Flirting With a Pro Using My Account

The night before our senior graduation trip, my roommate stole the secret gaming smurf I had been hiding for three years.

Top 100 on the server. Every skin unlocked. An account that had solo-killed pro players three times during private scrimmages.

And she was using it to flirt on voice chat until dawn. Using a voice filter. Sending my pictures. Spending my premium currency to buy matching couple skins.

When I confronted her, she just laughed. "You aren't going pro anyway. What's the big deal if I borrow a stacked account for a bit?"

Furious, I tried to change the password. That was when I realized the account was already bound to her phone number.

The next day at the esports resort in Santa Monica, her name was plastered across the lobby's giant screen right next to my ID, branded as an "Academy Team Prospect."

While I stood there paralyzed, glowing text suddenly floated across my vision in thin air.

[Why is the side character throwing a tantrum over a smurf account?]

[Tessa is finally taking back her rightful stage.]

[Zane, hurry up and give your future wife that team jersey!]

Zane?

I stared at the name, stunned. Wasn't that the hotshot mid-laner my boyfriend's pro team had just signed?

I first realized my account had been compromised the night before the trip.

Our dorm looked like a hurricane had ripped through a shipping center. Three suitcases lay open on the floor. Sunscreen, swimsuits, charging cables, and Polaroids were scattered everywhere.

Tessa sat at her desk wearing a headset. Her shoulders shook with giggles.

I didn't pay it much attention until a text message popped up on my phone.

[Your gaming account is being rebound to a new device in a different location. Please confirm if this is you.]

My fingers froze.

The account name was LunarNoCS.

It was the smurf account I had kept hidden for three years. It had a gorgeous win rate, sat comfortably in the Top 100 Challenger tier, and had a maxed-out cosmetic inventory. More importantly, it was the account I used to secretly practice mid-lane match-ups to help my boyfriend, Kieran, with his training.

Kieran was the captain of the Crown esports roster. He trained constantly, and I never wanted to hold him back. So I practiced behind his back, grinding game after game. Losing until my hands shook. Staying up until 3 AM. Waking up the next day to review my VODs and do it all over again.

To me, it wasn't just a burner account. It was the physical proof of every midnight loss and every hard-fought victory.

I immediately opened the game client. Login failed.

The screen read: [Account has been bound to a new phone number.]

A loud ringing filled my ears. Following the sound of giggling, I walked up behind Tessa.

On the spare tablet I usually let her use to watch Netflix, my account was logged in. I hadn't signed out, and the backup email had still been linked. This wasn't a spur-of-the-moment crime. She had been targeting my account for a while.

Her party microphone was still open. She pitched her voice up into a sickly sweet tone. "Are you going to recognize me at the resort tomorrow?"

A lazy male voice responded through her headset. "I'll recognize you. It'd be pretty hard to forget a playstyle like Lunar's."

Tessa smiled even sweeter. "Then you have to bring me a team jacket tomorrow, okay?"

I reached out and ripped the headset off her ears. "Tessa."

She jumped, nearly knocking the tablet off the desk. "Are you crazy? Don't sneak up on people."

I stared dead at her. "Why are you logged into my account?"

Her eyes darted away for a second, but she quickly straightened her posture. "What's wrong with borrowing it? It's not like you're doing anything useful with it."

I tapped the chat history on the screen. The most recent message was a photo she had sent. A girl in a white dress. A side profile. The beach.

It was a picture Kieran had taken of me last summer.

Below it was a text: [If you give me a hug tomorrow, I promise I won't be nervous anymore.]

I let out a harsh, disbelieving laugh. "You stole my account, stole my pictures, and you're catfishing guys online?"

Tessa lunged to grab the tablet back. "Don't make it sound so ugly. It's not catfishing. He's a pro player. I just want to network with people in the industry."

I didn't let go. I kept scrolling up.

Matching skins. Flirty voice notes. Pentakill highlight reels I had edited myself. Screenshots of my practice match reviews. She had even sent a selfie of my wrist.

