Leon heard the doorbell ring, a polite, cheerful chime that sounded like a death knell.

He heard his mom's welcoming voice, the happy, excited yapping of Gaffer, and then a voice he had only ever heard through a phone or in his head.

"It's so lovely to meet you, Mrs. Couch," Maya's voice, bright and clear, drifted up the stairs.

"I'm Maya. I work with Ethan."

Work with Ethan?

He was a shelf-stacker. She was a secret football manager who lived in a glass palace. It was the understatement of the century.

He scrambled to make himself presentable, threw on a clean hoodie, and took a deep, steadying breath.

You've faced down a Premier League legend and a mind-reading supervillain, he told himself.

You can handle this.

He walked down the stairs, trying to project an aura of cool, casual confidence he was a million miles away from feeling.

Maya was in the living room, effortlessly charming his parents and giving Gaffer a belly rub.

She looked up as he entered, her eyes sparkling with a familiar, teasing amusement.

"There he is," she said, her smile widening.

"The Gaffer himself. I was just telling your lovely parents what a tactical genius you are with a price gun."

"Maya," he said, his voice a little shaky. "What... what are you doing here?"

"My brother had a last-minute business meeting in the area," she explained with a casual shrug, as if it were the most normal thing in the world.

"I tagged along. And I remembered you said you had a big match this weekend. I figured you might need a final, in-person 'tactical debriefing'. Plus, my driver was hungry."

She gestured to the woman in the suit, who was now standing awkwardly in the hallway, looking completely out of place in their cozy, slightly cluttered home.

His dad, ever the gracious host, just beamed.

"Well, you're all very welcome! We were just about to have dinner. It's only shepherd's pie, but there's plenty to go around!"

What followed was the most surreal, wonderful, and utterly bizarre evening of Ethan's life. He sat at his own dinner table, with his family, his best friend's virtual ghost in his team, a secret back door to the game's source code, a life-changing wager in his future... and his beautiful, brilliant, and very, very rich rival, who was currently arguing with his dad about the merits of a 4-4-2 formation versus a classic wooden train set.

Maya was a natural. She charmed his mom with stories about her own family.

She impressed his dad with her sharp, analytical mind.

And she absolutely won over Sarah, who had found a kindred spirit in another smart, ambitious young woman.

After dinner, as his parents were cleaning up, Ethan found himself alone with Maya on the small back porch.

"Your family is amazing," she said, her voice soft and genuine.

"They're a bit crazy, but they're the best," he said. "So, you didn't really come all this way just to tell me my tactics are terrible, did you?"

She laughed. "No. I came to see if you were okay. After I saw that video Guru posted... it was a low blow. I wanted to make sure the 'Gaffer' was still in one piece."

Her simple, honest concern was a feeling more profound than any tactical insight. "I'm fine," he said, a genuine, grateful smile on his face. "In fact, I'm better than fine. I'm motivated."

"Good," she said, her own smile matching his.

"Because I'm looking forward to our rematch in the cup. And this time, my Maestro will be ready for your magic."

The visit was a strange, brilliant, and welcome distraction.

The next day, Ethan walked into his shift at CostMart feeling like a new man.

He had a secret ally, a powerful motivation, and a clear, unshakeable sense of purpose.

He spent his earnings for the week on two things. First, a new, top-of-the-line smartphone, a sleek, powerful device that felt less like a luxury and more like a necessary tool for his burgeoning business empire.

And second, a large, celebratory pizza, which he took to a celebratory "tactical debriefing" with Maya after their shift. This time, it was a date.

.......

The championship trophy gleamed on Ethan's virtual desk, a constant, silent testament to the impossible season they had just completed.

Promotion to the Championship was secured.

They were the kings of League One. For a few glorious days after the title-deciding match against Maya's Nova Athletic, the virtual world of Apex United was a place of pure, unadulterated joy.

The live stream of the final match had been a sensation, peaking at over 20,000 viewers.

His YouTube channel had exploded, his subscriber count now a staggering 75,000.

The ad revenue was pouring in, a steady, life-altering stream of real-world money that was turning his family's dream of 'The Gaffer's Dugout' into a tangible, achievable plan.

Life was, for the first time, perfect.

He logged into the pod for the first official pre-season team meeting of the new era.

It was time to prepare for the Championship, a new, much harder challenge.

He appeared in the briefing room. His players, their avatars now adorned with a small, golden "League One Champions" patch on their sleeves, were in high spirits.

"Morning, gaffer!" David Kerrigan's voice boomed, his usual chaotic energy turned up to eleven.

"So, the Championship, eh? Bigger stadiums, better players... think they're ready for the 'Kerrigan Express'?"

"I think the question is whether the 'Kerrigan Express' is ready to track back and defend against actual, proper professional wingers," Grant Hanley grunted, but there was a proud, happy glint in his eye.

The room filled with easy, confident laughter.

"Alright, settle down, you champions," Ethan said, a wide, proud grin on his face.

"Enjoy this feeling. You've earned it. But our work is just getting started. The Championship is a different beast. We're the new kids on the block again. We're the underdogs. And that's exactly where we want to be."

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