GLITCHYYY Contest

"Back already?" Elios said as the teenager arrived behind him and Opal.

"Yeah, fortunately. I know you missed me so bad."

"Why of course. The presence of the Great Game Slayer Elijah is always greatly appreciated."

"Too much honor really. Please continue."

The man bowed dramatically in front of Elijah, as Opal stifled back a laugh at their shenanigans. The couple had always been so nice to Elijah. They would give them pineapple soda for free and let them stay in the arcade as long as they wanted, whether it was early or late. Elijah wasn't complaining. Far from it. Thanks to that, they had already tested all the games available and managed to overcome their constant boredom just a little bit while collecting money. Elijah wouldn't go so far as to say that they liked the couple. Those two were useful but nothing more.

"Thanks for the drinks by the way." Elijah thought about the pills they had swallowed before heading out this morning while throwing the empty can into the trash next to them. The mood stabilizers' soapy taste lingered in the back of their tongue, mixed with the artificial pineapple flavor. Remembering them of how little effect they had on them now; just barely keeping them nice enough to evolve in society without killing somebody out of pure boredom. Elijah kept on taking them diligently every morning though. A bad habit, or the addiction more likely.

"No problem, but isn't this your third one of the night?"

"Fourth to be exact," Elijah replied, unwrapping a blue lollipop before plopping it gracefully inside their mouth. "If my gaming addiction doesn't kill me, then diabetes will, honey." Or the meds, but no need to mention that.

It was only a matter of a few seconds before Elijah got bored of just watching the gamers from the back. A condescending snort spilled out of Elijah's mouth as they watched back to where they were sitting a few minutes ago, gamers playing eagerly. How cute. In the eyes of the dark-skinned teenager, they were just a bunch of stupid chattering monkeys.

With a small pat on Opal and Elios's shoulders, they started walking towards the front of the crowd, right behind the two girls who were playing. Jan was still seated, Elijah noticed. Well, nothing really surprising, the girl wasn't that bad of a player per se. They had played against her a long enough time to confirm that. Elijah also noticed that the game had changed into Super Smash Bros now, indicating that Jan was the one who chose it. The brunette always picked this game whenever she was given the chance.

Around the two players, the chatter was still buzzing, somewhat a little weaker than when Elijah was playing.

"Dawn, dude come on, push her off!"

"You have to show me how to do this combo, it's sick!"

"Man, y'all are so lousy! Let me play next, I'll take any of you easy!"

Despite the constant noises behind her, Dawn- an orange-haired girl with a high ponytail- was pretty focused on what was going on the screen. She was used enough to this loud atmosphere that it didn't disturb her anymore. She was so focused in fact, that she didn't notice the two arms snaking around her shoulders, before stilling, circling her from behind.

"Wow. You're pretty good."

She almost dropped the controller out of surprise, as she registered a voice way too close to her ear.

"Careful, don't lose focus 'cause of me now."

Dawn turned her head slightly to the side, only to be met with the sight of Elijah, their chin propped on her left shoulder, smirking at the screen, a lollipop straw hanging from their mouth.

It took Dawn a few seconds to shake the surprise out of her brain.

It had to be the first time she got this close to the individual, and frankly, she didn't know how to react. It was the first time Elijah spoke directly to her, or even got this close. The only time she was remotely close to them was during the DeathRows, and even then there was the one-meter distance between the two chairs they were sitting on.

"Hey."

Dawn was pulled out of her daze, with Elijah's face now a few centimeters away from hers, a little pout on their lips. There was a faint blueish tint on them.

"Say, am I disturbing you ?"

Elijah smelled good, Dawn noticed. Something like polar mint gum or a fresh scent like that. A rush of coolness inside the sugar and sweat-filled atmosphere of the gaming place.

"No!" She answered too quickly. "No, you're not! Why are you asking?"

"Cause your Pikachu is losing."

The game. Right. Dawn didn't even realize that her character had already accumulated a hundred and twenty-five percent of damage.

'Shit, shit, I need to get back on it!' she thought, shifting her focus back on the screen, while trying to ignore Elijah's dark braids on her cheek, or their faint breath hitting the side of her neck. Emphasis on the trying.

Elijah's low voice echoed in her ear, nearly making her lose focus again. "You get distracted way too easily. Maybe that's why you are always second after me at the DeathRows."

Elijah's rude comment made her cheeks burn hot in shame and annoyance. There was no need to remind her that. She was about to respond but suddenly, the two arms squeezed her a little tighter.

"But now that I think about it, you aren't as bad I thought. I'd really like you to win."

"Huh? Why?" Dawn responded while she managed to knock her opponent down the platform.

"One, because I'm a gaming whore and I really want to go against you next," Dawn could almost see Elijah smirking, their calm voice quickly turning playful and loud." But also cause Jan is trash, and I wanna see her lose."

"I heard that bitch. Go fuck yourself." Jan shouted with a smile, flipping Elijah off.