The guy's contact name was saved as [Zane].

My finger hovered over the screen. Zane. The star mid-laner Crown had just dropped a fortune to sign.

Kieran had mentioned him to me just a few days ago.

"The new kid is pretty arrogant," Kieran had said while peeling an orange for me in his kitchen. "Stay away from him, babe."

I had teased him for being territorial. It wasn't so funny anymore.

Seeing me go quiet, Tessa seemed to gain confidence. "You already have Kieran. Do you really need to hoard this account too? I just want people to look at me for once. Don't be so selfish, Luna."

I opened my mouth to tear into her.

Suddenly, a line of glowing text drifted right across my line of sight.

[Why is the female side character getting so mad? The female lead is just taking back her rightful stage early.]

I froze.

A second later, more text flooded my vision like a live-stream chat.

[The Lunar account was always meant to make Tessa shine.]

[Luna is so greedy. She already has a pro boyfriend and she still wants more?]

[The identity reveal scene at the graduation trip is going to be epic!]

I read the floating words, then looked back at Tessa. She was clutching the tablet, her face twisted in a mask of perfect victimhood. Like I was the one trying to ruin her life.

I suddenly smiled. "Okay."

Tessa blinked, caught off guard.

I slowly set the tablet back down on the desk. "The graduation trip is tomorrow. We'll settle this face-to-face."

Tessa's face changed. "What is that supposed to mean?"

I pulled out my own phone and started screen-recording the chat logs. "It means I'm going to sit back and watch exactly how you use my account to shine."

She lunged to snatch my phone, but I took a step back.

Jenna popped her head over the edge of her top bunk, a sheet mask still plastered to her face. "Who's shining? Did a lightbulb blow out?"

Maddie walked out of the bathroom with a toothbrush hanging out of her mouth. "Are we fighting? Let me rinse first."

I turned the screen around for them to see. They read the logs in utter silence.

Jenna slowly peeled off her sheet mask. "Tessa, did you steal Luna's account?"

Maddie swallowed hard. "And you're using her pictures to hit on a pro player?"

Tessa's eyes immediately welled with tears. "I wasn't hitting on anyone. I just love esports so much. I'm not like Luna. Her boyfriend is a team captain. It's so easy for her to get into the scene."

My voice dropped to ice. "When have I ever used Kieran to get into the scene?"

Tessa bit her lip. "Haven't you? Nobody even knows if you climbed to that rank yourself. Kieran probably duo-queued with you and boosted you the whole way up."

The dorm went dead silent.

I stared her down. "Say that again."

Tessa acted like she had just stumbled onto the ultimate truth. "Am I wrong? How could a girl like you get such a high rank? Your boyfriend carries you every night. It's totally normal."

The holographic comments spiked instantly.

[The female lead speaks the truth!]

[Luna is just a boosted e-girl. Why is she acting like a god?]

[Once Tessa wins on stage tomorrow, Luna won't have anything left to say.]

A sharp ache pierced my chest.

I could handle the stolen account. I could call the police over the stolen photos. But casually writing off three years of my blood, sweat, and tears as a man carrying me to the top?

That was sicker than stealing.

I walked right up to her, forcing her to look up at me. "Tessa, you can steal my login credentials. But you can't steal my mechanics. The game won't play itself for you."

Her face went pale.

I kept going. "You already signed up for the campus showmatch tomorrow, didn't you?"

Panic flashed in her eyes.

I opened our college group chat. Sure enough, she had posted a message half an hour ago.

Tessa: [I'll be playing on my main account to carry everyone to the championship at the showmatch tomorrow night.]

Someone had asked: [What's your main?]

Tessa: [LunarNoCS.]

A string of shocked emojis followed.

[Holy shit, the Top 100 account?]

[Tessa, you've been hiding this?]

[Carry us tomorrow!]

She had even replied with a bashful smiley face.

I shoved my phone in her face. "You claimed my ID. So tomorrow, you better back it up with raw skill."

