up to the wash lady. He really didn't get his friends sometimes but he hated when people refused to tell him things.

The afternoon went by in a blur as Winston's thoughts were stuck on the evening's meeting. He still couldn't wrap his mind around the incongruity of Jessica Richards sitting down to talk with them at lunch. She played Otherworld? The pieces just didn't seem to fit together. By the time he was finally free from school he was so excited he could hardly stand still.Winston's phone buzzed in his pocket and he pulled it out, his hand trembling slightly with his excitement.

Hey you're outta school right? -Jessica

yep, just walked out the front door. - Winston

Great! My Car is out in the lot. Third row, come hop in and we'll head over to my brothers. - Jessica

….. Uhhhhh kk… brt - Winston

Winston walked out into the parking lot even more confused. He usually came to and from school with his brother. Who was a senior and had a car. He shot his brother a text to let him know he'd find his own ride home. Then headed off to ride home with the hottest girl in school.

The ride was a cherry red mustang that no parent in their right mind would buy for their teenage daughter. Jessica was leaning against the car and was surrounded by her friends and suitors as usual. Winston approached cautiously. He was a bit shy around strangers and feeling more than a little awkward about the entire situation. He was way out of his depth. Jessica saw him approaching and gave him a warm smile that put down his guard. Her attention got the others attention and three heads turned towards him.

Two guys, both football players, and Kelly Cavanaugh the cheerleader. They all looked at Winston with a rather puzzled expression, as if unable to understand why Jessica was smiling at him. To be fair Winston didn't understand why either.

"Who are you?" One of the guys said as he looked at Winston with a puzzled expression. He was a beefy dude, a lineman most likely by Winston's guess, tall and broad with a short haircut. He looked more curious than angry. That was the good part about the real jocks, they usually didn't pick on nerds too much. Not like they always do in stories and on TV. If they don't see you as a threat to their social status or as competition for a mate they usually didn't bother you.

It's was the hangers on that you needed to watch in Winston's opinion. They were the ones that will try to drag others down in order to lift themselves up or to stand out. The ones already at the top don't need to act out. The fact that the guy didn't feel the need to even be hostile towards Winston made him both relieved and annoyed at the same time.

"Uhh Winston Stevenson." Winston said with a half-hearted shrug. The guy looked at him with a cocked head for a moment, then a light seemed to come on.

"Ohhh Stevenston, your Josh's brother right?" The guy said, now more animated. Winston had to suppress an eyeroll. Everyone knew and loved Josh, and Winston was usually treated with kid-gloves by most people because of his brother. It was useful, if annoying. "Well if you two are headed out, I guess we better bail. I'll tell your brother we ran into you when practice starts." He said as he and his large friend shambled away.

"I didn't know you were Josh's brother." Jessica said as she turned back to Winston. Something flashed across her face for a moment but Winston couldn't tell what it was. She and Josh had been on a couple dates but they had never gotten serious as far as Winston knew. Then again, keeping track of Josh's love life would be a full time job.

The two climbed in the car and pulled out of the lot. The turned out onto the road and Headed towards the outskirts of town. Winston did his best not to stare at the girl but it was difficult. She really was beautiful and watching her drive was oddly enjoyable. Still he did his best to keep his eyes in his head until they pulled up outside a modest two-story house on the edge of town.

It looked a little run-down but not terribly. A fresh coat of paint would bring it back to being a decent little house. Still, Winston couldn't imagine that Jessica's brother lived here. Her family obviously had money, judging by Jessica's clothes and car. Winston understood the situation even less but he dutifully got out of the car and headed towards the house.

Jessica didn't bother with knocking and just walked in. The house was a disaster. Pizza boxes, clothes, and empty energy drink cans were scattered around everywhere. Winston recoiled at the sight and smell but Jessica just sighed.

"I swear to God, they are going to be single forever." She said with an eye-roll as they picked a path through the wreckage and into a small-side room. Unlike the rest of the house, the room was clean and looked like a meeting room in an office. A large rectangular table was surrounded by chairs. An IP phone sat in the middle of the table with what appeared to be a video camera and a projector both attached to the ceiling.