"Love you too, boo!" Elijah blew a kiss to the brunette, while everyone started laughing around them.

Dawn continued playing, but her mind kept on drifting back on the individual still perched on her shoulder, chatting with the audience around them.

Every person inside the Gantz could say that Elijah was a nice and charming person, exuding a certain something scary at the same time. They smiled endearingly to everyone, but the moment their hands landed on a controller, the smile became cruel and unforgivable, coated in sugar and silk, always tying a fluttering knot down Dawn's stomach, as if Elijah was saying, without opening their mouth:

Is this all you are capable of?

Silently coaxing Dawn into playing again. Igniting this competitive blaze inside of her every time she played against them, leaving her drunk in admiration, hate, and expectation to do better, to play better, only to be able to brush Elijah's shadow with her fingertips. Always behind them but never quite there.

Every time she sat next to Elijah, this feeling came back, and even if she tried to restrain herself with all her might, she ended up losing at least sixty dollars every Wednesday.

"Since we are all here, are y'all ready for THE big reveal tonight ?" Opal then said excitedly, her sing-song voice cutting through the incessant chatter.

The redhead's ears perked as the whole room filled with exclamations. She has been waiting for today for months now, just like any respectable gamer that existed. She couldn't wait for it.

They were talking about one of the most awaited gaming events of the decade after all. Better yet, of the century.

The GLITCHYYY Showcase Contest.

For months now, rumors have been spreading on Twitter and Reddit about a new triple-A game that GLITCHYYY was supposedly going to release. No one knew what kind of game it was going to be, but since the company had started making it big in the gaming industry, it had never disappointed, so everyone was super thrilled.

In a matter of seven years, this Japanese video game company had given a new definition of the term "video game", and was getting big in that "Console War" between all the gaming companies. Console, PC, phones, they were everywhere, always proposing newer and better devices and games. Especially in terms of Virtual Reality. With games and consoles that immersed the gamers deeply inside the gameplay, and where all the senses were put into action. The prices for their games and consoles were surprisingly affordable for this quality of gaming. Even the Gantz had acquired two of their VR sets, and they were one of the most used in the arcade.

Though gaming aside, the whole company was a real mystery. They held very few events, and their games were always out for the public when no one was excepting them, causing gamers to go crazy every time.

However, six months ago, something rather "weird" happened.

GLITCHYYY's official website started a countdown on a black screen, with the only inscription in capital blue letters:

CONTEST.

That day, everyone went apeshit. In a matter of minutes, the Internet was suddenly filled with threads and articles of theories and random excited blabbering about how weird the whole thing was, how impatient they were, and so on. Just as the game itself, no one knew what to expect from this contest, but today was finally the day. In a matter of six hours now, the countdown would be finished and everyone would finally be able to see what GLITCHYYY had prepared for them.

"HELL YEAH!" Dawn laughed, arms raising victoriously, a round of applause ringing out all around her. Her name took Jan's place on the dashboard, crowning her with a shiny silver crown.

Jan groaned playfully, high-fiving the red-haired girl, as she stood up to join a friend out to the Dance Dance Revolution platforms on the first floor of the gaming place. Elijah stuck their blue tongue at her as she left, not without Jan responding with an even childish grimace.

"And... Ten minutes it is. Now's my turn."

Dawn's shoulders tensed as she felt Elijah slipping away from her, them sitting right next to her, controller already in hand. A smug smirk already making its way on their face.

"And you? You excited for the GLITCHYYY thing tonight ?"

"Yeah, sure. Don't I look super excited?" They said, eyes scanning the screen, choosing their character.

She watched Elijah lean back on their seat, side glancing at her, nonchalant and smug as always. Behind their glasses, their eyes gleamed with something Dawn couldn't quite decipher.

"So. Ready to play ?"

------------------------------------------

A real monster.

That was Elijah was.

The first rush of adrenaline hit them at full force as the metal bar smashed into the car window, shattering it into a thousand small pieces with a loud burst.

In the dead of night, in an old car junkyard on the other side of town, shattering explosions echoed. A macabre fanfare, accompanied by a sinister laugh. Stronger and quicker, in a frantic rhythm, as if the devil himself had decided to organize a party in this abandoned place.

Elijah was laughing, excitement washing away the fatigue in seconds. The effect of the mood stabilizers had ceased for a while, and they were unleashed. Evacuating all the violence repressed since this morning in a cacophony of laughter and noise. Shards of glass and metal lodged in their gloves and pants, the longer ones sinking into the flesh, with a painful sting, but Elijah didn't care. The adrenaline had taken full possession of their body, so much that nothing more was felt other than the dizzying effect of their rage.

And yet, their endless dull routine- school, games, destroy- would rise again with the sun tomorrow, just as it did for the last five years.

Boring. Boredom. Bored. Elijah looked a the sky, as they were lying on the ground, shiny glass shards surrounding them.

Unbearable.

They needed some fresh stimulation.

Only two hours left to wait.

Hope it's worth it.