She shrank back. "Don't push me."

I laughed. "Weren't you the one who stole it?"

Tessa looked up, her eyes completely bloodshot now. "Luna, if you're really that good, just go grind a new account. This one is in my hands now. Whoever's name is on it, owns it."

I nodded slowly. "Remember you said that."

The floating text was still scrolling by.

[The side character is so aggressive.]

[Tessa just wants to be noticed, what did she do wrong?]

[Tomorrow Zane is going to personally welcome Tessa. Luna is going to get humbled so hard.]

I let out a cold laugh. We would see exactly who was getting humbled tomorrow.

The next morning, we boarded the charter bus to Santa Monica.

The graduation trip was a three-day, two-night event organized by the college. Beach bonding, an esports-themed resort, and a massive collegiate showmatch. It sounded like paradise.

If Tessa wasn't glaring daggers at me the entire ride, my happiness would have easily doubled.

She obviously hadn't slept. Even heavy concealer couldn't hide her dark circles. I, on the other hand, had slept beautifully. Even though the phone number had been changed, I had already contacted customer support and submitted my ID and three years of purchase receipts. It just needed time to process.

Tessa thought I was powerless. She spent the entire bus ride furiously typing on her phone. I didn't even have to look to know she was continuing her little charade with Zane.

Halfway through the drive, Kieran texted me.

[On the bus?]

[Yeah.]

He replied instantly. [Getting motion sick?]

[No.]

Kieran: [Then are you thinking about me?]

I couldn't help but smile. [Doesn't Captain Kieran have practice today?]

He sent a photo of the team's training room. Half an iced Americano sat next to his mechanical keyboard. His hand rested on the edge of the desk, veins tracing over his knuckles.

[Five-minute break. Specifically to think about you.]

My ears grew hot. Just as I was about to type a reply, Tessa's snide voice drifted over.

"Must be nice having a pro boyfriend. Checking up on you even on a graduation trip."

Jenna rolled her eyes. "You can just ask your Zane to check up on you."

Maddie didn't miss a beat. "Assuming he can even recognize you."

Tessa's expression soured.

My phone buzzed again. A new friend request.

The note read: [Zane.]

I narrowed my eyes and accepted it.

His first message popped up. [See you tonight?]

I didn't reply.

He sent another. [Or should I call you Lunar?]

My stomach dropped. I took a screenshot and forwarded it straight to Kieran.

Kieran's side went dead quiet for three seconds. Then my screen flashed with an incoming video call.

I answered it. His striking, stoic face filled the screen.

"Babe."

"Yeah?"

He enunciated every single word. "Zane. Added. You?"

Seeing his face practically smoking with jealousy instantly lifted my mood. "Yep."

He took a deep breath. "Ignore him."

I rested my chin in my hand. "But the floating text says he's going to get me into the academy team."

Kieran frowned. "What floating text?"

I paused. Right. He couldn't see the magical novel comments.

The text started flying across my vision again.

[The captain is so salty.]

[But Zane is the official male lead!]

[Wait a minute, Kieran's face is honestly so much better looking though?]

Reading the comments, I suddenly felt a surge of confidence. The so-called plot didn't seem entirely unbreakable.

We arrived at the resort right at four in the afternoon.

The lobby of the esports hotel was massive, lined with rows of high-end gaming rigs. Neon signs bathed the room in a sharp, electric glow. A giant LED screen in the center of the room displayed the roster for tonight's showmatch.

I looked up and saw it immediately.

[Special Guest: Tessa]

[In-Game ID: LunarNoCS]

[Role: Genius Female Mid-Laner]

I stopped in my tracks.

Jenna sucked in a breath. "She has zero shame."

Maddie muttered a colorful curse.

Tessa acted like she couldn't hear us. She had deliberately worn the white sun-jacket from my photos. She even had the exact same hair tie on her wrist.

An event coordinator jogged over with a bright smile. "You must be Tessa. Zane is already here. He gave you a glowing recommendation to the team manager. Pass the verification match tonight, and you'll officially secure an academy scouting trial."

