While I was on the brink of a panic attack due to social anxiety, Marius quickly sensed my unease and withdrew, offering an understanding smile.

"No worries, man. We're all a bit different."

A wave of relief swept over me as I nodded in agreement.
Most of the time people would get angry over me or start assuming that I'm arrogant for not shaking hands, but it really wasn't about that.

I just felt uncomfortable with it since I was very sensitive and also had a hygiene compulsory, making me never leave the house unless carrying disinfectant spray with me.
Spoiler alert; People watching you desinfecting your hands right after shaking theirs, doesn't help with making friends either...

We engaged in a bit more conversation as Marius shared insights about the teams dynamic.

“...Veezer is our shot caller, he's doing most of the talking..."
"...Sadly not everything he says is... quiet appropriate. But he does a great job at guiding our team to victory.”

I nodded while glansing at Janosch who was still arguing with Omul, the jungler.
So he's basically a doubled edged sword – one side's soaked with poison, the other's bathed in holy water, huh?

As we kept chatting, Nick approached us. “So, are you guys ready?”

I guessed that this question was mostly addressed towards me, since I was still checking my settings and warming up my fingers in a custom game.

„Yea, I think so.“ My voice was low and my throat felt as dry as my sex life.

When was the last time I had drank something today?

In that moment, my head began to ache and I held it with both my hands, hoping it would cure the pain somehow.

“You should get some liquid flowing,” Nick said in a concerned tone, as an ice-cold aura spread around me.

Perfectly cooled goodness tried seducing me in the form of a Red Bull can being held towards my face.
Well, that's how most people would have seen it, but energy drinks weren't for me – especially cooled ones didn't do any good.
After about 30 minutes, the positive effects would vanish, leaving behind an uncomfortable shiver in my body.

So I rather preferred to drink tea. Warm tea only.
But I couldn't except to get that in the world of e-sports...
With a slight sigh, I was about to take the offered drink from Nick when he stared at me thoughtfully.

“Nevermind, water would be much better for you right now. Or do you like tea, perhaps?”

I raised my head in shock – didn't expect that. He really took his job as a manager serious.

“Are you alright?”, he asked worriedly as I stared into nothingness.

“Y-yea, tea sounds great. But do you even have that here?”

“Sure, I'm prepared for everything!” He winked at me and left the room for a moment until arriving with a glass of water and a cup of tea. “I hope melissa is fine.”

“Thank you.” Filled with gratitude, I nodded from the bottom of my heart.

Did he even get money for doing this?
From what I've heared, the prize money of such tournaments would only be split up amongst the players and the coach, which didn't even exist for this team.

Sometimes the organization would take a small piece of it aswell, but since I didn't sign a contract or anything for this team, I would just get my full share.
So chances were high that Nick was getting nothing out of is, but still he acted with such passion and genuine care.

He looked at me while rubbing his chin with a mischievous grin.

"That's 5€ then!" He gazed at me until I gave him a soft smile, which he was satisfied with.

“Just kidding!” He said, just to ensure I wouldn't get it twisted.

I hoped that he knew, the great job he was doing as a manager was far more worth than that.

As Nick looked at the other players, his expression suddenly shifted from excitement to concern.

"Guys, have you seen Gregor? The scrim's starting in 5 minutes!" There was an unusual seriousness in his tone and a collective groan followed by the others.

Marius sighed, shaking his head. "Not again... This guy is something else."

“Maybe he's just on the toilet.” Despite the legitimacy of his thought, Finn sounded annoyed.

Disappointed, Nick nodded his head. “I'm gonna go and get him, you all stay put!” He tried his best to appear composed, but unlike usual, he seemed so agitated that even I noticed something was wrong, and I barely even knew him.

"Soooo, I assume this isn't the first time?“ Even though I didn't want to accuse anyone, the wide response of negativity gave me a certain feeling.
In amateur leagues this was pretty normal – there always was some this one guy that didn't get his shit together.

Sometimes there were even more than one of them, which had a snowballing effect, eventually causing everyone to lose motivation for the team until it silently fell apart.
The lower you went in divisions, the more likely it was to get one of these 'saboteurs' in your team.

"Yeah, we've had our fair share of 4v5 scrims,” Marius seemed pretty mad, and I could definitely relate to it.

I'd be the last one lashing out for someone, but if they always showed up late on a set date, I couldn't promise anything.
In the meantime we had already joined the scrim's lobby, waiting for Nick to return with Gregor, hopefully.

Just now I had realized that the ADC hadn't been here ever since I arrived.
I was so busy with everything that had happened that I didn't even bother.

Unfortunately, he wouldn't be much of an upgrade for 'the squad,' given his unreliability.
Well, I shouldn't be too quick to judge though–after all they made it up to the semi-finals of a very big tournament.

Even if the competition wasn't as fierce due to the limited participation conditions, it still meant something.
After about 10 minutes and countless messages from our scrim opponent, who was upset about the delay, Nick came running into the room, bursting through the door.

“I couldn't find him! I-I'm so sorry...”

Everyone looked at him, but nobody was mad. Not at him at least.

“It's not your fault, we told him so many times...” Janosch sighed in depression and started typing to the other team.

“So, I'm gonna cancel...”

Marius laid back in his chair, as if he had just surrendered. “I just hope he will be here tomorrow...”

Suddenly an unpleasant feeling spread through me.

If he wouldn't show up to the official match...
...then It would have all been for nothing.

I would have worked my ass off just to fly around the country... For nothing?!

Just thinking about the possibility of it filled me with sadness and sorrow.
Depressed I let my head sink into my hands, laying down on the desk.

How was I going to fall asleep tonight, knowing that the unknown awaited me?