Zoey Parker's jaw dropped. "What?!"
No way. This wasn't happening.
She'd camped out in Alex "Yin" Carter's Twitch stream all night, making sure he didn't touch Who's the Daddy. How was he suddenly streaming it today?
Panic surged. It couldn't be her game, could it?
…Who else would name a game something as unhinged as Who's the Daddy? Only Gus Shepard.
Zoey shot up from her chair in the WindyPeak Games Inc. conference room. "Uh, meeting's over. Done!" she blurted, bolting out like a cat dodging a bath.
Gus, Luke Bennett, and Jake Rivers exchanged baffled looks. Chloe Quinn, equally confused, shrugged. "Guess… we're done?"
She'd never seen Zoey act this weird. The team shuffled out, half-amused, half-lost.
Meanwhile, Zoey was spiraling. "Not my game… please, not my game…" she muttered, racing to her office. "I'll trade Gus's love life for this flop, universe, deal?"
Back at her desk, she opened Twitch. Yin's stream was live, and there it was: Who's the Daddy's chaotic title screen.
Zoey's heart sank. Gus was never staying single at this rate.
Yin adjusted his webcam, grinning at his audience. "Yo, we're live! Thanks for the bits, and don't forget to rep those fan badges. Today, we're diving into a new game from the Cat Leo crew. Saw PJ's clip on TikTok last night—looked wild, so I dragged ShuBro along for the ride."
The chat erupted:
"Haha, Yin caught PJ's clip!"
"PJ's video's at 100k likes already."
"That stream was comedy gold."
"Suggesting Yin teams up was a genius call."
"I was there, nearly died laughing."
"WindyPeak's just built different."
"Their games are pure chaos art."
"Can't wait for Yin's take."
"Sending a sub for this!"
"Yin's about to lose it."
Zoey's head buzzed. PJ Larson? She thought he was a nobody who'd crashed and burned. Wait—no, that was some sci-fi movie guy. Who was this dude?
She yanked out her phone, searching frantically. "PJ Larson, real name Quentin Walsh, signed Rifle Elite streamer, Twitch FPS zone champ…"
Her face flushed red. She slammed her desk. Bang!
"Damn it!" Zoey yelled, slipping into a faint Seattle drawl. "This gun-toting streamer can't stick to his FPS games? Why's he playing my goofy mess?!"
"What's fun about this janky nonsense? Gus, you owe me!"
Zoey was on the verge of a meltdown, tears welling up. She'd watched Yin's stream like a hawk, barely blinking, scouring Twitch's gaming section to ensure no one played their game. She didn't sleep until she was sure.
But PJ, a Rifle Elite pro, had snuck in and streamed it. No wonder they hit 2,000 sales!
It took ten minutes to calm down. She sipped water, muttering, "It's fine, Zoey. You got this."
Petite but resilient, Zoey's knack for bouncing back kicked in. "The game's a glitchy disaster. A big streamer like Yin? He'll roast this awful art style. If he trashes it, sales tank. There's still hope!"
"Keep it together!" she pep-talked herself, focusing on Yin's stream.
Yin launched the game and burst out laughing. "Man, this art's next-level bonkers. So good!"
Zoey's stomach dropped. The butterfly effect from PJ's stream was about to bury her dreams at WindyPeak.
In the voice chat, a voice with a slight Portland twang chimed in. "Yo, Yin, you hear me?"
"Loud and clear, ShuBro. Let's do this," Yin replied.
ShuBro, aka "The Hype King," was an old gaming buddy of Yin's, nicknamed "Tree" or "Cui" by fans for his infectious energy.
They joined a lobby, flipping a virtual coin for roles. Yin got the kid, tasked with causing chaos. ShuBro was the dad, stuck babysitting.
Yin, having seen PJ's clip, thought he was ready for the game's absurdity. But the janky character models still floored him.
"This is unhinged," he laughed, diving in. "Alright, Dad! Your boy Yin's awake and ready to wreak havoc!"
Yin's kid character leapt from the crib, bouncing around the room. And then—jackpot. A plate of sliced fruit sat on a table, a fruit knife beside it.
"Holy crap, a weapon!" Yin crowed. "Dad, check this out!"
ShuBro's dad character burst in. "Yo, Yin, come give your old man a hug—"
Before he finished, Yin's kid fumbled the knife. It flew, smacking ShuBro's character square in the forehead.
The stream went silent.
Yin froze, then choked out, "Well, damn."
"A real gamer doesn't play it safe!" he declared, milking the moment. "We go big or go home!"