The crowd of students around us immediately exploded.

"Zane? Crown's new mid-laner?"

"Tessa is actually LunarNoCS?"

"An academy trial? She already has one foot in the pro scene!"

The coordinator hung a VIP lanyard around Tessa's neck.

It read: [LunarNoCS - Crown Academy Prospect].

Tessa looked down, tracing the plastic badge with her fingers. Then she looked up at me, keeping her voice low.

"Look at this, Luna. Sometimes if you're a step too slow, what's yours becomes someone else's."

I pulled out my phone, intending to log in and prove her wrong on the spot. But the app flashed a system warning.

[Account is currently under security lockdown. Login disabled.]

Tessa's smile widened. "Don't bother. I already submitted the supplementary security forms. Whoever this account is registered to is the real Lunar."

My grip on my phone tightened.

People in the lobby were starting to call out to her.

"Lunar, you better carry us later!"

"Tessa, how did you keep this a secret for so long?"

"Top 100 mid-laner! Absolute legend!"

With every cheer, a heavy weight sank deeper into my chest. I was standing right here, watching someone else slowly erase my name from the scoreboard.

Footsteps echoed from the lobby entrance.

A group of guys in black esports jerseys walked in. The guy at the front was tall, his jacket unzipped, his eyes lazy and arrogant. The silver Crown logo gleamed on his chest.

It was Zane.

He was holding a spare team jersey in his hand, walking straight toward Tessa.

Tessa's eyes lit up. "Zane..."

The cheering from the crowd nearly took the roof off. The holographic comments were going completely insane.

[Here it comes! The female lead's golden moment!]

[A pro player personally handing over his jacket, I'm screaming.]

[Luna must be dying of jealousy right now hahaha.]

Zane stopped right in front of Tessa. He looked down at her.

A second later, he smirked. "Lunar?"

Tessa blushed deeply and nodded. "Yeah, it's me."

Zane extended the team jersey to her.

Tessa reached her hands out.

My phone screen was still locked on the failed login prompt. Everyone around us was chanting her fake name.

Just as her fingertips brushed the fabric of the jersey, a voice sliced through the noise. It was cold, heavy, and absolutely furious.

"Who gave you permission to touch that?"

I spun around.

Kieran was standing by the entrance, a heavy duffel bag in his hand. His baseball cap was pulled low over his eyes. His black jacket was wrinkled from travel, the zipper totally misaligned. It looked like he had bolted straight from the training room and rushed all the way here.

He walked past everyone and stopped right beside me. He shoved a warm cup of milk tea into my hands.

"It's hot," he murmured.

I took it, completely stunned.

Only then did he lift his gaze to the giant screen. "LunarNoCS. Tessa?"

He let out a low, dark laugh. It wasn't loud, but it silenced the entire lobby.

"That ID has been burned into my memory for three years." He locked eyes with Tessa. His stare was as lethal as a grand finals match point. "Of all the people you could have impersonated, you chose my girlfriend?"

Dead silence.

Tessa's hand froze in midair.

Zane raised an eyebrow. "Captain, you've been hiding her well."

Kieran ignored him. He looked down at me. "She still has the account?"

I nodded.

His expression turned glacial.

Tessa finally snapped out of it. The tears arrived instantly. "Kieran, you can't just help her steal my account just because she's your girlfriend."

Whispers broke out across the crowd.

"Wait, who's the real one?"

"Tessa can log into the account, so it must be hers, right?"

"But the captain literally just said it's his girlfriend's."

Tessa cried harder, looking like the ultimate victim. "Luna, isn't having Kieran enough for you? Why do you have to steal my only opportunity?"

The floating comments rushed to her defense.

[The female lead is so pitiful.]

[Boosted e-girls always act so entitled.]

[Tessa literally has the account on her phone. What proof does Luna have?]

Before I could say a word, Kieran smiled.

He had a beautiful smile. But anyone who knew him understood one thing: the brighter he smiled, the more dangerous he was.