Jessica sat in one of the office chairs around the table and Winston followed suit. They sat there in silence for a few seconds before Winston had to start asking questions.

"What is this place?" He asked the girl. The house looked like some post-party frat-house, yet had a meeting room like an office.

"It's a gaming house. They were mostly a thing over in Asia before Otherworld but there were a few in the US for professional gaming teams. Since Otherworld came out more have been popping up.. Basically the guild bought the house for the players, and now they live here and play the game as a job. The guild has about five of these scattered around the county." "Jessica explained, getting into her topic.

"They stay here and work, the guild pays them a small salary which they supplement as much as they can in game. They don't make a ton of money but it's enough to live. This place is basically like a giant frat-house, but they keep the conference room clean to talk to the other houses and the clan heads." She continued.

The two sat in the room and chatted for a bit before a tall brown-haired guy walked in. He looked like he was on a bender. His hair and scraggly beard were a mess but his eyes were sharp and he smiled at Jessica who was apparently his sister. There was a resemblance but it was hard to tell how much with the state he was in. He slid onto a chair into a chair then bent back until his back popped before relaxing..

"So you brought us another one." He said grinning at his sister. "This is number five isn't it. You must really want those daggers." He said as he turned to examine Winston.

Jessica snorted heavily. "Just get out the papers and give him the rundown. I've got stuff to do tonight."

"Alright, alright.." he said waving a hand vaguely. He turned to Winston. "I'm Chuck, or Chu'kal in game. Who are you?" Winston recognized the name instantly. Chu'kal was an Orc Shaman and was one of the core members of the Swords of Solomon. He had a ton of fans and a Twitch channel with nearly 20,000 subscribers.

"I'm Winston Stevenson. Jessica said you might have an offer for me." Winston said, looking at the man. He seemed to be the one in charge here and Winston wanted to make a good impression.

"Yeah, well we are recruiting grunts for the upcoming expansion. It's not exactly glamorous, but we're willing to pick up your sub and help with a system as long as you work for us. Honestly, it would probably be easier on you just to get a part-time job and save up, but if you really wanna to get in game we're willing." He said with a shrug.

"What are the terms." Winston asked.

"Basically we can offer you a old Mark III system for a thousand bucks. That's about half of what it would cost online. Then you have to join one of our feeder clans, and do whatever tasks we assign you for three months. You have to play a minimum of 20 hours a week for the three months." Chuck explained.

"So basically you're paying me…. What eighty cents an hour to play soldier for you?" Winston asked, doing the mental math. That really was a terrible deal but he would get to play at least. Especially since his parents kept refusing to let him get a part-time job. This would let him kill at least 1.5 birds with one stone.

"That about sums it up. I told you it's not really a great deal. It would be easier just to grab a job stocking shelves or something then pay for it the normal way, but if you want in I'll get the contract out." He said with a shrug. Winston respected the man more for laying things out truthfully to him, Jessica on the other hand he was feeling a little angry towards. He'd bet money that she got a bonus for finding people who signed on. Trisha had been right, which made Winston more mad, he'd have to grovel a bit for this one.

"Alright, get out the contact. Although I'm still a minor." Winston said.

"That doesn't really matter. Being a minor just means we can't lock you into it. You can void the contract whenever you want anyway it's not like we're trying to take your life away or anything. We'd just stop paying for your sub and take back the MK III." The older boy said with a shrug. He was around college age maybe 21 or 22, and definitely had the pale skin and unkempt appearance of a hardcore gamer. He rolled his chair over to an old-style file cabinet and grabbed a stack of papers out of it, before rolling back to the table and sliding them under Winston's nose. "There ya go, sign if you want. I'd read it first though."

Winston did just that searching for any hidden small print. There was some, He would be given a weekly quest by the guild which he had to complete for the contract to remain valid. He couldn't sign any agreement with any clan other than the Swords of Solomon, or one of their feeder guilds for at least three months after his contract ended. In case the contract was voided his account would be deleted immediately, and he had to return the system to the Swords within 24 hours or face legal action. It was a giant headache but it wasn't anything unexpected. Winston sighed internally and scribbled his name on the dotted line.