"You can rebind a phone number," Kieran said smoothly. "You can't rebind raw mechanics."

He glanced over at Zane. "Haven't you been trying to track Lunar down for six months?"

Zane lazily pulled the jersey back. "Yeah." He looked at Tessa, the amusement in his eyes fading slightly. "She solo-killed me three times in a private server. I've been holding a grudge ever since."

Tessa's face drained of color. "I'm... I'm not feeling well today."

I stared at her. "That's okay. You were feeling fine when you stole my login."

Maddie let out a loud snort. Jenna started slow-clapping.

The event coordinator realized things were spiraling and quickly changed the rules. Instead of a casual showmatch, they set up an identity verification duel.

A 1v1 solo lane.

Tessa on her so-called "LunarNoCS" account. Me on a brand-new tournament client. Zane would referee.

Kieran stood directly behind my gaming chair. He leaned down. "Nervous?"

I shook my head. "Not at all."

He chuckled softly. "Good. To crush her? It's more than enough."

I placed my fingers on the keyboard. In that moment, all the frustration and injustice vanished. I just wanted to teach Tessa a lesson.

You can steal an account. You can buy skins. You can steal photos.

But you cannot steal the muscle memory someone carved into their hands night after grueling night.

Tessa locked in an execution-heavy assassin. She had clearly memorized my match history and knew I played that champion often.

But picking the champion doesn't mean you know how to play them.

I locked in an aggressive, lane-bully mage.

The moment the game loaded, a massive crowd gathered behind our monitors. Tessa's hands were visibly shaking.

Level one, she missed her first minion. Then she missed her second.

The guys watching behind us started muttering. "A Top 100 player missing basic CS like that? Kind of tragic."

Tessa's face tightened. She suddenly looked up at the coordinator, her eyes glassy. "I'm really nervous. Can I use my own headphones? The crowd is too loud."

The coordinator opened his mouth to object, but someone in the crowd defended her. "She's being forced to prove herself on the spot, obviously she's nervous. It's just headphones, not an aimbot."

Tessa immediately slipped her own noise-canceling headset over her ears.

My brow twitched.

Level two. I heard a very faint male voice bleeding from her headset. "Play patient. Go in for a trade at level two."

I heard it. Kieran heard it, too. His eyes instantly darkened.

I didn't call it out. She wanted to put on a show? I would let her perform.

Following the voice, she pushed forward to pressure me. I took a deliberate half-step back. Thinking I was scared, she blew all her cooldowns at once.

A second later, I turned, dodged, and locked her down.

Auto-attack. Ignite. Wave management.

First blood.

The entire room let out a collective "Whoa."

Tessa went totally pale.

The voice leaking from her headset sounded panicked now. "Why didn't you dodge?"

Tessa hissed under her breath. "How was I supposed to know her burst was that high?"

I tapped my keyboard lightly. "Tessa."

She looked up at me.

I gave her a tight smile. "A booster can talk you through it. But your hand is still the one on the mouse."

The holographic chat froze for a split second. Then it exploded.

[She hired an Elo-booster?!]

[Wait, the female lead is a fraud?]

[Hold up, how did Luna even hear that?]

Zane walked over, grabbed Tessa's headset, and pulled it off her head.

A frantic male voice echoed loudly out of the earpieces. "Hello? Can you hear me? Stop going in by yourself"

Dead silence in the lobby.

The last ounce of color vanished from Tessa's face.

"Pause the match," Kieran commanded. He looked at the coordinator. "Do we really need to keep verifying?"

The staff confiscated Tessa's tablet and headset.

They quickly pulled up the backend logs. She hadn't just stolen my account. She had contacted an Elo-booster in advance, paying him to remotely dictate her every move during the showmatch.

The chat logs were explicitly clear.

[As long as I survive the verification duel tonight, I'll get the Crown Academy tryout.]

[Luna won't do anything about the account anyway. She doesn't have the guts to make a scene.]

The lobby broke out in an uproar.

Tessa sobbed, gasping for air. "I just wanted to prove myself so badly!"

Jenna scoffed. "Prove that you don't know how to last-hit a minion?"

Maddie twisted the knife. "You suck at the game, and you suck at being a decent person."

Tessa buried her face in her hands. "You're all bullying me."

I stared at her. "Tessa, you didn't want to prove yourself. You just wanted to rip off someone else's hard work and wear it as your own."

She snapped her head up, her eyes venomous. "Luna, stop acting so holy. Who knows if your account is even legit? Everyone knows Kieran probably boosted you."

The room went quiet again. It was the last bucket of dirty water she had left to throw. And the most disgusting one.

Some people in the crowd started to murmur in agreement.

"I mean, it's not impossible..."

"She's the captain's girlfriend. Getting carried by a pro is pretty standard."

"The stats on that account are insanely high for a normal player."

The floating comments flared back to life.

[Exactly! Why does Luna get a free pass?]

[Tessa was wrong to steal, but Luna isn't necessarily innocent either.]

[Boosted e-girls getting carried by their boyfriends happens all the time.]

My hands curled into tight fists. Kieran took a breath to speak, but I stopped him.

"Don't talk for me."

He looked down at me, pausing.

I turned to the coordinator. "Aren't you missing a mid-laner for the main event tomorrow?"

The coordinator blinked.

"I'll play," I said. "Kieran won't shot-call. He won't be on stage. He won't even touch a headset."

I looked right at Tessa. "You think I got carried? Then I'll let everyone watch. Let's see if I actually know how to play."

After the scene in the lobby, our college counselor arrived. Tessa was dragged into a conference room.

I thought she would finally shut up. But at ten o'clock that night, she posted a massive essay on the campus forum and the college gaming boards.

The headline was glaring: [I admit I borrowed an account, but Luna is no saint either.]

It was a mix of half-truths and lies. She admitted to logging in, but claimed I had offered to let her borrow it.

She wrote:

[Luna always portrays herself as this gaming god, but her boyfriend is the captain of Crown. We all know how she really got those ranks.]

[I'm just a normal girl with no connections, so they teamed up to bully me.]

The comment section exploded.

[Playing the victim after stealing an account?]

[But honestly, a pro player's girlfriend being boosted is totally believable.]

[We'll see at the showmatch tomorrow. She'll get exposed if she sucks.]

[Pro groupies need to stay out of the scene.]

I stared at the screen, a heavy weight pressing down on my chest. I didn't want to cry when my account was stolen. I didn't want to cry when the login was changed.

But seeing words like "boosted," "carried," and "groupie" made my eyes burn.

All those nights I stayed up grinding match-ups. All those early mornings where my hands cramped but I refused to log off. Reduced to nothing but a byproduct of a man's success.

When Kieran knocked on my hotel door, I was sitting on the edge of the bed, staring blankly at the wall.

He was holding a plastic bag filled with throat lozenges, eye drops, chocolate, and a bottle of warm milk. He set the bag down and crouched in front of me.

"You upset?"

I looked away. "No."

He didn't call my bluff. He just reached out and gently brushed his fingers against mine. "Luna."

"Yeah?"

"I won't say a single word tomorrow."

I looked back at him, surprised. His eyes were deeply serious.

"I'll sit at the caster's desk," he said softly. "You play your own game. They say you rely on me? Then you beat them so badly they never open their mouths again."

My nose stung. "What if I play badly?"

Kieran smiled faintly. "Then it doesn't matter. But I know you won't."

He paused, his voice dropping to a gentle murmur. "I believe in you more than you believe in yourself."

The floating comments went dead quiet for a few seconds before a wave of text rolled through.

[Wait, I'm actually crying.]

[He doesn't want to win for her. He wants to watch her win for herself.]

[Who said he was just blindly obsessed with her? He knows exactly how to love her.]

I looked down, finally letting a real smile break through.

"Then tomorrow," I whispered. "You just wait for me to win."